what am i missing?

[taters]

thinking about selling my bike. but not any longer after what i saw.. i went on ebay and i saw a 2004 blue 1150rt with 35,000 miles...pictures looked good...the highest bid was $2800,,i have the same bike,color, but with ohlin shocks,garmin 660 etc.. i guess ill be keeping it...i did not think the seller could only get a high bid of $2800..whats up with this?

[Groanup]

Was the auction over?

If not, how much longer did it have to run? Usually The real bidders only get serious in the last hour.

 

[taters]

ah thanks...will i be able to see what it sold for?

[Indy Dave]

yes . . . well, unless they make a deal off line and the seller just removes the listing, claiming a local sale. If the auction runs its course, the sale price will be posted

[Groanup]

I believe so.

Having said that, I think I'd go another route to sell my RT. I've never sold on ebay, but I've been told there are fees involved. Don't know how substantial the fees are...

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

ah thanks...will i be able to see what it sold for?

 

Yep, you should be able.

 

In '09 I sold my '99 R1100RT for $3500. It had 135,000 miles on it.

 

If you've got an '04 with only 35,000 miles and some accessories, you should be able to get considerably more than that for it, especially if you wait for spring weather to hit. Maybe start trying to sell it around mid- or late-March? People will be getting their tax refunds, and the weather will make people think of riding.

[Danny caddyshack Noonan]

Reserve not met yet on that bike. Reads like a repo....from a lender.

[taters]

thanks for all the info

[elkroeger]

You can find the final price by searching under "completed items" after the auction ends. Even then it may not have sold because the seller can set a minimum "reserve" amount. Someone who puts on a low mileage 04 RT on ebay for around $2k probably has a reasonable reserve amount. The point to a reserve (near as I can tell) is to test the water, and see how much interest (and what kind of price) they can generate without being obligated to sell it at an unreasonably low price. They may not really know what it's worth, in this lousy market. It can also say that they don't really want to sell the thing all that bad (which could be a good thing). Personally, I skip the reserve and put items on there for the minimum amount I'm willing to sell at. Then the chips fall where they may. A week later, the thing's out of my basement.

 

Yes, ebay has fees. What's the big deal? You put it on there, you get world-wide advertisement, and they charge a percentage. I've always thought their prices were pretty reasonable. Especially when compared to, say, the local newspaper. YMMV.

 

Selling a motorbike on ebay presents a few special challenges, since you can't just stick it in a box and drop it off at the post office. I'd recommend having an ebay savy friend help with the process.

 

+1 on selling in the spring.

[Yeeha! Stephen]

Keep it as a back-up. Another thread says no more loaners... so keep yours to use while your new bike is in for service. Or to loan to friends when they're in town and want to ride with you.

 

/

[Paul Mihalka]

If you are registered with Ebay, easiest is putting a item on your watch list. That way you can follow the bidding and it stays there with the selling price after the bidding ended.

[dhanson]

Ebay encourages sellers to list with low starting price so you will attract more bidders, but that doesn't seem to work much anymore. The reserve price you set will protect you, but I have had bidders stop just short of the reserve.

 

Paul: Saw "Twist the Throttle" yesterday with Kawasaki and Pridmore, pretty cool.

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

Yes, ebay has fees. What's the big deal? You put it on there, you get world-wide advertisement, and they charge a percentage. I've always thought their prices were pretty reasonable. Especially when compared to, say, the local newspaper. YMMV.

 

When I sold my 1100RT I listed it here on BMWST, as well as BMMOA and Craigslist, all for free.

[Dietrich]

I have had good luck in the past with selling stuff on Kijiji. Accessories, bikes, household stuff, anything. It is part of e-bay I believe, but it is a free service. Check it out.

[elkroeger]

When I sold my 1100RT I listed it here on BMWST, as well as BMMOA and Craigslist, all for free.

 

Okay, so ST isn't a very big a market. MOA, the money comes out of your dues, and it's still relatively small. Craigslist, I keep hearing, is jammed up with overseas buyer scams. If it worked for you, great. ebay has worked for lots of other folks.

 

Like I said, I figure the lowest acceptable price, and a week later the stuff is out of my basement, almost guaranteed, and I usually get a fair price. Quite often it goes for 2 - 3x what I imagined it's worth. YMMV.