Is this a Good Deal?

[New2GZ]

I had a customer that wants to sell his 2008 GZ250 with 30 miles on it. basically brand new but it has a few problem. the bike has rust on the chrome side of the body, and some rust on the tank (where the fuel tank's cab is) and it doenst start (needs a battery?). he gives me $1500 for it. he told me that he rides the bike for one time only which is 3 years ago. he has the title in hands. would you consider this is a good deal?

also, what should i to look for if a bike hasnt been ridden in 3 years? he already did the tune ups on november 2010. thanks you in advance. i am completely newbie to bikes.

thanks
G

[Strelok]

New2GZ~

Welcome to the Forum!

Do you mean he wants $1500 for it?

Sitting usually means gummed up Carbs & dead Batteries.
Both of these are inexpensive items to take care of.
A little rust is expected if left outside and can be
addressed too. Whine about the rust and other
stuff and get it down more if you can. If not then
actually $1500 is a good price for so little mileage.

:)

[alanmcorcoran]

If it ran good, $1500 would be a good price. Since it doesn't start up, who knows? Might be perfectly fine except a bad battery, or the engine might be seized up. Search the threads for how to jump start. If it hasn't been ridden in a while and wasn't properly stored odds are:

1) You might have a rusty gas tank, which will lead to:
2) Crap in the carburetor and...
3) You'll likely have gummed up carburetor anyway.

You might also need tires at this point. And apparently, a battery. If all you need is to get a new battery, a carb cleaning and a gas tank de-rusting, well, it might be a better deal for, say $1000.00.

Don't buy it until you get it running and have it checked by a competent mechanic that knows it sat idle for three years. (It's actually unlikely that the engine is seized up, but an unridden bike can develop many serious problems if they are not properly stored.)

[New2GZ]

If it ran good, $1500 would be a good price. Since it doesn't start up, who knows? Might be perfectly fine except a bad battery, or the engine might be seized up. Search the threads for how to jump start. If it hasn't been ridden in a while and wasn't properly stored odds are:

1) You might have a rusty gas tank, which will lead to:
2) Crap in the carburetor and...
3) You'll likely have gummed up carburetor anyway.

You might also need tires at this point. And apparently, a battery. If all you need is to get a new battery, a carb cleaning and a gas tank de-rusting, well, it might be a better deal for, say $1000.00.

Don't buy it until you get it running and have it checked by a competent mechanic that knows it sat idle for three years. (It's actually unlikely that the engine is seized up, but an unridden bike can develop many serious problems if they are not properly stored.)


New2GZ~

Welcome to the Forum!

Do you mean he wants $1500 for it?

Sitting usually means gummed up Carbs & dead Batteries.
Both of these are inexpensive items to take care of.
A little rust is expected if left outside and can be
addressed too. Whine about the rust and other
stuff and get it down more if you can. If not then
actually $1500 is a good price for so little mileage.

:)

thank you guys for the reply.

yes the guy would give me $1500. the bike was outside for a couple months and then he bought a bike cover. he told me that he did a tune up on november 2010 and he spent almost $400.

im not sure how to jump start the bike but im thinking it should be the same way like cars. im taking about manual cars that have a dead battery. all you need is to push the bike and put into the 2nd gears and pops the clutch.

[alantf]

Or try starting by using jump leads from a car, but WITH THE CAR ENGINE NOT RUNNING. :2tup:

[alanmcorcoran]

Given the bike hasn't been running for sometime, its' likely you'll have trouble push starting it. In fact you'll probably have trouble starting it with a fully charged new battery. Try to start it from a car battery (on a car that is not running) as suggested above by alantf.) Make sure the choke is fully on and be persistent. It's probably not going to fire right up, but it might start. Let it run for five minutes at least and don't judge the quality of the running until at least 150 miles has been put on it.

