harlot...is this what you are referring to when you say "hypercharger"?




Basically a high flow air cleaner. Not sure that of itself it will turn you bike into a yamazaki eater.

 

You are kidding right?

 

Guy's selling a bike that won't start. Pass on it!!

Think about it. If you were going to sell a bike, wouldn't you make sure it will start? And if it were just a battery, wouldn't you put a new one in so that you could start the bike for a potential buyer?

Run Forest Run! Do not buy this bike!

 

K, you need to check this link out...

http://75.148.127.254/States.htm

When you get there click on California, , click on the search area (you can enter multiple areas), enter motorcycle, enter Harley Davidson Sportster.

There are a good many out there. I clicked on Ventura and Los Angeles and found a sharp looking one out of Monrovia...05 for 5K/best offer with under 1K miles on it. That was just a very quick search of 6 bikes out of a lot.

As has been offered...slow down a bit here, find someone to go with you that knows Sportsters and can drag you away from the wrong bike so that you do not end up with "buyers remorse".

You can find a very good used bike outside of the dealer.

One other thought. if the seller starts talking about mods to the bike and work done on it and such, ask for receipts. No receipts IMO mean "bull$hit" on the work done.

 

When a bike won't start, it tends to have low mileage

 

Dude, WAY OVER PRICED!!!!!!You can finf better for less. Dont let this guy drape you in with a turd!

 

Let me share my first bike story with you. It too was a Harley Sportster 883...a 1999 model so a bit older than yours. It too had 4,000 miles on it. When I got there the owner rolled it out and it was a bit of a mess. No mufflers on the pipes, just the head pipes. It had no mirrors, no turn signals, dents in the tank, dings on the rear fender, no front fender, had been sitting for a year, the seat had no screw attaching it to the bike (nor the "nut" in the fender to go with said screw) and the battery was dead. We did get it started though by jumping it off my truck. She had been up front with me about the battery on the phone though. She took it for a ride (as I had never been on a bike before) to show me that it did run though whenever she put in the choke the bike died. She claimed it was a battery issue.

At $2,500 I couldn't pass this up. Also, she had two sets of mufflers and some other misc parts in a cooler so I at least had some stuff I could do to it. I towed it home and found the battery just needed the terminals cleaned and a good charge put into it. The battery was fine and the bike fired up...but still would die when the choke was pushed in.

Now me, I'm mechanically inclined so having such a bike didn't bother me. Since I was new to them this bike would give me the opportunity to learn how they work as well as how to ride. So I read up on the issue I was having and determined (quickly) that the problem was gumed up fuel in the carburetor. I took the carb apart (never had worked with a carb before), cleaned it thoroughly, and put it back together. Now the enigne ran like a charm! Threw a set of the mufflers on, got some mirrors with turn signals built into them, some rear turn signals, and even found a black fender on eBay for cheap and bolted it on. At that time it looked like this:



Total invested was about $2,700 at this point. I rode it for about a month like this just around side streets and finally worked my way up to the freeway. I then lost the keys and the bike was going to be down for a while. So I did some work to it. She needed tires as the stock ones were dry rotting. So since the wheels were coming off for new rubber I opted to powder coat them. Then with them looking nice I figured I needed to paint the tins. I did my own body work, filled in the dents, cut the rear fender and had the license plate holes filled in then primered it and the tank. This took about two weeks of working on it after work and on weekends. Then my buddy laid down the paint. She now looked like this:



Total invested was now up to about $3,250 or so. I also modded up a dual headlight setup to replace the stock one and the side mount license plate holder the original owner had on the bike fell apart so I had to make a new one of those too. While I was at it, the stock shocks sucked when riding solo and almost made the bike feel like a ridged when riding two up so I went with a set of take off Road King air shocks.

I rode it for a while like this but then I wanted more power. Found a set of 1200S heads, pistons and cylinders on eBay for about $200. Sent them off to NRHS and found out the cylinders were too worn for the pistons so had them bored .010 over, new oversized pistons ordered, and the heads worked over to accept Thunderstom pistons. Installed the upgrade myself and while I was at it put in some upgraded cams and a 1200 ignition. Also installed a new AC and while all the covers were off the engine, I painted them in black bedliner paint. While doing this I found out the previous owner had drilled two holes in the frame to access a couple of bolts in the rear rocker box in order to change a leaking rear rocker box gasket. I knew this because I had to change out the stock front one shortly after I had gotten it and the rear one I took off when doing the upgrade was an updated gasket. Now it looked like this:



By then total invested was around $4500 to $5000.

So you may ask why the long story? (And trust me, this is the short version.) THIS is the kind of thing you can get into when you buy a questionably used bike...and the one you describe is DEFINATELY a questionable used bike. If the bike ran flawlessly it MIGHT be worth it. If the owner can document all his upgrades it MIGHT be worth it. However, there are two big red flags for me.

First is it not starting. If he told you up front it needs a new battery, I get it. That's what it was for mine. However if he didn't, makes me wonder. Before you buy it he NEEDS to get it started WITH YOU THERE. Either he jumps it (and takes the price of a new battery off the sale of the bike AFTER you've negotiated it down some becuase this could be a sign of a bad charging system too) or he puts a new and functioning battery in it.

Second is his claim that a Hypercharger makes it run like a 1200. Now, an 883 with a carb rejet, slip-ons, and an intake like the Hypercharger will be close to a STOCK 1200, it does not make it run like a 1200...at all. To me, someone who has integrity and that knows these bikes will know that and never tell a new rider that kind of misinformation. It would make me question what else is he wrong about.

So unless you can get this for real cheap, I'd keep looking. Something smells off and unless you want a story like mine (but with a much higher price tag) keep shopping. Being in LA be sure to check the other Craigslists in your area. I am in Temecula and looked through the LA, Inland Empire, Orange County, and San Diego County Craigslists to find my bike and even then it took a while. I did just see a 2003 Sportster on the San Diego or IE craigslist just yesterday for $2500...they are out there.

Finally, if you're not mechanically inclined, buy something close to stock. The closer, the better. Newer the better too. I had pulled out engines and worked on cars before so I had a foundation to build my motorcycle wrenching experiance on. If you don't, you're just asking for trouble.

 

From your questions its obvious you've never bought a vehicle of any kind before. Guessing your young (teens?). First place to check is insurance, can you get it and how much is it going to cost you. They will want the vin and check it for you.

I agree, run from something thats modified and won't start. Sounds like you have the cash to buy without a loan. Hit a few dealers and watch craigslist, you will find you something. Keep enough cash for taxes, tags and insurance.

 

I dont think it matters what is said, he is not going to listen......What the hell are you thinking????? You are on this forum asking alot of things you should know,and some adults......Not Me.....Are trying to help you and you are going to do it aneyway.......You are going to get it shoved up your asp......So bend over and take it like a man...

 

Sounds like you are getting a lot of great advice here, so I won't add too much. Last year I picked up an 08 883 sportster with Vance and Hines pipes and a SE air intake. The bike had 2600 miles on it, and I paid $4,200 out the door. Bike runs like new and is exactly what it was represented to be.

You are looking at a real problem in the bike you are looking into. Run away and find a quality bike, you may even pay less for a great machine.