Squeaky Clean Aussie RG: 1985 Suzuki RG500 Gamma
Do you need any other motivation to book a flight to Perth Australia? Remember it is Summer there.
Heck, the seller already has it trailered ready for a trip to the airport or dock. Maybe one of our readers can pull of this fantasy and I can live vicariously through you.
Still not buying into my idea? Here is some more motivation.
It has some KM’s (25,000) but damn, it sure is clean. I’m always impressed when I see a clean stroker since they tend to collect filth.
The seller says she is 100% original and has a fresh top end. He adds, she looks and runs like new. The square four sounded healthy in the video. The black/red/white is one of the rarer color schemes.
Hmmmm, the current high bid is 15,000 AUD and the reserve has yet to be met. I honestly don’t think it would fetch that kind of price here in the States. We’ve had a few listed in this price range lately and I don’t believe they sold at that price. On the other hand, the price on an all original Gamma is not going to go down as the years go by.
A boring but impressive shot. That is either brand new switch gear or this thing hasn’t seen much sun light. Here is the auction.
Ian
I think it will fetch at least $30,000 AUD and will stay in Australia.
[…] […]
l think lt will reach about $28000 here in OZ,
And will stay here,
Clean RG’s are that rare there that they would basically fetch double what they do in the States?
I dont think its the case of only being “rare” – it is the case of being legal.
Period.
Like full auto firearms in the US. The pool of legal transferable auto weapons is finite and possibly shrinking over time, so prices can only go up.
Titling a non-compliant vehicle in Australia is a rich mans game, so $30,000AUSD for a legal bike is dirt cheap comparted to trying to get something compliant.
Witness the prices folks will pay to get new Corvettes converted to right had drive – this keeps the price of already titled Vettes in Australia very healthy, healthy for sellers that is 🙂
What the heck is going on down there with all these laws? I had the impression Australia was where you went to escape rules and laws.
Good stuff RC45, thanks for the info.
Our American cousins seem to be a bit misinformed here.The bike is/was not rare here in Australia.In fact it was officially imported by the boat load but wasn’t a big seller in the mid-eighties.Most guys were buying the 4-strokes,especially the new gsx-r750.All the high performance two-strokes that the U.S didn’t get,and now drool over,were officially imported here.In fact we were still selling road registerable Suzuki rgv250 and Aprillia rs250’s up until the early 2,000’s,and there was a national road race championship for this class for about 14 years.I remember seeing rows of RG500’s lined up at the dealers for $4,990.They couldn’t sell ’em.So if there are not that many around,it’s because of natural atttrition as they weren’t considered “collectable” back then,just a novelty.Bike values are generally a fair bit higher here than elsewhere on the planet.Take a look at sites like “bikesales dot com dot au” for a comparisson with your local market.The healthy state of our economy may also have something to do with it.On a recent trip to the U.S.,people I spoke to found it almost unbelievable that I knew of no one who had lost their job or had defaulted on any finance.Also,the laws changed a few years ago on registering imported motorcycles from overseas.After december 31st 1988,the bike must have an Australian compliance plate to be registered.There are certain exceptions,but generally this is the rule.It was legislated to protect official car importers from lost sales and to ensure vehicles were meeting local design rules,but unfotunately,they also included motorcyles.
I should have checked “bikesales.com.au” befofe I posted.It looks like the same bike is there for $25,000.
What are the rules for importing substantially similar to originally compliant bikes then? I had a relative in Aus that seems to be under the impression that if it was not one of the original imports its just as difficult as trying to get a new grey market bike imported?
In the USA there is a rolling 25 year EPA other Federal restriction expemption for vehicles. So anything older than 25 years is now fair import game. Are there similar rolling windows of exemption in Australia?
