Craigslist Motorcycle Game

"JasonStern911" (JasonStern911) 08/22/2015 at 16:54 • Filed to: None

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Welcome to another edition of Craigslist Motorcycle Game, where I post links to motorcycles on my local craigslist with my thoughts given the ad. While this easily could be done with cars, it’s more fun with motorcycles as the demand is lower, the market is smaller, and the variety/quality/condition tends to be greater, which makes it all that more interesting to me. So join in the fun of calling me out on how wrong I am for bashing (insert bike here) because of (insert stupid craigslist ad here)!

Rally Sport!!!

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HONDA NEVER MADE A BIKE CALLED THE RS. In fact, searching for “Honda RS” yields this as the first result:

Honda Srbija

Delta Automoto d.o.o je osnovan 03.01.2007. kao samostalna firma nastala iz profitnog centra Delta Auto, osnovanog 1996 godine. Delta Automoto je generalni je ...

I don’t know what that means! Just call it a Nighthawk 250. There’s no need to try to invoke fantasies of some sporting past this bike never had.

In all seriousness, it’s cheap enough to gamble on. It’s a Honda, and apparently duct tape has held the bike together this long, so given the relatively low mileage, it looks like a great start to a cafe racer project.

COME ON OUR GIRLS!!!

In the last edition, I gave ish to a 20+ year old Honda Goldwing with at trike kit that the owner was asking something like 5 Miatas for, and the comments gave me flak, despite it being a 20+ year old Goldwing with a trike kit going for 5 Miatas. So here’s a another interesting Goldwing.

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If you are in the market for an “ass bike”, this is a good one... apparently. I love this ad because it’s so bad. From the title, to the fact the bike is cammo’ed out and the guy is giving a peace sign, to the mileage being listed as 760,000 and claimed 78k - it’s a perfect example of proofreading being for wussies.

In all seriousness, fair price. Sidecars are spendy. I’d love to own one, but it would take up space in my garage for 2-3 bikes. While the riding experience would be less enjoyable, in my head chicks would love me riding down the street with my sheepdog in the sidecar wearing an old leather helmet and some goggles. He’d be so scared he’d piss himself all over the sidecar, but such is life.

What do fat chicks and scooters have in common?

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Nothing. One is a cheap form of transportation and the other is a female woman that should look into dietary changes to prolong her health. What? I didn’t make Oppo politically correct.

In all seriousness, Zumas are awesome, and that’s a solid price. Zumas are, as far as I am aware, the last Japanese produced street legal two strokes in America, so that’s something you can’t get elsewhere. But the main reason I added this bike to the list was to give some heads up to potential scooter owners - at least in Nevada. Here, you don’t have to register and insure a scooter as long as it’s under 50cc, cannot exceed 30MPH, and is under 2hp. There is a very realistic chance that Zumas do not technically meet this criteria, but as long as I adhered to the keeping it under 30MPH, didn’t ride like a dick, and wore a not-required helmet, I never had a problem when I owned one. But the main thing to look out for in scooters in general is because they don’t have to be registered or insured, stolen scooters tend to frequent craigslist. So don’t buy one without a title unless they have paperwork to back it up - manufacturers’ certificate of origin, dealer sales receipts, etc. And then make sure to lock it up so it doesn’t get stolen. That said, if everything is legit, $700 is a solid deal. It will likely need to be re-ringed at 10k, but that’s a lot of time sitting on a scooter.

Birddog > JasonStern911 08/22/2015 at 17:27

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Awesome.

This is a game I like to play here in Chicago. There’s a Zuma for sale here too. $300 tempts me but I just bought the majority of a $300 ATC 250R. So.. My poorly planned purchase allotment is used up for this month..

smobgirl > JasonStern911 08/22/2015 at 17:28

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“Make offer, can’t hurt my feelings.” Is that a challenge? That seems like something you might not want to put in a craigslist ad unless you have a lot of spare time.

I kind of want a scooter. Well, I kind of want a motorcycle, but I've done enough damage on mountain bikes to think that it might not be a great idea. So maybe a scooter to start. Thanks for the craigslist translations!

JasonStern911 > Birddog 08/22/2015 at 20:50

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Smart choice! Of all the “never buy a three wheeler. they’ll kill you” bikes, the ATC 250R was always my favorite, for “if I buy a three wheeler, it will probably kill me” and two stroke reasons.

Scooters are great if you live in a state where they don’t have to be registered and insured. Otherwise, you’re better off getting a small displacement enduro.

JasonStern911 > smobgirl 08/22/2015 at 20:58

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I lol’d at the “can’t hurt my feelings” challenge.

Thanks. I try to have fun with this. People buy so many more cars that it’s more obvious nice price/crack pipe on cars than bikes. Even sites like KBB have what a bike should cost retail, but not private party because there’s such a huge variance in quality. And while it’s fun to laugh at bad craigslist ads, I also try to provide some useful info for people potentially looking at motorcycles.

As for getting a scooter or a motorcycle, if you live in a city where you don’t have to insure or register a scooter, and your daily drive is close, they’re amazing. Otherwise, look into a small displacement motorcycle to start with. I used to own a Zuma, but now I own an XT250 which is much more practical as I can go on the 50MPH roads and also take it out on the forest roads/trails.

smobgirl > JasonStern911 08/22/2015 at 21:07

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Good info. My commute is about 5 miles each way, max speed limit of 35, but I wonder about a couple of the hills on a scooter. I really don’t think there’s anything more dangerous than a scooter that can’t keep up with traffic - at least people can legally pass cyclists.

I tried doing a little research but was overwhelmed at the sheer number of options and just gave up. Definitely appreciate your advice.