Fair Price?

[Horse]

I'm in the process of moving and need to get down to one bike. I'm thinking of putting my 1987 Paso 750 up for sale but they don't seem to sell very well as far as I can determine. I purchased mine on Ebay for $2500 in 2008. It had been in storage since 1991 and had about 3,300 miles. I spent $600 at my local Ducati shop to replace the timing belts, tune up, change the fluids, carb cleaned, new rear master cylinder, battery, etc. I also found new 16" Michelin tires (bike still had the original Pirellis but they were dry rotted) and have a new rear tire in reserve (from 2004). Bike was well stored so the red paint job is in perfect condition. All told I now have a little over $4,000 invested which includes some extras I have picked up along the way. Mileage is still under 5,000 and she looks and runs great. The gas gauge quit working and I'm not sure why. The question is can I get $4,000 which is pretty much break even for me? I trust and enjoy this forum so look forward to any helpful responses. This bike was a retirement gift to myself so I will not part her out but would love to get my money back. The other option is long term storage but I hate to do that to her again. I live in San Antonio, TX. Dan

[davidhughrose]

Dan - It's worth what someone will pay for it. Try $4K, negotiable, and see what happens. There's an 88 Paso on Cycletrader in NY for $4,850, and another for $3K in PA. If you are paring down to one bike, I'm surprised the Paso is not that machine, especially after the MX you put into it. I've got five machines in my garage last I checked, and the Paso would definitely be the last I'd let go. Either way, let us know how it goes.

[persempre907]

but would love to get my money back.

It's always hard to get money spent on such stuff.
You'd be very lucky if you find a real lover which knows he's doing the right thing.
Good luck

[higgy]

You would do better in the spring when young men's thoughts(old men too, and lets not forget the girls ) turn to such things,if you can wait. Fall is never the best time to sell a bike. To get your money back is always a stroke of luck. Like has been stated you have to find the right individual at the right time not an easy thing to do. 907 will go for around 4k, 906 maybe 3k, 750 limited maybe a little more,750,I wish you luck but reality is under 2500 on a very good day. If you could hook up with,a dealer you might get more,if they don't take too much of it
Personally,I'd put it away for another 10 years. There are outfits around can vacuum pack it on a pallet so that even the tires will not degrade over long term storage for a couple of hundred dollars.
You may even be able to find out how to DIY
Best of luck what ever you decide

[Horse]

Thanks guys. Your insights are truly appreciated. I realize that selling an older bike you have invested time, money and energy into for fun is not a break even affair. If I can recoup most of my expenses, that will suffice. The annual Harvest Classic European & Vintage Motorcycle rally in nearby Luckenbach will most likely be my best chance of finding a willing buyer this year. Other than that option, I'm prepared to wait (but ten years?). I'll keep you posted. Check out the rally at www.harvestclassic.org.

Dan

[Desmo_Demon]

The Paso 750 market has been on the upswing for the last couple of years. I remember when it was nearly impossible to get more than $2500 for a mint bike. Riders were often $1200-$1800. Recently, I've been seeing more and more ads and eBay auctions with prices with "3" as the first number. I'm a little shocked to see people asking (but probably not getting) $3000+ for a Paso 750 these days. For that kind of money, most people seem to prefer to buy a 90's SS900 or even 748 and 996 bikes in the $3000-$4500 range. To sell a Paso, at almost any price, you need to find a perosn who is looking for one. If you can find that buyer, you have to find a way to make yours more appealing than the next Paso 750, and make the buyer desire yours and feel that the cost is worth it to them.

Wish you luck with whatever you decide.

[Tamburinifan]

Service & uppgrades money spent are usually hard to recover.
Just my experience & 2c.

[21783mike]

The Paso 750 market has been on the upswing for the last couple of years. I remember when it was nearly impossible to get more than $2500 for a mint bike. Riders were often $1200-$1800. Recently, I've been seeing more and more ads and eBay auctions with prices with "3" as the first number. I'm a little shocked to see people asking (but probably not getting) $3000+ for a Paso 750 these days. For that kind of money, most people seem to prefer to buy a 90's SS900 or even 748 and 996 bikes in the $3000-$4500 range. To sell a Paso, at almost any price, you need to find a perosn who is looking for one. If you can find that buyer, you have to find a way to make yours more appealing than the next Paso 750, and make the buyer desire yours and feel that the cost is worth it to them.

Wish you luck with whatever you decide.

It's a rough market out there for bikes right now, I picked up a mint 95 900 SS/SP (15k miles, original owner) for a friend a few weeks ago and when she told me that she paid 2700 I was floored that was a $5K+ bike just a year ago. I have since seen 2 others go for similar prices. I'll have at least about $4k in mine once I'm done and will still have a $2500 bike. But still compare restoring an 87 Paso to say restoring a 87 Ferrari .... bikes are a much cheaper path to follow, couldn't even get a tune up on the Ferrari for what I initially paid for my bike

[higgy]

Yup,Great time to buy,can't think of a worse time to be selling. Even the round case bevel's are going for under 19k these days