I just got my full bike licence in Australia and looked at a red/black 2002 f4i today.

It looks to be in really good condition except one small paint chip on the bottom edge of the tank. Underneath is bright yellow paint. After seeing this i took the filler cap off the tank and saw a hint of yellow around the edge of the filler hole under the red paint.

Does this sound like they have replaced the tank with one from a yellow bike and had it repainted after a crash? Any chance all red tanks have yellow under the red coat?

What other things can I check for to tell if its been dropped or crashed?

I like the bike but if I think its been in an accident I'd rather find another one that hasn't had any incidents.

 

There could be numerous reasons the bike or tank has been painted.
Run a Vin check to see if there is a report of a wreck on the said bike.
Ask who the Original owner was and contact the person with questions as wht Mods or custom work was done before the bike was sold.
If in doubt take it to a shop and have them check suspension , frame and wheels for any weird bends or tweaks.

Another reason the bike could be different under coat color is maybe it was dropped and dented / messed up the fairings. Mine was dropped in a garage causing nice amount of damages to fairings and headlight wire harness but I would not consider that a true wreck/accident. One point of time every one drops their bike. The best you can do is control when and how hard the drop is to a extent.

 

i agree, he could of just not like the color yellow :P

 

you also might want to look behind the fairings to see if they tried to refiberglass some stuff with bondo or other compounds. i noticed my whole front fairing was refabricated from behind and that was a huge leverage poiunt when buying my bike.!

 

Finding a sport bike with no accidents is dam near impossible if your buying used with any age or mileage on them.

 

Yeah, remember that just because a bike has been over doesn't mean it's junk. It's like a car with a dent on the door. Sure it's a little uglier, but it doesn't mean the car isn't reliable.

Just use it as a tool for negotiation, not necessarily as a sole means of judging the value of a bike and whether or not you should purchase it. You'll be waiting a while to find an affordable, mint condition bike.

 

Thanks for all the fast replies.
I contacted a local Honda dealer today and they said they can look over the bike for 50 bucks. If they say all the frame and forks are straight I think I'll go for it.
In the end it is an 11 year old bike so finding a mint example for a good price will be hard. Plus it's my first big bike and I'm a short *** so ill probably drop it or something anyway.

 

Thats the spirit!!!!