Wondering ‘How Much Is My Motorcycle Worth?’ – We’re Here To Help You Find Out.
Are you considering selling or insuring your motorcycle? In that case, you may then be wondering, ‘How much is my motorcycle worth?’
Buying, selling, and insuring a motorcycle is a big decision. Having all the information you need at your fingertips before starting this process is essential.
This will make sure that you’re not only securing the best price for your motorcycle, but also insuring it at the right value.
The best motorcycle owner is an informed one—so in this article, we will provide you with all the information that you need to know when it comes to establishing what your motorcycle is worth.
Firstly, Why Do You Need to Know the Value of Your Motorcycle?
Knowing a motorcycle’s value can be helpful to a lot of motorcycle riders.
This is especially true if you are negotiating the purchase or sale of a bike, or are negotiating insurance rates for your ride.
If you are selling your bike or buying a new one, it’s important to know how the make and model of the bike affect its worth.
In addition, knowing the manufacturer’s suggested retail value can help you negotiate the right price.
When it comes to insurance, if you feel that the settlement value—or replacement value of your motorcycle—is too low, you can negotiate with your insurer for a higher value.
How Do You Determine the Value and Insurance Value of Your Motorcycle?
The most important thing when it comes to negotiating the sale, purchase, or insurance of a motorcycle is to have evidence of the motorcycle’s book value.
For this, you can consult the Kelly Blue Book evaluation website to find out how much your bike is worth.
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Key Point: What Is the Kelly Blue Book? The Kelley Blue Book Price Advisor shows you what you should pay for a new or used motorcycle based on what others have paid in your area. We cover this in more detail later in this article. |
Alternatively, you can call or email the manufacturer of the bike to find out what its value is. Below are some questions that will help you establish the value of your bike.
What are the make and model of your bike?
On your license plate, you will be able to find the serial number. You will need this information when asking the manufacturer for information about your motorcycle.
Although some motorcyclists are die-hard fans of their particular brand of motorcycle, there are some brands that are more valuable than others.
This is due to a reputation that the brand has built over many years for reliability, workmanship, quality, aesthetic beauty, and innovation.
When insuring a bike, the brand of the motorcycle can have a significant impact on how easy it is to insure.
What are the age and mileage of your motorcycle?
The age of your motorcycle is a significant factor in determining its value. Your original license papers should reveal the year in which your motorcycle was manufactured.
Depending on the brand and model, most bikes will depreciate over time, while others will maintain a fairly constant value.
For example, some vintage bikes will command a far higher selling price today than their original purchase price.
These motorcycles can be more expensive to insure because they may be scarce and therefore difficult to replace or repair due to parts being difficult to find.
A brand-new motorcycle will lose substantial value in the first few years after you’ve purchase it.
In fact, you can expect an average natural depreciation of around 12.5 percent during the first year of ownership.
From year one to two, used motorcycles will depreciate by around 20 percent.
It’s good to know that typically, the initial depreciation period will only be around three to four years, after which this depreciation will stabilize considerably.
If you look after your motorcycle well between years five to ten, it won’t depreciate much.
When it comes to the mileage of your bike, high mileage is not necessarily a bad thing.
The only consideration is that an older bike with fewer miles on the odometer may be able to fetch a higher price than a new one that has been ridden a lot.
Typically, 40,000 miles and up is considered the threshold of high mileage.
What is the mechanical condition of your motorcycle?
The mechanical condition of your bike is a big factor in the sale or insurance of your used motorcycle.
In fact, your bike being in good mechanical condition is more important than mileage or age.
If you keep your bike well maintained and serviced often, it will be more attractive to buyers and insurers alike.
Here are some maintenance tasks that you can include to keep your bike in tip-top condition:
- Replace worn brake pads.
- Change the oil regularly.
- Maintain optimal tire pressure.
- Check the tension on your chain and drive belt.
It’s always a good idea to take your bike to a specialist who can perform a mechanical checkup when you are considering selling or insuring your bike.
This is because a mechanic will be able to give you an accurate idea of what work may need to be done to your bike before you insure or sell it.
What is the cosmetic condition of your motorcycle?
How good your bike looks on the outside will make a big difference to the value of your bike. A bike that has been carefully maintained will be much more appealing to potential buyers.
In addition, a bike that is well maintained will retain its full book value, which is also important when insuring the bike.
Here are some cosmetic maintenance tasks that you can do to make your bike more appealing to buyers:
- Clean the engine.
- Polish the tank.
- Polish all chrome parts, such as the exhaust.
- Apply leather polish to the seat.
Are OEM parts readily available for your motorcycle?
OEM stands for ‘Original Equipment Manufacturer’ parts.
Should your bike require replacement parts at any stage, it is helpful if you have easy access to the required parts.
OEM parts are preferable to aftermarket parts—which are made by other manufacturers—as these parts maintain the optimal value of your bike.
For instance, most Kawasaki Ninjas have parts that are readily available. This is desirable for potential buyers as the bike will be easier to maintain for a longer period of time.
When it comes to insurance, the ability to maintain your bike with readily available parts will ensure that the bike retains its book value.
Have you added aftermarket modifications to your motorcycle?
Although aftermarket modifications, such as improved exhaust systems, are desirable for the rider, these modifications will not add value to your bike when it comes to its book value.
You will not be able to insure your bike for a higher price if it includes modifications.
However, modifications will be desirable for an appreciative private buyer or for a dealership to increase the resale value of your motorcycle.
Dealerships, though, may not be keen to pay you more for your bike than its book value—which makes any aftermarket modifications obsolete.
