85 750 katana

[Guest]

if its complete and running is it worth 500 bucks?
it will need repainting but i like a challenge.

is their lots of power in these engines?

[amxsteve]

yes and yes

[Dave8338]

yes and yes

...and YES! Any and every day, all day long. Title?

[JEEPRUSTY]

does anyone have one of the 85s
this guys pics show a purple bike with a gold frame
suzukicycles.org states that the gold frame only went to 84.

anyone have a detailed set of photos?

[Mysuzyq]

At 5 bills, the gold frame (wheels too?) is a bonus, no? If it also has the pop-up headlight, probably best to stop looking a gift horse in the mouth!
Those were never sold in the U.S., and apart from the Limited Edition batch of 200 bikes sold in Canada (placing them among the rarest of Katanas on this continent) were only available in other markets, IIRC.

[JEEPRUSTY]

that explains the lack of fiche on alpha sports.

so buy it then?

gosh so hard to look at a potential money pit

i spose i could ebay it and get my money back if things go south

[JEEPRUSTY]

At 5 bills, the gold frame (wheels too?) is a bonus, no? If it also has the pop-up headlight, probably best to stop looking a gift horse in the mouth!
Those were never sold in the U.S., and apart from the Limited Edition batch of 200 bikes sold in Canada (placing them among the rarest of Katanas on this continent) were only available in other markets, IIRC.

gpld frame whhels calipers and some engine covers.
yhe purple makes me wonder
all yhe pics i see online are silver
i see that they did not have signals on stalks but rather intefrated them somehow,
they are lovely when restored fully

i remember thinking they were ugly back in the day but it turns out their design was part of the future,

[Mysuzyq]

that explains the lack of fiche on alpha sports.

so buy it then?

gosh so hard to look at a potential money pit

i spose i could ebay it and get my money back if things go south

It's certainly worth checking out, IMHO, if you're in the market for a bike. It wouldn't be hard to recover $500 (you'd likely make a nice profit) if you decide not to keep it. Money pit depends on the current condition, and your plans for the bike (restore to primo condition, or just to have a reliable & cool daily rider).
Speaking of things going south, a lot of the numbered Limited Edition bikes have found homes south of the border, where they command even higher prices than here (6 grand + for clean examples) due to the coolness & rarity. Someone here (Smokinpancake?) has one, if you want to PM him.

[JEEPRUSTY]

It's certainly worth checking out, IMHO, if you're in the market for a bike. It wouldn't be hard to recover $500 (you'd likely make a nice profit) if you decide not to keep it. Money pit depends on the current condition, and your plans for the bike (restore to primo condition, or just to have a reliable & cool daily rider).
Speaking of things going south, a lot of the numbered Limited Edition bikes have found homes south of the border, where they command even higher prices than here (6 grand + for clean examples) due to the coolness & rarity. Someone here (Smokinpancake?) has one, if you want to PM him.

thanks for your insights. im going to go see it today
hell there aint nothing broke that cant be fixed.

[Mysuzyq]

thanks for your insights. im going to go see it today
hell there aint nothing broke that cant be fixed.

Cool....see if you can wrangle a test ride & bring back some pics! WRT parts, it is a 750ES, apart from the cosmetics package. Good luck!

[spyug]

Whereabouts is this bike? I'd give $500 sight unseen....no problemo.

My 82 came pretty much in boxes with a seized engine for $500. I've put about $1k into it and I'd like to think I could get at least $2.5K for it. Its not a primo refurb but built as a clean & tidy daily ride.

They are quite sought after so I can't see how you would go too far wrong with it.

Don't forget pics when you get it!

Good luck,
Spyug

[ukilme]

Ditto to what spyug said. For 500 bucks, it would be worth it to just have the parts. IF there is a title, get yourself that project

I paid $500 for a 82 Katana frame and body with title-no motor.

[kingofvenus]

Cool....see if you can wrangle a test ride & bring back some pics! WRT parts, it is a 750ES, apart from the cosmetics package. Good luck!

The engine, ignition and carbs are about the only parts they have in common.

[Mysuzyq]

The engine, ignition and carbs are about the only parts they have in common.

By cosmetics package, I meant the body-work, making it a Katana and differentiating it from the ES. Are there more differences, in terms of the frame & running gear (wheels, suspension) etc? They appear identical, at first glance.

[JEEPRUSTY]

OK so I went and saw and the description was not acurate.

In fact the guy thought he had a complete 85 but the vin breaks down to an 84. No big thing but NO TITLE!

last registered in 2006 so why no title?
however he had a god awful hacked Vance and Hines 4 into 1 on the whole bike. but the nice black chrome exhaust was in the shed.
plus the makings of two more bikes one a total basket case the other a rolling chassis with the motor removed.

guy let it slip that when it ran the um whole bike popped outta 2nd so worn shift dogs plus all other symptoms of abuse meaning total rebuild would be needed.

gonna check the vin and plate to see about the title but it looks like a sad waste of time.


that is unless all the parts are worth the initial cost plus time and effort.