How many miles? Has it been sitting for long? How does it run/ride? Will it need tires right away? For $2400, that thing had better be ready to ride.

 

KBB retail is $2,005 in t his area. Of course, that's in perfect shape. Given the premium used bikes are going for, it's not a horrible deal, but it's not a great deal.

Do you have mechanical skills? Any way you look at it, the bike's 22 years old. I would look for something newer.

 

It has 18000 miles and looks perfect from the pictures. He rides the bike and it hasn't sat up. We live several hours away from each other and he has offered to ride it half way so I can look at it so it must ride good and not have an issues that keep it from running OK.

Thanks for the advice.

Charles

 

See if you can found out how long this owner has had the bike and what he has done to it.
Have the carbs been rebuilt?
Has he replaced the stator and/or regulator/rectifier?

These are common issues that those of us with these bikes have to deal with, but do your self a favor.... Go over to the Technical Forum. There are guys there (like TubesRock :wink: ) that know alot about how to work on these bikes and are all to happy to help the rest of us out. There is a lot of knowledge there, so it might give you some back ground to help when negotiating with the owner

 

They're good solid bikes and have a lot more torque and HP than their newer brethren. If' its been decently taken care of, you'll likely not have any problems with it.

The price seems high to me (I'd like 1500 to 2000) but I guess bike prices are kinda high this summer due to gas freak-out.

 

maybe it's not such a bad deal - here's a couple from ebay:
$2500
$3300
$2400
$3200+

 

I loved my 86 VT700C. Had it for 2 years. There are some nice things about that year - 6th speed overdrive (or 5th), valves don't need adjusting, what else....

Good bike. Price seems high, but who knows.

- Dan

 

Thanks for all the info. I think I am going to buy it. Everything I read about that year model seems to be good. I had read about the extra HP and couldn't beleive it. This will be my first and I am learning about them as I go but I just don't understand why the new 750's don't produce more HP.

Thanks again for the info.

Charles

 

These are great bikes - and I've seen a couple of these bikes go for about this price on eBay. If only the bike has been well taken care of, you should enjoy it for a long time. It also has timeless styling so you will get a lot of compliments on the bike

 

Thanks for all the info. I think I am going to buy it. Everything I read about that year model seems to be good. I had read about the extra HP and couldn't beleive it. This will be my first and I am learning about them as I go but I just don't understand why the new 750's don't produce more HP.

Thanks again for the info.

Charles

I may be alone on this, but I think the new ones don't produce the same power because frankly, it's not necessary. It's fun, but not needed. In my experience, if you cut the redline in half on that 700 it'd still be enough to get around. Between 4k and 5k the engine starts to transition between bike and airplane; and there's still another grand before you hit the powerband.

HOWEVER, if you want the near 60mpg the bike's capable of, play it like a Harley and chug it everywhere. Just remember it may make funny noises under 2k (AKA 5th gear and 25mph) and keep extra spark plugs handy. Autozone sells the NGK plugs it takes.

EDIT: If you're concerned about mechanical issues, I can say that mine, with limited maintenance, has lived through multiple new-rider laydowns and a deer hit, with no needed engine repairs. That's with either 23,000 miles or 123,000 miles (original odometer and the title says it's not accurate = rollover?). I do occasionally have a loose bolt vibrate off...

 

I picked up my '83 750 for less than 1k, but it NEEDS a real paint job. The bikes have serious power and are just plain fun. If it has extras than good for you! Mine didn't have them, but it's still a great machine. Have fun!

regards,