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Buying used bikes: Bikers share their purchase & ownership experience

15th March 2024, 08:33 by Rahul Nagaraj

2 owners in 18 months was a red flag but the bike looked immaculate in the pics and had very low reading on ODO.

BHPian V0rtex recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Please share how your experience has been with your used bike. Where did you purchase it from? The positives, negatives, things you wish you knew earlier and any other relevant information.

Here's what BHPian shabih had to say on the matter:

I bought a 2017 Street Twin with 7500 km on the Odo from Bike Factory Delhi in Sep 2022. This bike has been a dream from the day I laid my eyes on it and the Bike factory guys gave it to me at a rate acceptable to both parties. The bike was clean and well-kept, and the Bike factory team helped me choose the right one based on my requirements among other Street Twin models they had.
The first few months were fuss-free, the bike came loaded with necessary accessories like a windshield, dresser bars, sump guard, and luggage rack. Around August 2023 I started to experience a weird problem with the ignition when the bike's fuel pump would not turn on the first few times of turning on the ignition and it needed twisting the key a few times. I got it checked and I was told there was a problem with the ignition sensor and immobilizer. I was able to get it rectified in October 2023 and it has been smooth sailing ever since. Street Twin is a fairly straightforward motorcycle hence I expect it to run fuss-free, fingers crossed. This ignition/immobilizer issue is an actual known issue worldwide, particularly among the street twin owners so I am not blaming the previous owner or Bike factory for the emergence of this issue after purchase. At the time of purchase, I had checked it thoroughly and even called Triumph to run a background check. I knew the folks there and once they gave a green signal, I went with the purchase.
I did, however, spend the initial few weeks of frustration post-purchase because Bike Factory folks took 5 months to get the RC transfer done. It is a long story about why it took time. I think the Bike factory team should have been more diligent and proactive in getting the job done in the promised time.

Here's what BHPian RD410 had to say on the matter:

Vehicle bought - 2015 Honda Dio HET
Km run (when I bought it in 2022) - 13,000 Genuine
Platform - Olx
Olx experience - Horrible. I wanted a scooter and searched the entire Ernakulam district for Honda scooters. Almost all of the sellers I came across were used dealers posing as individual sellers. Post covid, Olx has become a seller's market. Dealers take clean pics of vehicles, parking them in front of posh houses to look genuine. Most of them are outright arrogant and try to intimidate you. Their price quotes are sky-high. After a lot of searching, I was almost going to give up. But then I got lucky with a lady-owned, extremely low-run Dio. It was pure chance, the lady had just posted the ad and I happened to see the ad at the exact moment! Anyways, the whole used market search left a very bad impression.

Here's what BHPian aargee had to say on the matter:

Bought a used RX 2001 that was 10 years old; those were the times when govt was a threatening ban on 2 strokes & hence the 1st owner sold it to me. I bought it to ride for the next 5 years & then sold it off. In fact, I had even bought a new Activa in 2005 to mitigate over losing Rx.
Between 2003-05, it underwent several modifications {read souped} & finally, the cylinder lost its compression in less than 10K or so. Later, I was very frustrated to learn the mechanic had duped a sleeved cylinder for the cost of a new cylinder piston kit!! This was the mechanic with whom I had been servicing since 1998!!
I learned the lesson the hard way!! So in 2009-10, learnt to assemble the motorcycle myself, and bought all the original parts, thanks to friends in xBhp, who helped me the source from different parts of the country.
My Rx has done a little over 22K now giving a run for most 150cc 4S motorcycles & is a notch reliable more than my Interceptor.
Cost? Oh!! I bought it for 20K in 2001, pls don't ask me how much I've spent on it over the years!! Though the expenses are tracked, I'm afraid to check the money spent on the white elephant!! I'm sure it has cost me a lot just sitting in the garage, while CBR & Interceptor had cost me a lot on the road.

Here's what BHPian SaurAswale had to say on the matter:

Bike Purchased- R15v3 (Dec-21) Thunder Gray
Date of Purchase- 7- July 2023
ODO at time of purchase ~ 4600kms
Platform- OLX/ Facebook Marketplace (contacted the seller on both sites)
Long Story:
I didn't need a bike but it was an aspirational purchase for me. I was looking for used R15v3 around 1L for 3-4 months on various platforms. Found some good examples but never pulled the trigger.
This bike was listed at 110kms from my hometown and quoted at 1.5L. 2 owners in 18 months was a red flag but the bike looked immaculate in the pics and had a very low reading on ODO. Fortunately, my uncle lives in the same area so asked him to check the bike. The bike was test-ridden and checked by his trusted mechanic. he also confirmed the ODO reading and gave me the go-ahead. (I was in Hyderabad, 600kms from my hometown) On the next weekend, my father went there and checked the bike again, negotiated and gave an offer (1.3L- over my budget) which the seller rejected. After some days, the seller called and agreed to 1.32L. My father was already impressed with the bike so I also did not think much and closed the deal.
My father and brother went there, I transferred the money and my brother took her with him. I went home after 2 months- on 15-Sept, that's when I saw her first time.
Mistakes from me:
Took a risk to buy a bike which had 2 owners in 18 months, but the risk paid off as I got almost a new bike at 60% of the price.
Did not check Traffic challenges at the time of negotiation, it almost cancelled the purchase when I found out later.
One thing to remember- When buying a used vehicle, it's better if you wait and pull the trigger at the right time. If you rush into buying, you'll become an easy target and end up with a bad deal or worse-loose all of your money. Also, if the vehicle is good enough, it doesn't matter if it had 2-3 owners- but use this fact to drag the price down as much as you can.
Off-Topic:
I've ridden it back to Hyderabad for 620 km in a day for the first time. Did a couple of long rides here and a track session also. She never disappointed me. In December I had a skid and crash(due to my mistake). Though I had a helmet, gloves, shoes, a jacket (Not a riding jacket with protectors) and stuff, I had an impact right at the unprotected region between the shoulder and outer ring of the helmet (3"from the shoulder). The crash was at a speed of around 25-30kmph. My right clavicle bone was broken and I now have an implant in my shoulder. It was not painful for me but my family suffered a lot.
The front wheel is broken and there are scratches on the fairing. As I am not allowed to ride a bike, she has been stationary for almost 2 months and I'll get her fixed this month and hopefully be able to gather the courage to start the rides in April.