[the canuck]

So after work Tom (VTEC_EATER) and I drove down to Wheaton to look at a 2001 GSXR 600. I am looking to finally get myself a bike. It used to be the bumble bee bike, but he did spill it one day at an intersection. Says he got a little lazy, hit some sand and spilled it at 20mph or so. Being that he was in the paint industry, he repainted the whole thing after getting some new plastics, and painted it all jet black. I think it looks sharp. He is the original owner, it does have 12,7xx miles on it. He is still riding it as well. Neither I or Tom saw any leaks on it. The only thing is that it needs a new tire. Badly. It is nearly bald I would say. Tom I am sure will chime in and throw out his thought on that. The owner said it was still the stock tire. The rear is a Bridgestone BT010. To me it looked like it still had a decent amount of tread on it. Tom said I should get a new tire due to it being crap. The starter cover is scratched, he never fixed that, but I don't mind. It does have a 750 swingarm on it. It has the extra bracing, and I was told he did that because he like the appearance better. Other than that, I mean the overall appearance again to me looks good. Sure there are a couple things I would look into, but minor stuff.

On to the ride. Tom took it out since he has a little more riding experience than I do, and well he has the gear as I don't quite have everything yet. Again I am sure Tom, and I hope he will chime in on his ride, but he said it wasn't a bad ride. The only issue was the front steering. He said when he got up over 60 mph, the steering would shake if you took your hands off. Now we don't know if that has anything to do with the tire being so bad. Could the suspension be off. The owner did say that he has stunted with it a bit. So take that into effect. Again the shaking only did it when you were above 60 mph. Tom gunned it up to redline and let off the throttle to see if it would pop out of gear. It didn't. So thats good. Tom also noted that when he went into a corner, he tried leaning a bid and he noted that the bike seemed to wanna stand back up. Again who knows how much that tire played into things, or it might be more of the suspension. Otherwise I don't think Tom said there was much else that came to his mind. The owner didn't have stands so we couldn't get it up on the stand to see if the wheel was out of whack.

After a little convincing, I decided I would take it out for a ride, since if I was going to buy the bike, I might as well get a feel for it. I have ridden Tom's 636, and this bike definetly felt heavier. But at the same time the 636 is stripped down and is a track bike. Tom won't let me take the 750 out quite yet. I have also ridden a R6. Though that was a little while ago, and I don't remember it as well. But I would say that it was probably close to the feeling of heaviness. I felt comfortable on it. The gear shifting was smooth in my mind, and overall to me atleast it was nice. Again I don't have all the time that say Tom has in riding, but I definetly liked the bike.

Now onto the pricing. He is asking $4,800. Seems high to me, and I would definetly try going lower. Especially since it has been down, and he is still riding and putting miles on the bike. If it were just sitting there I think it would be a different story. With the given information, I am looking to find out what your thoughts would be on the bike. Should I be worried, is it just a bad tire. I know you would have to ride it to really know what I am talking about, but I tried to describe it the best I could. What would you pay. He did tell me that he only has about $3,000 left on the loan. He is the original owner and picked it up in June of '02.

So let me hear your thoughts, and thanks in advance for any information you can lend me.

 

[Jake]

As far as the handling goes, I'd be shocked if it wasn't handling the way it is due to it having chitty tires on it. As for the price, I'd say $4,800 is way too high. With the bike being down and the fact that it sounds like it needs some tlc, I'd say $4,000 is a much more realistic price. Just my .02.

 

[incognito0160]

well the shaking could be the steering bearing. they do go out on occasion and depending on how bad he stunted it that could be the problem, or the front and back wheel could not be alligned properly as most people don't even know this has to be done to bikes.

I"m not sure of pricing on new bikes, but it does seem high especially for something that has been laid down and could be biger problems with it.

i've been in cars and 1 bike where the steel belts in the tire were showin and it didnt' ride that bad in a straight line. i'd be a little worried about it being something that he doesn't wanna mention.

 

[VTEC_EATER]

Okay, since I am your roomate, and you told me to chime in, I suppose I will.

Lets see, the bike. Well, Jason pretty much summed up the looks. Pretty clean, no leaks that we could see, and everything seems to be in the right place.

As for the ride, it was alright. Not as smooth as I would like, but I think alot has to do with tuning the suspension. My 636 felt shitty too until I had the suspension tuned. It felt a little harsh, the front end seemed to have no idea where it wanted to go. It was very skittish. So, Im sure all that can be fixed with the turn or some knobs.

