02-12-12, 12:50 AM
The vast majority of bike owners don't do large mileages, they use only use them on sunny Sundays and spend more time polishing them and tarting them up than riding.
Those of us who regard the bike as their main transport and keep them for years know the things are at least as reliable as a car. Nonetheless, resale value suffers because there is always a greater supply of low mileage examples available... so nobody is going to choose to buy one with a hundred k on the clock unless it's very much cheaper.
The upside is, if you're the sort who's found a bike that suits you and don't feel the need for a change every couple of years you can keep riding it and depreciation becomes insignificant.
Those of us who regard the bike as their main transport and keep them for years know the things are at least as reliable as a car. Nonetheless, resale value suffers because there is always a greater supply of low mileage examples available... so nobody is going to choose to buy one with a hundred k on the clock unless it's very much cheaper.
The upside is, if you're the sort who's found a bike that suits you and don't feel the need for a change every couple of years you can keep riding it and depreciation becomes insignificant.