Greetings, all. My neighbor has had this bike garaged since 2006 when his father passed. I believe his father was the second owner and it has approximately 11,700 road miles. The family is in an estate probation situation and will be needing to sell as neither of them have the inclination to ride. I have two questions, please:

1. Assuming she was in good mechanical condition when parked, what should a new owner be expected to encounter as far as restoration activities/expenses (specifically mechanical)? Fluid changes and a battery, of course, but I'm trying to get a handle on what level of expense would be required to restore her to road-worthiness (perhaps considering worst-case scenario). Cosmetically, it will require a LOT of cleaning & buffing to remove the patina of a 12 year garage life (not climatically controlled). And secondly...

2. Based on this presented information (limited), what would you offer to take this bike out of their lives? I could literally roll it across the street... one garage to another. However, I'm currently involved with restoring my '75 FXE that I've owned since the early '90's, and biting off another large financial restoration project would be a stretch at this time. I have some photos, but the posting process had failed my attempts twice to upload them. It's dirty but intact, to the best of my knowledge.

Thanks in advance for your input! I'm retired now and have some time... but not a lot of extra project cash currently.

 

Battery, fresh gas, new plugs, change all oils, and I bet she'd fire right up. Possibly brake fluids, but that's cheap, too. Then I'd ride it straight to the dealership for a set of new tires. Probably less than $1,000 tops for everything. As far as what to offer? Well, not to rip them off or anything, but how much do they know about motorcycle values? First, I'd get the bike out into the daylight, clean all the accumulated dust and junk off it, see what it looks like then, scratches, dents, rust, etc., before I made an offer. I'd probably start at $2500-3,000. Take care of the things I said, and I'd bet you'd have a great motorcycle.. Good luck.

 

Thanks for the response! I failed to mention tires and you're absolutely right... age has rendered them replaceable. My guess as to his/their knowledge of the bike's worth is tied up in the original bill of sale and NADA or KBB info. I've mentioned that much would have to be done to bring her back, expense-wise. But, I'm with you on the offer parameters. Sale is not imminent at this point so will probably wait it out a bit and see how things shake out. He'll give me first dibs.

 

I bought a 2005 FXSTI about a year ago for a song and a dance it had sat in a garage for many years was so dirty you couldn't even tell what color it was!! cleaned right up and changed all fluids only thing I had to flush brakes twice and replace rear brake light sensor each time was pretty gunked up!! after that all is good rode it all summer no issues!!

 

Considering the risk.... mice in the wiring, fuel going bad in the tank,the hoses inside the tank are a known problem and the regulator is probably garbage, every part of the brake system needing inspection and service ( replace every line, rebuild calipers, inspect masters) the tires are garbage, etc etc etc.... plus the known problem with the can chain followers.... and a 180 dollar battery.... assuming the paint, seat, and chrome were in GOOD condition, it is still not something I would want to buy for more than 2500 dollars, as you can buy decent running bikes with low miles and good condition for 5 grand.

If NADA gave"rough trade" values, it would not be more than a couple of grand.

Do you know if the engine rotates? You could have had an intake valve or exhaust valve hung open a little, with water vapor getting in the jugs, and the engine could be garbage.

 

Just spoke with a bike shop guy who said there is a good chance that the fuel injection system would be toast after sitting that long. Don't know if gas was left in the tank at this point (hopefully drained). He also mentioned that the "computer" that controlled it and more was not made anymore and the aftermarket versions were super expensive (but didn't quantify). I've only had experience with carbed bikes so can't speak to this at all. Age sure seems to take its toll, huh? Any counters to this opinion? I really can't see investing a bunch of time and money prior to an offer just to see if it is worth saving. Thanks!

Edit: Just saw Neggy's response. I don't know if the engine rotates or much of anything else about the current condition of the mechanics. All of your points are valid concerns, and the responses received plus the chat with the bike shop guy have certainly given me significant pause. Who knows... it might bust right off and operate smoothly, just needing some cosmetics, but that's a gamble most might not want to take.

 

 

The ECM is not going to be an issue, very low failure rate ( I can't say I know of one going bad), but the lines inside of the tank are known to go bad (easy fix) the regulator in the tank ( easy fix) worst case is the tank is rotting ( open up and look inside! ) and you will have to source a tank... bikes stored FULL of fuel prevent condensation that causes rust, but there is always a little water in every tank, so you need to look closely.

Even if an injector or both went bad, (leaking, stuck open, not working) they are not expensive.

My point is, that it is a risky purchase.

Don't spend more on it ( bike and attempted repairs) than you are going to be able to get by parting it out.

Personally I am risk adverse.

Pull the plugs, shoot some penetrating oil in the cylinders, not a lot just enough to make sure the cylinders and rings are lubricated, let it sit a day or two, get it into 5th gear and rock it back and forth and see if the engine is free.

 

 

I have an 01 that has 200,000 on it, rebuilt motor last year. Painted mine and other work to make it like new again. A few thousand and some hours and the bike is fantastic.

​​​​​Crank is very good on that year. Bulletproof bottom end. Sat for 6 years and came right back to life with no issues.

I have tons of like new parts in boxes from when the bike was new and I exchanged them. From inner primary to exhaust to.... Well, lots. You can have it all for free if you pay the shipping.

If you get it for a fair price and you do some work, you can have a great bike with low miles.