Buying Tips: Repairable Motorcycles

Salvage title motorcycles are bikes that have been wrecked and bought from the owners by a salvage yard or insurance company. At this point, the bike is declared a "write-off" and loses the legal title. This effectively reduces the motorcycle to a collection of used spare bike parts.

The new owner will have to have a new title created which will be marked as "salvage" by most state DMVs. Some state DMV's will allow the bike title to reclaimed as "clean" after a vigorous inspection, but this is more an exception to the rule. In the end, the wrecked motorcycle is marked as a salvage title, which will forever affect the value.

A "write-off" means the cost to fix the damage is more than the value of the motorcycle. A "write-off" or "total loss" can be declared by an insurance adjuster looking at superficial damage. It's always buyer beware as there are sometimes hidden issues with a salvaged bike that the salvage yard might not know about. It's your due diligence to inspect all aspects, get as much history on the bike as you can and ask lots of questions. Ask if you can open the bike up to see if there is any internal damage.

You must research registering a salvage motorcycle before you buy. If the red tape and inspection to reclaim the title is more time, work and money then you can afford it might be worth it to buy a clean titled bike. There might be expensive parts required to pass a safety check that aren't available used. Your insurance company might not insure your newly titled salvaged motorcycle or the cost of insurance so expensive it just wouldn't make sense. Always check with your insurance company before making a buying a wrecked or salvageable motorcycle.

You really can save money and get a good motorcycle buying salvage, but it's easy to get wrapped in a money pit. The main point is to do your research and be especially wary of the "to good to be true" deals out there. For those of us that do find the "golden egg", enjoy!