[S_U_N]

I was not able to find a guide on what things need to be kept in mind while buying a second hand/ used Honda Activa.

I am a newbie when it comes to automobiles.
What aspects should be kept in mind?
What documents should be in place?

[shiva_shaan_5]

@ SUN
Hi, I am also not very technical in this aspect but I purchased a used Honda Activa after I sold my Kinetic Flyte. The following are some aspects I kept in mind and checked.

How old is the vehicle you are purchasing?
What is the cost?

Use sites where in you can see second hand bikes for sale and see what people are quoting and if the site permits check what the bike was sold for. That will tell you what price range you can expect to start or end at.

a. Documents of the vehicle.
- Purchase bill ( not mandatory-many lose this)
- Insurance ( recent one)
- RC book ( original)
- Emission test certificate
- Vehicle maintenance record ( if the vehicle is a 2008 or 2009 or 2010) model
If you can spare an extra day after inspecting the vehicle check in the RTO site if the vehicle has any pending dues against it. I am not sure if RTO of Pune has a site like this but in Karnataka we have one.

b) Vehicle Physical inspection.
You can take a local garage fellow man to inspect the vehicle for you or you can do some portions of it mostly
- Major Scratch Marks or any Major dents( mainly on the silencer or side body). This will give you a generic idea if the bike has had a bad fall or met with an accident.
- Keep the handle straight with the bike on the center stand and go behind the vehicle and look at the alignment of the body plus the front and back wheel. If the alignment is too crossed then this vehicle would have met with an accident or had a bad fall. If the wheels look as if they are not in straight line then it could mean that there is an alignment issue. Please bear in mind all these small aspects work wonders when bargaining for the cost as you will end up paying for these jobs after the purchase if all is well on the bike or at-least stop you for getting a bad one.

- look at the tires to see if they look completely out of the rubber and try to see if the meter shows a value that could match to so much wear and tear of the tires. Sometime people move the readings back to show that the vehicle has been driven for less kms.

c) Ride Quality:
Drive the vehicle for some distance and if there is too much vibration then you are looking at a badly maintained vehicle or something worse.

If the vehicle wobbles too much or drags to one side of the road you have a wheel alignment problem or also a bent wheel RIM.

Use the brakes generously to see if the vehicle drags or stops correctly. Drive slow and drive fast, apply the brakes, while taking a turn (left and Right) tilt the vehicle a little more than what u actually need to, if you feel like the vehicle is about to fall I would not suggest this vehicle as it has some major work to be done on the wheels+body and it can cost you more.

- while driving if the speed needle jumps or shudders too much ( as per my mechanic) it is a sure sign of a tamper with the meter readings. It should always move smoothly.

Some major pre-checks also includes to see how many people drove this, normally people do tell if it was single person driven or the whole family used it.

Reading in between the lines of the seller is something I cannot teach you. As while talking to them we can figure out whether he/she is lying about the vehicle.

If you have a garage person with you ask them how much expenses you have to incur extra if you give the vehicle to service immediately as I always made it a point to give a second hand purchased vehicle for a service as soon as I purchased it. You never know what is wrong and I dont like taking a risk on some one's word.

The local garages are also a good place to pick up second hand vehicles as they will know who is selling and what condition the vehicle is in. Here in my case my mecanic had taken me to the seller and after I inspected the vehicle my mechanic had quoted an extra 500/- for the service and tiny repairs. I deducted that amount from the sale and bargained with the seller.

My colleauge wanted a pulsar and I had again checked it with my mechanic who showed us the vehicle. it was a good bargain he got a pulsar for 32K.( old one). It had been modified well and my mechanic was regularly servicing that vehicle so he knew the pros and cons of getting the vehicle ( low mileage due to the turbo tyres, etc.)

You can always approach your friends who have bikes and are regulars are garages they should be able to get you a very good deal and better bike.

Never Rush into the purchase. You can end up with a bad deal and miss out on a better one.

That is my best opinion for you. You can take whatever you feel as helpful.

Maybe our TBHP Bike Gurus can also shed more light on this, they would also correct me where I am wrong and add few more pointers for your help.

Cheers

[aargee]

Some technicals from my side
- Check for smooth acceleration, it shouldn't slug at any speeds upto 60 Kmph. This indicates some issues with clutch or lose clutch springs
- If the battery is new, just 2-3 cranks or max 5 cranks is sufficient for the scooter to come alive
- When riding, slightly engage the rear brakes so that the drums are just beginning to touch the rear drums & you should feel its smooth. Sometimes you tend to feel the brake lever getting in & out showing symptoms of bad clutch/rear drums
- Open up the throttle (yes open it like mad) & the scooter should do a smooth pickup & if it misses any beat that's a symptom for CDI replacement (common problem) or bad spark plug
- Check for headlight focus & basically all electricals
- After starting from cold engine, do a little idling (no revving) & then start opening the throttle gradually & carefully until the point when the scooter starts showing symptoms to move & observe the vibrations. If its less & smooth, then that's a good sign. Usually it would start off with harsh vibrations that needs clutch/belt adjustments
- Other additional things to check are brake shoes (check by the position of the brake rod nut), faded paint, broken plastics

Edit - Check for fork or handle bar bends while riding

[ghodlur]

@ shiva & aargee

That's a great piece of must do's compilation for picking up an used Activa or for that matter any 2 wheeler. Thanks for that.

Shiva - Good to know that there is an RTO site for Karnataka where you can check for the dues details. Wish had one for Thane, does not even have a website although there are 2 RTO's operating in Thane.

[S_U_N]

Thanks everyone for your replies. Indeed lot of useful information. I am looking at alternatives to Activa now, since there is a great demand (and high prices) for used Activas due to 4 month waiting period of new ones.

[ninjatalli]

Bumping up an old thread.

Will be checking out a 2nd hand 2006 activa, the details are as such
- 26k kms done
- (Single) Owner has recently done a servicing a few weeks back
- Comprehensive Insurance

Price asked is a negotiable 28k, I am a bit lost on the pricing aspect. In addition to the above suggestions, which I'll be taking into consideration, should I have anything else in mind?

[abhinav.s]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

- 26k kms done -> Not too much for a 6 year old vehicle.
- (Single) Owner has recently done a servicing a few weeks back -> Check the service history to verify what parts were replaced during the service.
- Comprehensive Insurance -> Valid till when is also important.
Price asked is a negotiable 28k, I am a bit lost on the pricing aspect.

2006 Activa for 28k is a bit on the higher side if buying from an individual. But if you follow the steps outlined by Aargee and Shiva, you can be sure that you wont land up with a bad example.

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by abhinav.s

2006 Activa for 28k is a bit on the higher side if buying from an individual. But if you follow the steps outlined by Aargee and Shiva, you can be sure that you wont land up with a bad example.

Thanks. Have got it to 25k. Will try to get it down a bit more. I will be validating the bike at honda service center before I finalize the deal.