bothering trend .. rant ..

[LERecords]

soo...

after looking at pretty much all the jap bike websites.. it strikes me as bothering that most "entry level" bikes are priced in the 7k range.. most are 7k+ but there are a few (like how many fingers you have on one hand) that are sub 7K... what strikes me as even more rediculous, take the r6 for example.. do most people here realize that its no 10k+??? for a 600cc??? i understand inflation and all, but where are the "entry level" bikes that are cheap enough to actually afford.. i was talking to a kawa dealer yesterday and he said that the 2010 ninja 250 is going to be priced around $4,500.. that seams a bit rediculous to me... i remember when bought my fz6 and i think i paid around 6700 and still thought that i was paying too much.. maybe its just me, but motorcycle ownership cost are getting higher and higher and no company (besides maybe hyosung) is comming out with bikes that are reliable and cheap.... ok.. enough ranting...:thumbup:

 

[Wavex]

I have 2 words for you: USED BIKES.

oh and Cali Rider just bought a brand new '09 ZX6R for less than $8k OTD... that's a sick price for basically a professional racing machine.

 

[Gilo-FZ6]

in the UK a general rule of pricing is £1000 per 100cc ,but this doesnt seem to apply to scooters though..lol

 

[Hellgate]

I've heard rumors of '08 CBR1000RRs in the midwest, OTD for ~$7,000.

 

[reiobard]

there have been some 09 leftover CBR1000RRs OTD for $7200 up in this area a couple months ago. MSRP is not what you should be paying for a bike.

My 07 FZ6 was $6100 OTD when i got it brand new!

 

[Wavex]

Bought my pristine '05 GSXR600 for $1800 :Flip:

 

[AutoXer]

We could have plenty of nice-looking, good-running Japanese "entry-level" bikes here in the USA - goodness knows they make them for other markets - except for the American obsession with size (600cc seems the minimum acceptable size here, and it better be a lot bigger than that if its a cruiser since it seems a general cruiser requirement is a big engine that makes almost no power).

The Japanese make some great 300-500cc bikes that would fill the "entry-level" roll perfectly ... but no one here would buy them. However, the smaller-size "entry-level" slots WILL eventually be filled - the Koreans and Chinese will fill them, and very soon. And sadly I suspect the Japanese will simply ignore the market rather than compete.

jZ

 

[McLovin]

soo...

after looking at pretty much all the jap bike websites.. it strikes me as bothering that most "entry level" bikes are priced in the 7k range.. most are 7k+ but there are a few (like how many fingers you have on one hand) that are sub 7K... what strikes me as even more rediculous, take the r6 for example.. do most people here realize that its no 10k+??? for a 600cc??? i understand inflation and all, but where are the "entry level" bikes that are cheap enough to actually afford.. i was talking to a kawa dealer yesterday and he said that the 2010 ninja 250 is going to be priced around $4,500.. that seams a bit rediculous to me... i remember when bought my fz6 and i think i paid around 6700 and still thought that i was paying too much.. maybe its just me, but motorcycle ownership cost are getting higher and higher and no company (besides maybe hyosung) is comming out with bikes that are reliable and cheap.... ok.. enough ranting...:thumbup:

I agree with you because I went looking at the 250 Ninjas few weeks ago at a local dealer. The guy was giving me some ridiculous OTD price almost close to what I paid for my brand new FZ6 which is 6500$. He was talking about something close to 6 grand so I was like; dude I bought a 600cc fz6 for that price and he didnt know what to say. He looked really lost.

 

[Gilo-FZ6]

However, the smaller-size "entry-level" slots WILL eventually be filled - the Koreans and Chinese will fill them, and very soon. And sadly I suspect the Japanese will simply ignore the market rather than compete.

jZ

I watched a motoring magazine thats shown on UK TV a while back about this very issue..apparently the big 4 are more than happy to get royalties or sell blueprints to the developing Asian manufacturers. they usually do this with outgoing models..money for old rope..and no risk of faliure in the marketplace

 

[knightrider]

Maybe someday we'll see some smaller displacement bikes around here. That would be really cool. I personally still want a second bike that's smaller and cheaper - that's why I'll get a used Ninja 250 someday.

 

[zigzagg321]

A Hyosung will rust in an a few weeks time...terrible materials and build quality...you get what you pay for pretty much.