For example, imagine you have painted the tank on your Harley Davidson purple, added an exhaust without baffles, and installed a great pair of ape hangers.
A private buyer may be interested in your bike, but your insurer and any dealer will probably not value it as highly.
Does your motorcycle have any known issues or manufacturer defects?
Before buying a bike or selling one, check for known recalls and mechanical problems on the make, model, and year of manufacture of the bike.
If that bike model does have problems, you can be sure that this will be well documented on the internet.
Your best bet is to do thorough research on the bike before you buy or sell.
When it comes to motorcycle insurance, how much you will need to spend on repairing your bike will have an impact on your premiums, as you may have to claim more often.
For example, if the braking system on your bike’s particular make, model, and year happens to be known as faulty, you could have an accident and need to claim.
Insurance companies may take this into consideration when deciding how to insure your machine.
What Is Motorcycle Blue Book Value and Why Is It Important?
Your insurance company may use its blue book value to determine the insurance premium on your bike.
As we mentioned earlier in this article, this is also known as the Kelley Blue Book, or KBB value.
The Kelley Blue Book is used to determine the market value of your used motorcycle, based on what other people have paid for your make and model of bike in your area.
Another organization that can help you determine the value of your bike is the National Automobile Dealers Association—also known as NADA.
The National Automobile Dealers Association provides dealerships and insurance companies with an indication of the value of cars and bikes.
This organization is also the primary trade association of the automotive industry.
What is the difference between KBB and NADA and who should you trust?
KBB will factor in the condition of your bike, the market conditions in your area, and the popularity of your bike’s make, model, and year. KBB tends to rank market value lower than NADA does.
NADA, on the other hand, tends to lean higher in terms of the value of the bike, if they work on the assumption that your bike is popular, easy to maintain, and in good condition.
Great insights regarding the value of your bike can be obtained from both KBB and NADA, and a good approach is to work on the average value between the two.
Why will an insurance company consider the Kelley Blue Book valuation as the gold standard when it comes to the value of your bike?
For the most accurate prices, an insurance company, as well as a dealer, will use the Kelley Blue Book estimation rather than that of the National Automobile Dealers Association.
This is because NADA guides federal legislation and regulation affecting dealerships, and publishes forecasts and reports about industry trends.
However, the Kelley Blue Book reflects value:
- Based on the season.
- The part of the country in which you live.
- The condition of your bike.
- In line with the value of similar bikes.
- In terms of the popularity of your bike.
What Is Actual Cash Value and Fair Market Value?
Most of us are riding with what is known as an “actual cash value” insurance policy. This is often abbreviated to ‘ACV’.
This term means that if your motorcycle is totaled, then you will receive the actual cash value of that motorcycle.
ACV is what insurers will use to determine the value of your bike if it needs to be repaired or replaced after covered damage.
Insurance companies calculate ACV by subtracting the natural depreciation from a bike’s replacement cost value.
Fair market value, which is abbreviated to FMV, is the price at which your bike would change hands between a willing and informed buyer, and yourself.
Insurers will not use the FMV when insuring your bike.
What Is Trade-in Versus Listing Price, or MSRP?
Your trade-in value is the amount that a car dealer will be willing to offer you toward the purchase price of a new or used bike in exchange for your old bike.
This price is determined by:
- The condition of your bike.
- The make, model, and year of manufacture of your bike.
- The popularity of your particular bike.
- The availability of parts for your bike.
- The KBB value of your bike.
The listing price, also known as the Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price or MSRP, is the price that the manufacturer will recommend for your bike.
Insurers will not use the MSRP of your bike, but rather the KBB value of your bike—which will be the same as the trade-in value of your bike.
How Much Will Insurance Pay If Your Motorcycle Is Damaged or Totaled?
A motorcycle is considered totaled when it needs repairs that exceed its actual cash value.
When you purchase a motorcycle, you will be given a choice of optional insurance coverages that you can take in addition to your state’s required minimum motorcycle liability coverage.
Comprehensive motorcycle insurance and motorcycle collision coverage will help pay for damages in the event of an accident.
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Key Point: What Is Comprehensive and Collision Insurance Coverage? Comprehensive insurance will help cover costs from unexpected damage, such as a tree branch falling on your motorcycle. Collision insurance will help pay for accidents your motorcycle has with another vehicle or object. |
Some insurance companies will allow you to select a policy that will cover the bike at its replacement cost instead of its actual cash value if it is totaled.
This is a good idea, especially if you have invested in a respray of the tank, for example, or you have upgraded the bike with parts that are supplied by the manufacturer.
Examples of these manufacturer upgrades could be panniers, fairings, and so forth.
So if you have a BMW Africa Twin and you add a set of panniers and a fairing to your bike, you can increase the value of your ride, and then it’s advisable to increase your insurance coverage, too.
Get Cheap Motorcycle Insurance Today with CheapInsurance.com
Owning a bike comes with enjoying a lifestyle. Your bike may well be your pride and joy, and you will want to protect your asset for many years to come.
Finding a good insurer can be a time-consuming process. Fortunately, we are here to help you find the cheapest motorcycle insurance coverage that you need—at the best price.
All you need to do is head to the top of this page and enter your zip code. You will find a wide selection of insurance quotes to choose from.
You can also find out more about your motorcycle insurance by visiting this page. Here you will be able to get an online quote as well.
Once you have an idea of the motorcycle insurance premiums that you could be paying, it will be time for you to contact the insurers that are offering you the cheapest rates to get a formal quote.
Getting motorcycle insurance should be quick, simple, and stress-free, and you deserve to get the best insurance rates possible.
At CheapInsurance.com, we’ve got you covered!
