What's it worth? Noobie looking to purchase used...

[VMS]

Hi Everyone,

After much deliberation, I have finally decided to bite the bullet and purchase an ATV. I am looking to buy used and have found one that I am interested in, but am looking for a little advice on what kind of price I should be looking at.

Here is what I am interested in:

2001 Honda 450 foreman, warn 2500# winch and a snowplow set-up. Has just over 1800 miles on it and looks to be well taken care of.

Through Kelley Blue book, average retail is around $2350 including winch and plow, and doing some searching on what would be considered average mileage, I think this would be a very low mileage ATV... Price listed is $3500 obo, which seems a tad high to me, but with that mileage and assuming it has been well cared for, would it be worth more than $3200?

Thanks for any insight you all might have...

[gr8icefishinmind]

You will be buying a very strong reliable machine thats for sure! The 450 foreman has some amazing low end power!! Their asking price though is pretty high although the mileage on that age of machine is really low!! be interested to know what the hours are on the machine!! I would go with a starting offer of $3000 and go from there! Good luck!

Again the foreman 450 is a great machine!!

[bassmann77]

Make sure the seals and gaskets are solid before buying, but I agree it seems a bid high. You can always offer what the blue book says and offer a little more for the condition.

[Dave S]

Be sure to look at things like the steering to make sure that isn't showing excessive wear.

Also look in the air box. That is one of the best things to look at to know if the current owner has atleast cleaned it out on a regular basis. If there's signs of dirt, mud or dust in the air box, the engine regardless if it's a Honda, can have excess wear.

Also double check the underside for any sign of wear other then what might be considered abuse such as hard impact from rocks.

DO NOT make an offer prior to going over the machine with a fine tooth comb. Make sure everything works.

[shortfatguy]

It seems to be my experience that the blue book value on atvs and snowmobiles is always lower that what they sell for. I wish I could buy them for the bluebook price!

[VMS]

Hi Everyone,

Keep em coming... Question: If I were to do a compression check on the engine, any idea of what I should be getting for a reading?

Being that I am new to this, so far I have the following for inspection

Air box: Dirty or clean

CV boots: Cracked or clean

Undercarriage: extent of scratches, dents, etc...

Transmission: Leaks, smooth shifting

I would assume checking wheel bearings would be no different than how one can go about checking bearings on a trailer to some extent?

Thanks again

Steve

[McGurk]

You will be buying a very strong reliable machine thats for sure! The 450 foreman has some amazing low end power!! Their asking price though is pretty high although the mileage on that age of machine is really low!! be interested to know what the hours are on the machine!! I would go with a starting offer of $3000 and go from there! Good luck!

Again the foreman 450 is a great machine!!

Hey Gr8! I think your keyboard is broken! At the end of all of your sentences, the periods are replaced with exclamation points! Look into it!

Seriously, though, it will be a good machine, but still almost 10 years old. A washed machine does not mean it is a well cared for machine, though. If it had some serious plow duty, the tranny may need special attention when looking at it. Also, the winch and plow don't necessarily add value to the machine, and don't let him know that you want it even if you do. The machine is the only thing you should act like you are buying, and the accessories shouldn't raise his price too much.

As much as it seems wrong, don't act very impressed and interested in it when you go see it. If blue book is $2350 and it is something you are interested in, start at $2500 if it is clean. If he balks at it, tell him a) it's 10 years old, you don't need/want the winch and plow, c) it's more than what you wanted to spend, d) bluebook is way lower than his asking price, e) there's a few others that you have looked at and are going to look at, f) WALK AWAY. There's all kinds of them out there, and Craig slist has more and more coming up all the time with people falling on hard times.

Seems harsh; I know, but this guy is almost a grand over a decent asking price if you ask me. But there's 5 on there right now, one is an '02 for $2800 with just over 1000 miles and 214 hours on it. No plow or winch, though, but they aren't that hard to find a deal on, either.

[VMS]

That is one of the other ones I am interested in looking at. I figure that rig will be one of my negotiating items since it is a year newer, and nothing on it.

Good info and I too think the asking price is a bit on the high side... I do have to admit, though I like having the manual shift rather than the ES.. Simple to me, is a good thing...

Keep it coming everyone, Loving everything I am getting so far!!

