Selling a custom bike | GTAMotorcycle.com

Selling a custom bike

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sameoldstory

Member
Hello all.
Just looking to get some feedback.

I'll be selling a pretty cool little custom bobber next season as I just don't ride it anymore. It's a Japanese cruiser with a clean title/ownership.

I will NOT be providing a safety certificate for the seller and won't advertise as such.

Because this is a highly modified bike, I want to be sure the new owner knows what they're getting into and must take it upon themselves to get it "street legal".

Should I worry about just selling the bike AS IS?
Am I safer to have the ministry classify the bike as "Unfit" so the new buyer cant joyride prior to their own transfer?

I've never sold a show bike like this so just want to be sure everything is done by the book.

Thanks for any insight.
 
It's good you are trying to be honest. I would not say unfit as that will turn off many buyers. You could say something along the lines of "currently an unplated show bike. buyer is responsible for certification if they want to plate it". Similar message but emphasizes the show bike aspect instead of unfit which to me sounds like unsafe.

Dont be surprised if you get a lot of what you consider lowball offers. The original buyers/builders almost always see their bikes a lot differently than subsequent buyers. Very few buyers will pay based on how long it took or how much it cost you.
 
All used vehicles bought/sold in Ontario are assumed to be "unfit", hence the need for a certification to plate the vehicle. You have no duty to state the thing is unfit.
IF you have done something to the bike to make it ineligable to GET certified, you may want to disclose what you've done... but you have NO duty to.
All used vehicle sales are CAVEAT EMPTOR

Selling a "custom" can be difficult... why aren't YOU getting a cert. It would make the bike a LOT more marketable.
 
bitzz said:
All used vehicles bought/sold in Ontario are assumed to be "unfit", hence the need for a certification to plate the vehicle. You have no duty to state the thing is unfit.
IF you have done something to the bike to make it ineligable to GET certified, you may want to disclose what you've done... but you have NO duty to.
All used vehicle sales are CAVEAT EMPTOR

Selling a "custom" can be difficult... why aren't YOU getting a cert. It would make the bike a LOT more marketable.
Click to expand...
If it's like most other custom bobbers, lighting alone will be enough to fail it. Also normally issues with fenders and often brakes. Style before function at every opportunity.
 
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It’s a speciality bike and anyone looking for one likely knows the deal and should know “a guy” or have a shop that is willing to certify it for them as long as it meets their comfort level.

The dreamers that don’t know, buy at their own peril IMO.

Custom bike are what they are. I wouldn’t over think it.


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bitzz said:
All used vehicles bought/sold in Ontario are assumed to be "unfit", hence the need for a certification to plate the vehicle. You have no duty to state the thing is unfit.
IF you have done something to the bike to make it ineligable to GET certified, you may want to disclose what you've done... but you have NO duty to.
All used vehicle sales are CAVEAT EMPTOR

Selling a "custom" can be difficult... why aren't YOU getting a cert. It would make the bike a LOT more marketable.
Click to expand...

The "fail to disclose" is open to interpretation in some markets. It sounds like the seller is being ethical and advising a buyer is a decent move.

A custom bike is only custom for the customizer so the market may be slow. Realistic prices are hard to pin down.
 
sold "as is where is" and done
 
sameoldstory said:
I will NOT be providing a safety certificate for the seller and won't advertise as such.
Click to expand...

Just curious, why are you so adamant about not getting a safety? Having one would facilitate the sale and probably net you a higher price.

The broader question is could the bike, with its current modifications, pass a safety and be licensed to ride it on the street? If it can't be licensed and is only a show bike then the purchaser should know that up front and saying "as is, where is" really doesn't cover that.
 
sameoldstory said:
Should I worry about just selling the bike AS IS?
Am I safer to have the ministry classify the bike as "Unfit" so the new buyer cant joyride prior to their own transfer?
Click to expand...

Do not release the bike until the buyer shows that they have transferred the ownership and you have taken your plates off. It would be a shame if they rode dirty but it wouldn't come back on you.

Others may have more info on the routine for the buyer getting a temporary plate in their own name to ride the bike home or to a mechanic for a safety. Obviously the buyer would also have to get insurance, another potential problem.

If you de-certify the bike you can't ride it if your situation changes or you want to demonstrate the bike. Re-certifying could be touchy.

A stock bike is normally certified and that status doesn't, as far as I know, change when the bike is later heavily modified. We don't have annual safety checks here. However a change in ownership refreshes all paperwork and a mechanic would be risking his license if he passed critical items.

As far as the "As-is" voiding any legal consequences down the road, I have been through this on a corporate level and if anything is said to soften the potential of a problem the seller has implied some degree of responsibility. Due to the costs and risks of legal action transactions on your type of sale they rarely go to court. Just don't sell a lemon to a lawyer.

