Cat D - Am I mad?
Discussion
I have no experience of cat D, salvage or repairing bikes... so I am probably off my rocker but just need someone more knowledgeable (you lot) to confirm.
I've seen this F800ST for salvage - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2006-BMW-F-800-ST-Motorbike-...
I'm thinking, get it inspected, if there's no chassis damage, buy it, get BMW to repair it to pass an MOT. And then ride it into the ground. I am doing lots of miles commuting so this would be a relatively cheap mile muncher. Then I can use some spare cash to buy something more sporty for the weekends...
I've seen this F800ST for salvage - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2006-BMW-F-800-ST-Motorbike-...
I'm thinking, get it inspected, if there's no chassis damage, buy it, get BMW to repair it to pass an MOT. And then ride it into the ground. I am doing lots of miles commuting so this would be a relatively cheap mile muncher. Then I can use some spare cash to buy something more sporty for the weekends...
Main problem with a salvage/repair will be the resale value, if you plan to run it in to the ground then it's worthwhile.
Advert says centre-stand mound and lower engine casing. Stand mount is probably a pretty quick welding job, but you'd want to have a look at how much effort the lower engine casing is. It might just be a sump that you can unbolt and replace, or it might be complete engine split to get at it.
As said above if its work you can do yourself you can get a good bargain, but don't bother with getting a dealer to fix it. The whole point of a Cat D is that repairs at dealer prices will cost more than the bikes worth.
Advert says centre-stand mound and lower engine casing. Stand mount is probably a pretty quick welding job, but you'd want to have a look at how much effort the lower engine casing is. It might just be a sump that you can unbolt and replace, or it might be complete engine split to get at it.
As said above if its work you can do yourself you can get a good bargain, but don't bother with getting a dealer to fix it. The whole point of a Cat D is that repairs at dealer prices will cost more than the bikes worth.
Thanks - some good advice.
So I can get an indy to repair whatever is necessary to get through an MOT and make the bike legal.
Is there someone I can get to go and inspect the bike for me? (like AA do for cars?). I'm a total novice when it comes to mechanics and wouldn't know where to start...
So I can get an indy to repair whatever is necessary to get through an MOT and make the bike legal.
Is there someone I can get to go and inspect the bike for me? (like AA do for cars?). I'm a total novice when it comes to mechanics and wouldn't know where to start...
As has been said, the reason for a Cat D is that the cost of the parts and the labour are more than the bike is worth. Given that the price for a ‘good one’ at that sort of age is around £5000 that would show that the cost of repairing it properly would be at least £4500. That’s a lot of money on parts and labour so you can assume that the work required (and the number of parts required) are actually quite substantial. To make a repair worthwhile, you would need to end up paying less than about £4500 in total for the bike as if it costs more than that, you might just as well have bought a non-Cat D second hand bike.
It is pretty unlikely that you will be able to get an independent to repair the bike for less than £2000 given that you would still have to pay for parts (even second hand ones are expensive) and pay for their labour. The only way this is likely to be worth doing is if you do the work yourself and spend the time phoning around the breakers in order to get the parts.
It is pretty unlikely that you will be able to get an independent to repair the bike for less than £2000 given that you would still have to pay for parts (even second hand ones are expensive) and pay for their labour. The only way this is likely to be worth doing is if you do the work yourself and spend the time phoning around the breakers in order to get the parts.
GuyMarks said:
I'm a total novice when it comes to mechanics and wouldn't know where to start...
In all seriousness, a write-off bike probably isn't for you given the above, not unless it's purely cosmetic and you can either live with it or touch it in with a paintbrush.If you've no ability with a box of spanners, it could end up costing you just as much to get it put right as buying a runner in the first place.
My track bike was a salvage job, but I rebuilt it all myself and sprayed it and it's a reasonable tool now, but I spent many many hours last winter getting to that point, and most importantly, enjoyed doing it too. It would never have been viable in a million years if I'd had to pay someone to do it.
A mate of mine bought a crash damaged GPZ900R back in the 80's. Threw away the smashed fairing, replaced the front forks and front wheel. Ran it as his only transport for 3 years, bought a s/h fairing, sold it for more than it cost to buy, fix and service.
It's easy. Go an look at the bike, price up the cost of everything that NEEDs to be replaced, and see if it makes sense.
It's easy. Go an look at the bike, price up the cost of everything that NEEDs to be replaced, and see if it makes sense.
Yep, everyone has given good advice so far. Unless you've got the knowledge and equipment to repair it all yourself it is not a cost effective way of buying a motorbike, especially when you take into account the resale value. In your position I would recommend buying a basic toolkit, a couple hundred should get you a fairly comprehensive kit from Halfords Professional range for example. Buy a (cheap!) project bike that you can take to bits, learn how everything works and put back together. Make sure it's something you can afford to lose, worst case scenario you end up scrapping a box of bits but you could end up with a working bike out of it. Plus it will give you the basic mechanical skills needed to take on a project such as a Cat D bike.
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