Price for '99 Drifter

[David Baker]

Sweet color combo Spidey! Truly unique, Love the nostalgic look.
Bake

[pcarrell]

That is sharp!  Love the red pinstripe between the black and bone!  Really sets it off!

[tmassey]

thats more than likely what happened...the dealer had it painted

[David Baker]

MBK, I'll weigh in for what it's worth, It's obvious that just like the rest of us here you have a thing for Drifters or else you wouldn't be here. That being said, One must ask oneself... What do you want? What's your dollar limit? Is it local? I'm sure most guys here will agree that we didn't buy a Drifter for the resale value, I know I didn't. I searched for a couple years, Traveled to a few states and monitored sites like eBay, Craigslist, and Cycle Trader looking for a Drifter. I was about to take a trip to NC to check out a prospective Drifter when I saw an ad on eBay that was within 15 miles from home.  It was a '99 and the bid was at $4,000... This was about four years ago and I'd seen Drifters selling for between 5-6 k. When I factored in the cost of traveling to NC from PA as well as the cost of transporting, Fees etc. I knew what I had put aside for my Drifter Fund, I called the number the seller had and asked if he had it listed locally and if was he able to remove the listing... He said yes and it was game on! I had researched his eBay site and realized he bought and sold bikes (valuable information) Now that I knew he was flipping bikes I offered him $5 grand cash... I figured it was a Grand over the bid, Within my limit and he wouldn't have to worry about bidders with excuses or logistics. Needless to say he told me over the phone "I'm removing it from eBay as we speak" I was over there within 20 min with a $500.00 deposit and gave him the balance the next day. You'll have to ask yourself... Is it what I want? Is it within my budget?

Did his ad state $5 k FIRM? If not you won't insult him by offering $4 k... The most he can say is no.... He may even counter with $4,500... If that's the case ask yourself would you let it go for $500.00? If it's local you have to factor that into the cost. With regards to bags and a windshield... They're out there, I bought my saddlebags and Drifter brackets off Craigslist and the guy threw in the solo seat rail as well as a rack, I know that doesn't happen all the time unless you're kissin' leprechaun butt however once in a while... I'm a firm believer in never regret the things you buy... Regret the things you didn't. Don't know if it helps... Just thought I'd weigh in.
Good Luck,
Bake

[49Reo]

PICS PICS PICS!!! Please!

Regards and such,
49Reo

[pcarrell]

A black and bone color scheme was not offered by Kawi as a '99 color, but the dealer may have painted it as a new bike.  I've heard of several dealers who did this to new bikes that weren't selling to get them off the sales floor.

Sounds like a great color combo though!

[45 Bravo]

The engraved bar clamp was available from Kawasaki to the original owner of the 99's

[Troll]

How about a picture....

[tmassey]

well...i traded a 1986 Suzuki cavalcade for my 99 drifter 1500 with less than 9,000 miles on it...traded the original owner...swapped tittles and drove off....i never looked back. the previous owner said the paint scheme on mine was done by kawaski ...plus it has an engraved handle bar strap...don't know how true that is....but its a nice story none the less...i must say...the black and bone colors sure turn heads..

terry

[DC]

. . . and well worth every cent you paid for it, I'm sure!   

[45 Bravo]

I have owned many bikes over the years, but I have never enjoyed any of them the same way I do my drifter..

It is a 99, with a few parts from newer years, and other vulcans. But that is what sets it apart from other drifters..

I enjoy the head turns from older guys that think it may be in Indian, I like to watch people do a walk around on their way past it, trying to figure out what it is..

Since I have owned it I have been offered trades for trucks, cars, and jeeps and other vehicles..

The Honda vtx, and the Yamaha vstar are both melting into a Harley clone, on some, from the right side it is hard to tell what it is until you see a badge..unless you see the huge harley primary drive cover on the left side

With the newer Harley's, you can tell the difference between a sportster and the bigger ones at 50 yards, but they are all starting to look alike once you get over 1200cc..
Same fairings, same bags, same trunk..

But you can tell a drifter at 50 yards, maybe not the exact year, but definitely a Drifter..

Oh I am sure there are guys out there that can just hear a hog and tell you what year it is, displacement, pipes, grade of fuel, color, and tire pressure.

But I ain't one of them..

To me it is just a Harley, and you spent too much money for a bike that looks just like 4 others that rode by in the last 10 minutes..

45 Bravo

[ChilliDrift]

Me too. Got my 99 this spring for 5250 out the door. No extras. 14k miles and I didnt care...lol had to have it,       hell.... I want another one.

[DC]

I'm jealous.   

[jmbo]

Buying mine for $3200 from the original owner with 12K on the clock.....and yes, i feel damned lucky.

[56Drifter]

Personally, I wouldn't let mine go for $5K... not a 99 - but being the first year that should make it more of a keeper IMHO.

I agree...ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU HAVE THE COOL BLACKED-OUT VERSION LIKE I HAVE!!!
I bought mine here in Jan  of '12'...went all the way to Lafayette La. from San Antonio,Tx.
The guy ONLY wanted $3,000 AND IT BARELY HAD 7,000 MILES. Found it on craigslist.
I waited a year and a half looking all over the country for the right look and price. It paid off.
Outside of having some surface rust (which cleaned up real easy/aluminum foil on the chrome) it was real clean. Upon getting it home I flushed the radiator with vinegar then borax. Refilled the radiator with a racing coolant and distilled water. I also drained the oil and put in 20w50 Amsoil. Anyway...I LOVE MY BIKE and i'm getting ready to repaint it this winter. I will post pics when done. It will be a LOOOOOOONNNNNGGGG TIME before i ever get rid of this relic of outright BEAUTY!!!

