Insurance/Salvage Auctions

[TreyYoung]

Does anyone have any experience in Salvage Auctions? I was thinking about getting a track bike that I could fix up myself. Paid $200 (yes I already paid. I am impulsive like that) to get authorization to Insurance/Salvage auctions. Noticed many of these bikes are theft recovery, and in pretty good shape.

Any advice, experience or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[BlueHaya]

I have a salvage I bought off ebay. I "rebuilt" it and got the title changed from salvage to rebuilt. Laws are different from state to state on what can be done.

I have insurance on it as well and buy tags for it...not sure why though, as I seem to only race it twice a year???

Some of the salvage brokers only buy certain type of listings. I ran into that when I was looking for an extra motor.

 

[TallTom]

Yes there are great deals to be had. The advantage you have over the big buyers is that they factor in a larger overhead cost when they bid on a bike. If you are doing this yourself out of your own garage, you can pay a little more because it doesn't cost as much for you to do whatever you plan on doing. Most are purchased as part outs or track bike foundations. Amazing how little damage some have. Like mentioned, it varies from state to state what you can do with these bikes, but there are many very salvageable/rebuildable bikes that take little effort to make as good as any bike on the road.

Gen 1 Busa are getting cheap. I pick up a bike every now and then. Price can't be refused at times. I also look for early first Gen Miata wrecks and part them out.

Stick with a bike you know. Easier for you to turn it if you don't have to research what part goes on what years etc. My last bike was a 99 R-1. Picked it up for $250. Parted it out for $1800. Parts only fit 3 years made. Parts went all over the world. Sold the rest of the leftover metal for scrap at $150.00.

 

[Flicka]

Excellent thread, Trey. I'll be watching.

 

[TreyYoung]

Excellent thread, Trey. I'll be watching.

I won't feel as bad if I crash a bike that I haven't babied since buying new, and may have already taken a tumble. And like you, I want to make sure the bike is done right, so buying something that will force me to take apart and inspect, is the way to go.

 

[Fastfrog007]

Where do even find these auctions?

 

[TreyYoung]

Yes there are great deals to be had. The advantage you have over the big buyers is that they factor in a larger overhead cost when they bid on a bike. If you are doing this yourself out of your own garage, you can pay a little more because it doesn't cost as much for you to do whatever you plan on doing. Most are purchased as part outs or track bike foundations. Amazing how little damage some have. Like mentioned, it varies from state to state what you can do with these bikes, but there are many very salvageable/rebuildable bikes that take little effort to make as good as any bike on the road.

Gen 1 Busa are getting cheap. I pick up a bike every now and then. Price can't be refused at times. I also look for early first Gen Miata wrecks and part them out.

Stick with a bike you know. Easier for you to turn it if you don't have to research what part goes on what years etc. My last bike was a 99 R-1. Picked it up for $250. Parted it out for $1800. Parts only fit 3 years made. Parts went all over the world. Sold the rest of the leftover metal for scrap at $150.00.

Very nice. Do you have a license to participate in the auctions?

 

[Flicka]

I won't feel as bad if I crash a bike that I haven't babied since buying new, and may have already taken a tumble. And like you, I want to make sure the bike is done right, so buying something that will force me to take apart and inspect, is the way to go.

I know exactly what you mean. I'm afraid of hurting my bike on the track, not myself.

 

[TallTom]

The legitimate wholesale ones require you be a licensed dealer to bid. You can bid under someone elses license, but they have to be there and do the bidding for you. They are starting to open up these so called wholesale auctions to the public for a fee. They have sort of prostituted these as wholesale auctions but they are often times not. Often times they offer what the wholesalers didn't bid on.

I will give you an example I almost jumped on. Had I known the bike better and know what parts were going to cost me I would have jumped on it. 2011 Kawi ZX-10. Not minor but easily fixable front end damage. 2800 miles. Needed a front nose, dash, a radiator, side plastic on right side, front forks, rim etc, mirrors and other minor bits. Started and ran with no issues. Went for $3200. If I knew what the parts would have cost, I would have bought it at that price. Parts could have cost another 3K for all I knew. But part it out and you had a 5K bike there.

Track bikes are easy to find. They lose the plastics, the kid doesn't have the 1.5K deductible, so it gets totaled. Insurance companies dump a bike that has been in pretty minor accidents. Theft recoveries sometimes come through as nothing but a frame. Other times they look complete with not much wrong with them.