[mrlmd1]

It may not start because of a gummed up carb, sitting for three years with old gas in it if not stored properly. If you do get it to start and it runs rough, put some Berryman's or Seafoam or Techcron in the gas to see if you can clean it out. It will have to be ridden for many miles for that stuff to work.
If it turns over but won't start, you may have to remove the carb and physically clean it which is not that terrible of a job.
And if you want to take a chance on the bike, not running or starting is a great bargaining chip to get the price reduced considerably, as he will never sell it that way anyway.

[tcrave]

I still confused about the transaction...are you saying that he is going to give you $1500 to take his bike? If that is the case, then it is a great deal. If you own the bike and someone else is offering you $1500, I'd take it in a heartbeat. If he offered to let you buy the bike for $1500, I wouldn't buy it. I don't think I would ever pay more than $1000 for a non-running bike unless I was 98% sure of the problem.

I found a 2000 gz250 with 3000 miles and the lady wanted $1500 for it, it was in pristine condition, like it came off the showroom floor. It had been sitting for a year and wouldn't start. It cranked over, but wouldn't start...I even tried putting seafoam in it and pop starting it and no luck...she wouldn't take $1000 so I walked. Later she told me that she had the carb cleaned, new spark plug, basically a tune up and it started like the day she bought it. I didn't get up there in time to buy it and she sold it to someone else. BUT, there was no way for me to tell for sure, it couldn't have been a spark plug, or it could have more problems. You just never know.

If you are trying to get it running, a few things you can do to try to get it going is replacing the spark plug or putting fresh gas in it with carb cleaner.

When you are trying to pop it, you can use 1st or 2nd gear, depending on how much control you think you have over the bike and how heavy you are. If you are a little heavier or think you can control the bike, I would try 1st and when you pop the clutch, try to push yourself down on the back of the bike. If you try second, you probably will not have as good of luck, but you won't have to worry about the bike running out from underneath you. The reason I say 1st would probably be easier is because you are going to need to get the bike rolling faster before popping the clutch. You can also try popping to 1st and immediately trying to shift to second. I could be totally off on this, but that is my experience and what I tried on that bike i was wanting to buy. Good luck!

[Water Warrior 2]

Also put the petcock in the prime position for 30 seconds to get fuel into the carb. Then switch back to the ON position.

[New2GZ]

Or try starting by using jump leads from a car, but WITH THE CAR ENGINE NOT RUNNING. :2tup:

thanks for input. i have never thought that the battery on the bike is 12V


Given the bike hasn't been running for sometime, its' likely you'll have trouble push starting it. In fact you'll probably have trouble starting it with a fully charged new battery. Try to start it from a car battery (on a car that is not running) as suggested above by alantf.) Make sure the choke is fully on and be persistent. It's probably not going to fire right up, but it might start. Let it run for five minutes at least and don't judge the quality of the running until at least 150 miles has been put on it.

thanks

It may not start because of a gummed up carb, sitting for three years with old gas in it if not stored properly. If you do get it to start and it runs rough, put some Berryman's or Seafoam or Techcron in the gas to see if you can clean it out. It will have to be ridden for many miles for that stuff to work.
If it turns over but won't start, you may have to remove the carb and physically clean it which is not that terrible of a job.
And if you want to take a chance on the bike, not running or starting is a great bargaining chip to get the price reduced considerably, as he will never sell it that way anyway.

the guy said that the bike got tune-up on november 2010 and had never been ridden since it got tune up. so i assumed the carb was not gummed up.

I still confused about the transaction...are you saying that he is going to give you $1500 to take his bike? If that is the case, then it is a great deal. If you own the bike and someone else is offering you $1500, I'd take it in a heartbeat. If he offered to let you buy the bike for $1500, I wouldn't buy it. I don't think I would ever pay more than $1000 for a non-running bike unless I was 98% sure of the problem.

