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How much for a rebuilt 1983 R80 ?

J

jcrana

New member
I am looking to purchase my first BMW (a 1983 R80RT) with the intent to turn her into a cafe racer. I am working out a deal with the guy for 7k.
The engine/ carbs/ brakes have been rebuilt, frame/ rims/ engine painted, tank resealed, among other work done. The bike is ready to be modified. everything is fully functional. Tank has been sanded down ready for paint. Just under 20k miles. Wondering if anyone could give their input on whether or not 7k sounds like a fair offer for the bike.
 
About $5,000. After you've turned it into a café racer - about $1,500.

Oh, and welcome to the forum. :thumb
 
Last edited:
Interesting styling. If it’s what you like, does the price really matter?
Good luck. Don’t let the negativity get you down.
Welcome to the forum!
Gary
 
Omega Man said:
Interesting styling. If it’s what you like, does the price really matter?
Good luck. Don’t let the negativity get you down.
Welcome to the forum!
Gary
Click to expand...

I agree with Gary- airheads should be a happy experience. :newtoy

But, if you haven't already, I would also encourage you to look around before you buy (MOA marketplace, IBMWR, ABC, etc.). There are some good deals out there for airheads that are low miles, for significantly less money. $7K is getting up there for an incomplete, modified airhead unless it is really special or has a unique history.

Rebuilding the engine with just 20K miles is a red flag to me. Rebuilds by the prior owner aren't always a good deal and can yield unwanted "surprises" that are expensive to fix; unless you know the PO and trust their work (or have inspected it carefully with a knowing eye), you might be better off to buy an untouched bike and use the funds saved to do what you want with less unknowns and surprises as a result of work done by someone before you.

:beer
 
20k?

Man the red flags are flying!

With 20K on it, there should be NO reason to rebuild the engine, brakes, and a lot of other things unless, the bike had been sitting for a very long time and not prepared for long storage. Poor storage could account for a rusted gas tank inside, fuel turned to varnish and gum, rust internal to the cylinders, though that bike would have nickasial linings in the cylinders, and I am not sure how prone they are to rusting. I suppose a wet or very damp environment could cause them to rust and need rebuilding.

As been said, paying for "rebuilding" is only as good as the person doing the rebuilding. For $7000, I would expect the job to have been done by someone who has done that kind of work before, not an amateur.

There are other bikes out there for less money and in observable condition, I mean, they show you the warts. The warts are not glossed over by the previous owner's claim to rebuild in order to make more money on a sale.

if you want to build a cafe bike, a $7K bike is a bit of a high priced bike to start with. The condition of the parts you are going to remove to make the cafe bike will determine their sale value to recoup some of the build money. I am assuming you will be parting out stuff?

Really, you should look for something better priced and in known condition. If you need an engine rebuilt, you are then sure it was done correctly. Same goes for other things on the bike. I will give you my experience with a great looking low mileage bike. I own now a 78RS I purchased a few years ago. The bike supposedly had 34K on it, it looked really good. ran good. And Thank God was priced fair. So I bought it. Turns out, it burned oil like a two stroke. The 34K mile engine needed rebore and rings along with heads redone. not something I expected. Now, the bike is perfect, but, because it "looked" so good, and the PO gave me a great song and dance, I found myself with a nasty surprise after the sale. I am sure now, the bike has 134K on it not the 34K.

Looks can be very deceiving. St.
 
jcrana, you said you are looking to buy a 1983 R80RT to turn it into a cafe racer but then you presented pictures of the 'before and after' of the bike(???).

I must be missing something here(!!!).

/Guenther
 
Guenther said:
jcrana, you said you are looking to buy a 1983 R80RT to turn it into a cafe racer but then you presented pictures of the 'before and after' of the bike(???).

I must be missing something here(!!!).

/Guenther
Click to expand...

The top picture is of the bike that was purchased by the current owner. The bottom picture is the work he put in on it
 
So?

So let me get this straight, the bottom picture is the bike you are looking to pay $7K for? Is this guy's business building bikes like this or is this just something he cobbled together in his spare time?

If it is something he cobbled together, I would say another red flag went up.

A lot of people think they can build stuff and fewer really can. To be honest, it takes a bit of time and effort to establish a reputation for a custom bike shop to justify some of the prices they get for their bikes. While there are talented people who do build one off custom bikes in their spare time, they are sadly few and far between.

At my friend's shop, (we were just talking about this today) he jokes about him being the last resort in fixing bikes. He keeps busy by fixing the screw ups of not just owners mistakes or neglect but ding bats, who butcher bikes to make "custom" rides, then when they can't get them to run or work properly, they unload them onto some unsuspecting buyer. That buyer, then finds out the extent of the PO's "custom" work or repairs.

Sorry, despite the work done on this bike already, even for a pristine 83 R80, $7K is a bit high. But, what is asked and what is paid are two different things. St.
 
So it appears that the lower photo is of the bike to be purchased by the OP, not the end result of his conversion to a cafe racer.

From the appearance of the second bike (with knobbies), I would only value this at about $1000 to $1500.

If one really wants an airhead cafe racer, then it would be useful to have an idea of how much one would expect to have invested in the bike / conversion / project at the end. If you are buying a ready made cafe racer by a reputable builder or someone that one has confidence in, then $7000 is likely not a bad price.

To take a stripped down frankenbeemer (hodge-podge of parts and/or unknown pedigree) then start very low because there may be much effort and money necessary to end up with the desired end product.

