hello all first time to say hi- i need volunteers

Hello everyone I got to this site a couple of months ago when I got the 76 kz900 ltd w/4k miles for the first time after trading it for a 96 Lincoln with 150k miles. Needles to say it has been fun to ride this bike, even though I’m more used to cruisers (my first bike a vlx 03 w/ 5k miles of my own). My dad loved it and it was basically for him. a couple of months later a friend offered me his bike as an upgrade and I thought about selling the kz but the idea cooled off. Now its decision time and I decided to sell it.

I need volunteers to tell me if after they see all the info about my bike what do they think is worth and what I will be getting most likely (even though I know what I want)

So any volunteers as soon as I get one I’ll post pictures and explain in details the condition of the bike

Short summary
1976 kz 900 ltd
Around 4k miles
I think the person who traded it to me said all original except: tires, spark plugs, battery, mirrors ... (missing battery covers)
Sometimes it leeks oil (very little) and sometimes it leeks gas (more often)

I want to know what are the most convenient things I could do to raise the selling potential of the bike and get the most bang for the buck or buck for the bang

Thank you all for your help

What about dad

No problem...post away!

THANK YOU so here i go
first i had kinda of started this help survey in another forum so for reference i'll link it www.beginnerbikers.org/forum/showthread.php?t=22804
basically i traded a car for the bike
the bike is in my opinion good but i want to sell it to upgrade and i wanted to know what could i do to get the most profit i can. i'll post pictures asap and here are the specs of the bike please with all honesty tell me what it most likely what i would get for it

1976 kz 900 ltd ("candy" red)
"problems":
missing left battery cover
has some usual rust (little)
some discoloration on the tank
i think there is some very minor rust inside the tank
the gas tank has i think 2 "hits"(?)
i see many "plastic" parts seem broken from the environment
the plastic from the carburator to the area below the seat has this "broken" condition
i think one of the passenger pegs is a somewhat scratched
the seat has 2 small scratches
the metal that hold the battery seem somewhat twisted , i think someone tried to force it instead of doing it the right way, and so this metal parts from the top area of the battery are twisted and paintless
the handles migh need replacement but their good to use

the bike its dirty: i have been looking to do this (meaning cleaning it) but procrastination and the "dificulty" of the project have stoped me plus its cold , in the front of the bike its all black so when i get it warming up i see some black material being burned time and time again. again a lead on some article about tips to detaill a bike would be nice

the electrical system is funky let me explain: starts good and all (of course now that its cold it takes a bit) the only problem is that sometimes the high and low beam don't work , actually i'm not exactly sure how to explain , but basically i have used it without much problems some times i had to drive at night with high beams and sometimes the left turn signal wouldn't work, and something that has happened only once i had to tap the "light box" (where the neutral stop and all thos lights are) so that the lights would show. this is most likely some easy fix I KNOW it is some false contact somewhere because i saw a bunch of cables in the front when i pull them up or down all systems work right. again this doesn't hapen often but it hapens
i guess i would need to fix this to "make" it more profitable but with all honesty i'm not a mechanics kind of person but i'll do my best

the "real" problem is the fuel system: it leaks fuel, sometimes little sometimes more last owner told me it was the petcock i bought a replacement but couldn't fit it in instead i used the "seal" (?) it came with and put it on the old one now there the leaking stoped from the petcock to the carburator but now i think it seems to drip some gas from the carburator not sure how to fix this . the gas i think comes form the air take in area of the carburator again if someone would leed me in the right direction, which could actually be to the mechanics :S



the good now at last:
i was told that the bike is all original expect for (this all was changed only 300 miles ago):
battery
spark plugs
tires (new dunloop(i think its dunloop))
carbs cleaned and synchronized
new mirrors but the left one is "loose"
i'm guessing it was completly serviced from what you'll read below, anyways i'll definitly try my best to get the receipts to back it up, but even though it was only 300 miles ago it has been a while because last owner didn't used it much he had too many bikes

this was all done by a reputable motorcycle shop called cycle barn in city of industry, ca . the whole service was done by the last owner , so i went to talk with the owner of the bike shop and he said it was a 900$ job and the bike ended up running very good but for showroom condition it still needed some work (i agree)

