Want to see how expensive a “minor” motorcycle crash can be?
A friend recently had knee surgery and his 4 hour OR and hospital stay clocked in around $4000. This crash took 5 seconds and cost more than that.
Related Posts
- An Open Letter
Update: Next of kin for John Lyman Howell of Reno, NV have been found and ... - Separate Accidents, Similar Circumstances
It seems every day brings another report of a motorcycle-related accident in my area. Readers ... - Total Loss
“Your claim is now being handled by the total loss department,” said the folks from ... - Motoblog Spotlight: Better Motorcycling
I was hoping to have a write-up on my new Slime Power Sports Tire Inflator ... - I Am One Lucky Dumbass!
Well, looks like I’m going to be saying yes to any sponsorship offers that come ...
Popular Posts
The Latest From Twitter...
{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }
Stacy, FWIW… you can repair/rebuild your bike for well less than half of that if you do all the work yourself (cause you know you can, think of all the blog material!) and you get parts from ebay and the Wera boards (forums.13x.com). Tons of people race SVs and there’s a HUGE 2ndhand parts source out there. The only major parts you’d have to hunt for are the tank and rad. My OEM tank lists for over $1k, I got a near mint used for $200 on Wera. I also got a mint rad for $80, a new one is a few hundo…
My winter time TLC on my bike would’ve been $1000s, but I spent just a few hundred following the same advice. Rest up, and feel better, spring ain’t here yet
I second soth’s advice. Get the parts and do the repairs yourself!
Yeah, good times. My recent moment was the cost of a new bike $8000, the cost of new gear ($2000), replacement farkles, and .. oh yeah, $80,000 for the helicopter and $60,000 for the hospital.
At least you REMEMBER your accident.
If you keep the bike, you’ll lose any resale value. With the crashing moto market, it means it probably won’t sell at any price. YMMV.
I’m going to try and buy the bike back and fix it myself. Pretty sure I can get it back to ride-able shape for less than $1000. The rest is just cosmetic stuff that I can fix as time and funds allow.
@tedder: At least you weren’t at fault, right? I’m mostly mad at myself for being stupid.
It sounds like a good plan to do the work yourself with used parts – getting a used exhaust at least should save you a ton. Otherwise it’d probably be cheaper to just get a used SV and keep the old one for parts (something kinda sad about that option though).
@bolty oh, I was DEFINITELY at fault. Nobody else was involved. And I don’t even have insurance that covers it. Yeah, like I needed $100k hanging over my head while in school, making $2k per year
How does the cost work out with insurance? If they will cover the most of the cost, that may be the quickest way to get running again.
Wow, that’s a whopper of a bill. If the bank still owns the bike, I guess that they have to make it “new” again.
My personal (now hazy) recollection of the process of totaling was that if the cost to fix was something like 85% of the value of the bike – it was a total loss.
If you do choose to buy the bike back with a salvage title and do your own repairs – make sure that you keep every receipt etc. There may be some stipulations of registering a salvage title bike. Just make sure that you check with your DMV to see if you need to do anything special there.
Good luck with whichever route you take. I know you’ll carefully weigh the pros and cons of each side.
How is your body feeling at this point? Have you gotten over the soreness?
Stacy, I would think you could do most of that work yourself. And, I thought your tank was okay. Not?
This bill is a big “ouch”, especially the labor part. I think I’m in the wrong business!
@James: Nah, I’m going hang on to this SV because I’m 100% sure the engine, frame, and all the other important parts are sound. Aside from the radiator and controls, the damage is cosmetic.
@tedder:
@Mike: Not sure yet. I’m waiting to hear back from the insurance rep.
@Fuzzygalore: Sound advice, thanks! The “cut-off” point is actually closer to 70% nowadays. I’m feeling much better; was sore for a couple of days but by Sunday was feeling good. Scab is healing and I have quite a bruise on my shin though!
@Liz Petersen: The gas tank has a dent, which I missed the first time around.
As you may have noticed, I get pretty attached to my bikes. I suspect you may feel the same about the SV. If getting the bike fully functional while waiting a bit for the cosmetic aspect to be taken care of works for you, it will probably be the best way to go. You and the bike will have a “history”. I swear your future riding will have a deeper magic to it after sharing the experience.
Glad your physical body is healing. You may have a sort of timid spell when you start riding again. It’s ok. A lot of riders experience the same thing. Don’t fight it. Give it time to pass. It will go away soon enough when you eventually realize you’re not going to run into every car you see!
Just happy you are OK and recovering. Wow. I agree, try to do it yourself. More than $1000 for the muffler??? I priced my VX800’s at nearly $800 and they don’t make them any more!
If you are feeling up for a project, watch for a donor bike. I nearly bought a used SV last year for $1200 with all the parts you need. (The squid who rode this one somehow bent the rear wheel out of round and caught the seat on fire!)
Best of luck to you! And, a little wrenching advice… wire wheels have a habit of removing epidermis faster than muck on a piece of steel when not paying attention.
Glad to hear that you’re feeling better.
I’m not surprised at the repair estimate being high since they are quoting based on it being covered by insurance. In this situation they normally will quote for every possible part and repair at full price. I would be surprised if the insurance company pays to repair instead of just writing it off. Not knowing the details of your insurance coverage, or the amount you still owe on the bike, I couldn’t say what your best course of action would be. In the likely event that the insurance company writes it off, I guess you would probably take the insurance money, pay off the balance owing on the bike, then if there’s anything left, put it towards buying a new bike. Even though the SV650 has been discontinued, you might be able to find some dealers that still have new 2008 models.
If you can get the bike as salvage for next to nothing, it might be worth fixing up as a project over time, in addition to buying a new bike. On the bright side, at least if you do that, you’ll have lots of material for new articles.
I hope it works out well for you and you can get back riding very soon.
hey Bolty, do you have someone experienced with moto repair/wrenching that can look at the bike and assess the ‘practical’ damage?
@tedder: Are you offering?
@bolty: yes, I am.
i wrecked my sv a week ago the estimate i got was like 2400 but ill fix it for less than $600 the worst part was i just read this article like a day before i think i got jinxed
@tedder: I’ll let you know.
@kyle: NOOOOOO!!!!! Not another SV down! Hopefully you’re ok and you’ll have a good outcome on your bike.
“Practical bike repair for the practical rider”. Sounds like a book title… *hint*