The problem I feel, and its kinda a big one, is with that front end shake. Its pretty subtle. I could barely feel anything when I had my hands on the bars, but take them off and it shook its head like it didnt like going that fast (60+ mph). Its one of 3 things, or perhaps a combination of any of the three: 1) A super bald tire throwing the balance of the wheel way off. It seems like a plausable excuse, but the shake seems pretty "violent" for just being tire wear. 2) The front wheel is not straight/true. I got off the bike and checked out the front wheel, and there arent any dings or even knicks on it, but that doesnt mean that there is a wobble in it somewhere. The only way to know is to get it on stands and turn the front tire and look for the wobble. Or 3) Front end is bent somewhere. Either the forks or the tripples are bent. It was hard to get a look at the forks because there is so much shit in the way, I couldnt get a good look down them. You would have to tear off the front fairing, and move some other crap to get a good look short of removing them for inspection.

Its hard to say really. I would love to ride it again if he replaced that front tire and got it rebalanced. That would definately take out a few variables in figuring out what the deal is. But why would the bike want to stand itself up in the turns. It countersteered fine, but mid turn I took some pressure off the bars and it started lifting right up. Non of my bikes have ever wanted to stand up mid turn (without rolling on the throttle). Kinda strange. Makes me think about front end issues.

Anyways, Jason knows that this is not the one and only bike out there. In fact, I think its a bit pricey for a first bike. I wouldnt spend more than $3500 for a first bike, but thats just me.

So Ill leave it at this; I think this bike could be nice, but if you dont have good feelings on the first ride, then its better just to pass. There are plenty of other bikes out there, and cheaper ones as well.

Jason, remember, Im just looking out for you. I dont want you ending up with a "project" bike. Lets take a look at the 02 6R. That one seems nice.

 

[gixernut]

Good luck finding an 01 without a lot of damage for $3,500. Basic 01's around here most of them are going for around $5,800. :cry

 

[badgixxer]

i just sold a fully race prepped (all the best goodies with spares) 01 gsxr 600 with a clean title for 4700

 

[funkyninja]

Price seems a bit high. Maybe the gixxer holds a better resale value. For comparison, I bought my '01 zx6r for $4700 last spring with 6,000 miles. Never down, not scratched, and the owner claimed he didn't stunt on it.

Maybe offer him a bit less IF he has the front tire replaced and has it inspected by a Suzuki Tech. However it may be better to just look at a different bike.

 

[thrdrcr]

If you want a 750, It is a 01, polished frame, chromed wheels, FULL YOSH SYSTEM(not just the canister) New-er dunlop 208`s,lots of powdercoaying. He is asking 5k for it. I know the original owner and the second owner. Bike is fast but friendly to a careful novice rider who is expecting to improve buy does noy want a liter bike. 414-397-8125.

 

[the canuck]

The guy did say he would throw in a front tire... but I would have to have it installed. I guess if he was willing to come down in price, maybe I would get a jack stand or see if I could take it somewhere to have it looked at... otherwise as much as I really liked it, I should probably move on.

 

[Sw33t]

Wait till the weather breaks ( if you can ) youll get the bike cheaper then that . Im buying a 05 in December .

 

[VTEC_EATER]

Yeah, there are a lot of bikes out there, and if you look in the right places, you can find a great deal. Im sure we can find an '00-'01 for about $4000 or less.

 

[Jake]

Here's a bike you can compare the one you're looking at to... http://chicagolandsportbikes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=30966

 

[the canuck]

I actually contacted her, she gave me her number, now I just need to contact her and go look at it and ride it. Thanks for looking for me as well. I will take all the help I can get.

 

[Murf99]

The price is too high.

Tom - what frequency does the steering shake at? Is it at wheel speed? A tire that is worn will not have equal amounts of material removed from it in all spots and will be inherantly out-of-balance. As well, did he raise the pressures significantly when he stored it? Tires could be flat-spotted.

I'm willing to bet that the headstock bearings are loose, no metter if they're causing the shake or not. Does the bike "clunk" when you get hard on the breaks? Go over a pothole? Does the front end feel vauge in a straight line?

Gixxers are, from what I hear, pretty soft and prone to damage. Is the bike straight? Bodywork fit well? Many racers send thier NEW GSX-Rs to 4&6 to get them computracked off the bat. Apparently they can get bent up pretty good in shipping.

Then agian - it's no secret how to make a 360lbs bike! And BTW - ANYONE that complains a 600 is to heavy needs
1 - a swift kick in the arse
2 - spend a week with my ZX7 (which is for sale, too - nice and clean - thanks Tom!!)

Dealer cost on that bike in '01 was about $6500 (from my best guess/research) - so work your pricing backwards from there.

 

[VTEC_EATER]

Tom - what frequency does the steering shake at? Is it at wheel speed?

Its hard to say really. It didnt start shaking its head until above 60 mph. It wasnt just a little wobble either. It moved a good 3 inches to each side. I wasnt going to try letting go any faster. More than likely it would have been worse with more speed, but I would expect that to happen if it were tire wear, or a bent wheel, so its still a "who knows" kinda thing.

