Selling a bike can be just as difficult and annoying as buying one. The cost of advertising can eat into the selling price, buyers promise to turn up but never do, would-be thieves are ready and willing to hijack the bike, and when a good prospect finally turns up, he often only wants the bike for a ridiculously small sum, quoting any number of imaginary faults and waving the UMG around as if it was some kind of definitive bible. Which, of course, it is, in its way.
The starting point, then, is to price the bike somewhat higher than you really want but not so high as to turn everyone off. Study dealer prices, and start off 10% below them (which is usually what they will sell them for, anyway), willing to go down to whatever level the market decides on. If you have ten or so telephone calls within minutes of the advert then it's likely you're close to the market price; if there's only one punter or even none then it's way too high.
The latter's true only insofar if you advertise in the right place, which varies depending on the kind of machine you want to sell, the type of area you live in and what kind of dosh we're talking about. Serious motorcycles going for serious money need to be advertised to a national audience, whereas old hacks or commuters are best advertised locally. Unless you live in an area where the local paper carries a large selection of used motorcycles, which would indicate you can flog serious bikes there, as well.
However, be warned, many local papers, despite large circulations, only carry a tiny number of used bikes. In such circumstances it's likely that the response will be very poor and loads of dosh can be wasted paying for the advert. Then again, there's often one day of the week, usually Friday, when the motorcycle section's relatively large and it may be worth advertising then - unfortunately, the only way to find out is to give it a whirl. The major advantage of local papers being that the punters don't live too far away and a deal can quickly be concluded.
If you're not in a hurry, then it's possible to advertise for little or no cost. Several motorcycle mag's carry free-ad sections but as they are monthly it can take as much as two months for the advert to appear. Most of the readers of such titles know what they're doing and simply won't pay over the odds but they probably will quite happily rush across the country in search of that elusive bargain or rather obscure but nevertheless interesting motorcycle. You usually have to buy the magazine to get the free-ad form but at least there is a bit of light entertainment for the dosh. Obviously, the glossier the magazine the less likely are the readers to be interested in old hacks; and vice versa.
A quicker but obviously less focused option's, to go for one of the weekly local free-advertising rags, which sell everything from old clothes to used motorcycles. As it costs nothing there's nothing to lose but the response is often very poor for the expensive end of the market, although useful for the commuter stuff. Again, you have to buy the paper to get the advertising form but it's quite interesting to scan the various sections for all kinds of bargains (and you can also try to off-load various junk that has been taking up space for years).
One rarely employed trick is to stick a large advert on the motorcycle saying that it's for sale and leave it parked up in the centre of town where lots of potential purchasers (and thieves, use lots of locks) will see it. Most people interested in buying a bike will, anyway, have a quick gander at the cycles parked up in the bike bays, just out of sheer interest.
There's also the postcard in a shop window scenario, although most people who scan such places are by the very nature of things looking for a bargain. Better still, if the local motorcycle accessory store carries adverts, stick one in there because you get directly to all the local enthusiasts. This is often a very cheap way of selling bikes very quickly and, if nothing else, worth trying straight away - you could be surprised at the result.
Of course, the main source of used bikes is still Motorcycle News, with its massive Bike Mart section, although Bike Trader is becoming popular, with its layout of adverts accompanied by photo's. MCN still has the edge on the back of its massive circulation, the fact that it's weekly and takes adverts over the phone shortly before going to press. For serious bikes it really can't be beaten but response can be somewhat variable. The good deals sell very fast, the overpriced stuff tends to take a lot longer - but don't despair if the initial response is poor, a lot of bargain hunters wait for a week or two so they can make a relatively low offer when the seller has begun to become a little bit desperate.
Exchange and Mart, and the Auto-Trader style magazines offer weekly access to huge numbers of car drivers, and not much else - motorcyclists tend to flick through them in newsagents and only buy them if there's an outstanding bargain available. Use if the bike's likely to appeal to cagers. My own experiences of selling low end bikes through them have invariably turned up low but adequate offers from those lovely back street merchants (some mostly involved in the auto world).
Having found the right place to advertise, it's important that the advert bears some relationship to the reality of the condition of the bike up for grabs. Slight exaggeration is expected but don't try to pass off an old dog as immaculate, as someone who's rushed across the country to view it will more likely want to hit you than hand over any dosh. Some people actually understate the condition of their machine, lose out on a lot of potential punters but sell quickly to the first guy to turn up. I went to see one XS650 that the owner had done 60,000 miles on and upgraded to a low mileage import - I thought the shiny machine in his drive was the import, but it was actually the high miler! Yes, I bought it.
Some terms have almost become meaningless and it's better to use unusual words to describe the machine - superb, average, slightly faded, rat runner, etc. Age, mileage, fsh (if available), the amount demanded and the area you live are all important. An excess of accessories may help sell the bike but don't add much value to it (so take them off if they will fit on your next machine).
Some general tidying of the machine to bring out its best face is mandatory. Difficult if it's used for everyday commuting because the slightest bit of bad weather will have it looking like a dog again, especially old Jap's which need lots of TLC to keep their shine.
Consumables should be able to get the machine out of the street (fit secondhand stuff if it's really worn out). Patches of rust should be removed and painted over. A new MOT done if the old one's about to run out. Make it easy for the punter to accept and not have him thinking of all the hassle and expense involved in putting it right. On the other hand, if you're really sick to death of the old heap, can't be bothered any more (know the feeling?) then sell it off cheap and be done with it!
If you're selling a bike that's about to die a death get rid of it through a dealer (see later). Don't, please, sell something with the forks or frame about to break up, as killing or maiming the new owner isn't a good idea. Some people insist that there's nothing wrong with passing off a bike with an engine that's about to seize, but one way or another it'll catch up with you eventually. Just think how you'd feel if the same nastiness came with your next purchase!
