Hi there,
I've been lusting after a Valkyrie for some time now, and think I'm ready to start searching in earnest. There seem to be a fair few options out there, most of which have between 50k and 80k miles on them, and are in the $4-6k range.
Looking at the page on here that lists the members with the highest miles on their bikes, 80k (which would be a lot on pretty much any other bike) may actually not be very much for a valkyrie, correct? The goldwing also has a reputation for car-like longevity, and since it's a variant of the same engine, I'd guess it holds here, too.
Is there anything specific that I should be looking for? All of these bikes that I can see for sale appear to be well cared for and in good shape. As long as there are reasonable maintenance records, is there any cause for concern?
Thanks in advance, and looking forward to joining your ranks in the near future!
-DSA
As someone who buys and sells a lot of motorcycles (ok only 2 or 3 a year I guess) here's some things I look for:
Clean title and accurate history from the seller. Ask some questions. If they are "selling for a friend" or "my uncle who just moved out of state" etc. that's usually enough for me to walk away. You want to be able to talk with the owner/rider and be reasonably assured they will be around later if you have other questions. Example: I had a Valk standard that wouldn't start after I got it home. I contacted the seller only to find out that the kill switch on the grip had a short and he had not been using it to stop start the bike. Calling him saved me hours of trying to trouble shoot a problem on a new bike.
Other than that you want to be reasonably sure about maintenance, especially if its an older or higher mileage bike. I always ask who did the maintenance and ask very specific questions, like driveshaft maintenance and such. If they are legit they will know. BTW - if they haven't done it I don't necessarily walk away, I just approach the sale knowing I will have to do it. I have skills and tools to do stuff like that, YMMV. Just for fun - ask the owner where the air filter is and when they last changed it (its under the tank).
Valks have 6 carbs. The DO NOT like to sit for extended periods of time. Especially leaned over on the side stand. When they do, they get all sorts of nasty fuel problems. Carbs clogged, petcock leaks, fuel rail leaks. If it has been sitting for an extended period, you can bet you will be pulling the carb deck sooner rather than later.
Good used mileage on these is probably 30,000 to 60,000. Anything less and it's sat too much, more than that, well, there are folks on this board I might buy a high mileage valk from, but not a casual dude I meet from Craigs or FB. Also keep in mind that if you need to sell it for some reason, a higher mileage bike will be harder for you to sell as well. Most people won't understand it can go 250,000 on routine maintenance.
Pull the dipstick. Oil should be light brown or clear-ish. Dark brown or black means they haven't changed it in a while (shoddy maintenance), milky (like coffee w cream) means water in the oil - likely a bad head gasket or engine problem.
There may be a tiny amount of white smoke at start up from condensation in the exhaust, its ok. If it smokes a lot or keeps smoking, there's a problem. If it smells sweet, the head gasket is blown.
Check the fork seals, esp on higher mileage bikes or bikes that have sat a while. Easy repair but helpful to know if you'll need to do it.
Any aftermarket changes to air intake (other than a K&N filter) will require rejetting. Exhaust changes *may* require rejetting, if they significantly reduce the back pressure, like big truck stacks. The cobra 3 into 3 exhaust that's common do not usually require rejetting. If the bike HAS been rejetted, try to find out who did it and what jets they used. Carb work on these bikes can be tricky and not for the amateur mechanic.
They are fun bikes. The standards are scary fast and the interstates can run all day. IMHO the best of all is an IS with a Supervalk conversion, but then I may be biased...
Edit to Add: These bikes have an interference engine, which means if the timing belt goes, it will bend a valve and potentially ruin a piston. Belts on these are made to go a long way - 100,000 miles, but they may be 20 years old. Good idea to change the belts if you buy one, its cheap insurance and a reasonably easy maintenance item. There are also 2 belt idler pulleys that can go bad, they squeal or "sing" at operating RPM. I don't know if these are still available from Honda. I know the older Goldwing ones are unobtainium.