At a used boat auction the auctioneer clarified that he was auctioning off a package and that it was the responsibility of the bidder to determine the condition of the package and its use to him. If the auctioneer was led to believe the boat was a 2007 and it turns out it was a 2005 it is the bidders responsibility to verify everything before bidding.

Basically, put the bike in the middle of your garage floor along with anything that goes with it and chalk a circle around it. The buyer buys the package inside the circle. Say nothing.
 
ReSTored said:
Just curious, why are you so adamant about not getting a safety? Having one would facilitate the sale and probably net you a higher price.

The broader question is could the bike, with its current modifications, pass a safety and be licensed to ride it on the street? If it can't be licensed and is only a show bike then the purchaser should know that up front and saying "as is, where is" really doesn't cover that.
Click to expand...

A naive friend who was out of touch with reality bought a scooter from a dealer and I had the job of telling him the thing went too fast to be a scooter and he would be facing massive fines if caught on the street.

An eager novice could assume the bike was legal and find out later that it wasn't, just like my friend who can only legally ride the scooter up and down his very short driveway.

We don't know the details of the bike and without question a safety makes it more salable. However if it fails the safety it's a nail in the coffin of a potential sale. If the seller conceals the failure he's treading on thin legal and ethical ice.

Who buys a bike that can't be ridden, other than a museum? If the question is offensive I apologize to the OP who seems really decent but part of the price negotiations is the number of potential buyers.
 
Dear OP - we haven't heard from you since the original post.
Maybe a picture of the bike in question would help in coming to some sort of logical response ?
 
Thanks for all the responses!
The bike is not going to fetch top dollar as a rigid bobber and I'm aware of that. It wasn't a flip I planned on profiting from, just a cool little project I had fun working on and riding around a bit.

I do not want to sell the bike certified because although it has all compliant lights and functions safely. There are some current modifications that some shops may have trouble passing a safety. Most obvious a missing front fender, rigid rear end, speedo location ETC. The last thing I want to do is provide someone with a bogus Safety Cert or something they can later claim I wasn't up front about.

Basically I want to sell the bike making the buyer aware it is not currently in "street legal" trim and the new buyer will be responsible for making it so.

Usually I'd prefer to have a cert in hand for potential buyers of my bikes but in this case, it's not worth it for me to convert back to stock trim.

My honesty kills me in these situations but I love this industry and have made sure not to make any enemies in it, so why start now.
 
sameoldstory said:
Thanks for all the responses!
The bike is not going to fetch top dollar as a rigid bobber and I'm aware of that. It wasn't a flip I planned on profiting from, just a cool little project I had fun working on and riding around a bit.

I do not want to sell the bike certified because although it has all compliant lights and functions safely. There are some current modifications that some shops may have trouble passing a safety. Most obvious a missing front fender, rigid rear end, speedo location ETC. The last thing I want to do is provide someone with a bogus Safety Cert or something they can later claim I wasn't up front about.

Basically I want to sell the bike making the buyer aware it is not currently in "street legal" trim and the new buyer will be responsible for making it so.

Usually I'd prefer to have a cert in hand for potential buyers of my bikes but in this case, it's not worth it for me to convert back to stock trim.

My honesty kills me in these situations but I love this industry and have made sure not to make any enemies in it, so why start now.
Click to expand...
I can see rigid frame and no fenders creating 2 issues for the buyer. Obviously certification will be an issue, but the bigger one for me would be insurance. A cosmetic bobber should have no issues if the lights and chassis are good, but once you disclose 'rigid' to any insurer, all you're going to hear is 'click then dialtone'.
 
bitzz said:
Unless the ownership says it's 1972 or older a rigid frame is no go for an Ontario safety cert.
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A friend has an obscene custom jeep. Beautiful, rock solid, better constructed and safer than the day it left the factory. He can't get it plated. Donor vehicle was a 98 and therefore he needs to have all safety equipment that was required in 1998. That's a problem. It's all gone. No doors, no airbags and on and on. Brakes on it are wilwoods bigger than the factory wheels but no ABS so no bueno.
 
This is why I'm considering changing the ownership to "unfit", not a branded ownership...Just unfit.

I'm thinking this would allow me to sell as a 'showpiece" of sorts and put any and all responsibility of making it street legal (and getting insurance) on the prospective buyer.

Basically I want to narrow down my buyers to people who know exactly what they are getting into.
 
Doesn't matter I could buy it unfit get a safety tomorrow and be riding it the next day. Not hard to get a safety if it looks semi legit. Just sell it as is the ownership goes unfit as soon as it changes hands.

Sent using a thumb maybe 2
 
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