Is this xj900 a good deal?

Hi I'm new to this forum and I seak you generous advice.

There is this bike for sale in my town. It is a 1983 xj900. It's got about 44,000 miles on the counter. It has been repainted, the carbs have to be cleaned, the tank is starting to leak and the front tire has to be replaced. The guy was asking 750$ but I got him to lower his price to 500$. I don't know much about this bike. I always thought that the xj900 was a nice size bike and I like the style. Could someone take a moment and tell me a bit about this motorcycle that somehow seems to have passed under the radar in motorcycle history. Is it a good ride? Does it have flaws, why is it so unknown? There's also a used xj750 for sale in my town. Should I pass on the 900 and go for the 750 which has half the milage?

Thanks for any advice!

 

im new to this forum to it sound like a good buy to me i have 750 maxmin i paid 1500 for it a year a go

 

I have an 82 XJ650 Maxim that the motor died (trans locked in first gear). I bought a 83 XJ900 And installed the 900 motor in 650 frame. I would never look back. Bike is fast and fun to ride. I have also put 15K on this package. Many bikes in the past. So far this is the best one. $500.00 is cheap.

 

The xj900rk, as delivered to the US -- there were roughly 1000 of these that came to the states before the "harley tariff" was enacted and no more of them came over. I am charge of the xj900rk Seca Database, having taken over it from Len Chacal. To date there are approximately 50 900's registered.

The bike is a solid running bike, and I'm sure you'd have fun restoring it. Please do bear in mind that many of the parts are now considered "unobtanium" and are quite expensive. Tanks will run you a couple hundred or more, the tire another 100, another 100 for side covers in original color and good condition, then there's the rare parts.... etc......

Then, with that kind of mileage you really should do a shim check and adjustments made as needed. Carb cleaning will cost, too, unless you do it yourself.

The price is a good price assuming the bike is in otherwise good shape. They have sold from a little less than that to 6 times that in some cases. I do know that for a FACT, as I have been granted some of that info for the database, however, that specific info has been requested to remain anonymous, so that's all you'll get.

Where are you located, and if you'd be interested/willing, I'd appreciate your help in getting this bike logged into the database even if you don't buy it yourself. Please PM me and I"ll tell you what I'd need to know to log it.

Thanks, and hopefully that helps. I'm sure others will have more to add.

dave fox

 

Paid $500 for mine a couple of years back...

Did carbs, tires, turn signals (my bike had been down and they needed replacing), mirrors, fluids all the way around, fork seals, valve adjustment and put it on the road...

Much fun and lots of looks since it is relatively unknown and unseen in the day and age...

MiCarl did the work for me and I think I put $1400 into the parts and labor (not including the turn signals and mirrors...

I fixed up my fairing cause it had some poorly repaired cracks and painted it to match... looking to sell it maybe because I have 5a motorcycles but like having a "collector" piece...

 

I paid $900 for mine- from a wealthy SC gentleman who could afford any bike he wanted. HE bought ANOTHER Seca 900 !! (better condition- red/white/blue paint) He's had it on E-Bay and won't sell at around 2,100.

 

I myself after 5 or so years riding these don't understand how they slipped under the radar...

Anyway things I recommend (outside of what you already know):
BUY IT... Especially if you like doing the maintenance on your bike yourself
Replace stock fuse box with aftermarket blade fuses
Put new progressive front fork springs in it
Check the age of the rear tyre... It may need to be replaced too
check brake pads for de-lamination
Ride it like you stole it

With a few good tweaks these bike will easily keep up with most modern bikes but as mentioned earlier some parts are getting quite hard to find.

 

Thanks for the advice! The bike has 44,000 miles. What should I be expecting in terms of work to do on the bike? What are the upcomming issues?

Thanks a million! :wink:

 

Wow who knew there were so few of those models? I picked up my 81XJ550 in really good condition for $900, po threw in a new starter motor, new battery, a cheap helmet, and 3 manuals on CD. Overall these are great bikes that were built to last and have some rather ingenious designs. As long as the motor, trans, and/or carbs are all workable that's a great deal! Check compression if the co will let you before you buy. It's fairly straight forward and only takes about 20minutes. If you can't restore it (but please try) you could always part it out and get your money back. Be a shame though since there are so few.

If you get it look through this site and follow the advice - basically get a book and go through the maintenance step by step (assume everything needs to be done and be sure on the safety issues (brakes etc.) Good Luck!

 

Buy it! I don't agree that the parts are hard to come by. If you can't find them Stateside I will gladly locate them here (OZ) at no extra charge other than my buy/freight cost to you.

One of the faults not mentioned here is that they often have a crack in the frame seat loop - check at the weld near the seat lock. Easily repaired but a good way of beating down the price.

The tanks often rust out because the rear of the tank is lower than the gas tap! Water should be regularly emptied out and/or tank should be sealed.

 

Hi, I'm going to see the xj900 tomorow. I talked to the owner and he says that the carbs nead work cause it running "rich". What do you think would be the cause of that?' Do you think that just cleanning the carbs will cure this?

 

Cleaning the carbs (throughly), new plugs, NO vacuum leaks anywhere and a valve adjustment will cure most anything.

 

Well parts may be common in Oz, but there are some parts that are hard to get here. Just like kangaroos... You have a lot ther but they are rare here.

Dave f

 

If you get it, don't ride it until you've checked your brakes over. Rear for delamination (do a search here and if not new replace) and front for age of lines, tires also.

Then you could check your carbs pilot screws, they may be out of adjustment. They are little brass screws top side that you gently screw all the way down then back them out about 2-2.5 turns. Check your air-box as well, is the filter really dirty or is the box itself nasty?

Before you ride very far (or at all) you should check the valves for proper clearance (or risk frying your moto). And advice I got here which is totally right is to just go through all the basic maintenance and see if it's needed because it probably is. Good luck.

 

An expertly done, thorough, Carb Cleaning and a tune-up should make a running bike run great.

My 900 sat for a bit, ... so it needed Valve Seals at 35,000
Other than that, ... Batteries, Brake Pads and Tires.

You need a new Cam Chain at 50~60,000.