Possible Steal

[Levey]

I have a buddy whos dad bought a 2006 GSXR 600 at auction that needs fairings. The title is clear and bike runs and drives. The tank is good, forks are good, headlight is good and only needs plastics. I could get it for $1700. Right off the bat I think this is an awesome opportunity. My question is: how well can I trust the $500 complete fairing kits you can buy online? How quickly should I jump to get this bike?

[.RJ]

How bad has it been crashed?

[Levey]

I'm not sure this was disclosed at auction, I'm told it just looks like it was lowsided.

[SlimKlim]

Screw the $500 fairing kit, buy a headlight and turn it into a fighter.

[Levey]

That is an option indeed, although not quite my style. I would just get it back to factory for resale value

[Levey]

This is an initial poor quality photo of the bike that was sent to me. Hopefully I will be getting more detailed photos/going to check it out soon.

[G.Irish]

If you're looking at resale value then get factory fairings. While some of the aftermarket fairing kits look good, any time you see aftermarket fairings on a bike it usually means the bike was in a crash of sufficient severity to require new fairings. Some buyers may not pick up on it but I imagine many would.

On the other hand, if you just put some aftermarket fairings on there for $500 you could easily get $3500 for the bike, assuming nothing else is wrong. Maybe more. How many miles are on the bike?

[Levey]

That makes sense. Can you get the "factory fairings" new online? I'll keep a watchful eye on ebay and forums

[.RJ]

You'll really need to go over the bike closely to make sure there's not a bunch of hidden damage. A low speed lowside could be no problem, just footpegs/handlebars/levers or it could really tear things up (forks, radiator, wiring, etc).

[Levey]

Hopefully I'll have more details and photos today. I dropped by Valley Suzuki and they showed me their catalog from Lockhart Phillips. The parts guy said ordering from Suzuki wouldn't really be a good idea since they would be ridiculously expensive. He said if I ordered a kit from Lockhart and it didn't fit perfect, returning it would be easy. I have a few days to figure it out before I even go down to look at the bike.

[.RJ]

Aftermarket fairings and parts screams "i've been crashed". Better to buy OE parts off ebay.

[G.Irish]

Yeah if you look on ebay you should be able to buy the fairings piece by piece for way cheaper than if you buy OEM new. That may take you a few weeks or so to get a full set together but you'll be able to get more money in that case. If you wanna do a quick turnaround, throw some aftermarket fairings on there and you'll at least get $3000 if not $3500. But that all depends on whether there's other mechanical damage.

[Levey]

I'll definitely leave the "Hell Yea" on the frame, maybe even at some vtec stickers

[CaptainHenreh]

This is an initial poor quality photo of the bike that was sent to me. Hopefully I will be getting more detailed photos/going to check it out soon.

[Levey]

Well I got some more details, but still waiting on pictures. The bike has 10,000 miles. Clean title. Most of the plastics will need to be replaced. The forks are straight. The headlight, and the brackets for the headlight and nose fairing are good. The gas tank may need a little work. The tires are good. Chain and sprockets are good. All electronics are good. The bike runs fine, and drives. If this thing rides straight and has no fluids leaking, I see no reason not to go get it Sunday.

[Sully]

Those fairing kits fit like ass, but what I would do is check out SharkSkins race bodywork, They, make street body work for that bike also that looks damn good imo. I'm sure you'll have to fine tune it to make it fit like factory but it takes the GSX-Rs 8 piece or whatever it is side and front fairing and turns it into two pieces(upper and lower), like race bodywork yet with a headlight cutout. You should be able to combine the race lower with the Street upper for a custom look but kickstand and exhaust would have to be trimmed out.

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.sharkskinz.com/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=103&cat=2006%2D2007">http://www.sharkskinz.com/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=103&cat=2006%2D2007</a><!-- m -->

[Levey]

Yea I hear good things about them. What it really comes down to is I can't afford to buy fairings and get them painted. "You get what you pay for" fits like a glove with this situation. That being said, if I buy a $600 kit from Auctmart on Ebay, I'm gambling hoping to save a buck. If I win, I get a fairing kit that looks mediocre for half the price of a factory kit or less.. If I lose, I get a pile of plastic that doesn't fit and melts when the bike gets to running temp the first time. I could stay on Ebay 24/7 and gradually piece together an OEM kit. I don't know if I'm that patient. I don't think I'm going to order the Chinese Ebay fairings as soon as I get the bike home, I'm still tearing apart the internet trying to find used OEM parts in good shape.

[Kaan]

As someone with both shark skins and Chinese plastics... Well I've had them on other bikes...

If you know how to fit plastics the Chinese aren't so bad. Plus they look stock.

If you want easy oil change plastics... Go with shark skins... But you'll pay.

Shark skins will hold up better to drops too. Just realize you will need a spray gun and time to make them look good

[Sully]

As someone with both shark skins and Chinese plastics... Well I've had them on other bikes...

If you know how to fit plastics the Chinese aren't so bad. Plus they look stock.

If you want easy oil change plastics... Go with shark skins... But you'll pay.

Shark skins will hold up better to drops too. Just realize you will need a spray gun and time to make them look good

True, I guess the one time I saw ebay fairings in person on the GSX-R, well lets just say I wouldn't trust the owner of that bike to open my gas tank let alone fit plastics...I did forget that sharkskinz would have to be painted but I have seen spray can jobs look alright. If you are just selling it, then might as well go the cheapest route possible

[Levey]

Ok, here are some more pics. The right side of the tank thats all screwed up is just a fairing. It looks like a new windscreen, a handful of fairings, covering up that stupid stenciled frame wording, and a few other parts.