I bought an 06' Seattle bike in march. It had 47000 miles on it. I had to replace the seat so the wife could come with. Mufflers because they were rusty and ratty. I've had a couple of shifter linkage pieces replace at dealers expense. I'm riding a roadking for sportster money. I feel it's kind of a testament to the durability of these bikes. I know it's been used in service, but it still is in pretty good running shape, and looks good. My dealer sold me a "don't use it don't lose it" waranty. If I don't need to use it before it's expiration, they refund the money.
I'm gonna ride the hell out of it and probably hang on to it for years. I'm happy, who cares what others think.
Have you ever noticed that it seems most of the people that warn of buying these things have never owned one?

 

I work with many motor officers (mostly Kaw and BMW where I live). They say the same as the prior posts. The only maint these bikes are getting lately is gas and oil. They auction any that need more.

Even so, you can save thousands over nonPD bikes. Might well be worth it if you were planning to drop in mods anyway, especially if you were gonna get into the motor or black it out. Be sure to budget for paint.

I think they make great keeper bikes for folks who like to do their own wrench work. Would stay away if you're looking to sell it anytime soon or if you are planning to pay to have it fixed.

 

Forgot to say to carefully read fine print in warranties. Most don't cover bikes that were used commercially or by LEO.

 

Good for you. I know the Renton and Bellevue dealers both had some retired Police Bikes. Even though they had a few miles on them, they sure looked to be in good condition.

 

Bought a 09 FLHP from the Marysville,WA HD dealer November 09. It had 8000 miles on it and was still under warrantee. It had a 103, tach, abs brakes, oil cooler, heated grips and factory 2 into 1 exhaust and was $2000 cheaper than 09 Street Glides and Road Kings with the same amount of miles. There's some mods you have to make right away if you want to ride 2-up. The seat is a solo seat so I got a HD Sundowner seat with rider backrest am very happy with it (I've been on some 4000 + rides too). You will need passenger pegs or boards. The police rack is pretty worthless so I got a 4 point docking system and a detachable passenger backrest and rack. Because the police bikes had sirens and extra lights, the handlebar switches don't have room for the stock harley cruise controls. I had to get a aftermarket wiring harness and the stock HD cruise control switches and have the cruise control function on the on board computer turned on. In all I probably spent the $2000 I saved getting the police model but ended up with a bike with factory 103, tach, abs, heated grips, extra oil cooler and 2 into 1 exhaust. I've put 12000 more miles on it this yaer and couldn't be happier. When ever this one wears out, I'll either get another police bike or just put a 110 in this one. Oh, a lot of the dealers just lease the police bikes to the police departments and are contracted to do all the maintenance (that was the case with mine).

 

i bought a 1 year old '09 with only 340 miles on it. There are deals to be had if you keep your eyes open.