Why are BMWs so damn cheap?

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Doc_V

Well-known member
Why are there so many used BMWs under $2500?

It amazes me how many Beamers are out there for under $2500; especially the full on touring bikes. Are they that expensive to own or unreliable or both? I just don't get it. Could you guys please help me understand?

This is not meant to be a dig at BMWs or their owners. I've always liked BMWs but prices like that have always scared me away, especially when you compare them to all the Japanese bikes in similar classes. I've owned many Bimmers [cars] and know they are expensive to maintain and require a lot of preventative maintenance, more so than their Japanese counterparts. Is it the same with the bikes and that's why they're so cheap? i.e. You're buying someone else's maintenance headaches?

Thx.
 
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ejv

Untitled work in progress
One is actually $15000 though the listing shows $1. Two other adds didn't have a price. One was listed twice and the second time it noted it sold. A few of them are just older high mileage and a few are bikes that never sold well to begin with.
 
D

davidji

bike curious
Doc_V said:
Take your pick, there are lots of BMWs for $2500 or less:

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/search/mca?max_price=2500&auto_make_model=bmw
Click to expand...
If you put a floor price on your search you filter out the people who put $1 when the price is $15k (yeah there was one of those when I clicked). Or who put $15 for $15k

Bikes with a lot of miles are cheap because there are always bikes with fewer miles.

That's a diverse set of BMWs, and each has different considerations.

Some BMW are easy to service (e.g. boxers, maybe the thumpers too?), and some difficult (e.g. the LT). There were specific models/years with issues as well.

Some bikes' purpose in life is to log big miles--like the two LTs that come up when I click your search. But many riders would want a fresher bike for that. Personally I'd want a lighter bike that's easier to service (e.g. an RT). But if I were going to take a 2-up road trip, I could see an LT being a good choice.
 
bpw

bpw

Well-known member
The post airhead R bikes and K bikes don't hold much value. Kinda like luxury cars, if you can afford to maintain it you can probably buy something newer.

Also think of the demographic of people who want to buy a BMW luxo-barge touring bike, mostly older guys with some money who will get spend a bit more to get what they want.
 
MR662

MR662

AFM #662
Those bikes are all 15 + years old. Just about every manufacturers has models that eventually gets to a point where it’s only worth 1-2k.

Change search to 10-25k and you’ll see just as many BMW’s in that range too. There amazing bikes and well built to go 100k miles and beyond.
 
ScottRNelson

ScottRNelson

Mr. Dual Sport Rider
Also note that one of the common Craigslist scams is to list a bike at lower than its true value, then claim that it's not in the area for some reason and try to get you to send money before they ship it to you.
 
kuksul08

kuksul08

Suh Dude
Kameron808 said:
WhY aRe ThErE So MaNy uSeD HoNdA CiViCs fOr $1000 wHeN nEw OnEs ArE $25,000????
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:rofl

Those cheap BMWs are the old 1100's and 1150's which are clunky oil-chugging beasts that usually have electronics problems and many thousands of miles. The newer ones are not cheap and hold their value quite well.
 
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NoTraffic

Well-known member
Kameron808 said:
WhY aRe ThErE So MaNy uSeD HoNdA CiViCs fOr $1000 wHeN nEw OnEs ArE $25,000????
Click to expand...

:rofl

To add, find me any Japanese bike 18-20 yrs old commanding over $2500. Unless it's a cult classic, it will be priced the same.

If I'm trying to sell a 15 yr old bike with 60k+miles, I'm not really going to go for broke if I sell it for a grand less than blue book. At that point, I probably just want it gone to replace it with another bike.
 
Gary856

Gary856

Are we having fun yet?
BMW bikes prior to the late 2000s weren't too exciting.

I can only hope the water cooled GS get that cheap in 10 years, but then the level of technologies they have now and the repair costs are scary to think about after the warranty runs out.
 
Kornholio

Kornholio

:wave
I've owned three BMWs since 2011. Not a single one has had any failures whatsoever. Anecdotal, sure. However, I know a handful of BARF'ers personally who during that same time have purchased a Multistrada and had a major failure occur. Not to mention the cost to service them is something close to $1500. That's ridiculous yet Ducati ranks high on Consumer Reports lists? Whatever.

Assuming I use the dealer to service my current R1250RS, it runs $750. That's draining and filling all the fluids and adjusting the valves. To do it myself in my garage, it takes about an hour, $40 in parts/fluids and a couple of beers. The only thing I have to take off is the cylinder covers and that takes a couple of minutes and they both stick straight out the sides anyway. Hell, I haven't had to adjust any of my valves on all three of the bikes until the mileage ticked past 30,000 anyway. The R-engines are extremely reliable and rugged. They just consistently get a bad rap from haters.
 
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scootergmc

scootergmc

old and slow
IMO, the best used values out there for sport touring (more touring) is a used FJR. Gadzoiks cheap batman!
 
scootergmc

scootergmc

old and slow
Kornholio said:
That's ridiculous yet Ducati ranks high on Consumer Reports lists? Whatever.
Click to expand...

Since when did consumer reports start rating motorcycles? I never knew that and I was a subscriber for a LOOOOOOng time until they switched to the stupid Apple Iphone bubble graphics magazine format.
 
Kornholio

Kornholio

:wave
scootergmc said:
Since when did consumer reports start rating motorcycles? I never knew that and I was a subscriber for a LOOOOOOng time until they switched to the stupid Apple Iphone bubble graphics magazine format.
Click to expand...

Seems they do according to the article that was posted. Although most likely what it is follow-on survey data from owners.
 
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