Value of 1988 GSX600F Katana?

N

NiagaraRider

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Fairings aren't in the best of shape, have repairs done to them with epoxy and fiberglass to make it look clean. Will have fresh paint on them in a few days, brand new clutch and new tires. Only thing not stock is braided steel brake lines, not sure what to expect to sell this thing for. Runs mint.

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Forgot, and headlight was replaced with HID I believe, though it may be led. Not stock though.

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Without seeing the bike and knowing a few more details like kms and quality of said paint job, Ill go out on a limb and say $1000-1400 today and just maybe as high as $1800 in the spring.
 
Is it safetied ? or as-is?
 
You'll have a tough time selling it, until someone like me snatches it from you for triple digits.
 
Not a very desirable bike. With beat up fairings and non stock paint job, the price goes way down.
The only way you could get top dollar for it would be to find a Katana specific discussion board and try to sell it there.

Here, I did the work for you.

http://katriders.com/vb/
 
They were semi-popular even up to 10 years ago, as they were a cheap/"beginners" bike that you could legitimately say was also a 600cc/I4. Your supersport friends could never tell the difference! They were also a popular bike for being dropped as they are relatively heavy (as I'm sure you are aware) - very few of them even have the original paint job anymore. Insurance probably limits most beginners to smaller bikes these days.

Probably worth more as parts than as a running bike unfortunately
 
statsman said:
Not really familiar with this model. However, it is almost 20 years old.
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It was 20 years old almost a decade ago.

My vote is $1000-1500. It is a running bike and a decent bike to learn on, but insurance forces most new riders onto lower cc rides. Most experienced riders won't be interested in an old Kat unless it's damn cheap.
 
If the original poster hasn't already paid for the new tires, clutch, and paint job, it would be advisable to weigh the cost of all that against what the bike could potentially be sold for. Unfortunately, most vehicles (including bikes) eventually get to a point where they are worth more dead than alive and need repairs that cost more than what the vehicle is worth. Exceptions are models that become "classic", desirable, somewhat rare-ish ... but this isn't one of them.

Usually the best thing to do with vehicles like that is just keep on driving/riding, if they are still in good mechanical condition.
 
Not true. In any shop a certified motorcycle will sell for $1,500 no matter what it is.
Like Brian said. As long as repairs don't cost that much. You're off to the races.
 
Into it for about 1100 after safety, 1200 after paint. It's primed but not painted right now - even with the bike being 28 years old, thing's got some pep left to it.

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starboy869 said:
$500-$700 safety checked. Serious
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You know those early - mid '70's UJM's everybody's chuffed about these days? This Katana is better than any of those and by a wide margin. Compare component to component, system to system or whole bike to whole bike the Katana wins hands down every time. Time to consider the machine, not the image. $1500 minimum. Serious.
 
The Katana has zero hipster appeal though. Custom paint is an even bigger turnoff.

Maybe $1000.
 
Matt Rain said:
The Katana has zero hipster appeal though. Custom paint is an even bigger turnoff.

Maybe $1000.
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I respectfully disagree. Have you checked the value of a $ recently? It doesn't carry the weight it once did.
 
I agree with the idea that any certified bike is worth roughly 1500 Canadian tomatoes and up. But no one cares for middling 80's bikes these days.

They might well be the next wave in trendy restomods. Just not yet.
 
To say bikes of that day have low value is not completely correct.
Consider that Honda was making the first Hurricane's The beautiful 650 Hawk, and please let's not forget the awesome RC30.
Any of those bikes are worth a lot more than 1,500 bucks.
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