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So an acquaintance of mine from another board has been looking around at getting a new steed for some time. Well last week he finally settled on a "new" '99 Monster 900 that has been sitting on the floor of our local dealer for 6 or 7 years. Just to give you some background, I use the term dealer loosely when it comes to the ducati franchise at this place. This dealership is one of these mega dealers with multiple franchises and about as much floor space as a small wal-mart. Suffice to say that their cash flow bread and butter are middle-aged guys looking for metric cruisers on 100% financing. The Ducati's sit in a small corner of this facility and out of the only 5 or 6 ducs on hand, only one is remotely new when it comes to model year. They don't move ducs, they don't care to move ducs.
With that said, this guy agrees to terms with the dealership on this bike and puts down a deposit on this '99 M900. Now keep in mind that his guy is new to ducatis so nothing is going to jump out at him when it comes to buying a 6 year old "new" bike. In to the story come a few duc owners from a duc subforum of another bike site. We all remind him that the valve belts on this bike ABSOLUTELY, WITHOUT QUESTION should be replaced on the bike before he signs any sales contract and walks out the door, at dealers costs, not buyers. Fast forward to this morning when he tells the sales guy that he'd like to have the belts replaced before the transaction is completed. Sales guy blows him off and basically gives him the impression that he buys the 6 year old "new" bike as is, or doesn't buy it at all. No negotiating on the belts.
So my question to you guys (and I hope Jason chimes in here as well) is, is it unreasonable for a prospective buyer of a 6 year old "new" ducati to request to have the belts replaced free of charge before the transaction is concluded? It seems to me that any reputable duc dealer would be happy to do this in order to both move a bike that's been sitting on the floor for 6 years, and to prevent the possibility of having to deal with a substantial repair bill should the old belts fail.
Thanks in advance for your
.
With that said, this guy agrees to terms with the dealership on this bike and puts down a deposit on this '99 M900. Now keep in mind that his guy is new to ducatis so nothing is going to jump out at him when it comes to buying a 6 year old "new" bike. In to the story come a few duc owners from a duc subforum of another bike site. We all remind him that the valve belts on this bike ABSOLUTELY, WITHOUT QUESTION should be replaced on the bike before he signs any sales contract and walks out the door, at dealers costs, not buyers. Fast forward to this morning when he tells the sales guy that he'd like to have the belts replaced before the transaction is completed. Sales guy blows him off and basically gives him the impression that he buys the 6 year old "new" bike as is, or doesn't buy it at all. No negotiating on the belts.
So my question to you guys (and I hope Jason chimes in here as well) is, is it unreasonable for a prospective buyer of a 6 year old "new" ducati to request to have the belts replaced free of charge before the transaction is concluded? It seems to me that any reputable duc dealer would be happy to do this in order to both move a bike that's been sitting on the floor for 6 years, and to prevent the possibility of having to deal with a substantial repair bill should the old belts fail.
Thanks in advance for your






