Should I buy this '93 xj600? Need opinions.

[GfromLT]

Hello,
As I've noted in a post few months back, I'm brand new to motorcycle riding (just got my A licence in fall) and have no bike. Currently look for possible options. I came across '93 yamaha xj600. Im not looking for a bike with all the bells and whistles and xj600 seems to have just enough power for me, also Ive red in the past that its quite a reliable motorcycle.

I chatted up some mechanic's. One told me, that the rear sprocket is a gonner (he was able to tell from pic below) and that '93 bike is old and problems might start to appear as time goes on. Also, the custom exhaust "is wack job" he said (translated). Other mechanic said its hard to find parts for such an old bike, and might need to buy them "from across the world".

Anyways, I went and saw the bike. The cosmetics looked really good. There were no visible damage, apart from scrapped left fairing outmost part. What did I see in detail? (note, im have 0 mechanical background)
The good:
- Looks really, really clean, few minor scratches.
- Is cheap AF: 900 euros, owner said he willing to go 850, I bet I can get 800, which would leave me with 500 euro for documentation, maintenence, insurance etc.
- Is road worthy to 2022-08
- Is being sold by private seller, who drove it, stored in garage.

The bad (perhaps):
- Plastics look so good, I doesnt make sence they are the same ones from 1993.
- "Yamaha" letters on the gas tank stick out, blind would be able to read it, but they're under the lacquer
- Rubber handles are so new, that its suspicious. There is a gap between rubber handle and controls.
- There was small oil puddle (2-3 droplets) on top of gearbox, owner said its from carburetor heater, thats above.
- 2013 tires that from different brands.
- There was ALOT of white smoke while bike was being warmed up with choke, once choke disengaged, there was a little bit of white smoke. (idk, im not mechanic)
- A small rust spot inside gastank.
- Maybe bad rear sprocket? (you tell me)

I didnt ride it, however I would definitely before buying. Also there is a posibility to take it to technical inspection center, to test for road worthiness for like 10 euros, they do pretty thorough inspections there.

I do understand that final decision is mine to make, just wanna hear some opinions. What do you think? Would this be a steal or would I buy a pile of junk?

Link to the market posting:
https://en.autoplius.lt/ads/yamaha-xj-600cc-street-classic-16857871.html

Ps. I dont care that this bike might be a "little slow" I just wanna ride. Old crap bike look like good first bike choice to me.

[WD Forte]

White smoke after startup is often just condensation
ie water in the exhaust evaporating off.
Normal stuff
I'd be more concerned if there was any blue smoke, noises, rattles or knocks.

I've never owned an XJ600 but my understanding of them is they're a modest
unspectacular bike and just about right for a newbie.
Ignore the bike snobs who say they're not powerful enough
you need reliabilty and practicality first

Seen worse sprockets the chain looks 50/50 if the adjuster is anything to go by

You are in Latvia/Lithuania?
In the UK I doubt you'd struggle to find parts and spares
but I'd suggest checking local or EU availabilty as postage from the Uk may take the shine off

MCN did a review of them here
where they say they're generally solid and dependable but the

"Vauxhall Astra deisel of motorbikes"

https://www.motorcyclenews.com/bike-reviews/yamaha/xj600-diversion/1992/
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bikers smell of wee

[Bhud]

Not junk - good quality machine with very robust engine. But it will need a lot of maintenance. Also, there may be a few nasty surprises (rotten exhaust, cracking carb holders, etc.) You will want to do something to upgrade the brakes and suspension too. Go for something newer instead.

[Mysteriass]

XJ's are a decent reliable cheap bike. Though the riding position might seem a bit weird. Make sure that's not an issue for you. If you're the wrong height then you might find the front flyscreen fairing causes the wind to go right into your eyes and that's very bloody annoying.

Calipers are notorious for freezing and binding so be prepared to strip and sort that out every year. If you don't then the disk will warp from heat and that'll be more hassle.

The other problem you'll have is when things do go wrong there's a good chance - depending on the envioronment the bike has lived in - that every nut and bolt will be an absolute twat to get out without shearing. Especially the exhaust head bolts. I'd prepare for that. Assume the worse of every bolt and get yourself a blow torch, good tools and penetrating oil. You'll probably need a welder to weld nuts onto some bolt heads.

If that exhaust needs replacing that'll be plenty of fun getting assuredly corroded bolts out and then it'll be a twat getting the exhaust on too.

Any parts you take off will probably need a good overhaul, soda blast and paint... at least. Unless it's been very well taken care of under the fairing but... yeah, let's not be too comedic.

As for white smoke. It's probably not had a good run. It needs to go for a long ride, get to temperature and blow all the condensation out of it. Then start it the next day and see if it still smokes.

XJ won't blow anyone away, they're fairly bland, uninspiring and even the market never found a good price for them ... but they ain't a bad machine and can do a fair mileage.