Steve

[gr8icefishinmind]

[quote name='McGurk

Hey Gr8! I think your keyboard is broken! At the end of all of your sentences' date=' the periods are replaced with exclamation points! Look into it! [/quote']

I wanted exclamation points, otherwise i would have used a period.

[VMS]

Hi everyone,

Went and looked at it tonight. Being a 10 year old vehicle, it looks to be in good shape. It drives well, shifted well both up and down and in reverse, and all items were working. The winch end has wear (as I would expect and has been reattached to the hook) but was working fine.

Hours: 442

Mileage: 1849

Comes to around 4 mph and it has a plow. That rose my eyebrow a touch, but looking at his driveway, much of that work would have been done in Forward gear (about a 200 foot driveway or so). Father-in-law (former auto mechanic) didn't seem too worried about the tranny, stating honda's product is pretty bullet proof.

Looked at the suspension...solid. no cracked CV joints, no play that I could tell with tie rods, Ball joints looked good too. Skid plates were not dented...scratched off paint and surface rust only on the rear diff plate. Undercarriage was barely scuffed at all. CV boot protectors were attached.

Engine, Clean (as can be for age, etc) no leaks that I could see, Air box had built up dust in the bottom..nothing that I wouldn't find in my own air box from my truck.

I did not put any money down or made an offer yet...wanted to mull it over a little, get some perspective from people here....

Other than a small melted spot on a mud guard from a trouble light, it looked and ran decently. plastic had expected scratches and scuffs, but nothing severe.

Thoughts, questions to consider?

Thanks

Steve

[Dave S]

He's obviously priced high to allow some bargaining room. I agree with McGurk......the accessories shouldn't raise the price that much. The plow and winch didn't come anywhere near the price difference between his asking price and KBB to justify asking $3500.

Again McGurk nailed it here:

As much as it seems wrong, don't act very impressed and interested in it when you go see it. If blue book is $2350 and it is something you are interested in, start at $2500 if it is clean. If he balks at it, tell him a) it's 10 years old, you don't need/want the winch and plow, c) it's more than what you wanted to spend, d) bluebook is way lower than his asking price, e) there's a few others that you have looked at and are going to look at, f) WALK AWAY. There's all kinds of them out there, and Craig slist has more and more coming up all the time with people falling on hard times.

[pulleye16]

I was looking at ATV's last summer (bought the Honda Foreman) but I was finding brand new models for $4300 (Suzuki) and even last year models of Can Am for around $4500.

Hondas are great and yes you'll lose out on taxes, regristration etc...plus a plow and a whinch but that seems pretty high for a 2001. Sometimes the low milage isen't always a good thing...they need to be run. I'd ask KBB espicially in this market, maybe even lower.

[McGurk]

Well? Where are we at on this?

[VMS]

Hiya,

Made an offer today on it and it was accepted. Settled at $2800 with the plow and winch

My considerations were these: Kelley Blue book $2300 (good condition and average miles around 4500 or so) With only 1850 miles, I said $2500 for the machine only, keeping in mind it has been used for plowing which will put more stress on the transmission.

The plow is a 60 inch cycle country heavy duty plow (beefy tube support, pivot, winchable etc.) brand new would be around $400 by the time it is all done, and the winch is already on it, so I offered $2800 for the whole thing and it was accepted.

Looking at dealerships, they were wanting $3000 for vehicles of the same age and make, but with nothing on them. Tousley had one on an auction site for $2999.

I feel pretty good about it overall. The machine is in great condition (only minor scuffing on the plastics and for a 10 year old machine, I would expect some). I really like the idea of the manual shift (one less thing to go wrong). It was just solid, and I feel a honda is proven. The lack of a centrifugal clutch system was a plus as well.

Tires will probably need replacement in the next year or so (50% tread front, 70% back from a quick look) and are not checked, cracked, dry rotted, etc.

I cannot get it until next monday, so I will be putting a down payment on it to hold it, and pay the rest when I go to pick it up.

Steve

[McGurk]

Ya' done good, man. That's a fair price for that setup. Nice to see him come down $700 from his asking price. That's a full 20%! Now, get some pix up here for us to see all shiny and clean, and then all muddy and used!

[motley man]

Seen some cheaper 4X4's of sales list

[FrontenacPike]

I've been following your quest, sounds like ya done good. Looking forward to seeing pics.