 

[lonesoldier84]

maybe bikes are also getting more expensive to make? maybe they are being made with more advanced/expensive bits?

i know bikes now are way more advanced than bikes 10 years ago. surely this will impact their prices.

hyosung is still cheap though because the bikes are made from melted tonka truck toys. they are complete rubbish and you can tell by looking at the pieces they are cheap cheap cheap.

 

[04efi]

Have you ever tried police auctions?? My buddy picked up a Victory hammer 09 for 5500 bucks. Thats a 20,000 dollar bike... It had 2100 miles on it and the dude lost it because he tried to run, and he had no licenes.. Just a thought

 

[FZ1inNH]

A lot of Buell's out there at half off.... or more....

 

[Cloned]

Police auctions would be great if it was easy to find out when they were happening.

 

[Denver_FZ6]

Ok, I feel your pain, but let me throw out some counterpoints. For me, the difficulty evaluating the price of a product, whether talking about bikes or dishwashers, is because price is relative. But to what? Most of us are so accustomed to the cost savings that mass production provides, it's difficult to simply look at something at say it's a good deal.
While $7k is a fair bit of change, I would counter you get a good deal of bike for that amount (no, I'm not a salesman). I couldn't build an FZ6 for that amount. And $10k for the R6 is a steal! You can't reach R6 performance in a car for probably 5x that amount.
I'm interested in Hyosung's future. I wouldn't buy one and I don't think consumers will pay for a poor quality regardless of how low the price is (think Yugo). Every review I've seen says the quality is not there, it's not a Suzuki at a lower price.
Finally, if you want to put the price of the Japanese bikes in a good perspective, check out the Italian or German bikes.

 

[ice]

I agree with you completely.
Some are missing the point. After all, you were asking about new bikes.
Personally, I think that all bike manufactures are pricing themselves out of business.
In the past three years I have noticed dealerships closing and or combining in my area.
Some are closing one or two days during the week.
As a general rule, the less choices a motorcycle owner has in available dealerships, there is more price fixing and ripoffs for parts and repair work.
What few dealers that are in my area are low volume high priced dealers.
As an example, I was in a combo dealership the other day and noticed a new Honda NT800 I think it was. Fair looking bike with shaft drive. storage compartments, and if I remember correctly, a V twin engine.
$10,000 for a 800cc bike. Give me a break!.
Real wages of worker around the world have been going down the last few years.
There is no way manufacturers can justify these prices.
Correction: The bike was a Honda NT700V.

 

[Wavex]

Since when do you calculate the price based on engine displacement?

Real wages have been going down over the part few years? huh? Where do you get that info from?

+1 to Denver_FZ6... look at what you get for $10k!!! For $10k you can basically buy a race machine with often better performance than full out professional $100k machines of 5 years ago... it's insane!! Look at the materials used to build these light weight race reps these days... look at all the added regulation of the past few years (it costs money for manufacturers!)... look at the technology that's poured into that $10k machine... oh and did we not just go through a massive economical crisis (which is far from over btw)?

Also, $10k today is equivalent to $7k 10 years ago... can't forget inflation...

 

[FB400]

Someday I will walk into a dealer, negotiate my best price, and walk away happy knowing I bought a high quality machine. For now I am thrilled to have picked up a 2006 FZ6 with only 2800 miles for $3200. The thing runs as new. It is my humble opinion that the japanese build great motorcycles for way less $ than other imported bikes. fwiw, I think it is worth the extra cash.

 

[ice]

Since when do you calculate the price based on engine displacement?

Real wages have been going down over the part few years? huh? Where do you get that info from?

+1 to Denver_FZ6... look at what you get for $10k!!! For $10k you can basically buy a race machine with often better performance than full out professional $100k machines of 5 years ago... it's insane!! Look at the materials used to build these light weight race reps these days... look at all the added regulation of the past few years (it costs money for manufacturers!)... look at the technology that's poured into that $10k machine... oh and did we not just go through a massive economical crisis (which is far from over btw)?

Also, $10k today is equivalent to $7k 10 years ago... can't forget inflation...

"Real wages have been going down over the past few years? huh? Where do you get that info from?"
I get it from almost everyone I know, including myself.