Expert reveals 6 motorcycle brands that are garage goldmines – including bizarre bike worth 10x its original price
A MOTORCYCLE expert has revealed six bike brands that are garage goldmines, including one model worth 10 times its original price.
You could be sitting on a classic bike worth thousands - as long as it meets one critical standard.
Ryan Kluftinger, presenter and motorcycle reviewer for FortNine, sat down exclusively with SunMotors to chat all things bike.
Our conversation took a fascinating, and potentially lucrative, turn when we arrived at the topic of the hidden gems that could be sitting on your driveway but be worth a small fortune.
Everyone knows that rare, whacky and luxury motors can fetch a pretty penny, but Ryan revealed that a number of mass-produced models from major manufacturers have seen their values skyrocket.
He explained: "A lot of unmolested Japanese bikes from the '70s and '80s are quite valuable now.
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"The reason being that they're very reliable and they made millions of these bikes so they're still kicking around.
"But very many of them got caught up in the cafe racer craze.
"Everyone bought an old [Honda] CB404 or CB550 or CB750 and ripped it all apart, tore out the wiring and tried to make it into a cafe racer, usually with very limited success.
"Anytime you think you know something better than a Japanese engineer, you're probably wrong."
He identified bikes from the major Japanese brands of Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki and Kawasaki as the best value options.
Many of these only cost a few thousand when they came out but could now sell at classic sales for upwards of £20,000.
Likewise, American models from the same era made by Harley Davidson and Indian have seem some similar appreciation.
The only thing is they have to be at least mostly unmodified and kept in good condition at factory spec.
It likely won't be a problem if you have replaced the headlamp or restored the chain but any heavy-duty mechanical or electrical work might bite into those profit margins - especially if they have altered its performance.
However, Ryan identified one model in particular that has seen a particular jump in its value in recent years - the Honda Motocompo.
He went on: "Some of those really small Hondas are worth tonnes of money.
"I think it's because the people who have really fond childhood memories of learning to ride on those are now 60 or 70 years old and have financial freedom.
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"The Honda Motocompo was a trunk bike that was folded up and sold in the back of the Honda City hatchback in the early '80s.
"Those go for like £5,000 now even though they were only worth about £400 when they were new."
