1978 Motobecane Grand Touring



jrschultz

Member
Jan 6, 2012
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A co-worker has a nice Motobecane Grand Touring bike that he wants to sell. Everything works. All the parts are where they should be. I would need to replace the tires. It's gold in color. What would be a good starting point for a fair offer? What is max dollar value? As a side point: Would you keep the bike as is or convert it to a fixie? Either way I want a nice vintage steel bike to give myself another option to my Trek 5000 carbon fiber bike. All thoughts appreciated.
 
If I were you would go to a different website to ask the value of bikes. I have tried repeatedly asking the value for my giant boulder, and gotten no response :mad:
 
Bikeforums.net has two groups that deal exclusively with old bicycles, one that specifically addresses valuation. Check them out.

My experience is that the value of your old bike depends on local supply and demand, especially concerning low- to mid-priced bikes. A rare (like a Mario Confente) or iconic (Peugeot PX-10) bike will attract international buyers, but your co-worker's best bet it to find someone who wants to re-kindle old flames, who had one in college, or had a crush on a girl who had one in college, or market it where there's a high HQ (hipster quotient). That sort of thing.

Regarding the Giant Boulder, there were so many mountain bikes and hybrids made in the last 20 years that few of them stand out. Advancing technology has dated them, so even as daily riders they retain little charm or value. An original Tom Ritchey, or an early Stumpjumper, or a Bridgestone MB-0 might have some cachet, but a Trek Antelope will be relegated to slow rides around the neighborhood with the kids or short commuting when it's too messy to take the nice bike.
 
oldbobcat said:
Bikeforums.net has two groups that deal exclusively with old bicycles, one that specifically addresses valuation. Check them out. My experience is that the value of your old bike depends on local supply and demand, especially concerning low- to mid-priced bikes. A rare (like a Mario Confente) or iconic (Peugeot PX-10) bike will attract international buyers, but your co-worker's best bet it to find someone who wants to re-kindle old flames, who had one in college, or had a crush on a girl who had one in college, or market it where there's a high HQ (hipster quotient). That sort of thing. Regarding the Giant Boulder, there were so many mountain bikes and hybrids made in the last 20 years that few of them stand out. Advancing technology has dated them, so even as daily riders they retain little charm or value. An original Tom Ritchey, or an early Stumpjumper, or a Bridgestone MB-0  might have some cachet, but a Trek Antelope will be relegated to slow rides around the neighborhood with the kids or short commuting when it's too messy to take the nice bike.
Yup. If you want a value for your Giant Boulder, log in to eBay and do a search of completed sales of Giant Boulders so that you can see what selling prices were like. For older, classic, or quasi-classic bikes, special user groups, as mentioned by oldbobcat, are a great source. Likewise, eBay can offer some guidance, too, by offering a survey of past sales prices for the bike in question.