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Fewer used VFR's for sale?


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For years I have searched Craigslist for VFR's and a few other bikes that interest me.  On a few occasions I've picked up a few bits and pieces for spares that are NLA.   I have each region's search bookmarked and open them all at once in tabs, running through them quickly.  Winter time slows things down each year, but this year it seems to have slowed to a crawl.  I can't recall the last time I saw a 4th gen for sale.   Is it just me, or does it seem like there are fewer (or very few) used VFR's for sale these days?   If so, is that due to the virus?  Or are maybe owners holding on to them now - realizing that what is out there is all there's going to be, so hold on to what you've got (what I'm doing).  Anyway, I'd be interested to get other's impressions of what the used market is like. 

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  • Cogswell changed the title to Fewer used VFR's for sale?

COVID syndrome Cogswell. There is a push for outdoor activities, boat sales through the roof, RVs, people road trip like never before. I look from time to time at CL and there is general decline in number of for sale offers. There were times where search for Aprilia would not produce result in whole sunshine state.  In local Walmart there was waiting list for bicycles at some point last year.
If you combine this increased interest with economical uncertainty, people hang to and use what they have.

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Might also be generational thing as well. Seems VFR owners are on older side compared to new riders who are buying Ninja 400 and R6s. Without much interest, VFR owners may just be hanging onto their bikes. Kinda like enthusiasts of Model-Ts and pre-war Rolls Royces. There's just not many younger folks getting into it.

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Maybe also riders selling/trading older bikes with friends? No CL, instead informal selling and buying of the older VFR's that never appear online. I've ridden with VFRD members who were riding each other's former bikes.

 

There are plenty of 6th/7th/8th gens available around here, but not so many of the VF/VFR's that are now ~20 years old minimum. 

 

And to answer your question scientifically, we should run the numbers. How many were built, how many are left? 5th gen and earlier are just becoming fewer and fewer (I've been the final owner of a few vehicles myself!) You know, those bikes in Oregon under a pine tree with moss growing on their north side. 😉 

 

(Disclaimer: I have never owned a 5th gen but I want one)

 

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If you do find one you'll love it.  Beautifully built and tons of character. 

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I think that you BEST bet is to contact Joe (V4dreams.com).

He is constantly finding and refurbishing the breed.

If you want a showpiece or just a mechanically sound VFR, I'd call HIM.

Brian

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22 hours ago, Cogswell said:

For years I have searched Craigslist for VFR's and a few other bikes that interest me.  On a few occasions I've picked up a few bits and pieces for spares that are NLA.   I have each region's search bookmarked and open them all at once in tabs, running through them quickly.  Winter time slows things down each year, but this year it seems to have slowed to a crawl.  I can't recall the last time I saw a 4th gen for sale.   Is it just me, or does it seem like there are fewer (or very few) used VFR's for sale these days?   If so, is that due to the virus?  Or are maybe owners holding on to them now - realizing that what is out there is all there's going to be, so hold on to what you've got (what I'm doing).  Anyway, I'd be interested to get other's impressions of what the used market is like. 

There's several 4th gen bikes for sale in the Portland area on Cycletrader. 

For instance: https://www.cycletrader.com/listing/2014-Honda®-Interceptor-5015037118

Given my situation I may be selling mine at some point, but I haven't decided.

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I've been thinking about selling my RWB anniversary bike for a couple years.  Usually how it goes is I ride the grey VFR with upgraded suspension and think of how awesome it handles.  I decide to sell the anniversary RWB bike with stock suspension, so I pull it out to clean it up and take pictures.  Then I look at it and think it's too dang pretty to sell.  Then I go for a ride on it.   Rinse and repeat.

 

However, if someone wants to offer me a really stupid number, I'll sell it!  

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If I can get my act together this summer, I'll be putting a couple of fifth gens on the market. First will be a '98, which needs the Pacific Ocean salt corroded forks cleaned up or replaced. Then a yellow '00 that went off the road in Arkansas. It needs the left radiator fixed. But I'm a world famous procrastinator so no promises. 

 

There have been few VFRs for sale around Minnesota the last few years so I agree with Cogswell on the apparent scarcity of VFRs for sale, and around here it's been more than just in the last year.

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A 5th gen with givi bags, 53k miles in good condition came on the market in craigslist Portland for $3,200 this morning and it is gone already.

 

Just checked for it a few minutes ago and in its place is a 1986.