I seem to remember the valves are adjusted with those little coin shim / bucket thingymejobbies.

[DJP]

I owned one from new in the 1990s. Not the most exciting machine, more boringly dependable.

Pretty robust overall with no particular weaknesses, the only problems will be typical "old bike" stuff ie how well it's been looked after/serviced/stored.
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Suzuki Bandit 1250
https://deejayp999.atwebpages.com/index.html
That's http not https

[Serendipity]

I also owned one in the early 90s. It was my first big bike so felt like a rocket ship to me. I racked up big miles in a short space of time with a big commute and lots of touring and it was largely reliable.

I had minor issues with a slipping clutch, but fixed that with fresh plates. Mine drank a little bit of oil, but nothing to worry about. It suffered with carb icing on cold damp starts, but I think the later models were fitted with carb heaters to address that issue. And in exceptionally heavy rain the bike would misfire and run poorly, but that was only in monsoon level downpours.

Oh and mine spontaneously combusted after a very wet commute, but it was quickly extinguished by an atomic accident response crew…. I worked on a research base at the time… It needed a new loom, but was up and running again in no time.

Hard to tell from the photos, but that looks like a clean and well looked after machine… for a 29-year-old bike. However buying something more recent would probably be the sensible move.
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2016 CBF1000F - Commuter heaven | 1994 CBR600FR - Awaiting defibrillation

[blurredman]

Looks fine to me.
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CBT: 12/06/10, Theory: 22/09/10, Module 1: 09/11/10, Module 2: 19/01/11
Past: 1991 Honda CG125BR-J, 1992 (1980) Honda XL125S, 1996 Kawasaki GPZ500S, 1979 MZ TS150.
Current: 1973 MZ ES250/2 - 18k, 1979 Suzuki TS185ER - 10k, 1981 Honda CX500B - 91k, 1987 MZ ETZ250 (295cc) - 40k, 1989 MZ ETZ251 - 51k.

[A100man]

[xX-Alex-Xx]

Don't worry about white smoke on startup, especially if it's damp and early in the morning. My 929 used to put out clouds first thing in the morning especially when it was cold first thing. Never an issue. If you get smoke after it's been run, then investigate.

Definitely replace those tyres if you pick the bike up. 10 year old tyres will do you no good..

Sprocket looks OK from the photo. If it's even front and back, then it's ok. Time to replace when it starts looking like a wave (ie curved more on one side than the other). If you want to check the chain as well, just pull back on it from the rearmost point on the sprocket - if you can see more than half a tooth of the sprocket it's time for a new chain.
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DILLIGAF

[Polarbear]

Wifie had the divi version as her first bike after passing test. Ran fine for the whole while she had it but it became apparant it was burning a bit of oil when a puff of smoke used to come out of the exhaust when gear changing. Only evident when riding beihind obviously.

Simple bike for an IL4 but if you are no home mechanic I do wonder if it's age is going to catch up with it however well it's been looked after.

I suppose it's down to local price and spares availability. In UK I'd have no hesitation paying that but then I'm quite happy spannering if I have to.
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Triumph Trophy Launch Edition

[Tdibs]

For 850 euro I would say thats a decent and fair price base on its condition. Usually these things end up sold very cheap and never have any money spent on their maintenance.

Nice and shiny exhaust header nuts is a big bonus, if that pipe is not insanely loud I would leave it on too, most of the stock stuff has rotted away at this point.

Have a look on ebay, at least in the UK it is probably one of the cheapest and most plentiful bikes parts-wise still. They are very simple machines and you wont having to be ordering anything from from across the world. cmsnl is a good EU supplier if you need anything more than consumable parts.

They are not super exciting, but decent workhorses, ive put so many miles on mine as its always the one that starts with no problems when I go to pull something out the garage.

Other upside is they are very easy to work on. You dont have to remove anything to change oil (depending on that exhaust assembly) and spark plugs. No complicated systems to go wrong on them.

They do burn some oil under sustained high revs/highway riding - Not much but check it before doing any long trips.

I would say go for it, buy some ACF50 and new tyres, keep it shiny, ride for a year or two and sell for the same price if you decide you want something different. Its a decent first bike to cut your teeth on.

p.s these are notorious for the 'clutch rattle' and sound quite rough in neutral without the clutch pulled in. Its normal, but common question of is it a problem.
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Previous : 09 Vanvan 125| 02' Sv650s || Current: 1999 Xj600n | 1992 DR650 RSE | 2005 Fazer 1000

[TheRealSmiler]

It seems like a reasonable used Diversion none of those faults would really put me off purchasing it. If you want something that you can get some miles under your belt it seems like a good little workhorse. Price is to be expected a few years ago you could most probably pick one up for about £600-700. Unfortunately due to COVID-19 prices have gone up in the used bike market even in winter.