{i have a new petcock with small filter but haven't put it in, again i think it might need some seals(?) that's just my best guess to stop the leaking)


and this i'm not sure if its bad but o well it has a "blue tag" and not a vin , something happened with the last owner to complicated to remember but basically all the info (meaning codes and stuff) come from the forks where there is a tag and inscribed numbers but where the vin is suposed to be on the motor its completly clean with a bolted in blue tag from the dmv i think wich is used to recognize the motorcycle, the last owner told me if i wanted the ving i had to bring only the engine for them to inscribe it correctly but i haven't had the need to do so , so it stay the way it is

this is about all i can remember about the bike without actually looking at it, again i'll post pictures asap for a better judgement. it's not as bad as the "bad" sections puts it and its more good, well i guess i'll leave the judgment for you after you see the pictures

thanks all for the help

The VIN is on the frame behind the headlight, not on the motor. The motor serial number is on the motor.

Considering the economy and all, there might be a worse time to sell a bike, but I don't have a clue when that would be.

The market value is defined as what a buyer is willing to pay for it, within a reasonable time frame (two months for me). The faster you want it sold, the lower the selling price, if you want to wait 20 years you might be able to get $5,000 out of it.

Can I take this bike to my local BMV and get a title and license plates without a bunch of hassle? If not then that makes it a parts bike and worth considerably less than otherwise.

1000 bucks and be done with it less than that and you might start fixing stuff and then your into it....you can get 1000 in prob 24-48 hrs....craigslist....you go up two hundred you gotta start trying to convince em-every two hundred over a thou makes it it a ridable bike in my good for nothing experience...good luck

You could check ebay to see what comparable bikes go for, or just list it and hope for the best.

The motorcycle has a clear title (pink slip) no problems there. Steell thanks for the advice and you're completely right defining the economy we're in. Trianglelaguna this is a "rideable" bike (and a fast one as you know) but to be honest I’m puzzled because as Kawickrice recommended I checked eBay for the average price. One was sold for 4000 in a buy it now auction without much problem I was amazed.

As someone else put it already
Orthography: The science of spelling by the eye instead of the ear.
Ambrose Bierce, 06/24/1842 -
US author
I’m sorry for writing like this but let’s be clear this isn’t my market audience. You guys are my “friends” and so like friends I’ll talk “writing”. Although I accept I went over the limits these past posts so I’ll change Thanks again everyone for the help.

Hmmm...ordinarily a clean, whole, running KZ900B model (aka 900 LTD) can be worth a fair amount (as noted by other KZR members)...anywhere between US$1000 and US$5000, depending upon condition. The big WRINKLE is that you have a bike with replacement cases (e.g. blank cases w/DMV assigned engine number). [I assume you are in California (correct?)]

In early big-bore four Kawasaki's, there is a correspondence between frame and engine VIN's...this can no longer be verified in your bike and although your frame says 900B, your motor says nothing = sharp decrease in value...suggesting that your bike may be valued at the low end of the 1000-5000 scale...it is still a nice bike, but just not a collector's choice.

the market value changes alot..as in..... one person walks by the bike and walks on ..and then ..another person walks up.very dif outcomes.
the bike is the same in both scenes,but, everyone in the general public will see somthing way dif the one before...if you get lucky someone who is not up on the kz scene but remembers having that bike once,will see your sale and want "THAT" bike ...in which case you won't have to use a sales pitch they will ask for it...
cherry these things go for five grand and to restore one thats not cherry is some good chunk of time and effort and a bit of cheese.....best of luck...really...my 1000 comment was just thinking of your time and 1600 may achieve the same turn over quick...good luck ...peace

About all I can say is if you go with Craig's List is include a picture (I don't even look at ads that don't have pictures...all right wise guys I do read books without pictures..but I mess them up bad with my crayons!) Also don't get cocky in the ad ....like saying "no lowlife lowballers or I'm asking $10 under bluebook so don't insult me with low bids!". Just the facts you know and what you would like for it. EBay is an auction so just start it out at the least you would take. OR

Just ship it to me...at your cost...of course!:blink:

just put to sale and found innovative ways to advertise i think here for you all to see
pictures
www.vuvox.com/ebay/motors/detail/0d482ad08
videos

asking 2300$