Buying and selling in USA

I have this idea that I could buy a bike in the US, tour around for a month or so and sell the bike before leaving for home.
Assuming that it could be arranged what else would I need and how would I go about it.
I'm thinking insurance and other legal requirements.
I would be considering a smallish bike like a Suzuki GS500, SV650 or Honda 500 twin. Something big enough to strap some luggage to it and go.

 

If you buy it at a good price it sounds like a good idea, not sure aboot insurance or licensing issues but your just on vacation so bending some laws here can't be too big of a concern. If you need some help or pass through or near Sacramento on your trip let me know.

 

We passed by Sacramento on our way to Lake Tahoe three years ago. We drove over the Sierras from Death Valley on down through Kings Canyon , Yosemite etc and hit the coast at Morrow Bay. It was so cold that after staying in Monterey and visiting Hearst Castle we hotfooted it back to the warm and Lake Tahoe.
Ever since I felt I would have liked to have made that trip over the mountains on a bike down through the NP's to the coast. You are so lucky to have all that on your doorstep.
If I go back it will have to be somewhere different at my time of life I can't waste time by going to the same place twice, unless I'm going there to apologise for something I did.

 

Head South or East Mate
Baja, Moab, Zion, Yellow Stone.....

 

Each state has it's own insurance laws. Washington state does not require insurance for motorcycles. Since you have come here before your drivers license (driving) license is a valid document. Best probably to carry a disclaimer attesting to that with you in small burgs.

Most metro areas have DMV offices (Dept. of Motor Vehicles) where one can register a vehicle. This can be a lengthy process taking more time than you might spend here. I am guessing that someone here can better address the specifics in a more definitive manner. The act of buying and selling here depends on what is being bought or sold. ie money talks..

Some of the suggestions on where to go and what to see are great but Yellowstone Park in the Winter may be a bit chilly even for the best of the English and there you might encounter a real son of wolf..

 

Scrubalong - Not done Baja but been to the rest of your suggestions. I was going to say that I loved the Moab area but then thought about the others and they are all so lovely and brilliant places to be in. I think the only place my wife Kathy and I didn't like, in fact hated was Las Vegas.

Badbilly - Thanks for the info. Are you saying that insurance cover in one state may be invalid in another? I know that different states require different minimum amounts of liability cover. Over here in the UK we also have to pay for a road fund licence to allow us to use the roads,. Is there anything like that over there?

 

The insurance is good so far as I know in all states. Washington State has no insurance requirement for bikes. Each state has under law what are called "States Rights". Way too complex a subject IMO, to hash out here. The minimums are generally in the range of Public Liability and Public Damage aka PL&PD. Each state has its own insurance laws and commissions. Another complex issue.. Our insurance pro here is "Snake Pliskin" who may be able to sort out the fine points for you.. Each state is a bit different yet all are within the United States.

One more complexity are taxes here. I think it's whoever has the best tax lawyer pays the fewest taxes on anything. We are told that the roadways in general are funded by the myriad taxes on fuel. BTW, this only extends to road travelling vehicles, boats are exempt for some of the taxes. Many tax dollars go into a "general fund". These funds are for the use of politicians to buy barrels of pork to feed the folks that they hope will re elect them..

Bottom line is that you have been here and managed to escape unharmed and untaxed and will do so again.. unless you freeze your ass off in Yellowstone..

The Baja is a different world. Mexico is not one of those places that the law is Roman or English common law. There you are guilty until proven innocent and Mexican jails are not real pleasant places. Given a few more years everyone in Mexico will have moved to California, Arizona and Texas anyway..Se habla espanol.


Cheers..

 

A bit more on your next visit.. Insurance can come in the form of a "rider". or temporary policy. Your best bet here might be to speak with an insurance broker. I have one in mind that I use who is in Texas and I live in both Washington State and Oregon State.. Ball Insurance in Spring Texas. Rates can vary for many reason IOW, the insurer sets the rates according to gathered data. Driving records, prior citations, accidents, age , gender, type of bike ect ect ect. If it fly's with the state commissions, they can do business in a given state. If not, then not. Some states including Oregon have within the state insurance commission a consumer rights division. A very good thing..

Fillling out one of the computer forms that promise saving X number of bucks, is a crock of shit. The info goes into a general database and your Email and snail mail boxes will be full of more ads than you even want to think about. All this is newer version of a door to door sales dude jamming his brogan between a front door and the door jamb all the while explaining how he is going to save you money if you pop for some money.

 

Thanks again for the info.
At this time it is just a wild idea.
This all comes from an article that I read of a bloke who bought a XS 250cc Yamaha twin for about $100 and 3000 miles later had been on a great trip with no mechanicals at all.
Oh to be so lucky.

 

LOL.. My first real motorcycle was ten bucks in a box. A 175cc Francis Barnett with a three speed box and powered by the now legendary Villiers pump engine from your side of the pond. With a bunch of help I turned it into a scrambler. 3000 miles.. I don't think it lasted that long..

So do you know Ringo or Ginger or Charley ? I saw Buddy Rich a few times..OMG!

 

Maybe one of the dealers could rent you a bike for a month? Title tag and all that jazz in NC is a lengthy process that could complicate and take time on both ends.

 

$100 trouble free bike is a bit of a stretch in most cases but if you take the leap I would gladly go over anything you bought with a fine tooth comb and prep it for your journey . Would want to tag along for a bit though.

 

That's an offer that can hardly be refused.
This idea has been revived because my wife is reluctant to be away for a long time due to her eldest son's recovery from illness.
I had suggested to her that our next visit to the US, if the dates were near enough, was take in the Austin MotoGP and the SxSW music festival. She has now said that if Carl is given the all clear then we will go. So we now have to wait so my bike trip will have to be put on the back burner. Unless of course I make a second visit just on a bike.

 

Our visit to the Texas MotoGP might be back on as Carl has been told his scan report is about as good as he can get.
We would now like the MotoGP and the South by Southwest music festival to be well within a month of each other.
So the bike ride might have to be put on the back burner unless I can wangle two visits in one year.