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Trading in a motorcycle

4.2K views 11 replies 8 participants last post by  lunarx  
#1 ·
Just wondering what experiences you all have had trading in a motorcycle.

Ive had my MT03 listed locally for a few months and havent had much interest, i know its winter time now and few people look for motorcycles, so im not expecting much interest now.

Soo.. i head down to my local dealer to see what they can do for me on a trade. They had a 23 Honda grom. (id like to replace my mt03 with a mini bike just for fun) The grom has less than 1k miles and looks clean. The internet asking price is 3300, which seems in line with the market. So they come back saying they can only give me 2200 for my mt03, and there is a 400 dollar "used pdi fee" for the grom on top of the list price. Id end up owning a little over 2k after trade which is a no go for me. I paid 5k for my mt03 a year and a half ago and has a bit over 1k miles. I figure my bike would sit on thier floor for 4500 easily so they were offering me pretty much 50% of its value. I figured they'd at least give me in the neighborhood of 3k.

Is this common practice? I understand they need to make money on the trade, but 50% of the value for a fairly new bike seems a bit much. Also, the whole "used pdi fee" on top of the advertised price threw me off. I double checked the website and it didn't mention anything like that.

Please share your experiences, good or bad. Thanks!
 
#2 ·
No experience with selling a bike but going to the dealership to sell your bike for another is a no no.
If you're not in a hurry I'd use the FB Marketplace as an avenue for sale as would use Craigslist.

I'd even go to the MT03 forums and give it a go.
Im sure someone will eventually pick the bike up at the asking price.
Have the bike in pristine condition for sale with any relevant paperwork that goes along with it.

Patients is the key to success.
 
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#3 ·
No experience with selling a bike but going to the dealership to sell your bike for another is a no no.
If you're not in a hurry I'd use the FB Marketplace as an avenue for sale as would use Craigslist.

I'd even go to the MT03 forums and give it a go.
Im sure someone will eventually pick the bike up at the asking price.
Have the bike in pristine condition for sale with any relevant paperwork that goes along with it.

Patients is the key to success.
Its on FB and craigslist, but didn't think about the mt03 forums. Ill give that a shot for sure. Im in no hurry, its just sitting in my garage. The 4rr is just so much better that I really dont even think about the mt haha. Point taken on trading in, i wont try that again lol. Thanks for the input!
 
#5 ·
I can understand tax + doc fees on top of what's listed for a used bike... but a PDI fee.... next you'll find a $40 fuel surcharge for your free tank of gasoline or maybe an insect removal fee for cleaning off the headlight before it hit the showroom floor.....
I guess that's why step one is always to ask for an OTD quote. After that I don't care what's bike, tax, fee, graft, or whatever... my checkbook only sees the OTD price. 😅
 
#6 ·
Yea if that was listed on the website as the asking price, i wouldn't know any better. Or like all the new bikes always list MSRP PLUS setup and destination very clearly online. But 400 dollars? What could a grom with less than 1k miles possibly need thats worth 400 dollars? O well, lesson learned, luckily it only costs me a short trip and an hour of my time. When I bought my 4RR at the dealer, it was painless. No suprises or random BS fees. It was a different dealer from the town i used to live about 3 hours from where i am now.
 
#8 ·
That's a load of shit. A $400 used PDI fee (more than 10% of the bike's value) is just jargon for "let's fuck this buyer as hard as we can".

Never sold a bike to a dealer, but I've rarely heard that it's an enjoyable experience, and it is ALWAYS in THEIR best interest to give you as little as possible for your trade in. Just be patient, and sell it privately. It'll be worth the time spent. Like you say, you'll get more action closer to Spring.
 
#10 ·
So they are only looking at the whole sale price, then low balling you on that. Each year you lose about 20% of the value until the eventfully the price will level out. Retail on the used market at the low end would be $3500.00. Close to what you saw online. Most likely $3900 on the high end. The dealer has a guide line on the whole sale price. Most likely around $2800.00
Remember everything can be negotiated with the dealer. Just try and see what happens. Having a loan to pay off is not in your favor. Might be better to make a couple of lump sum payments on the MT and get the balance down if possible.
Remember it's a "want" and not a "need" and the dealer knows that.
 
#11 ·
My mt03 is paid off and I let them know that I didn't expect to get full retail on my trade. I was floored with their lowball lol. When I asked if there was any room, the said any discount would pretty much negate any profit they had, and they couldn't offer any more on my trade. Very weird especially for December/end of year to move another unit. I figured they either didn't want my MT, or they have had a good December for sales.
 
#12 · (Edited)
Used PDI fee is very common.
Dealers will be Dealers :rolleyes:

I had an easy time selling a Beemer, to a BMW Dealer. They gave me almost double, what the Kawi Dealers wanted to pay and I had a check in-hand within 15min.
They resold it, in under 2 weeks, for $4K more, although they did put new tires on.

I could have got that extra $4K myself, if I listed on BaT, but thats more time & energy, that I was grateful to avoid.