Hitchcocks Forum

My local dealer has a brand new GT Continental for sale -
However I am sure that this has been sat in the showroom to my knowledge for 2 years, probably longer. He's wanting top dollar for it.
Is there a way I can check its age. All I you get from the dealer is that 'its a brand new bike' ?

The 10th character of the VIN gives the year of manufacture with A = 2010, B = 2011, C = 2012, etc.
The GT was introduced in 2013 so the earliest ones have a D

OOPS!!
Should have pointed out that I & J are not used so the year indicator skips from H = 2017 to K = 2018

As of the 1/1/17 all motorcycles have to be Euro 4 compliant and have ABS brakes, lights on all the time, reflectors, lower emissions Ect. if its got abs brakes then its 2017 or later, if no abs then the only positive way to id is the date code on vin plate, Bear in mind a 2017 bike was built in 2016 with parts that may be up to two years old, So the old chestnut is how old is anything.

I agree with Hagis, but I would add that, unless pre-registered, pre-Euro IV bikes have to be sold by 31/12/18 ie two years after the implementation of Euro IV. (This assumes they are on the approved list - I would imagine the CGT will be). Clearly therefore there is an incentive for dealers to shift their stock before then. Flogging a Euro 3 bike at the same price as a Euro IV one is just having a laugh. There should be loads of bargains in the autumn.... AFAIK there was no development on the CGT from its inception until the Euro IV model, so the actual age isn't all that important in terms of functionality and reliability, though obviously it will affect eventual resale value. Patience is a virtue....

Hello all
This may be a silly question so please excuse me if it is but is there any downside to buying a heavily discounted CGT euro 3 rather than paying more for the euro 4 version other than the obvious euro 4 spec changes ? I am currently looking at a couple of brand new un-registered bikes at less than £4k and wondered does it affect road tax or insurance etc. ?

No it will not affect r/t and insurance, but insurance is all to do with age and the younger you are the higher the premium, Myself I prefer the pre abs CGT as its more in keeping with a classic café racer, their is nothing wrong with ABS models its just my personal choice, some will want ABS for safety reasons, if dealers are trying to shift pre ABS models then I feel that there should be room for a haggle to get the price down, anything up to £1000 should be possible as MOTOGB are keen to shift these bikes.

I would rather pay significantly less for a Euro 3 CGT, which has a rear disc brake anyway. Not so clear cut with a B5 or C5 with potentially troublesome rear drum brakes. The thing with pre Euro IV bikes is that they can be tuned more easily. Also, for the foreseeable future they are likely to only have to meet more lax standards. My guess is that eventually bikes will be emissions tested as part of the MOT and older standard bikes will probably be given more latitude. A lot of riders on this forum will have ridden for years without the apparent safety net of ABS but that’s a personal issue for the rider. Neither of my bikes has it, but I’ve owned many that do. Seldom cuts in if you ride properly.

This particular dealer is wanting over 5 grand for this bike, I am sure its a euro 3 model, as pretty sure its not got ABS, def not registered.
Is there a tell tale sign its an ABS model, it can be viewed through the window, I will take dog for a walk that way one evening.
I don't want to pay too much interest, because its only a small shop and it nigh on impossible to go in and get a VIN etc, dealer isn't the nicest man in the world and quite frankly his arse and mouth too close together, you never know which he's talking out of.
I'm not in a rush so I will see what later in the year brings, but in mean time will have a look at MotoGB

PeteDuke £5000 plus is FAR too much, there are loads on the internet with low mileages (like under 50 miles,) for far less than that.