Buying A Used Bike

[qsxdr1]

Hello,

I am looking to purchase a first road bike and have found a 2013 Cannondale Synapse 7 in good condition for $600. Can anybody give me an idea of if this is a good deal, or should I look elsewhere?

 

[ABNPFDR]

Bicycle Blue Book lists the 2013 synapse 7 (sora) between 520 and 570 based on condition (original MSRP was 1050)

The price is IMHO too high. About 500 would be my max. Sora is not very desirable. You can buy a new road bike for a couple hundred more. The sora group of 2015 is better than that of 2013 too.

 

[qsxdr1]

Thanks, I just talked with the seller and was able to talk him down to $450. I'm probably going to go check it out in the next day or too. Thanks for the advice.

 

[9lines]

Make sure no mechanical part is worn out. Enquire whether the chain is fully functional. Worn out or broken gear lever can be an added cost since it must be replaced. Be informed that you might not enjoy the benefits of a warranty if the quoted time has elapsed. You should understand that its value has depreciated and you may not sell it after use. Maintaining a used bike is costly than maintaining a new bike.

 

[Bonzer]

Make sure no mechanical part is worn out. Enquire whether the chain is fully functional. Worn out or broken gear lever can be an added cost since it must be replaced. Be informed that you might not enjoy the benefits of a warranty if the quoted time has elapsed. You should understand that its value has depreciated and you may not sell it after use. Maintaining a used bike is costly than maintaining a new bike.

You hit the nail on the head. In the long run, the maintenance cost exceeds the total cost plus the greatly compromised convenience. However, the equations are always complex. Your advice is best and draws a good middle line.

 

[mpre53]

A 9 speed SRAM or KMC chain is less than $30. Replacing it is cheap insurance. As far as warranty goes, every one I know of applies only to the original purchaser and is non-transferable.

 

[Corzhens]

I once had a 10-speed bike that I bought for less than $100. After using it for 6 months, I was able to sell it for $120. Maybe that's because I had taken good care of it. But more likely it is because the fashion that time so people think that my bike was the expensive type. That's the advantage of wearing signature clothes and expensive bags... they give you the impression that all your things are expensive. Hahahaaa.

 

[Froze]

If the bike is in like new condition than $600 but in good condition makes it overpriced, see: http://www.bicyclebluebook.com/searchlistingdetail.aspx?id=3045349

You need to ask the owner how many miles he put on the bike and what kind of riding did he do, mountainous, flat, racing, leisure, etc, because under mountainous and or racing conditions an aluminum frame is only good for roughly 15,000 miles, personally I would never buy a used aluminum frame.

 

[Corzhens]

A colleague who is a veteran in bikes told me that it is always better to buy a brand new bike than a used one. There are many advantages especially if the bike is the expensive one. Even mountain bikes that are not high end, brand new is still best.