Classic bike as an investment?

[weevee]

Buying a classic certainly can work as a rider and an investment, but choosing the right bike is crucial.  The average so-called classic may appreciate if the mileage is kept to a minimum, but very 'high end' bikes can be ridden without this concern since their rarity means they will sell even if they're in pieces in a box.  There are certain bikes that will never depreciate. 

My own 'high end' classic was ridden without regard to mileage.  Bought seven years ago for the equivalent of US $25,000, I sold it recently for over four times the price.  In the seven years I owned it I spent a pittance on keeping it roadworthy - I simply kept it very clean.  Perhaps I was one of the 'lucky ones'?  I prefer to think I bought wisely!

I have a couple of others that I use now on a regular basis - and one of these, too, has doubled in value since I bought it eight years ago.  I've no doubt whatever that it will climb again over the next decade - whether I use it or not.  So, buy the right bike and treat it well and you just might make a killing.  I've certainly found buying classics is better than stashing cash in the bank!

           

[jas67]

Now, ride something cool that won't depreciate much-or at least not by 50%/year-that's pretty easy. Until I bought new bikes this year I was actually ahead financially on my motorcycling, basically got them all for net zero.

That assumes of course that I don't count my maintenance time, tires etc.

THIS  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

It is also why, even the newer ones, I buy used.   I can try out a lot of different bikes while loosing minimal to no money to depreciation.

I've had several vintage, or at least older bikes that I owned for a year or two, and put a few thousand miles not them, and then got about what I paid, sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less.

I paid $6,200 for my 2009 V7 Classic with 1,800 miles on it, rode it for 2 years and just over 8,000 miles it.   I removed the center stand (for the V7R that I replaced it with) and sold it for $5,400.   Not bad for two years/8k miles.    The only money I had to put into it was maintenance and tires.

Shhhhhhhush.  "Investment" is what we tell our wives when we want another vintage bike.  Don't blow it.

 :1: 

[mentalfloss]

I have convinced my wife that my motorcycle hobby is an investment. In reality I offset almost , if not ALL of my riding  costs by buying and selling a couple of bikes ( 3 or 4...5 in a busy year) a year. If I buy them right I can ride them for a while and get all my money back plus a little.
Investment, not really. Allows me to ride 20 k miles a year for many years with not much real cost....priceless.
Being a motorcycle slut.. (I have a wandering eye for 2 wheel girlfriends) this model serves me well.

If I was looking for a real Motorcycle investments I would buy a scott flying squirrel but I would ruin the investment by riding it all over the place....

[blackcat]

About 20 years ago someone was selling one at the Classic Motorcycle Show in Maryland for something like $15K and my wife wanted me to buy it and I really should have listened to her. Oh well.

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/holy-grail-of-motorcycle-parts-fetch-300000-more-than-expected-at-uk-auction-20151019-gkd1ae.html

[Paradiso]

I think timing is important.  Rare and special exotica is always likely to hold it's value and appreciate, but catching the moment when certain models move from 'old bike' status to 'classic' status could earn good money.  In the UK air cooled RD Yamahas are going for crazy prices.  I've seen a few RD 400s go for over £6000.  I sold one in the mid 90s for £600.  Nostalgia for certain models can really take off.  Then again, if something goes wrong you can spend a fortune. 

Personally I think it would spoil my enjoyment if I started viewing a motorbike as an investment.  I much prefer to see a well used bike with patina than a 'returned to new' rebuild.  Strapping an old bag to an MV Agusta shows class.

[steven c]

 I was doing well till I bought the Buell .

[Mark West]

Collectibles as an investment are risky no matter what. Things go in and out of popularity. What is sought after today may not be in a couple of years. Add to that the wear and tear and nicks and dings you'll get from actually riding it and I'd say you're looking at a poor investment idea.

Better to think of it more as an investment in yourself. How much you'll value riding it. don't worry about whether you'll make or lose money down the road.

[pikipiki]

I was doing well till I bought the Buell .

I wonder what a well sorted low mileage 2000 Buell might be worth in another 20 years? Can you wait that long?

[jas67]

I have convinced my wife that my motorcycle hobby is an investment. In reality I offset almost , if not ALL of my riding  costs by buying and selling a couple of bikes ( 3 or 4...5 in a busy year) a year. If I buy them right I can ride them for a while and get all my money back plus a little.
Investment, not really. Allows me to ride 20 k miles a year for many years with not much real cost....priceless.
Being a motorcycle slut.. (I have a wandering eye for 2 wheel girlfriends) this model serves me well.

If I was looking for a real Motorcycle investments I would buy a scott flying squirrel but I would ruin the investment by riding it all over the place....

"Motorcycle slut" .... I can relate.   My buying and selling has helped subsidize my motorcycle habit, but, certainly doesn't pay for all of it.

