8th Jan 2007, 22:49

I'm looking at a 1982 Yamaha XJ650 Seca. It's in mint condition with less than 3000 miles on the odometer. The owner is an elderly gentleman who bought it new. His asking price is $3000 Cad (about $2500 US). Any comments on the price? The bike has been stored for 5 years in a warm, dry garage.

9th Jan 2007, 08:55

The bike is worth what you are willing to pay for a nice vintage bike. If it is in fact "mint" you will get years & years of enjoyment for a relatively modest price of admission.

If you end up needing to put a lot of work into it, these old bikes always end up costing more than we first thought, but the 650 Maxim is a well-built reliable motorcycle.

Mine has been (and still is) terrific!

9th Jan 2007, 15:39

My friend found a 1983 XJ750 SECA for sale in the paper and, like your experience, was being sold by an older gentleman in Calgary last spring. It too was stored in a warm dry garage for 8 years and had 20,000 km. He had the original bill of sale for $3800.00, and he was the original owner. The old gentleman only wanted $400 dollars for it because it had sat so long and he didn't know what kind of shape it was in (dry seals etc.). My friend asked me if he should buy it, I told him if he didn't I would.

The bike was in mint condition with one scratch on the front fender. We took the bike to my garage and discovered that the man stored it perfectly. He emptied the tank and float bowls and put some oil in the cylinders. With a new battery it fired right up and he's been riding it hard since. I know this was an exceptional deal, but $3000.00 CAD sounds like a very top dollar. I'd try him between $2000.00 - $2500.00 CAD. Just my opinion.

25th Jan 2007, 21:53

Yesterday I purchased a Maxim 650 for $250 (US) and I am chuffed. I have a number of bikes, Commando, T-140, Rickman, etc. but I have missed a bike that I can just get on and ride. I had an XS11, but it was way too big for a guy 68 years old and 135 pounds. This rig is not completely, complete, but 99.5% all there. No title, bit of a bummer, but I can work through that.

Anyway, I don't think $1500 to $2000 is too much to pay for a good one, maybe more for one with low miles. Say you had to pay $3000 – what else can you buy that will give you that much fun for that kind of money?

17th Feb 2007, 16:11

I bought an '82 XJ650 Maxim with 12K miles on it for $300 about 18 months ago. So I've ridden this bike for almost two seasons. Put on new pipes - Jardines found at www.shadetreepowersports.com, replaced front tire, recovered the seat and changed oil/filter (don't think the oil/filter had been done in many years). Have only about $1200 in it total!

This thing is GREAT. Plenty of power, I've put 3K miles on it and having a ball. Dependable ride that behaves well and flawlessly. So glad to get into a great bike for so little $$.

26th Feb 2007, 19:57

I've owned an '83 Maxim 650 for about 15 years now. I bought it used with 2200 miles on it for I think $2,000. I've never owned such a dependable machine! I'm on my 4th rear tire and other than tires and front fork seals, I've spent next to nothing on maintenance. I've since bought a Suzuki Intruder and thankfully my wife talked me out of selling the Maxim, which I ride now about every third trip.

I had a guy call me today asking if I was interested in selling the bike. I told him I had no idea what I'd want for it and am hesitant to even call him back. Maybe I'll throw out a high number and if he takes it then maybe, just maybe I'd part with it...

7th Mar 2007, 19:35

I think that if you sell your Maxim, you'll be wishing you didn't. I'd keep it no matter how much you are offered.

I'll never sell my '82!

11th Mar 2007, 17:15

I've just bought an '80 Maxim 650 as a first bike, and I am looking for recommendations as to where to start learning the workings of my bike. Any suggestions?

11th Mar 2007, 20:56

I bought a 1982 XJ650J last April, for $900 (US). I rode it from April till October in rain, sun, thunderstorms, you name it. I lived 40 from work so I bought it for the mileage. I love this bike.

Here's my problem; my rear tire rubs on the shaft, I bought a new tire a few days ago, but I went a size smaller, thinking it would help. According to the manual I have everything in place, i.e. spacers, washers etc.. anyone run into this? Nothing looks bent although I did pick up an extra swing arm from eBay.

Also, does anyone know where I can buy the coil packs at a reasonable price? My spark plug boots keeps seperating from the wire. This bike needs some love and it's worth it... Thanks for the help...

15th Mar 2007, 21:08

Hi all,

Need some advice on a '82 Maxim 650 with 60,000 miles on it.

Everything seems to be working properly, definitely has a lot of pep to it. However, it does have a slight leak on the left upper side of the engine. The owner mentioned that it needs a seal replacement and it would be a minor repair.

My question to you all is, would this be a minor repair? Is 60,000 miles a lot for this size of bike? How much would a bike in this condition and number of miles be worth? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

CF.

18th Mar 2007, 18:40

I bought an 82 xj650J last fall (2006) and got to ride it about 200 miles before winter set in. Spent a bunch of time on it over the winter redoing the paint, as I wanted to learn how on an inexpensive bike that I could resell or just hang onto.

This is a solid bike, but I too need a new exhaust for it. Some previous owner put trumpets on it and it sounds like a truck trying to give birth to another truck.

I also want to redo the wiring harness, but I'm waiting as it looks like I may have to do it from scratch, and I'm leary of totaling it.

Some previous owner also put in those cheap fuse holders, bypassing the fuse 'plate' that was original equipment.

I really like the shaft drive, I put new brake pads on the back in about 2 hours (3 beers).

I got it out for the first time today, and put in some premium gas which really made it perk up. It had been real rough on the cheaper mid-grade. What the hey, I'll put the good stuff in.

Anybody know of a good set of replacement pipes? The dufus before me actually welded the trumpets to the down pipes from the header, so I'm thinking replace the whole assembly.

Ride safe! Sleep well!

Red.