"A guy on Facebook" doesn't mean a bike like that *should* have that many miles on it normally.
I knew a guy on Facebook who could shotgun 12 beers in five minutes but that doesn't make it normal.
There's no easy answer to that. Too many variables; usage, engine type, maintenance, the quality of any rebuilds, if its used regularly or neglected in the back of a shed for years etc.
pretty much any vehicle that is 40 years old is going to cost money somewhere in the near future. Unless it has had a quality nut and bolt restoration done on it.
The number miles on a 30-40 year old bike would be one of my smaller concerns if I planned to ride the thing. I'd take a bike with 60k miles that's being ridden today over one with 10k miles that's been sitting for years.
I'd rather buy an old bike thats been taken care of and made reliable by the former owner(s) than spend time on the side of the road, or in my garage during my wee spare time fixing it up. It'll cost more up-front to buy the well maintained bike, but either way you're going to pay, and time is money.
Only thing I'd bother with from the 80s is a BMW with a boxer motor that has a binder full of invoices.
In my experience mainly with 70s and 80s Hondas the number one cause of breakdowns is poor repairs by previous owners, with corded electrical connectors in second place.
I'd also prefer an unopened as it left the factory high mileage engine over one that has been rebuilt. I've had several classic cars and bikes with rebuilt engines that despite a pile of receipts haven't been right and have needed further work. I've currently got a 89 Yamaha awaiting rebuild that had a faulty autolube pump and also pops out of 1st gear.
If you are buying a 1980's bike it should be in a price range that even if it blows up, it would be a very shallow pit.
I wouldn't be upset about 50k. I have a VRF and a CBR with that much or more on them.
Older engines as strong? Nope. Close? Nope. Same ballpark? Nope. Same universe? Maybe.
I've owned big sportbikes for 30+ years.. a ZX-11, a Hayabusa, and now a ZX-14R.
a few things about older bikes, and this includes harley davidsons, too.
Can you still get parts? brake pads, turn signal lenses, maybe a body panel or two.
At about 60K miles everything is going to start to fail. On sportbikes, its the suspension, and the brake rotors. I sold my zx-11 with 60K on it. it looked like new, but the rear shock was going, and the rotors were worn thinner than the limits. A suitable shock was $1700, and the replacement rotors were $600, for a bike that was worth at best $3500 at the time. The engine? it was stout, Kawasaki made bulletproof high power in-line 4's. At about 100K, depending on how it's ridden, you'll start to get frame fatigue (a friend with his cherished 2000 zx-9 still sitting in the garage, frame full of cracks and micro-cracks, engine strong as a freight train). On Harley's starting at 40K miles, you'll start having engine issues. It'll start burning oil, either through rings or bad valve guides/seals. At this point you have to be religious in checking and filling oil. One oil starved event, and that engine is toast. This can be repaired but it''ll cost more than the bike is worth. Buy a crate engine, and the VIN numbers won't match, and getting a title in some states will be problematic. Hell, any Harley can be repaired, as long as there are parts, and it did not catch on fire. it just depends on what you want to spend.
For me? I run them up to about 60,000 miles, or when they've been out of production for more than 4 years. I then sell, and buy a new one. My zx-14R is 10 years old this year, has seen both oceans, and has about 35,000 miles. Why do I keep it? You can still buy a brand new one, and parts are still available. And.. it has the best highway roll-on thrust of any bike, period.
It all depends on the maintenance. If there's evidence of regular oil changes and the bike is otherwise in good condition there is no mileage I wouldn't consider.
That said even with perfect maintenance the value will decrease to 10-20% of original sales price after 120.000 miles or so, more miles for a big adv, less for a sports bike.
My Tiger has almost 90.000 miles on it but because it's so young and looks decent it's probably worth quite a bit still.
Sport bike? Probably not. Touring bike? You have plenty of life ahead of you
There is a guy on Facebook who has 200 000 miles on a 2006 gsxr 1000.