 

https://portland.craigslist.org/clk/mcy/d/vancouver-1986-honda-interceptor-500/7288934882.html

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I've noticed a slight decline as well, but if you check ebay, cycle trader, facebook marketplace, offer up, bring a trailer, etc.. it seems as there are so many "for sale" platforms out there now that CL is getting less popular. Plus they started charging $5 to get rid of all the scams. 

 

That being said, it seems many bikes are going for a bit more than normal due to the fact that it's a long wait for a new bike right now.

 

I have a bad habit of looking at bikes all the time too, and sometimes another one ends up in my garage...😀

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7 hours ago, RC1237V said:

I've noticed a slight decline as well, but if you check ebay, cycle trader, facebook marketplace, offer up, bring a trailer, etc.. it seems as there are so many "for sale" platforms out there now that CL is getting less popular. Plus they started charging $5 to get rid of all the scams. 

 

That being said, it seems many bikes are going for a bit more than normal due to the fact that it's a long wait for a new bike right now.

 

I have a bad habit of looking at bikes all the time too, and sometimes another one ends up in my garage...😀

Sounds familiar, I have the same problem!

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I will probably try to sell one of my two VFR's later this spring when I get time to clean them up, pull out the hard bags and get some detailed photos.  Problem is, I've tried to do this several times the last few years.  I make the mistake of looking at them side beside in all their glory and go for "one last ride".  I haven't had the heart to go through with it.  Heck, I don't even know which one I'd be more willing to part with.  😪

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On 3/7/2021 at 2:48 PM, Cogswell said:

Anyway, I'd be interested to get other's impressions of what the used market is like. 

 

 

You could be right in all respects. We might try to contrast that with the membership and activity here on VFRd. Has that been changing much? Fewer VFRs for sale...fewer VFRs...fewer VFR riders...

 

I took this picture off Craigs List northeast a couple weeks ago because every bike in it was arrest-me-red... Maybe there's some kind of correlation there too. 🙂

 

 

631493209_ScreenShot2021-04-23at08_26_02.thumb.jpg.de9bf6ea614b22ae861ca039694ccfcc.jpg

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1 hour ago, Gebruiker said:

I took this picture off Craigs List northeast a couple weeks ago because every bike in it was arrest-me-red... Maybe there's some kind of correlation there too. 🙂

 

Funny,

I looked at the same ads on CL since I am also in the Northeast corner here.

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2 hours ago, Gebruiker said:

I took this picture off Craigs List northeast a couple weeks ago because every bike in it was arrest-me-red... Maybe there's some kind of correlation there too. 🙂

 

Quick Craigslist search shows about 1/2 of them being red in my area. I'm kinda liking that yellow one... might have to go take look...

 

 

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As has been mentioned above, sales of bikes of all sorts are significantly higher this year as people look for stuff to do outside, and people who's income wasn't negatively affected by Covid haven't been able to go on holiday or go to the pub, so money for leisure spending is burning a hole in pockets. 

 

And then there's just the gradual but continual death of these machines due to accident, exacerbated by the lack of replacement plastics for gen 3 and 4.

 

After my low speed off last year, I nearly gave up on mine - a '93 in average condition, worth maybe £1500 on a good day. By the time all is said and done I'll probably have spent about £900 to get her back on the road as it had a custom paint job previously , so a full respray was the only option to not look awful. One of those times when you have to keep reminding yourself this is a hobby, not a practical choice 😂

 

For a lot of people, the idea of spending a lot of time trying to find actual replacement plastic that isn't also knackered and getting it to look good for a low value bike just doesn't make sense, hence seeing several pretty rough "streetfighter" conversions on ebay lately, which no one in their mind is going to buy, and are destined to become more parts bikes. 

 

One thing that gives me some hope is that I've seen a couple of ebay sellers offering replacement fibre glass fairing panels for older bikes. Now, admittedly the one I ordered from poland never arrived and I had to go through PayPal to get my money back from the jerk, but he was definitely making them, and there is another guy in the UK doing the same kind of thing. So, with luck, this will be taken out of the hands of larger manufacturers who don't give a crap. 

 

This is me in Sunday morning optimist mode 😂

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On 4/30/2021 at 3:10 PM, tbzep said:

I will probably try to sell one of my two VFR's later this spring when I get time to clean them up, pull out the hard bags and get some detailed photos.  Problem is, I've tried to do this several times the last few years.  I make the mistake of looking at them side beside in all their glory and go for "one last ride".  I haven't had the heart to go through with it.  Heck, I don't even know which one I'd be more willing to part with.  😪

which ever one you touched last is the one to keep. get rid of the other one,

decision made. - I begrudgingly sold my 750 recently still unsure wether it was the rite thing to do I had stored it for months .

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