You love motorcycles. Might be a Harley Davidson fan, a Honda enthusiast, live for Kawasaki dirt bikes or admire Yamaha’s MotoGP Racing record. Maybe you enjoy the Italian exotic Ducati or other European classics like the BMW. It’s clear you want a new bike, but the price points for used motorcycles seem rather high. But, there is a good alternative if you are pretty handy with a wrench and you want to save money. You can buy a salvage title motorcycle from an auction and fix it up.
What Is A Salvage Motorcycle?
Salvage title bike seems to bring to life the worst stereotypes of junked or destroyed equipment. But, there is a wide variety of what passes as “salvage motorcycles” in the market today. Salvage vehicles are written off by insurance companies because they don’t want to pay the repair cost. The damages can be anything from a collision, flood, hail, mechanical or theft. For older bikes, the damage doesn’t have to be that extensive, if the repair costs are close enough to the Blue Book value, they will be issued a salvage title. Motorcycles with salvage titles can be bought for a decent price, repaired and then inspected by your DMV to be re-titled as rebuilt title motorcyles.
Where Can You Find Salvage Motorcycles To Buy?
Insurance companies hoping to make some money back sell these motorcycles at auctions. Companies like Copart hold these auctions nationwide pretty much on a daily basis. They are online, which makes them truly national. Years ago, only wholesalers and car dealers could bid at these auctions. But today, thanks to brokers like SalvageBikesAuction.com, the general public can bid on a wide selection of bikes across the nation from the convenience of doing it from home or office.
Tips For Buying Used Salvage Motorcycles Online
Once you have started browsing salvage motorcycles, start looking for those with repairable damage. If you live close to the auction site, go check the bike out firsthand – with a mechanic. If it’s too far, you can find inspectors who can do it remotely. Look for issues in the frame, gas tank and handlebars. Does the engine start? Is there water damage? Flood damage can be a nightmare because it shows up down the road. Ask a lot of questions. Don’t bid on anything until you are satisfied with the answers you get.
Make a budget and stick to it. Remember to add auction fees, broker fees and any transport costs to your final bid. You want to save money. The price of the bike delivered to your door plus cost to repair should be well under what you would spend for a used bike. Good Luck!!