It's important that you use a telephone number in the advert. Few people will make the journey unless they know the machine's still for sale. If you don't have a telephone, persuade a friend to let you use their's but give a time in the advert when you'll actually be there. The vast majority of people don't want to deal with anyone other than the owner and it often looks very suspicious if they are asked to leave their phone number or just given general information.
The problem of thieves looms large at this point. If you can, park the bike in the house with a couple of locks around it! There have been cases of thieves taking out the front door to get at the machine! Also take the guy's phone number and ring him back (of course, he might be working out of a public telephone call box, so ring a couple of hours later and if it turns out to be fake then sleep next to the machine or get a vicious dog in for the next few nights!).
Insist any potential purchaser brings a couple of forms of ID with him, that will be left at the house during the test ride. There's no way anyone's going to buy a bike without a test ride, so you'll usually end up on the pillion. Some thieves have knocked the owner off and sped off into the distance! Be ever vigilant. Don't be taken in by offers of leaving another vehicle as security - this might be nicked as well. Or even leaving a friend, as they might hit you and do a runner. A nasty old world, but the vast majority of people who turn up are relatively honest and really do want to hand over a bundle of cash for your pride and joy.
Lots of people who ring up have no intention of turning up, but are too shy to tell you this, will make a promise and not keep it. This is frustrating but it pays to keep your cool and not start ranting and raving at potential customers. Some will even insist that you ride over to their house - not a bad idea (as long as the bike isn't going to blow up!), but phone them back to check you're not going on a wild goose chase. Worse still, we've heard of one example where the rider's house was robbed whilst he was out!
Prospective purchasers want to do all kind of things to your pride and joy. Some insist on taking the spark plugs out, others gently tap away with hammers over the chassis and some even want to test the motor by doing a 100 yard wheelie. Obviously, people have to check the bike over but make sure that they don't damage it. We've heard of a couple of examples of spark plug threads being stripped! And one guy got so carried away with the hammer routine he knocked a bloody big dent in a perfectly good petrol tank. Welcome to the war-zone.
If all goes well, the bargaining can start. Faults will be quoted, which may or may not exist. Argue back that the price has already been adjusted to include them. When an offer's made before doing anything make sure the punter has either an hefty deposit or all the money on him. A cheque backed up with a card is just about acceptable for the deposit, but cash is the only thing to go for unless he's willing to wait until a cheque has actually cleared through the bank (even building society cheques, which take longer) before handing over any doc's or the machine. Haggle over the final price - saying that other potential purchasers are on their way helps. You're expected to accept an offer, it's just the way things are.
If the deal goes down make sure the change of ownership form's filled in on the logbook - otherwise the cops will send you his speeding tickets, and god knows what else. On the receipt write sold as seen (not sold for spares unless you've agreed this). Basically, the only comeback in a private sale's violence (unless you've falsely described the machine in the advert), though conceivably you could piss someone off so much that he takes you to court.
If you get nowhere on the private market or are desperate for a quick infusion of money then the only place left to go is to the dealer. This is much easier, but by no means straightforward, if you want to trade in for a new or newer machine that costs a lot more than the current bike.
The awkwardness comes not so much from valuing the worth of the machine you want to trade in but the street price of the bike for sale, rather than the sticker price, which is often both imaginary and illusionary. Both the prices of new and secondhand machines are highly inflated so that a reasonable sounding trade-in value can be given.
Take a new bike that retails for £6000 plus £350 on-the-road charges. The latter's the first to go in any deal involving cash, almost every dealer in the country will drop it. How low he'll go on the retail price depends on any number of factors - availability, demand, popularity, cash flow, commission, etc. But if you were paying cash to one of the big discounters, you could walk out with the machine for as little as five grand.
If you're trading in then the price of the bike's £6350, no matter how much you mutter about what the UMG says. However, if your bike's worth £1500 in the private market, the dealer may match that price or even better it. Let's say he agrees on £1750 after a bit of hard bartering, which means you pay £4600 - and perhaps you think the dealer's not such a bad chap after all. But if the cash value of the new bike's only £5000, that means your trade-in value's only really £400!
The same strategy applies if you want to trade in for a more expensive secondhand bike, the sticker prices are hugely inflated from what you'd pay in a cash deal (anything from 10 to 50%). It's easy to spot when something's way out of line by comparing the cash price of a discounted new bike with the sticker price of a one year old in dealers (sometimes even in the same dealer). The latter often more than the former! The solution's to find out the real cash value of the bike you want to trade up to. MCN's small display ad's are the best bet for new, discounted bike prices.
If you thought all that was complex enough, consider the effect of finance rates on the amount of money lost in a deal. One of the reasons that sticker prices are so high is that dealers can offer zero or low finance deals. In such circumstances they will try to get you to accept a poor trade-in deal on the back of all the money you'd save in finance payments. But this is nonsensical given the previous reasoning. You should be able to get a high trade-in value and low finance rate, but only if you're persistent and bloody minded!
Getting a dealer to pay cash is even more fun. You can point (innocently!) to the inflated sticker prices for similar machines to your own. The dealer will say the engine sounds naff, the chassis is worn out and maybe bent, and there's not much demand for them, these days. If he offers £750 it means he may pay as much as twice that. Don't take the first offer, check out a few dealers - that's about the only bargaining chip you have!
Oh yes, it's much easier to sell a bike in April than in October. And if you're not desperate hold out for a decent price. Keep trying different ways of selling the bike, eventually someone will turn up and hand over a reasonable amount of dosh. Patience pays, as every motorcycle dealer in the country knows.
Mark Western