Looking at buying FZ1, had a question

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JDUB

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Hey guys, I am new to the forum. I am looking at getting my first FZ1 and I am looking at a couple of them. A simple question, is a 2007 FZ1 with 16,000 miles to many miles? I know if the bike was taken care of it'll run forever. I am also looking at a 2008 that has some body blemeshes but nothing bad and only has 7100 miles, both about the same price. Thanks guys.
 
16,000 miles is next to nothing for your average Japanese or European bike. When I sold my 2003 FZ1, it had 60,000 on it and ran beautifully. I've had several bikes over 40,000-50,000 miles and mileage has never been a concern for me.

Happy hunting :)
 
JDUB said:
Hey guys, I am new to the forum. I am looking at getting my first FZ1 and I am looking at a couple of them. A simple question, is a 2007 FZ1 with 16,000 miles to many miles? I know if the bike was taken care of it'll run forever. I am also looking at a 2008 that has some body blemeshes but nothing bad and only has 7100 miles, both about the same price. Thanks guys.
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If the price is right, newer with less miles is always good.
 
who has any paperwork proving work done?

how clean is the chain? around the chain? rust?

what cond are the tires in? chicken strips or worn out all the way to the edges?

does the oil level look good? smell? thick? thin?

over all cond of the neatness, aka clean/dirty?

wet spots on the underside?

are the front tubes wet or dry? oily spots on the seal covers?

anti freeze or just water, additives?

a couple scratches? is the body work true? are the faring mounts bent? all parts org to this bike?

can get into a lot more but then you need wrenches.

cosmetic's = big $ at the sale. will it will run next week.

great working bike = less $ to keep it running.


have a friend look at it with you..there job is to be very picky.

:noworries:


.
 
Thanks guys, the one with lower mileage has cracks on the right side fairing, the front tire is needing replaced so that one is out for me. The 2007 is really clean, fresh tires, looks good, no body damage. I will have one of my buddies come down as well to look.
 
I've seen bikes with 10K miles in much worse condition then my FZ1 with over 100K miles. It's all about how well the owner maintained it. There is a gen 1 running around out west with over 200K miles.
 
For your reference, a clean 07 at 18k miles

6169341554_a056274849_b.jpg
 
I looked at a 2009 by me with 16,000 miles for $6500. The bike had numerous scratches, the screws on the fairing were almost stripped from what looked like the previous owner probably using the wrong size phillips head when working on it. It had what looked like a homemade windscreen that was just terrible looking. There was oil gathered at the bottom of the forks and the chain looked like crap with wax all caked on it. The rear brake reservoir fluid almost looked black to very dark gray. The bike had a hard time starting and the guy at the dealer said it was just because it sat too long without stabilizer. Needless to say I passed.

Another '09 by me looked immaculate except for a large gouge in the right fairing from where it looked like it tipped over in the garage/dealership and hit something. Only had 2k miles and they were asking $7500 for it. I passed on that since it was out of my price range and I didn't want to dicker with the guy because that dealer is known for screwing people.

Settled on a '09 with 5k miles on it from out of state for $6000 because the pictures looked great, it was a 1 owner garage kept and had new tires on it that the dealer there replaced.

To be honest I couldn't find any '07s when I was looking and wish I did because I love the color and paint scheme much more. But I'll be happy with what I have and wait till the next bike to be a little more patient and get exactly what I want.

Also, use the NADA guides and KBB motorcyle to lookup values and help you decide.
 
Another good indicator if the bike is taken care of is where it's located. Take a look at the lawn and the garage if its well kept its a good thing for the bike usually. Also a good indicator is the chain, if they take the time to grease items on the bike too. If its well taken care of dont worry about miles to much. I would rather buy a bike that has 100k vs a bike that's been best to crap for 6k
 
When I was shopping for mine, it was a good thing I haggled on the phone itself as when I saw the bike and the owner's house in person, I lost the will to haggle. The bike was better than showroom condition at 4k miles. Needless to say I handed over the cash and surrendered to the bike!
 
Blanchy said:
Just wondering. why the road to Pikes Peak? Its close to you I think but most roads are built for a reason. Can't see why thy built that one.
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I guess that is the upside of being an american is sometimes we build stuff just because we can. On top of that I've seen numerous vids of that route and it's amazing. "for purple mountains majesty, above the fruited plain" that's america.
 
When this question is asked everyone seems to forget about this... This is something to look for when purchasing the first few model years.

take a flash light and look the bike over very well for weld stress cracks the owner may not even know about it

below is a link to the thread with pictures... you can also do a search here for "frame crack" there are several topics

http://www.998cc.org/forum/fz1-streetfighter/9703-gutted-crack-weld-frame.html

Good luck, Craig
 
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Ssky0078 said:
That's not the bike that was seized from the guy who posted himself doing wheelies and the Aussie police caught up to him, is it?:sport12:
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That guy was in Perth, some 2700km from Adelaide. Not surprised he got nicked posting up the videos. His friends probably got done too.

There were some crazy guys in Tassie doing wheelies past cop cars who got done as well.
 
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