What is my bike worth...

This is a common question that so many people ask all the time, but the cold hard answer is only available on KBB or NADA... which could kill your dreams of rebuilding a vintage/retro bike because you "think" it is worth something. Or you might jump on a smoking deal, only to find out it is not what you thought it was. Lets try to save each other and help by providing a pricing platform on this forum.

There are SO many variants in play, when it comes to our brand of bikes. It is super hard to know what to look for, when deciding what to buy, if it's worth salvaging parts to restore, and trying to confidently identify rare models.

I'm hoping to start a running thread, where we can post fair prices of what each model is worth and what models to be on the lookout for.

I'll start with my bike.

Currently, KBB has my bike listed at $2,545 in Good condition with typical mileage. We know this is grossly inaccurate , but how do we mitigate this and show what its true worth is? A little birdie told me the L3's are worth upwards of $7,000usd in Good condition... But who the hell knows if that is fair or not??? You guys know!!!

So with that being said, lets start listing out the years and models of each bike, with a ballpark estimate of what they might be worth. I think it'll be fun... and some of you might love it, or hate me afterwards. But I'm willing to take one for the team! Lol!

-Ioben-

There are professional bike appraisers if you want a serious number, but an appraisal only good for a short time. I tend to look at auctions to judge value and overall bike condition. My focus is Z1's or KZ's because that's what I ride and that's what I have to insure. Ultimately it boils down to what a buyer is willing to pay, and that will vary from country to country. A Z1 in good condition might fetch $20k in NA, but would be worth considerably more in Europe or Oz or Japan.

I will also add that in my opinion very few bikes are in such poor condition that they should be parted out. Only when a frame is badly mangled or has turned to rust should it be retired from active service.

Just my opinions of course.

Hum, it's kind of hard to judge "what is my bike worth" without knowing what kind of bike it is, condition, location, mileage, etc.

L3 suggests to me, because I'm a 750 guy, a 1983 KZ750 L3. True? Or could there other versions of L series bikes? If so, $7000 is a pipe dream, even if fully restored and in knockout condition. The birdie that told you $7k was high.

Forget what KBB or NADA has to say about bike values for bikes more than 20 years old. Much of their pricing is based on what is reported to the DMV. These are almost always private owner sales, and the prices are often under reported to avoid sales tax.

flipstyledsm22 wrote: I'm hoping to start a running thread, where we can post fair prices of what each model is worth and what models to be on the lookout for.

In the context of KZRider.com:

No on the first part: there is no one true "fair price" for a given bike.

No on the second part: enthusiasts are not investors.

A bike is worth precisely what someone will pay for it - no more and no less - and people buy bikes for a variety of reasons. Someone who really wants a particular model because he had one when he was younger will probably pay more than someone who is looking for a commuter bike (and has no emotional investment). Where is the actual "fair price"?

One's best (?) bet is to look at sites like ebay and focus on the completed items. Those are documented instances where someone was willing to pay $X for Y bike. There is no good way to account for pricing variations due to timing [of the sale] and myriad other details, but maybe if there are a dozen or so recent sales of similar bikes one could possibly get into an appropriate price range. Or not.

And by "similar" I mean same engine size and model line, like KZ550s from 80-84. The same/similar condition is important too: we've all seen the knobs who see a perfectly restored model go for $10,000 and think their daily-driver-quality bike should be worth the same.

I think I might have approached this subject the wrong way...

I'm using my bike as an example btw... I was trying to create a scenario .

How would a person go about finding a general value of their bike... without paying someone to come out and place a value on it. Is there a list of bikes with general values associated with their year/mileage/condition, other than KBB or NADA? Do you just take random strangers opinions on what they would pay, for a bike like yours, or mine?

I'm new to the site and this is one of my first threads, other than my introduction post. So far, I've been told to hire an appraiser (or study to be an Appraiser), was informed $7k USD is not what my bike is worth... but never said what a fair value would be, and reminded how worthless KBB/NADA is when it comes to evaluating the price of a bike... and still, no one could give a ballpark value on anything.

Which leads me to ask, why haven't KZ/Z enthusiast create a value map for their bikes? Is it hard to create a list? Is there a rule that we cannot agree to say random year KZ/K bike with "x" amount of miles on it, should retail for $whatever in America?

I think the KBB and NADA are your "ballpark" estimates. There is a similar price guide in the firearms world called the Blue Book of Gun Values, very detailed, updated every year and gives very good information about rarity and methods of judging condition. However during a couple years working retail at a gunstore I found that the main method for determining the value of used guns that came in the store on a daily basis was checking COMPLETED similar items on online auctions. As HRM said along with my Dear Old Dad the banker,"it's only worth what someone is willing to pay for it". If two individuals with deep pockets want the same thing the price can go up exponentially. I'm pretty sure that there are members of this forum who would be experts on judging condition/originality, but their opinions on value are just that. In the end a price that makes the seller and buyer happy would be considered "fair". IMHO

Mike

hardrockminer wrote "I tend to look at auctions to judge value and overall bike condition. "

This is good advice. Go to look at ebay and search through "Sold" motorcycle listings. This is what I do when trying to judge value of almost anything.

Yes, ebay is a good source but I don't know how to access their sold stuff. I watch auction sites like Mecum, and occasionally Ritchie Bros. Mecum has a big auction coming up in January...lots of bikes and lots of photos for comparison. They also have sales records for past auctions.

Post some photos along with year and model, I will report value.

Nessism wrote: hardrockminer wrote "I tend to look at auctions to judge value and overall bike condition. "

This is good advice. Go to look at ebay and search through "Sold" motorcycle listings. This is what I do when trying to judge value of almost anything.

For those who don't know where ebay hides their completed listings:

- Run your search
- Look at the column on the far left of the page; this is where the search filters are
- Scroll down until you see this:

Show only

Returns Accepted
Completed Items
Sold Items
Deals & Savings
Authorized Seller
Authenticity Guarantee

There will be check boxes for each line item. Check the 'Completed Items' and 'Sold Items' lines to see only those categories.

Interesting that there was no KZ650s sold in last 2 month on eBay.
But other than some models (Z1?) - price is all over the place, as expected.

Didn't see any "fully restored" bikes either