As was suggested, take a look at the MOA marketplace and perhaps some other sources to get an idea of the pricing. If the bike being purchased has to be shipped, then that cost will need to be figured in as well.

These guys are in the UK, but seem to have lots of goodies for a cafe racer conversion -
https://www.flatracer.com/

Tastes vary. What some like, others don't. At one time I had thoughts to turn my R75/5 into a sort-of cafe-racer style bike.

This guy has done some nice things -
https://www.bikeexif.com/bmw-airhead-cafe-racer

Here are some more nice examples -
https://www.bikebound.com/customs/bmw-airhead-cafe-racers/

I'd like this one better if it were red -
https://backyardrider.com/bmw-r100-cafe-racer/
 
STEVENRANKIN said:
So let me get this straight, the bottom picture is the bike you are looking to pay $7K for? Is this guy's business building bikes like this or is this just something he cobbled together in his spare time?

If it is something he cobbled together, I would say another red flag went up.

A lot of people think they can build stuff and fewer really can. To be honest, it takes a bit of time and effort to establish a reputation for a custom bike shop to justify some of the prices they get for their bikes. While there are talented people who do build one off custom bikes in their spare time, they are sadly few and far between.

At my friend's shop, (we were just talking about this today) he jokes about him being the last resort in fixing bikes. He keeps busy by fixing the screw ups of not just owners mistakes or neglect but ding bats, who butcher bikes to make "custom" rides, then when they can't get them to run or work properly, they unload them onto some unsuspecting buyer. That buyer, then finds out the extent of the PO's "custom" work or repairs.

Sorry, despite the work done on this bike already, even for a pristine 83 R80, $7K is a bit high. But, what is asked and what is paid are two different things. St.
Click to expand...

Thanks again. Your input makes a lot of sense and resonates with me. Im on edge whether to pick it up tomorrow or not. 7k definitely does seem a bit high. On the other end this is my dream bike so if all the work on it is up to par, i dont mind to spend a bit extra. however, this is the guys hobby and first BMW rebuild. I had a thorough conversation with him and he went through all of the work he put in to the bike.
I see you are in NY like me, what is your friends shop name ?
 
STEVENRANKIN said:
Man the red flags are flying!

With 20K on it, there should be NO reason to rebuild the engine, brakes, and a lot of other things unless, the bike had been sitting for a very long time and not prepared for long storage. Poor storage could account for a rusted gas tank inside, fuel turned to varnish and gum, rust internal to the cylinders, though that bike would have nickasial linings in the cylinders, and I am not sure how prone they are to rusting. I suppose a wet or very damp environment could cause them to rust and need rebuilding.

As been said, paying for "rebuilding" is only as good as the person doing the rebuilding. For $7000, I would expect the job to have been done by someone who has done that kind of work before, not an amateur.

There are other bikes out there for less money and in observable condition, I mean, they show you the warts. The warts are not glossed over by the previous owner's claim to rebuild in order to make more money on a sale.

if you want to build a cafe bike, a $7K bike is a bit of a high priced bike to start with. The condition of the parts you are going to remove to make the cafe bike will determine their sale value to recoup some of the build money. I am assuming you will be parting out stuff?

Really, you should look for something better priced and in known condition. If you need an engine rebuilt, you are then sure it was done correctly. Same goes for other things on the bike. I will give you my experience with a great looking low mileage bike. I own now a 78RS I purchased a few years ago. The bike supposedly had 34K on it, it looked really good. ran good. And Thank God was priced fair. So I bought it. Turns out, it burned oil like a two stroke. The 34K mile engine needed rebore and rings along with heads redone. not something I expected. Now, the bike is perfect, but, because it "looked" so good, and the PO gave me a great song and dance, I found myself with a nasty surprise after the sale. I am sure now, the bike has 134K on it not the 34K.

Looks can be very deceiving. St.
Click to expand...

he did say that the bike was left outside by and its second owner and neglected. which is why he did the rebuild of everything
 
One thought here... and just my opinion.
Do test drive an R NineT...
With the money you will be into the airhead you can get a near new NineT
Same simplicity. No tach or fuel gauge.
Can be configured like a cafe racer
 
kjeppesen said:
One thought here... and just my opinion.
Do test drive an R NineT...
With the money you will be into the airhead you can get a near new NineT
Same simplicity. No tach or fuel gauge.
Can be configured like a cafe racer
Click to expand...

i have been thinking about it.
not sure i would really want abs and all digital aspects.
thinking the newer bmw engines can put as many miles on them as the older engines?
 
Shop Name

I am in the Rochester NY area. My friend's shop is in Niagara County in a little one horse village called Johnsons Creek. The Name is the Beemer Barn. Glenn does not have a website as he is not much of a tech guy.

His number is 716 735 3458.

One thing I want to be clear about is I am not opposed to cafe bikes or scramblers or any other custom bike. Not every one wants a stock bike, and in some cases the current cafe bike craze is leading younger, new riders to BMW airhead bikes. That means some parts will still be available which may have faded away.

I am opposed to shoddy workmanship, cobble jobs and disreputable builders conning people.

Getting back to THIS bike, I really think $7K is just too much for an unknown quality of build and skill. Better to buy a non running parts bike or barn find or something cheap then with Knowing you need a rebore or head work or wiring or whatever, you can decide if you want to spend the money on how you want things to be done and control how they are done.

Paying a steep price for an unknown is a bad way to start out, I have seen more than a few disappointed people pay too much for a "great bike, everything has been rebuilt", and payed the price or turned off of BMW airheads altogether. St.
 
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