looking for some opinions on acceptable amount of miles when buying used..

[emudryj]

Hi!! newbie here looking to buy his first RTL 2020 or newer (preferably 2021).
I've seen two 2021s in my area with a price differential of 1k.
The more expensive one has 2600 miles. The other one is 11000.

This got me wondering if you (more experienced) guys have a personal/mental acceptable range of miles when looking at used Spyders?

for example 0 to X thousand miles is great, I would consider up to Y thousand miles if the condition is perfect or add-ons/accessories, but will never consider one with more than Z thousand miles.

I would guess that it would be dictated by stuff like warranty, know interval issues, maintenance and stuff like that right?

Any opinions?

[Stache]

It's not the miles. Properly cared for Spyders run forever.

I'd do a thorough examination of visible frame and plastics, look for good maintenance records (if dealer done, the dealer can confirm), check the VIN with a dealer to verify recalls are complete, ask about transferrable extended warranty.

If satisfied with the above buy it and ryde it.

[Isopedella]

Only a grand in it I would swing for the lower mileage one.

Provided as Stache has already mentioned which I concur with 100%.

It's not the miles. Properly cared for Spyders run forever.
I'd do a thorough examination of visible frame and plastics, look for good maintenance records (if dealer done, the dealer can confirm), check the VIN with a dealer to verify recalls are complete, ask about transferrable extended warranty.
If satisfied with the above buy it and ryde it.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

You say you are a " newbie " .... I would look for an RT .. 2014 to 2017 with an SE trans. .... If you don't like it you can probably sell it for what you paid for it Or ACTUALLY MAKE A FEW BUCKS .... THEY HAVE THE NEWER 1330 ENGINE which gives you a " Gold Wing " type ride, and were quite reliable. ....Good luck ... Mike

[ARtraveler]

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

This got me wondering if you (more experienced) guys have a personal/mental acceptable range of miles when looking at used Spyders?

I'd try to stay in the range of 1 to 100,000!

Actually mileage isn't much of a concern at all. In fact a higher mileage bike has probably had better maintenance than a low mileage older one.

[Peter Aawen]

Hi!! newbie here looking to buy his first RTL 2020 or newer (preferably 2021).
.....
This got me wondering if you (more experienced) guys have a personal/mental acceptable range of miles when looking at used Spyders?

......

Any opinions?

I'd try to stay in the range of 1 to 100,000!

Actually mileage isn't much of a concern at all. In fact a higher mileage bike has probably had better maintenance than a low mileage older one.

Welcome aboard Emu'd I really hope that it didn't hurt too much, being run over by a mob of Emu's in the dry!! (yeah, sick Ozzie humour maybe, but I've seen the damage Emu's can do, and it ain't pretty! )

That aside, I'm with Idaho on this one; and really, even if that 'lower milage Spyder' has only been ridden for saaay, 6 months of the year cos it was too cold, wet, snow bound, or otherwise impractical to ride the rest of the year, then surely you'd hafta consider that a Spyder that's a maximum of 3 years old (so therefore a max of 18 rideable months) which has only done 2600 miles in that time juuudt might be a bit suss?? Maybe you should ask yourself, would you really be comfortable riding a bike that has only averaged about 145 miles of riding each month, or maybe as much as about 220 a month if it's closer to 2 years old?? Or has it not been ridden all that much during that time cos there's something wrong with it, or it was involved in a prang??

Whichever way, that particular 'low milage' Spyder has been doing an AWFUL LOT of sitting around during its life; probably with aging gas slowly evaporating in the tank; most likely also without having had the mandated annual oil change done (and even lightly used oil tends to get corrosive when left sitting! ) And if it's still on the OEM Krapendas, then I can just imagine the deterioration, cracks in the 'rubber', & flat spots those tires might now have! All this gets worse if the Spyder was living somewhere it could've been ridden year round, cos 2600 or so miles in 36 months means an average of just 72 miles per month OR a bunch more months sitting around not technically in hibernation with no riding, all the (now slightly corrosive oil) pooling in spots where it shouldn't really be instead of being circulated into the places it should be; sitting on tires that are already too lightly made for their own good; quietly stewing the contents of the gas tank into varnish; and steadily deteriorating all the rubber & plastic bits thru lack of use & exposure to the environment with little attention/care/use!!

So personally, unless there's a heap of quality evidence to suggest otherwise, I'd be looking for a good maintenance record on the Spyder with the HIGHER milage and then going that way, simply cos it has at least been ridden a bit, and so it's had the oil and grease sloshed around the places it needs to have oil sloshed; and grease worked into & thru all the bearings etc; it's had the drive belt used and turned instead of left sitting there with just one little bit exposed to UV all the time & while it's been stretched over a pulley at that; and all those other things that riding and use do that are actually GOOD for machines like this!

Besides, I know that there are an increasing number of these Spyders out there now with relatively trouble free milage well in excess of 150,000 miles or almost 250,000 kms, so a paltry 11,000 miles on a reasonably used and maintained 2-3 year old Spyder is a much better recommendation to me than risking purchasing one that's clearly been used juuust enough to highlight or create a bunch of issues and then been left sitting around for 2-3 years!

To me, low milage Spyders that are more than just a few weeks old raise FAR MORE SERIOUS QUESTIONS about their reliability and treatment to me than one that's done better than 4,000 or so miles a year for each year of its 3 year or so life!! But then, I have been known to buy a bike that's already got 100,000 well maintained and cared for miles under its wheels; and I've also seen & ridden immaculately presented & maintained Spyders that're more than 10 years old that are pushing 200,000 miles and look like easily doing another 200,000 without turning a hair.

Go on, BUY IT! You know you Want to!

