How does one buy a new (used) bike nowadays?

[TdeV]

Last time I bought a new bike, I took a pocket full of hundreds to a BMW rally, got a mechanic I know to look at the bike, and then rode it home. That was many, many years ago.

Earlier this year, I tried to buy a new bike 2K miles away from home and had a hard time convincing the owners to wait (to sell) until I'd managed to show up. Needless to say, by the time I got there, the only bikes still available were at dealers' showrooms.

Now I've found a bike 200 miles from me. I've sent an email telling the guy I want the bike. He sent me back a bill of sale with our names but it's unsigned. I sent him $5 via Paypal so he could see when the money arrived.

Here's my problem: I don't want to send him all the money until I'm sure the bike is as advertised and that I can collect it (which might be two weeks). If I don't give him any money, he might sell the bike to someone else.

How do people handle long-distance sales??

TIA.

 

[88bmwjeff]

 

[spx]

Last time I bought a new bike, I took a pocket full of hundreds to a BMW rally, got a mechanic I know to look at the bike, and then rode it home. That was many, many years ago.

Earlier this year, I tried to buy a new bike 2K miles away from home and had a hard time convincing the owners to wait (to sell) until I'd managed to show up. Needless to say, by the time I got there, the only bikes still available were at dealers' showrooms.

Now I've found a bike 200 miles from me. I've sent an email telling the guy I want the bike. He sent me back a bill of sale with our names but it's unsigned. I sent him $5 via Paypal so he could see when the money arrived.

Here's my problem: I don't want to send him all the money until I'm sure the bike is as advertised and that I can collect it (which might be two weeks). If I don't give him any money, he might sell the bike to someone else.

How do people handle long-distance sales??

TIA.

Send the seller a small deposit ($500?) to show that you're serious, with the understanding that:
(1) The bike will be held for you.
(2) You're buying the bike as long as it's as advertised.

If 1 or 2 above aren't met, the deposit gets refunded to you.

 

[71243]

Last time I bought a new bike, I took a pocket full of hundreds to a BMW rally, got a mechanic I know to look at the bike, and then rode it home. That was many, many years ago.

Earlier this year, I tried to buy a new bike 2K miles away from home and had a hard time convincing the owners to wait (to sell) until I'd managed to show up. Needless to say, by the time I got there, the only bikes still available were at dealers' showrooms.

Now I've found a bike 200 miles from me. I've sent an email telling the guy I want the bike. He sent me back a bill of sale with our names but it's unsigned. I sent him $5 via Paypal so he could see when the money arrived.

Here's my problem: I don't want to send him all the money until I'm sure the bike is as advertised and that I can collect it (which might be two weeks). If I don't give him any money, he might sell the bike to someone else.

How do people handle long-distance sales??

TIA.

I'm in Ohio & have purchased two , one from Arizona & one from Florida, both private owners.

I have sold two , one to Texas & one to Wisconsin . Both private owners

As much as i hate to say it....Trust has to be involved . In all four cases p/numbers were exchanged , calls placed . In the case of both purchases, payment in full was sent, both motorcycles arrived as advertised , one [I swear] looked brand new...the other was what i expected .

In the sales....the one that went to Texas, the new owner called , thanked me, said it was beautiful....even though in that case the shipping company...jacked him around. I had his money and he waited 31 days for his new motorcycle ! It was near Christmas & some how it got "lost" in a transfer facility somewhere in Missouri ? But it did arrive undamaged .

{Unrelated} but during all this, the poor guy's mother died in another state. His neighbor stepped up, signed for it, and stowed it in her garage till he return.

In the case of the sale to Wisconsin...we talked by phone , he drove down with a trailer , handed me the $$ and we loaded it up, he towed it home. That was an 2004 Montauk with less that 1000 miles in 2012 and he said it was going into a collection, so he did not want the miles home added to it. And...he did not trust shipping companies.

My only advise / caution is.........be careful with shipping companies.. I mentioned the "RS" going to Texas. Well when my "Roadster" arrived from Florida...it was a cold snowy day, the lift gate of the truck was wet / icy...and the driver had a bad back...If I wanted it, I had to place & hold it on the gate platform..it barely fit, then the gate had about a good 1-2 inch drop when he activated the lever , and I thought me & motorcycle were headed to the ground...We landed fine, no harm no foul but....never should have been. Maybe some of the blame is on me ?...I should have refused it ? I called & argued with them, but lost...they had their money, they didn't care.....Hence be careful!!!

 

[Kindjal]

Use an escrow service

You could exchange a bill of sale that includes the use of an escrow service. You agree on a price and send the money to the escrow service, who releases the money to the seller when you agree you've received the goods in acceptable condition. Google "how to use an escrow service".

 

[20774]

Welcome to the forum! Thanks for an new idea on buying a used bike!

 

[DARKCLOUD]

Used bike

First off you want to get about 50 pics of the bike to include the Vin. Then you run the Vin to make sure you the bike has a good title. You ask about anything that the pictures don't show. Next have the owner call the servicing dealership and give them permission to talk to you about the bike. Things like repairs made, and recalls. You can goggle search the owners name and see what comes up. So now you set up a place and time to look at the bike and do business. Mode of payment. Consider taking a check or similar instrument the other party agrees on but not for the full amount because you may need to negotiate. Large bills work good to make up the difference. Now you need to know what state laws effect you. Best thing is to call the BMV where the bike is located providing that is the state where the bike is registered in. 2 hundred miles strongly consider trailering the bike home. Once the deal is done, the title is signed over don't count on new and used BMW parts being mailed to you.

 

[TdeV]

I used Escrow.com

I used Escrow.com (https://www.escrow.com/) to process only the deposit and took a certified cheque for the balance. Escrow.com wouldn't use my Paypal account because I hadn't previously done business with them (I had to send a wire transfer). I made the inspection period one day.

When I picked up the bike last Sunday (noonish), I used the seller's computer to log into my account and accept the vehicle. Even so, Escrow.com didn't approve the transaction until late Tuesday morning my time because:

• weekends are busy sales periods
• they process transactions in the order they occur on their website
• they are closed on the weekend
• they are in California
• they have a banking cutoff at 2 pm

If the seller chooses wire transfer (and pays a fee) the payment will be sent in one business day. If the seller chooses ACH, the payment will take three business days.

Other than the fuss it took to manage the seller's expectations about the delay, this was a very satisfactory experience. I would definitely choose this method again.