Hi guys. Im looking at a few F3's with variable milage from bikes with 15k that havent been ridden for 18 months or more, to others that are well serviced but have 50k behind them.

Obviously if its been stood im looking at fuel/carb issues, but whatever bike I get im expecting some carb work will be needed.

Im more concerned about the longevity of the engine. Are they good for really high milages?

P.

 

With proper maintenance, including keeping the "nut behind the handlebars tightened
properly". i.e. no stupid people tricks have been done on the bike, these bikes will last
a long time. I'm betting, I could get 60-70k without a major over-haul, and possibly
beyond.

That said, If you are buying a used bike, I would stick to the lower mileage (no more
than 30k-ish, is my personal limits-ish). As stated above, YOU might get that out of
the bike, but depending on someone else's word that THEY, did what it takes, to get
there, is beyond my belief system. I would generally lean towards the lower milage.

Hope this helps, Ern

 

Also remember if you don't mind getting your hands dirty you can usually pick up a secondhand engine cheap for these. However as they are cheap bikes now anyway I wouldn't go above 30K miles unless it really was a 'give away' and seemed solid as well. It will be cheaper to buy a decent one than renovate a tired one.

 

These are Honda's man, they'll last forever if they're maintained. If the one with 50K has been maintained properly, and it looks like it's been maintained that way, I wouldn't give it a second thought to buy it. My wife's F3 has 55K on it right now and it runs as strong as any other F3. The bike also looks like it's been maintained as shown here.

 

pullin over 60k on mine and it runs like a top.

 

I don't want to cast aspersions on the F3's, if it's been maintained properly.
Heck, I own one and expect to get high miles out of it.
I just don't trust buying a bike someone else is telling me was properly cared for.
Somebody in IDoDirt's class can do the kind of inspection to establish the
veracity of a PO's claims, but for the rest of us, it gets a little trickier. Thus, my advice to stick with
a lower-milage bike. Not because of inherent flaws in the bike, but in the owners. ;-)

Ern

 

but with a general conversation with someone, you can quickly pick up how knowledgeable they are when it comes to personal care and experience in their bikes.

for instance: my friend said he knew "all there is to know about building motorcycles" and "i rebuild them all the time". i sat there watching him talk with his clean fingernails. i mentioned i did the same, and asked him what kind of bikes he has rebuilt... he named off several bikes of various years, but when I started to ask him about timing in the SOHC vs the DOHC and which he found easier, he quickly fell out of the conversation.

there are many people who have great general knowledge about motorcycles and can do most things even if they havent done them before because they have patience and a manual.
and there are also kids who claim they know everything.

i sit here with dirty fingernails and a bike in pieces on my kitchen counter, and if you ask me if i know anything about bikes, i tell you "nah, im still learning".

 

IDoDirt is right. You can almost always tell when a higher mileage bike is taken care of by looking at it and talking to the owner a bit. If I had my choice, I'd certainly go with a nicer/well-maintained and ridden bike than a lower mileage, questionable one that's been sitting for most of it's life.

And yeah, spicy... it's the same way with cars. Sometimes you don't even have to talk about cars/bikes to get a good idea. lol..

 

+1

Even if the bike looks clean it doesn't necessarily mean the owner has been maintaining it mechanically well although it increases the odd. My point was you can pick up a low mileage one for £1700 in the UK and a high mileage for £1200. So I would spend the extra £500 and feel more confident that I could put 30K miles on it without a rebuild. Which in this price bracket is probably not worth the effort and certainly not worth paying a dealer.

 

Its a Honda, it will probably outlast you lol.