Market is strong on nostalgia bikes like mini XR's and JT-1's, also Yamaha and Kawasaki street going 2 strokes but man I was bummed to see what the XS-1 pulled down.
I've been watching it via Mecum's website...live streaming for freeWell, that "LOOKS" like a pretty minty bike.
What channel is that on and when do they do just motorcycles?
The big money for many auctions was fetched during Covid peak years. Prices have come back down now. Iāve noticed that with bikes, cars , tools etc. Those who sold in the past few years make some good money. Those who bought may have paid a bit too much (like me - buying a small aluminum fishing boat a couple of years ago).Market is strong on nostalgia bikes like mini XR's and JT-1's, also Yamaha and Kawasaki street going 2 strokes but man I was bummed to see what the XS-1 pulled down.
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If you buy a rare bike and either you or an expert don't verify the VIN... you're an idiot, plain and simple. Even a cursory look would have revealed it was ground off and restamped.
I posted that elsewhere... Lots of questions on that one...
I do not know auctions like this but, is there significant time to inspect and examine the product? From the video, it seems Mecum honored the buyer's recant. I was humored at how knowledgeable those guys were on how a number boss was finished!!! When our XS650s are in the $80k range we will look at those details too?I don't get how the VIN being ground down was not noticed at the beginning.
Nailed it!If you buy a rare bike and either you or an expert don't verify the VIN... you're an idiot, plain and simple. Even a cursory look would have revealed it was ground off and restamped.
I don't get how the VIN being ground down was not noticed at the beginning.
Back in the early 90's, my boss bought what he thought was a 1963 1/2 Ford Galaxie 427. I don't know what caused him to question the authenticity, but I was told to remove the LF fender and put it on jackstands. He flew in an expert on those cars and sure enough, it was a fake. It had a repopped VIN plate, but there were several tells. It had 5/16 steel fuel line, 427's had 3/8. IIRC, 427 cars had 7 leafs out back and all others had 5. And most importantly, there was a "hidden" VIN stamped into the side of the cowl/firewall, hidden by the fenders. It was the nicest 20K Galaxie money could buy, too bad he paid 40K for it. He got his money back, BTW.Regarding the Kawasaki debacle, the level of restoration the bike went through is quite impressive. I can't imagine the seller was trying to pass it off as a fake, especially at Mecum. As they state, so little is know about the Japan only released bike. It sure raises some questions, and at that price i think i'd walk away from an unknown answer too. I think the only way to rectify the situation would be for Kawasaki to confirm and document it somehow. And at 80k, I think it would be worth the effort to the seller.