[emudryj]

Thanks for all the advice!!!! the one I'm looking at is a 2022 with 2600... does not sound like it has been sitting idle for much time... I'm going to see it this weekend and we will see, but I'm already preparing the certified check.. LOL

[chipveres]

As "one who knows" I would urge you to leave $1000 in your budget if you do your own repairs and $4000 if you must have a pro mechanic do it. My darling's desire for a "nearly new" Spyder with 500 miles on it cleaned out the bank account. Then we had to DIY a new air bag and a new shock absorber. As we each busted four knuckles on each hand, she sez "What are our options?" I said "None. Our options are already spent".

[emudryj]

I'm really handy and know my way around tools but ...How can a "nearly new" 500 miles bike could have all those problems?

[MRH]

In my experience, Spyders over 50K can start running into more issues just because of age (even if very well cared for). 8000-35000 miles might be a good range to look in. It can also help to know if a big maintenance is coming up (for example, my factory shocks have tended to need replacing around 30K). As others have said, a Spyder that sits around can have it's own issues as well.

[Peter Aawen]

Hi!! newbie here looking to buy his first RTL 2020 or newer (preferably 2021).
I've seen two 2021s in my area with a price differential of 1k.
The more expensive one has 2600 miles. The other one is 11000.
...

Thanks for all the advice!!!! the one I'm looking at is a 2022 with 2600... does not sound like it has been sitting idle for much time... I'm going to see it this weekend and we will see, but I'm already preparing the certified check.. LOL

I'm really handy and know my way around tools but ...How can a "nearly new" 500 miles bike could have all those problems?

Your later posts have contradicted what you originally posted emu, where you said you were looking at 'two 2021's...', and if it's a '21 that's only done 2600 miles then it could easily have developed those sorts of issues from doing a fair bit of sitting around over its life, possibly as many as 29-30 odd months, especially if what little milage it did (2600 miles ) was racked up early in the piece when it was new & the previous owner was all excited about riding their new toy and it hasn't been ridden much since then!!

Sure, if you average out the 2600 miles that you told us over the maximum potential number of months it's been around/out there racking them up, the Spyder might look like it's done almost 100 miles a month or so; not a great deal more than that if it's 12 months younger; and maybe close to twice that much if you only ride 6 months of the year like so many over your way (& not at all like us here in Oz, where we tend to ride all year road regardless! ) but how many people ride like that?? And how many new owners tend to ride everywhere on their new toy for a few months or so, then gradually ride less & less as time goes by??

So I'd STILL be more concerned about buying a bike that may have only been ridden saaay, as little as just ONE or TWO WEEKS out of its entire life and then it's been left sitting around in an uncontrolled atmosphere for all the paint & finishes & seats & controls etc to dry out, perish, & crack; likely standing un-moved on already dodgy OEM tires so that they develop flat spots & cracks or worse; with increasingly contaminated & corrosive oil sitting in the engine so that it can eat away at anything it's ever touched, like rings, pistons, bearings, seals etc; letting all the plastic & rubbery bits & seals etc stick to any nearby metals so that the very first time they're next get called into use they'll split or break; and probably also letting the parasitic power drain we KNOW these things have kill the electrics &/or develop into stray charge that increases the corrosion rate in the cooling fluid, system, & radiators etc as well as just draining itself to death and basically creating a trap for the unaware rider who might think they've bought an 'almost new bike' when in reality, they've got what could be a 'low milage but quite neglected bike!!'

I've seen a fair few of these 'low milage but quite neglected bikes' with only a few thousand miles (or less) under their tires in the 2-3 years they've been around, and I've found that those bikes (including Spyders ) that get ridden more, ie. at least a few hundred miles a week, or a couple of thousand miles plus a month, and that've been reasonably well maintained almost invariably work better & outlast those lower milage bikes (& Spiders ) that are ridden for an average of something less than that 'couple of hundred miles or so' a week, no matter HOW WELL maintained the low milage bikes might APPEAR to be!! Basically, if you don't ride them, they might LOOK nice, but they deteriorate much quicker than those that DO get ridden regularly, especially if the ridden bikes often do saaay, a hundred miles or more per ride!!

And the other thing to bear in mind is that IF the Spyder you're looking at has effectively only been ridden a couple of thousand miles or so; or worse, hasn't ever really had a good run beyond maybe going around the block a few times, then none of the contaminants that end up collecting in the oil will have ever been burnt out, as they are if the bike is run for a couple of hundred miles at a time; AND it may not have ever been ridden enough to reveal any of the major issues or any of those little niggling problems that many vehicles only develop &/or reveal in their first 4-5000 miles or maybe 10,000 miles.... Only if you've just bought an older bike with low milage and ONLY NOW does it start revealing these things, you're either almost or already completely out of warranty!

So like I said earlier, unless there's a heap of quality evidence to suggest otherwise, I'd be looking for a good maintenance record on the Spyder with the HIGHER milage and then going that way, simply cos it has at least been ridden a bit, and so it's had the oil and grease sloshed around the places it needs to have oil sloshed; and grease worked into & thru all the bearings etc; it's had the drive belt used and turned instead of left sitting there with just one little bit exposed to UV all the time & while it's been stretched over a pulley at that; and all those other things that riding and use do that are actually GOOD for machines like this! But it's your money, and if you buy, it'll be your bike, won't it?! But you DID ask for any opinions.

[chipveres]

I'm really handy and know my way around tools but ...How can a "nearly new" 500 miles bike could have all those problems?

Two reasons: The air bag had a cut in it. As a "road hazard" kind of thing it's not necessarily related to mileage. Then while we had the cycle all torn apart, we decided to replace the rear shock with Elka stage 2. That's because we are both big folks and need to give the cycle a little extra weight capability.