If you went to university, there’s a good chance that you might have found your education wasn’t actually that useful in the way your program intended, but not to worry, you’ve found other uses for your book smarts. Today, we see Ryan from FortNine putting his brains and his training in statistics to answer a question we’ve all wondered: What’s the best way to get a good deal on a motorcycle?

The findings

You can see the results in the video above, but the Too Long/Didn’t Watch is this: Used Harley-Davidsons hold their value really well. Bikes’ used values trail off over the first couple of decades, and then regain their value as they become desirable vintage machines—and vintage European bikes regain their value more quickly than used Japanese bikes. Used bikes have a higher resale value in urban centers, and sell for less in rural areas.

So how does this affect you? Ryan says when it’s time to sell your bike, take it to the city for max returns, then head out to the sticks to buy, and pick a brand that will retain its value over the long haul (like a Harley-Davidson).

My take

As someone who’s spent years perusing buy-and-sell papers, then Facebook Marketplace/Kijiji/Craigslist/etc., Ryan has it pretty much nailed here. I’ve seen gorgeous two-stroke sportbikes and oddities like the Armstrong MT500 and even clean UJMs selling in rural Canada for half what they’d be worth in the city. Sometimes even less. And up until fairly recently, the best way to not lose money on a motorcycle was to buy a Harley-Davidson Sportster or older Big Twin for reasonable money, because they basically didn’t depreciate after a few years went by.

I also think there’s renewed interest in this topic as many riders find their budget won’t fit a new bike in the shed anymore. The good news is, as 1990s machines start to decline in value, you may be getting the most bang-for-your-buck bikes that were ever made—motorcycles that are still highly user-serviceable, with long-term reliability sorted out and wide parts availability. This recent K-bikewe featured in the 4 Sale columnis the perfect example…