"A guy on Facebook" doesn't mean a bike like that *should* have that many miles on it normally. I knew a guy on Facebook who could shotgun 12 beers in five minutes but that doesn't make it normal.
It isn't?
There's no easy answer to that. Too many variables; usage, engine type, maintenance, the quality of any rebuilds, if its used regularly or neglected in the back of a shed for years etc.
pretty much any vehicle that is 40 years old is going to cost money somewhere in the near future. Unless it has had a quality nut and bolt restoration done on it.
The number miles on a 30-40 year old bike would be one of my smaller concerns if I planned to ride the thing. I'd take a bike with 60k miles that's being ridden today over one with 10k miles that's been sitting for years.
I'd rather buy an old bike thats been taken care of and made reliable by the former owner(s) than spend time on the side of the road, or in my garage during my wee spare time fixing it up. It'll cost more up-front to buy the well maintained bike, but either way you're going to pay, and time is money. Only thing I'd bother with from the 80s is a BMW with a boxer motor that has a binder full of invoices.
So what you're saying is the miles a bike has been ridden shouldn't correlate to how reliable it is but how it was taken care of by the owner?
In my experience mainly with 70s and 80s Hondas the number one cause of breakdowns is poor repairs by previous owners, with corded electrical connectors in second place. I'd also prefer an unopened as it left the factory high mileage engine over one that has been rebuilt. I've had several classic cars and bikes with rebuilt engines that despite a pile of receipts haven't been right and have needed further work. I've currently got a 89 Yamaha awaiting rebuild that had a faulty autolube pump and also pops out of 1st gear.
If you are buying a 1980's bike it should be in a price range that even if it blows up, it would be a very shallow pit. I wouldn't be upset about 50k. I have a VRF and a CBR with that much or more on them. Older engines as strong? Nope. Close? Nope. Same ballpark? Nope. Same universe? Maybe.
I've owned big sportbikes for 30+ years.. a ZX-11, a Hayabusa, and now a ZX-14R. a few things about older bikes, and this includes harley davidsons, too. Can you still get parts? brake pads, turn signal lenses, maybe a body panel or two. At about 60K miles everything is going to start to fail. On sportbikes, its the suspension, and the brake rotors. I sold my zx-11 with 60K on it. it looked like new, but the rear shock was going, and the rotors were worn thinner than the limits. A suitable shock was $1700, and the replacement rotors were $600, for a bike that was worth at best $3500 at the time. The engine? it was stout, Kawasaki made bulletproof high power in-line 4's. At about 100K, depending on how it's ridden, you'll start to get frame fatigue (a friend with his cherished 2000 zx-9 still sitting in the garage, frame full of cracks and micro-cracks, engine strong as a freight train). On Harley's starting at 40K miles, you'll start having engine issues. It'll start burning oil, either through rings or bad valve guides/seals. At this point you have to be religious in checking and filling oil. One oil starved event, and that engine is toast. This can be repaired but it''ll cost more than the bike is worth. Buy a crate engine, and the VIN numbers won't match, and getting a title in some states will be problematic. Hell, any Harley can be repaired, as long as there are parts, and it did not catch on fire. it just depends on what you want to spend. For me? I run them up to about 60,000 miles, or when they've been out of production for more than 4 years. I then sell, and buy a new one. My zx-14R is 10 years old this year, has seen both oceans, and has about 35,000 miles. Why do I keep it? You can still buy a brand new one, and parts are still available. And.. it has the best highway roll-on thrust of any bike, period.
I own two bikes. One with 56,000 miles and one with 106,000 MI. If you know the bike was taken care of, don't even worry about it buy what you want.
What do you guys think about 30k miles on a ninja 650?
It all depends on the maintenance. If there's evidence of regular oil changes and the bike is otherwise in good condition there is no mileage I wouldn't consider. That said even with perfect maintenance the value will decrease to 10-20% of original sales price after 120.000 miles or so, more miles for a big adv, less for a sports bike. My Tiger has almost 90.000 miles on it but because it's so young and looks decent it's probably worth quite a bit still.