I found a 2000 gz250 with 3000 miles and the lady wanted $1500 for it, it was in pristine condition, like it came off the showroom floor. It had been sitting for a year and wouldn't start. It cranked over, but wouldn't start...I even tried putting seafoam in it and pop starting it and no luck...she wouldn't take $1000 so I walked. Later she told me that she had the carb cleaned, new spark plug, basically a tune up and it started like the day she bought it. I didn't get up there in time to buy it and she sold it to someone else. BUT, there was no way for me to tell for sure, it couldn't have been a spark plug, or it could have more problems. You just never know.

If you are trying to get it running, a few things you can do to try to get it going is replacing the spark plug or putting fresh gas in it with carb cleaner.

When you are trying to pop it, you can use 1st or 2nd gear, depending on how much control you think you have over the bike and how heavy you are. If you are a little heavier or think you can control the bike, I would try 1st and when you pop the clutch, try to push yourself down on the back of the bike. If you try second, you probably will not have as good of luck, but you won't have to worry about the bike running out from underneath you. The reason I say 1st would probably be easier is because you are going to need to get the bike rolling faster before popping the clutch. You can also try popping to 1st and immediately trying to shift to second. I could be totally off on this, but that is my experience and what I tried on that bike i was wanting to buy. Good luck!


he sells his bike to me for $1500. im 132 lbs. for me the bike is not heavy at all. im 132 lbs.
Also put the petcock in the prime position for 30 seconds to get fuel into the carb. Then switch back to the ON position.

what is petcock? do you mind to tell me what is it and where is located?

thanks.

[New2GZ]

sorry for the late reply

[blaine]

The petcock is the valve that is located on the bottom of the tank on the left side.It controls your fuel to the carb.
:) :2tup:

[New2GZ]

^^ is petcock = choke?

thnaks

[Strelok]

New2GZ~

Your Petcock is for adjusting your Fuel.
It has 3 settings for your Gas for normal use
or Reserve when your Main Tank is getting to empty.
One more setting has to do with the Bike being unused.
This is located on the left underneath your Gas Tank itself.

Your Choke is a plastic lever on your left handlebar that is used
to give more Gas to your Engine for starting it. This is especially
helpful if the Bike has been sitting or when you have really cold weather.
You must pull in the Clutch when using the Choke and starting the Motorcycle.

:)

[mrlmd1]

Download the owner's and service manuals on here and READ THEM. There are operating instructions which you must know if you are unfamiliar with a motorcycle, and oh yes, if you are new to this sport and have not ridden before, TAKE AN MSF COURSE for your own safety. Then you'll be a member here a lot longer.

[burkbuilds]

You stated that you are a complete newbie in your first post. I would not recommend trying to roll start the bike if you don't have any experience riding. If you do and it does start, you could find yourself in a very dangerous situation unexpectedly. If the bike was tuned and running 8 months ago, I'd ask your friend if he'd reimburse you for the cost of a new battery if the bike still won't start after you install one, drain out the old gas and put new gas in and give it a shot. If you can't get it to run, walk away from the deal. If it will start, $1500 is not a bad price for a low mileage bike in relatively good condition, it's not the bargain of the year, but not bad. Tires on a 2008 should still be fine and if the only other problem is some minor surface rust on the chrome, not bad.

[mrlmd1]

You said, "the guy said that the bike got tune-up on november 2010 and had never been ridden since it got tune up. so i assumed the carb was not gummed up".

I assume the bike was started and maybe ridden home after that, so there was gas in the carb, and if it has been sitting in there for 6-7 months, it could very well be gummed up. The volatile stuff in the gas slowly and eventually evaporates, leaving you with a thicker gooey residue which does not burn well if at all, may actually get solid (called "varnish"), and plugs up the jets in the carb. So it very well may need to be cleaned out, despite what he did in Nov. That's called "Atrophy of Disuse", borrowed from the medical profession. You may get lucky with some carb cleaner, or it may need to be taken apart and mechanically cleaned out, even if he had it done back in Nov., and a carb cleaning is generally not part of a tune up..