Any thoughts on what might be wrong with this bike...?

Looking for thoughts and comments from fellow ST Owners.
Just saw this on local Craigslist... 2000 ST1100 with only 5900 miles... ad text as follows:

[FONT=&quot]"Rattle on deceleration. The bike is in perfect condition except for the noise. The mileage is correct. You fix and have a new bike for cheap. These bikes go 1-2 hundred thousand miles no problem. I bought this bike without starting it and not sure what the noise is. The bike starts easy and is super fast with tons of power. It has a salvage title but there are no holds on it and has current reg."

Ad:

[/FONT]https://sfbay.craigslist.org/scz/mcy/6029022853.html

Thoughts?

Jim

That's one clean ST1100! Not sure what the guy means by rattling but he might be talking about exhaust popping during decel. That's pretty normal... I think I've had that on all my carbureted bikes. If the bike runs like he says, it's a great deal for $1500.

I had an annoying rattle, very annoying actually.
It was the exhaust shield. The shield had cracked around the bolt.
I use the same bolt and a washer to 'fix' it.
135,000 miles on the bike now without a re-occurrence.

One of you left coast guys needs to jump on that right NOW!!!
Worth that in parts.

Think I'll go take a look at it today.
Jim

Also note: Salvage Title and it looks completely repainted.
I would be very curios to know how it got banged.

I'm thinking 105900 miles maybe?

Slydynbye said:

Also note: Salvage Title and it looks completely repainted.
I would be very curios to know how it got banged.

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Yeah, caught that. And "when" it got banged. With only 5000 miles in 17 years, I'd like to know when it happened too. My have been sitting a long time.

Salvage title usually means the odometer mileage means nothing. Could be a 200,000 mile bike with a replaced odometer. Just an observation. For the price, might be worth looking at but know that you'll never sell it for much more because of the title. I'd give it a very thorough inspection before taking it out. Never know how well it was reassembled.

As to the rattle, could be just a loose cover like some have suggested, could be a bad description of poorly synched carbs making the engine run unbalanced, or even something within the gear box. If he'd let you, pull the plugs to get an idea of the condition of the combustion chamber, maybe even take a compression tester with you...

Corroded baffles in the exhaust rattling away?
Remember if it's too good to be true, then.......
Upt'North.

JMartin said:

Yeah, caught that. And "when" it got banged. With only 5000 miles in 17 years, I'd like to know when it happened too. My have been sitting a long time.

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So,....what happened? Did you go see it, and buy it?

Slydynbye said:

So,....what happened? Did you go see it, and buy it?

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No, I spoke briefly with the seller by email/text, but decided I already have an ST that I need to sell off first. I haven't checked to see if it's still listed.

Hang on... I'll check...

Nope, it was never relisted... and now says deleted by author, so must have sold.

Jim

One thing I can say for sure is the rattle isn't from a really badly stretched timing chain ...........

It's back. Someone in Santa Clara is trying to sell it now.
Price has doubled. Likely a flipper. Seems to have a much tamer description of the problem too.
Sounds like he put some time into diagnosis and has decided to pass it on.

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/mcy/6057398057.html

I don't know a great deal about ST1100s but that looks like an aftermarket muffler on the LH side, doesn't it?

The left muffler seems to match the right muffler and looks like the stock pics I found online.

MaxPete said:

I don't know a great deal about ST1100s but that looks like an aftermarket muffler on the LH side, doesn't it?

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Stock - both sides.

Flags are raised here....the part where he purchased it without starting it....but it runs great with lots of power....now has engine noise...etc.
The fact that the guy will only communicate via text screams either young person, or he wants to remain concealed (tweaker) The pink may be in his hand, but is it registered in his name, or did someone just sign it over to him?
What about non-registration costs and DMV costs to register it? I have, as well as a friend of mine, tried to contact him, but he refused to talk on the phone or meet in person.
My friend asked if he would bring the bike to a public parking lot (Police Station) so he could inspect it and was hung up on

Note: This information was regarding the original posting on craigslist, the person we tried to contact said he was trying to sell it for a friend. Now it comes up for sale in Santa Clara? Not sure if this is the same guy or not, and don't want to speak badly about another member, no more comments will be made from me, sorry for any confusion.
I should have kept my mouth shut

Igofar said:

Flags are raised here....the part where he purchased it without starting it....but it runs great with lots of power....now has engine noise...etc.
The fact that the guy will only communicate via text screams either young person, or he wants to remain concealed (tweaker) The pink may be in his hand, but is it registered in his name, or did someone just sign it over to him?
What about non-registration costs and DMV costs to register it? I have, as well as a friend of mine, tried to contact him, but he refused to talk on the phone or meet in person.
My friend asked if he would bring the bike to a public parking lot (Police Station) so he could inspect it and was hung up on

Click to expand...

I assume you are referring to the current ad? When I spoke with the original person selling it in Santa Cruz, and suggested I come by and see the bike, he was quite accommodating. I believe this is a new seller, and as you say, he likely has the signature of the previous owner on the pink. There is no way he could have bought it from the first listing and already gotten a new pink from DMV. I buy and sell often, and I know it takes weeks to get new titles.

I passed on this the first time, and I'll pass on it again, but as was mentioned earlier... at $1500 it was worth that in parts.
At $3000, I'll gladly sell you mine instead (2003 ST1100P, 30K miles, runs perfect).

Jim

[And, oh yeah, those are stock pipes]

That would make sense. Someone may have purchased it to make a quick buck, then decided to bail.
The DMV issues would still be a concern.