Triumphrat

divino

Best deal?

I'm looking at 3 speed fours. I know it has a lot to do with maintenance and rider abuse, but from the info below, can you tell me what you think the best deal is? what questions should i be asking besides clear title?, ever been dropped?, maintenance done?

-2003 Roulette green: 4,853mi, w/ Seat Cowl, inspection good through 2010, ready to ride, about 500mi away from me, so i can't look at it and would have to ship, $4,000 asking

-2003 Jet Black: 7,800mi, no cowl, maintained well says seller, 2 hours away from me, new Michilin Pilot Road 2ct tires with less then 1000 miles on them, Battery new as of 11/08, $3,750 asking

-2003 Tangerine Orange: ~5,000mi, haven't reached out to the seller, calling tonight, closest to me, asking $4,000

Honestly, I would like to pay no more than $4K including shipping... also, for the closer ones i think i can convince a buddy to help me pick up with his truck for some cash or beer... Any thoughts on them?

GTiPilot

For what it is worth, when I bought my 01 TT600, my wife (girlfriend at the time) drove me there. I test drove it, and didn't find any issues with its basic handeling, frame looked fairly straight, but I gave the concerned look in my eye to the seller and he admitted to dropping it once in garage; sure. But it looked good, and rode fine, and it was my first "sport" bike so away I went. BTW, I drove mine home with my wife following me in my GTI 350mi.

If I were buying the bike, and they all seem so very close in quality, I would go with the most honest seller unless you have a color preference. With how many times I've almost been demolished by drivers not paying attention (I use my TT as a daily driver to work 45mi each way) I'd go for tangerine orange.

As for the most honest seller, he probably deserves the money the most with this awesome economy, and from the little that I've learned on this forum, only because I have a slow learning curve, you can fix anything with the help of the people who offer their knowledge on this forum. You won't go wrong with any of the three you pick out. The Triumph fans here have been very kind to me.

I'm not sure if you asking for more general, should I really buy a speed four instead of something else or if you are really trying to decipher which speed four you should buy based on color and the miles on it. If it is a miles thing, do a search, but if I recall correctly, either Will or Bombfactory said that their TT didn't really come "alive" until after 7K miles ore so. I bought mine with 12K and I was the third owner and I have had no issues. Although I may have a self induced hicup, see my TT oil burn thread. If parts are your concern, then you might not want to think about any triumph speed four or TT as both are no longer in production; dealers charge an arm and leg, and even when you order online, most parts are special order or not a normally stocked item. Though, the "parts swap" sticky is most helpful.

Sorry I keep throwing the TT at you, but really the only difference is the Cam and lack of "race" fairings; thanks insurance companies. I'm very happy with my TT600. I'm from the midwest so, driving 500 miles to check out a bike wouldn't bother me if that's what I was really interested in. It's a good road trip. Two hours is absolutely nothing more than an inconvenience. I myself wouldn't want to deal with shipping a motorcycle. I would want to drive it before I bought it. That's me though.

Good luck, hopefully I've put the thread back at the top for somebody with some actual insite on what to look for when buying a speed four jumps in, versus my opinion that you should buy the one either because of the seller or color.

Hey, if it's a color thing, check the Minneapolis Craigslist for a yellow speed four. I don't know the seller, but if you bought that one, I could drive it to you. I'm a pilot so I could get a free ride home. Pay for gas and I'm your delivery guy.

Cheers.

__________________
Mike

01 TT600

Will

My TT600 woke up, if you can call it that, at about 9300 miles. I killed it on the track because I ran a 1500 rpm raised redline, but it took 45K miles to cause problems. I also did all kinds of frankenstein experiments with mapping. If you are kind to your bike and don't use it as a test bed to wallop a friend's R6 on the track, then it should easily last 100K miles. There's a relatively new member here who has had his Triumph for much longer, since he's doing track days with 80K miles on his TT600. I challenge you to find a Honda with those miles on the track! Every bike you are looking at is practically a newborn in the world of Triumph lifespans.

__________________
Will
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divino

great info guys... this forum is super friendly... GTIPilot, thanks for the generous offer, but you're right i should probably stay local... ALSO, i vw's... vwflipped on vortex.

skiTTles

IF they are all the same year go for the one in the best visual nick. And the closer to you the better IMO as you can just hop on over and give it a look over.

FWIW the seat cowl and pixie hat were standard fare on the SpeedFour so don't let a seller trump up the price for those bits.

hochang

I've got an Orange Speed Four. Purchased around 6800 miles and after 7200, it felt more alive. I mostly ride around in town and up in the mountains, so I never really race abused mine. You can usually tell whose bike has been abused. I would definitely look at the bike in person. Take a test ride if possible. Ask for maintenance records if they have it. I do most of the work on my bike myself, but you never know if they did the job right or not. Usually, if the have a Haynes manual or the factory workshop manual, then you can assume they weren't total idiots.

Check for leaks around the thermostat and the head gasket. I had mine slowly leak, which I've replaced since then.

I would offer you to come by and look at my bike since I am also selling it, but since I am in GA that might be too far for you.

divino

i went with the roulette green one.

The seller has been EXTREMELY helpful. Offered to basically trailer it to me, has gone above and beyond all my requests and expectations.

Original Owner, Title in Hand, All the maintenance records, original manual, both sets of keys, new battery, new tires, inspection through 2010

Best maintained of the three, lowest mileage

We are making the swap this week.


THANKS FOR ALL THE HELP... im sure ill be around for a lot more

Will

Welcome to our world! I always liked the green ones best of any color.

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Will
It's a squid thing. You wouldn't understand.
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Go soothingly on the grease mud, as there lurks the skid demon.