[bullride28]

they only made drifters for  6yr if can get a 99 for that price get it ive got a99 with just over 10,000  and woundet sell it for 10 k but thats me  bullride28

[chief]

Unless the bike is a total wreck it is well worth $5K... "worth" a lot more IMHO.

[tin-man@swbell.net]

What the hell, its only money.........1500 cc's of fun in the sun is worth 5k.........and you can customize the heck out of these bikes. Just today I cut out left and right barefoot images out of brite aluminum plate and screwed them to my floorboards. Cant do something silly like that to a twenty plus grand streetglide......hehehe

[lumper]

Well, I just sold mine.
I asked 6500 and took 6250.00
The guy sowed up with 6500 but I told him if he showed up and was serious I would do it for 6250 because I had so many calls and few ever showed up at first and I was getting frustrated, I had a trade deal with a guy in Texas who wanted it for 5500$ and I was going to ship it to him towards another bike so I told this guy if you have 6250.00 cash and show up by 3 it is yours, lol and he showed up.

IF I could get a 99 with bags and a 2 up seat and windshield with 24k on it I would expect to pay at least 5k maybe 5500.00
I bought mine for 4300 with a 2 up seat and a small windshield, no bags or anything.
IT had 4300 miles on it when I got it.
IT is all about the condition and what you want.
I have seen them listed for over 10$k and thought, yeah right, this guy really doesnt want to sell it unless he is going to get mad money for it.
I see 800's for sale all the time for 5k$
I think it is a matter of how emotionally attached the seller is and how badly you want it.
I could have bought an 02 Indian with beach bars lowered with a 1600 and a lot of chrome for 10k$ so to get 6500 for my drifter was a real nice sale I thought.

I would show up with 4500.00 in hand and after going over the whole bike and listening to it, considering mods you are going to do to it, I would offer him 4k$ and see what happens, maybe you can get it for somewhere in between.

The best I have seen is Drifters at car dealers who took them in on trade.

They dont know what they have, they go by book value and will always take cash for a quick sale.

I found a beautiful 99 in great shape with a lot of cool mods in Springfield ma I almost bought and I talked them into 3800 over the phone and they were asking 4300.00.

The only reason I didnt buy it was one that sold on eBay I wanted called me and said the buyer flaked and if I wanted it I could have it for the final bid, 4300$ so i grabbed it.

IT had custom paint, beach bars, was 1/2 blacked out, etc..
A very nice looking drifter, like I said it sold a year or two later for 6500 and I had several calls.
Anyway in this economy cash talks and if you have it on you and go in person you never know, I have seen some crazy deals this year with vehicles, especially toys.

Good luck.
Lump

[chief]

Ditto what troll said. I have NEVER bought a bike thinking about resale value. I think I have always bought based upon how it makes me "feel" and anticipated repair/maintenance to keep it reliable.

[Troll]

     I think there are really a few things people overlook when considering the price of a Motorcycle. It's not an investment, it's a vehicle. If you're going to use it as a vehicle, then the big thing is total cost of ownership over the expected service life. I bought my '01 out of a barn with a broken transmission and no start. I paid $1,000 for it, dragged it home and started the restoration process. It arrived at my house on Aug. 14th of '09, and after spending about $3800 on repairs, the only money spent has been on tires (and a u-joint for $25) and oil changes. 31,000 miles of near perfect performance. I'm a hands on type, and if I'd just left it alone, I could have saved some money, but I gotta fiddle, so there were some added expenses....BUT...when I look at the TCO of this bike as compared to my TourGlide, it's about 60% cheaper to keep her! If the mechanicals hold up as well as I expect, by the time it has the same mileage (200,000) as the TourGlide I sold, that TCO  will be down to about 20%. I run it, every day, have 8,000 miles on so far this year, and will easily get my annual 10,000 by the first snow...The only thing I will NOT be looking forward to is parking it in the garage for the winter, and not having anything to do to it....helps pass the time. My W-650 is no help in that department, either. It's got 21,000 miles on it and needs NOTHING but a good cleaning!

[45 Bravo]

Yea, I am not a haggler either, I look at what is there, compare it to what i know.
Figure in how much I really want to spend, is the bike realistically worth what he is asking, what are the chances of finding another similar to it, what will i have to spend to get it road worthy.

Just like shopping on ebay, once you start looking specifically for something, i don't jump on the first one i come to if it is out of my price range.

If we can't come to an agreement, there will ALWAYS be another coming down the pike.

Yes there are not as many Drifters out there, but they are there, you just have to turn over a few more stones..

45 Bravo

[mbk]

The 1500 and the 800 are two VERY different machines... it really is NEW tech vs OLD tech.

EFI vs carbs, shaft vs chains, dual shocks vs monoshock, differences in gearing, differences in looks...

Absolutely agree - chain is a pain, having to check valves is a pain and costly if you cannot do it yourself.  I ride mostly in the midwest so altitude is not a problem (although cold is) and I very rarely use the interstate, much prefering the old back roads.  But, yeah, there is a lot of modern stuff to love about the 1500 - stuff that pays for itself in maintenance and in greater flexibility of riding conditions and locales.  Thanks, Mike

[chief]

The 1500 and the 800 are two VERY different machines... it really is NEW tech vs OLD tech.

EFI vs carbs, shaft vs chains, dual shocks vs monoshock, differences in gearing, differences in looks. You need to consider how you ride, where you ride and when you ride. EFI keeps the bike running consistently regardless of altitude. The 1500 will run 80 all day on the interstate with power to spare, regardless of loading. The 800 simply is not designed that way... it has all the benefits and shortcomings of the old tech bikes.

[mbk]

As a new Drifter owner. I looked at 800s and a 1500. I am glad I got the 1500. If you plan on riding 2 up, consider the 1500.

Having ridden both just once or twice on test rides, I kind of favor the 800 only because I am used to 650s.