I'm willing to bet that the headstock bearings are loose, no metter if they're causing the shake or not. Does the bike "clunk" when you get hard on the breaks? Go over a pothole? Does the front end feel vauge in a straight line?

They may be loose. But I never heally got hard on the brakes. The worn tire coupled with HH pads, that required warming to start working, made me unsure of significant stopping power. They definately needed a bleed, and I would swap back to stock pads for the street.

Gixxers are, from what I hear, pretty soft and prone to damage. Is the bike straight? Bodywork fit well? Many racers send thier NEW GSX-Rs to 4&6 to get them computracked off the bat. Apparently they can get bent up pretty good in shipping.

Hey, they arent weak. Lynda's crashed great. Sorry Lynda.

And BTW - ANYONE that complains a 600 is to heavy needs
1 - a swift kick in the arse
2 - spend a week with my ZX7 (which is for sale, too - nice and clean - thanks Tom!!)

But you have to remember, we are compairing this to my 636, which is a total feather weight compaired to any otehr bike I have rode. I think it has to do with the geometry. The bike moved side to side alright, but it felt like the back was all squated down. It just gave a heavy feel to it.

Yeah, your 7R is a tubby bitch, but its stable at speed, so that good. And that bike doesnt feel that "heavy." You can feel the weight, but it moves around gracefully.

 

[Murf99]

Overall this Gixxer sounds like a pile of poo. I say walk away for anything less than $3500

Its hard to say really. It didnt start shaking its head until above 60 mph. It wasnt just a little wobble either. It moved a good 3 inches to each side. I wasnt going to try letting go any faster. More than likely it would have been worse with more speed, but I would expect that to happen if it were tire wear, or a bent wheel, so its still a "who knows" kinda thing.

If it's THAT bad - it's NOT a worn tire... maybe flatspotted, but NOT worn.

They may be loose. But I never heally got hard on the brakes. The worn tire coupled with HH pads, that required warming to start working, made me unsure of significant stopping power. They definately needed a bleed, and I would swap back to stock pads for the street.

c'mon - don't be a wuss - warm up the tires and give 'er hell! :banana

Seriously, you don't need to be breaking at-the-limit-stoopie hard in order to feel sucky loose headstock bearings... it's obvious at spirited street speed.

Hey, they arent weak. Lynda's crashed great.

All things considered, that was a very gentle set of circumstances for a crash. Therefore, I discount it's validity for judging crashworthiness.

I think it has to do with the geometry. The bike moved side to side alright, but it felt like the back was all squated down. It just gave a heavy feel to it.

If only we knew of someone that could help with that...

The flatted rear tire profile didn't help either...

Yeah, your 7R is a tubby bitch, but its stable at speed, so that good. And that bike doesnt feel that "heavy." You can feel the weight, but it moves around gracefully.

Not heavy until you need 2 people to get it up off the floor!!! nfloor

Thanks for the compliment - just wait 'till I get reasonable tires on 'er. BTW - did I mention this sexy, great handling, tremendously stable, very crashworthy bike is for sale!?!?! :cheers

I look forward to seeing you in INTERMEDIATE this weekend!!!

 

[VTEC_EATER]

I look forward to seeing you in INTERMEDIATE this weekend!!!

Dont jinx me. Im going to ride in beginner for a couple sessions, so I can ride with Lynda and Masuo, then Ill turn up the heat and try to put down some good times. We'll see if they notice me. I just need to suit up sooner.

 

[dirkmc3]

Here is my 2 cents.
The red flags......new plastics.....Badly worn rear tire....Different swingarm...awful headshake......
Each on thier own may not be a big deal, but all combined are. My opinion, the bike went down ALOT harder than the owner is telling you. This kind of bike is why computrac exists! Loose headset, bald tires, means poor maint. Usually means other things will surface.


I would not give it a second look. Run....Run away.....

 

[the canuck]

Well I have informed the guy of my decision. I am not going to take it. After reading everything everyone has stated, there is definetly a better bike out there. Always sucks when you definetly like the looks of the bike. Anyways.... next bike.....

 

[malik ross]

the last thing you want as a first bike is to inherit someone elses lack of care and lack of knowledge. its nice he painted the bike. its a well painted pile of shit. can it be fixed? sure. how much or how long? fuck knows. his 20 mph lowside may have involved smacking the bike off a curb or into a wall. again, fuck knows. you might put new tires on it and it still rides like shit. fix the head bearings and it still rides like shit. sort out the suspension and find out that the frame is tweaked. then what?

being a new rider (potential rider) you want to jump at the first bike you see. every asshole selling a bike has a story about how easy it would be to fix and all the bike needs is the other. if its that easy and all the bike needs is "x" or "z" then why hasn't he done it?

just take your time. the right one will come along. you do not want to spend too much money on a bike and then spend more money just so you can ride it.

my advice is to keep looking. let someone else buy this guys laziness.