Buying a bike from out of town?

[bingslayer]

Hey guys, I was just wondering if anyone could advise me of a good proccess for buying a bike unseen from out of town. what is a good way to go about the transaction considering I wont meet the seller in person. could someone reccommend a cheap shipping company? cheers

[SMOKEU]

At the very least I suggest you have a look at jetting over there to have a look at it. Jetstar are usually quite cheap and it's always better to have a look at it yourself than taking someone elses word.

[Fast Eddie]

I've just bought out of town without seeing first.

I've done it twice now. I wouldn't recommend it as you can't see the bike first so you really don't know what its going to be like. Both times I did it because the price was so low I still wanted it even if the bikes arrived needing a lot of work, and despite both sellers saying the bikes were sweet. Both have arrived needing a fair bit of work. So be prepared for that!

Only do it if the price is so good that you would be happy if the bike arrived in poor condition.. Because it probably will arrive in much worse condition than you were hoping!

but sometimes you just have to have that bike! (A turbo charged 550cc and an Aprilia race replica were worth it for me.. but both arrived in worse condition than stated. negotiated price to help but I wouldn't do it for any common bikes that may pop up for sale locally)

If I were you I would buy local, one u can inspect first and test ride. Unless you want a specific model that you cannot find local.

I used www.nzmotorcyclemovers.co.nz to transport bike from Gisborne to Dunedin. they picked it up on the wednesday and delivered it the following wednesday. Very easy to deal with, I didnt have to do anything except give them the pick up and delivery addresses. They were the equal cheapest with biketranz EXCEPT biketranz do not do door to door all the time anymore, and in my case they wanted the bike delivered to a depot and picked up from a depot. So for the same price I went nzmotorcyclemovers and they did the door to door. no brainer!

[DR650gary]

There are heaps of good guys here that will take a look for you. Use the network.

Cheers

[george formby]

I bought two of my bikes unseen. Spent a fair bit of time talking to the sellers to try & gauge there integrity & both where true to their word. Both cracking bikes exactly as described. I may just be lucky but went on my instincts & a bit of faith in humanity.

[DMNTD]

PRE PURCHASE CHECK... at the vendor's local bike shop at your expense.
Will cost around the $100 mark and will be well worth it either way.
You can specify exactly what you want them to look at including body work etc.

[AllanB]

Private sale? Have someone look over it for you and take a shit load of photos for you.

Dealer - if preloved have them e-mail you a pile of images and discuss a warranty period that may be valid in your town/city - ie 3 months parts or similar. If it is a sweet bike the warranty should never be required.