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Posted by 45 Bravo
- December 07, 2012, 19:12:31 PMThe engraved bar clamp was available from Kawasaki to the original owner of the 99's
Posted by Troll
- December 07, 2012, 18:26:28 PMHow about a picture....
Posted by tmassey
- December 07, 2012, 17:24:30 PMwell...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
Posted by DC
- September 26, 2012, 07:09:38 AM. . . and well worth every cent you paid for it, I'm sure! 
Posted by 45 Bravo
- September 26, 2012, 00:09:24 AMI 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
Posted by ChilliDrift
- September 25, 2012, 23:33:35 PMMe 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.
Posted by DC
- September 25, 2012, 23:10:08 PMI'm jealous. 
Posted by jmbo
- September 25, 2012, 19:46:44 PMBuying mine for $3200 from the original owner with 12K on the clock.....and yes, i feel damned lucky.
Posted by 56Drifter
- September 20, 2012, 10:38:06 AMQuote from: chief on August 20, 2012, 10:58:04 AMPersonally, 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!!!
Posted by bullride28
- August 31, 2012, 21:36:12 PMthey 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
Posted by chief
- August 31, 2012, 18:28:44 PMUnless the bike is a total wreck it is well worth $5K... "worth" a lot more IMHO.
Posted by tin-man@swbell.net
- August 31, 2012, 18:21:45 PMWhat the hell, its only money.........1500 cc's of fun in the sun is worth 5k.........and you can customize the heck out of these bikes. Just today I cut out left and right barefoot images out of brite aluminum plate and screwed them to my floorboards. Cant do something silly like that to a twenty plus grand streetglide......hehehe
Posted by lumper
- August 29, 2012, 18:31:29 PMWell, I just sold mine.
I asked 6500 and took 6250.00
The guy sowed up with 6500 but I told him if he showed up and was serious I would do it for 6250 because I had so many calls and few ever showed up at first and I was getting frustrated, I had a trade deal with a guy in Texas who wanted it for 5500$ 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.
Lump
Posted by chief
- August 27, 2012, 11:41:49 AMDitto 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.
Posted by Troll
- August 27, 2012, 08:01:35 AMI 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!