Private or Trade?

[Going2fast]

Private or Trade?

Thats the question, which is best? Well okay both are going to have there benefits but which do you believe is the best?
Thing is i'm quite lucky in the fact that my first bike i don't have to pay for, But..yeah but my dad wants to buy from a dealership. I've told him it's much cheaper private but he just likes the idea of warranties and such. I'm currently looking for a CBR400 so now you can understand what i'm saying between private and trade, the difference is around a grand Thats like the insurance paid off

Would be nice to hear your views, not just in my case but when you've come to buy a bike.

Andy
____________________
Passed My Test 15/03/05
BikePics Profile ||| 96' RVF 400 ||| 01' CBR 600 F Sport ||| 2009 Yamaha YZF-R6 Delivered 23/06/09
/-\ndy

[Ste]

Warrenties most of the time aren't worth the paper they're written on and they always have a load of reasons why they shouldn't have to pay.

Just check basic stuff on the bike, there is a list in this thread of stuff to check over, or ask a bike garage if they're able to check a bike over for you. You'll save lots buying privately and just check the bike over and you won't have problems.

[iCraig]

Well I have always prefered to buy from dealers and get a warrenty, recently I bought a GPZ500S, and it developed a fault on the Oil Pressure switch, which was replaced free of charge and no questions asked, also they replaced the downpipe no questions asked or charge a few days after that.

So IMO warranties are worth it, if I'd have bought the bike privately I would have just spent and extra £120 + Labour.

Just buy your bike a from a reputable dealer, in this case it was Sale Yamaha, which I've heard are one of the best dealers for customer afterservice in the north west!

[Ste]

But if you'd had a good check over the bike before you bought it then you'd have noticed the rusting downpipes. And the reason they're happy to replace £120+ worth of bits of your bike for free just goes to show quite how much they over price the bikes, shop around the private market and be careful what you buy and you'll save yourself loads.

[mrchips]

Private, get yourself a bargain if you/take someone who know's what to look for.

[iCraig]

[Ste]

Ermm, how is that the bike shops fault?

[iCraig]

[Kickstart]

Hi

With around a £1k premium for buying from a dealer with a CBR400 there are a hell of a lot of repairs you could pay for with the difference.

Personally I am happy saving the money buying privatly, but then I am also happy doing most of the work should I find a problem.

All the best

Keith
____________________
Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[dainesefreak]

I think Keith has summed it up really.

If you are confident that you know what you're doing, then it's not toom much of a problem. If you don't and you aren't overly mechanically skilled then buying from a reputable dealer is worth while.

[Going2fast]

Little update and advice needed
Well there was a CBR400 nc29 for a trade sale (£2495), i emailed them and they gave me a very honest description. To be fair the bike is not worth how much they want for it even with a warranty. From the description given, sounded like it had been dropped

Heres my problem for around £2000 (maybe more) i could get a mint CBR400 nc29 in a private deal, it's just that i am not very mechanically minded at the moment So what do i do? keep looking for a trade deal or snap up a great deal privatively? Also what would i do if any problems did arise?

By the way thanks for the people that have already replied in this thread

Andy
____________________
Passed My Test 15/03/05
BikePics Profile ||| 96' RVF 400 ||| 01' CBR 600 F Sport ||| 2009 Yamaha YZF-R6 Delivered 23/06/09
/-\ndy

[Ste]

Although buying from trade you get a warrenty, this can sometimes not really be worth the paper it is written on, most will have a large number of reasons as to why when something has broke they don't have to pay for it under warrenty and it will take a fair bit of time and effort to get it sorted under warrenty.

It could well have been dropped, the vast majority of bikes will have been dropped at least once, a fair number will have at some point been involved in a minor accident, if it has a couple of small scuffs then it's no big deal as long as it is priced to reflect it.

It could be worth talking to some bike garages near you to see if they would be happy for their mechanic to have a quick check over a bike you're interested in, this will be no guarantee but it is better than nothing. Have a look at this thread for information about what to check when buying a bike.

As Keith said, the saving you can make buying privately over buying from a dealer will be able to buy lots of repairs if needed but if you check most of the bike over and it's all okay and all the paperwork etc is okay then the chances of it happening are quite low (say the person whose privately bought bike's gearbox went bang in a good fashion soon after buying it ) so buying privately is a fairly safe bet.