[jas67]

Buying a classic certainly can work as a rider and an investment, but choosing the right bike is crucial.  The average so-called classic may appreciate if the mileage is kept to a minimum, but very 'high end' bikes can be ridden without this concern since their rarity means they will sell even if they're in pieces in a box.  There are certain bikes that will never depreciate. 

My own 'high end' classic was ridden without regard to mileage.  Bought seven years ago for the equivalent of US $25,000, I sold it recently for over four times the price.  In the seven years I owned it I spent a pittance on keeping it roadworthy - I simply kept it very clean.  Perhaps I was one of the 'lucky ones'?  I prefer to think I bought wisely!

I have a couple of others that I use now on a regular basis - and one of these, too, has doubled in value since I bought it eight years ago.  I've no doubt whatever that it will climb again over the next decade - whether I use it or not.  So, buy the right bike and treat it well and you just might make a killing.  I've certainly found buying classics is better than stashing cash in the bank!

           

Wow!   So, what was the bike you sold for the equivalent of $100k?

[Lannis]

Wow!   So, what was the bike you sold for the equivalent of $100k?

While we're waiting, we can start a betting pool on what it might have been, assuming it's not some sort of Steve McQueen or Von Dutch relic.

What bike is worth about 4 times more than it was 7 years ago, starting at $25,000?

Brough-Superior SS80, maybe, the flathead Vtwin.     I would almost say Vincent Black Shadow but it would have been hard to buy one for $25K even seven years ago.   

Maybe a Crocker although they're generally in a higher category.

I'll go with the SS80.

Lannis

[steven c]

I wonder what a well sorted low mileage 2000 Buell might be worth in another 20 years? Can you wait that long?

I'll be on the back door of 80 so maybe not, maybe my 77 Robin Moped?

[SED]

Great discussion.  Agree you would have to buy the right bike and that is the gamble.  That and not crashing it.  Hard to justify the risk when mutual funds rise roughly 4-5%/year above inflation.

I would love to find the next classic in the barn but you probably only get one chance and mine's probably gone.  I once found a Suzuki water buffalo in a garage and could've had it for free but I didn't know anything about it, don't like 2-strokes and didn't have a truck.  I wanted the 4 leading shoe front brake, but the bike was given to someone else before I got my act together... You probably only get one chance...

I too want to know what bike Weevee sold!  Lannis's list makes sense.

[weevee]

Hi chaps.  I really don't want to say too much here out of respect for the privacy of the bike's new owner.  The bike can be viewed in one of my previous posts.  Suffice to reveal that a 'classic' for which I paid $30,000 (..at today's currency exchange rate) I sold for four times the amount (..$120,000 +) seven years later.  My point being that the right classic can be a great investment and a great rider - if you choose carefully.

The 'fly in the ointment' is, of course, that if a bike's resale value does reach silly heights it can become something of a liability lest you lock it away.  The roads are filled with myopic motorists, and many a time I feared being shunted from behind whilst waiting at a junction or red light.  When the owner's club's valuation (..for Agreed Value insurance purposes) lags behing the climbing market value, it can leave you vulnerable to huge losses if you ever need to make a claim.  This is what happened in my case, and this is ultimately one of the main reasons why I sold the bike.  I couldn't face not riding it, but each run eventually carried a $30,000 'factor of risk'.  I'm not a wealthy man, so it was a risk I couldn't take.
 

[jas67]

In more recent years, Ducati bevel twins have skyrockted.  Values have gone up 3-5X in the last 8 years or so.
Who knows how much higher they will go.

The bevel singles are also going up quickly, esp. the Mach I, Dianna, Mk3, and Desmo models, some of which are now over $10k, heading into the teens.    That doesn't sound like much after discussing a $120k bike, but, these singles could be had in decent shape for only a couple thousand 6-7 years ago, and project bikes for only a few hundred.

[Rotten Ralph]

Great discussion.  Agree you would have to buy the right bike and that is the gamble.  That and not crashing it.  Hard to justify the risk when mutual funds rise roughly 4-5%/year above inflation.

I would love to find the next classic in the barn but you probably only get one chance and mine's probably gone.  I once found a Suzuki water buffalo in a garage and could've had it for free but I didn't know anything about it, don't like 2-strokes and didn't have a truck.  I wanted the 4 leading shoe front brake, but the bike was given to someone else before I got my act together... You probably only get one chance...

I too want to know what bike Weevee sold!  Lannis's list makes sense.

Had a "barn fresh" BMW R69S given to me. By the time I got it restored it was almost worth what I had in it. Now it might be worth twice as much but I still don't consider it a true investment. However, It hasn't lost value and I can't put a price on the pleasure it has given me over the years. If you approach from this perspective you'll do fine.

[jas67]

...By the time I got it restored it was almost worth what I had in it......

THIS ^^^^^^^^^^^

I've walked away from many classic and vintage bikes after seeing them in person, often with the seller coming way down on the price.
My answer has often been, "If you gave it to me for free, the price is too high."

Sometimes they're too far gone to be economically restored.