Not quite sure if I agree with Lord Byron in that the RG500 “is/was” rare in Australia. Most certainly 26 years ago they weren`t as I remember them being slaughtered in the sales dept by the 1st gen GSXR 750. But as for “ïs” rare now I am not so sure as you only need to look at what they are currently fetching and the amount for sale. Most certainly they were not considered collectable back then but nor were many other now collectable gems of yesteryear. natural attritian most certainly had something to do with the diminishing numbers as they were impossible to ride anywhere near 100% on the roads – well legally anyways. So many were scrapped for their powerplant which was well ahead of its time for the national speedway formula 500 class. I am not sure of the numbers in Australia but with only ~10,000 w/wide they are sure to be in increasing demand in years to come.
I agree,Bushy.Probably hard to come by now,but they weren’t in their day,and for quite a few years after that.Truth be known,I bought one new from Action Suzuki in Parramatta.Action Suzuki ran a couple in the Castrol 6-hour at Oran Park.They were painted in the official Suzuki colours of Mamola’s G.P bike.They got smoked[ironic]by the four strokes.I bought the spare that was never used.I also had a RZ500 new from Highside motorcycles in Liverpool[$3,600 new!!!]and a new NS400 from Fraser’s at Homebush.There is a lot of hype on the internet about these bikes,but honestly,by todays standards you would be disappointed.Never meet[ride] your heroes.
I totally agree. If you punted these against most of the new breed 600`s it would be a one horse race but thats not really whats its all about. If we compared new with old in outright performance and handling/braking etc and based our values on performance criteria then we would have no collectables. Take a `55 Merc Gullwing, DB4 Aston, Porsche 356sc etc. They don`t perform by todays standards but boy you feel special driving them. (Ivè owned a DB4 for 20yrs) Same with the experience of riding what is now an iconic Japanese sports collectables.
Maybe I should place a bid…Now where did I put those Rose Coloured Glasses……
Had me pegged from the start. Yes I do admit to having a passion and own a couple of these lovely bikes. Although not mine I do wish the seller well.
I bought the 86 Gamma of the same color scheme recently on e-bay in the U.S. The bidding went to just under $12k in the first 3 days with the reserve not met & the seller ended the auction. BIN was $15,500. I had been speaking with him & was able to work out a deal. The bike spent considerable time at Lance Gamma & has some real nice updates including modern 17″ wheels, wider tires, modern front brake caliper & floating rotor, fork brace, fox rear shock, adjustable ride height, tri pod air box mod, crawford pipes & more. Frankly I’m suprised at how civil & streetable the powerband is under 7k RPM. The bike is light & handles & stops well. Over 7k rpm it’s a pretty fast motorcycle, regardless of it’s age. Bike has 15k kilometers & professional re-paint with clear coat over decals, very nice indeed.
“Memories….Sweetened through the ages just like wine…”.
I think if someone in Australia wanted one of these things,they would be far better off buying from the States.They will get the same quality bike for around ten grand less than what they will pay in Australia.About a grand to ship it,underquote the value[the actual TRUE VALUE] at around $3,000 for import GST,pay the dock fees of a couple of hundred bucks,and it can be registered in any state as it’s pre-12/88.On top of that,the Ausralian dollar is worth more than the U.S. dollar so you save again.
Nice. I’ve seen a blue and white one at the dealer in Carson City NV (USA)
Suzuki RG500 Gamma is a one of the great bikes ever built, I love it.
just wanted to say, “congrats” to speed for picking up that other gamma. nice one, man.
i’m one of the idiots who think of the gamma as the gnarliest motorcycle ever made, and i will not pass away before i own one.
Byron, I dont think you will buy one for 10k less in the US as opposed to buying one in Australia. If you collect these things the ALL IMPORTANT thing is to have an Australian compliance plate if you reside in Australia. Grey market anything has always been the cheaper, poor cousin. Try understating the value to 3k importing as you suggest and you WILL get caught and fined regardless if you have a bill of sale or not. They have their own values and have a set value on certain bikes and vehicles regardless of your declared purchase prices for imported cars and bikes Just like the Austalian authorities do. You can buy one probably 3 or 4 k cheaper but after import and transport costs you may have a lightly cheaper bike but at the end of the day you still have a grey market bike and that will ALLWAYS detract from the value or asking price.