Buying a Secondhand Motorcycle in Thailand
Once you've located your used / secondhand motorcycle candidate, the next step is checking it out. A few hot tips: Always go during the day so you can look over the bike in bright sunlight instead of under some dim fluorescent tube.
Always take someone with you, preferably a mechanic who can inspect the motorcycle without the emotional investment of being a buyer.
Always be ready to walk away at an instant. Do not get emotionally involved with the motorcycle yet; there's plenty of time for that later. Make sure the registration is current and correct, and all paperwork is in the seller's name; if not, it could be stolen. Also do not believe any registration fairytale, of registration, plates aka greenbook comes later... And take money. Being able to lay cold, stacks of 1,000 Baht bills in the seller's hand, on the spot, sometimes can magically shrink the price.
As for the bike's condition, the more knackered it looks, the quicker you should spin on your boot heel and continue your search elsewhere. Conversely, a clean-looking stock bike with a complete service history means you've got a live one. Be smart.
Does the bike look straight – that is, are the handlebar and levers unbent, and do the wheels look in line with one another? Bent, scraped stuff means crash damage.
Safety-wired bits virtually guarantee the bike's been raced, another no-go as far as you're concerned. Check all the fluids; a seller should be bright enough to have changed them prior to sale, and if he's not, find one who is. The battery should turn the engine over with some snap, and it should start quickly. All gasket perimeters should be dry. Check consumables: tires, chain, sprockets, brake pads. If they're toast, or even shaky-looking, you have a potential bargaining chip.
Ideally, you'll be able to test ride the bike. Having a friend to leave behind while you do so can put sellers a bit more at ease. Also, let a experienced rider take a test ride...
Okay, you've found a reasonable example in decent shape and the seller isn't an alien abductee, or at least doesn't act like one. You've done your homework by researching the bike's known weak points and basic market value. Based on that knowledge, make a reasonable offer; do not insult the seller's intelligence by trying to way lowball him. He will either accept your offer or make a counter-offer. At some point, you'll have to decide if it's all worth it. If it is, pay the man. If there are any significant doubts in your mind, keep looking.
It really isn't much more difficult than that. Just keep your wits about you, be polite and reasonable, and able to produce in an instant a fist huge stack of thousand Baht bills. And remember this; people with a motorcycle to sell aren't interested in character-building experiences any more than you are. There's no reason both of you can't be happy.
Once you've located your used / secondhand motorcycle candidate, the next step is checking it out. A few hot tips: Always go during the day so you can look over the bike in bright sunlight instead of under some dim fluorescent tube.
Always take someone with you, preferably a mechanic who can inspect the motorcycle without the emotional investment of being a buyer.Always be ready to walk away at an instant. Do not get emotionally involved with the motorcycle yet; there's plenty of time for that later. Make sure the registration is current and correct, and all paperwork is in the seller's name; if not, it could be stolen. Also do not believe any registration fairytale, of registration, plates aka greenbook comes later... And take money. Being able to lay cold, stacks of 1,000 Baht bills in the seller's hand, on the spot, sometimes can magically shrink the price.
As for the bike's condition, the more knackered it looks, the quicker you should spin on your boot heel and continue your search elsewhere. Conversely, a clean-looking stock bike with a complete service history means you've got a live one. Be smart.
Does the bike look straight – that is, are the handlebar and levers unbent, and do the wheels look in line with one another? Bent, scraped stuff means crash damage.
Safety-wired bits virtually guarantee the bike's been raced, another no-go as far as you're concerned. Check all the fluids; a seller should be bright enough to have changed them prior to sale, and if he's not, find one who is. The battery should turn the engine over with some snap, and it should start quickly. All gasket perimeters should be dry. Check consumables: tires, chain, sprockets, brake pads. If they're toast, or even shaky-looking, you have a potential bargaining chip.
Ideally, you'll be able to test ride the bike. Having a friend to leave behind while you do so can put sellers a bit more at ease. Also, let a experienced rider take a test ride...
Okay, you've found a reasonable example in decent shape and the seller isn't an alien abductee, or at least doesn't act like one. You've done your homework by researching the bike's known weak points and basic market value. Based on that knowledge, make a reasonable offer; do not insult the seller's intelligence by trying to way lowball him. He will either accept your offer or make a counter-offer. At some point, you'll have to decide if it's all worth it. If it is, pay the man. If there are any significant doubts in your mind, keep looking.
It really isn't much more difficult than that. Just keep your wits about you, be polite and reasonable, and able to produce in an instant a fist huge stack of thousand Baht bills. And remember this; people with a motorcycle to sell aren't interested in character-building experiences any more than you are. There's no reason both of you can't be happy.