I understand where you are coming from but putting it in the living room (or even garage) and keeping it forever for me is not a good idea - it spoils the memory of the trip, giving me guilt feelings for its current non use rather than pleasant flashbacks. Personally I know of several ex-travel bikes in that situation, bikes that are gently decaying, probably never to go back on the road again

Maybe a middle road between an open market sale and keeping it, is to sell it at a budget price (or even give it away) to a young traveler who is poor but has dreams. That way it can live longer for its intended purpose and maybe you could share the new adventures. Just a thought.

Sent from my Moto G (5S) Plus using Tapatalk

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Martin

finally back on the road again


http://awayonmybike.blogspot.com/

The fuel pump and filter screen may only require a clean. I would be inclined to drain the tank too. Maybe water in the bottom from poor quality fuel.
In the past I've successfully MOTed my DR with a KPH speedo. You might not need to change it. It would be worth asking your local tester. Some are more "obliging" than others

A year ago I'd have jumped at the opportunity to buy it. What mileage is on it?


[EDIT] Clarification: The DVLA process the importation and new registration. It used be the case that they inspected the vehicle. They may well be more strict than any MOT tester.

The garage drained the fuel tank and said the pump is busted and needs replacing. I don't have the time to fiddle with the bike these days, so I'm going to trust the mechanic.

Re mileage - the bike is still at the garage, but I seem to recall around 75,000 km. Most of them good quality traveling miles, not commuting/city/low speed miles that kill a bike.

I would probably be happy to sell it to a fellow traveler for a minimal fee, but I don't even know where to start with the paperwork to legally transfer ownership, as the bike is registered in Greece. Without wanting to sound flippant, dealing with such paperwork is exactly the kind of thing I currently don't have the time/headspace for. I tried convincing a friend in Greece to take it for free, but he's not interested.

Thanks for all the "keep it" thoughts. It's such a shame to just give it to the scrapyard (to be honest, I'm sure paperwork for that won't be straightforward either, given it's not registered in the UK), so I might just spend the money to fix it for now, embark on the UK registration process, and then see what tomorrow brings. Regardless, good to air one's thoughts and hear some opinions in this virtual pub. Thanks all!

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2011-2012: 5 months in Chile
2009-2010: 5 months in Turkey-Iran-Pakistan-India

Pay it forward?

If you don't need the money, and feel guilty about moth-balling it, then pass it on to some other soul who wants to do it, but may be stuggling to make it happen.


When I moved to Australia 15 years ago, I passed on my XT600 to a mate. it had done over 200kkm at that time through Europe and Africa. Apparently it's still going and he's getting the most out of it.

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Squily

There's nothing to stop you selling it on the Greek plates. It's not mandatory that you go through the importation process. You can let the buyer deal with the hassle. The buyer will want the reg document. Get a signed receipt, notify the Greek authorites.

The oem fuel pump prices are eye-watering. Maybe after-market pumps are available. Though budget fuel pumps can be a false economy - as I discovered on my way to HUBB UK in June.

How about £17 for a new non-OEM fuel pump?:

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SUZUKI-VSTROM-V-STORM-DL650-DL-650-DL1000-2002-2003-2004-2005-2006-FUEL-PUMP/253646437675?hash=item3b0e817d2b:g:q6gAAOSwe7BWzwU n

I have just got my BMW R80 back on the road after a 15 year lay off. The things that needed to be done has grown as time has gone on and the bike is now being slowly upgraded for a long trip once I retire / take a step back at work. I am glad that I have kept the bike.

One thing that I should point out is that my speedo is in kilometres rather than miles and this has never been an issue for an MOT. I have pointed it out to the MOT tester and he changed the miles reading to a kilometres reading on the government MOT page - so it isn't an issue for the government either.

The reflector is probably worth changing if it is going to be run in the UK for any length of time - or put on the triangles so that you don't dazzle oncoming motorists.

Registering the bike is the UK is straightforward if you have the paperwork - details here:

https://www.gov.uk/importing-vehicles-into-the-uk/registering-an-imported-vehicle

Once you have the new V5C then you can get new plates made up and get the bike insured.

However, as has been said, you can always sell it and leave it up to the buyer to transfer the owbnership but as this is liable to be seen as complicated you may have to reduce the price to make it saleable.

Agreed. Kids, wife, mortgage, dog slowed my tripping down to zero. I got rid of my travel bike, kept getting more local riding bikes. Its not like I forgot the trip, or let anyone else forget it. Who can see the future, you may be able to return to the road again, just looking at it might just make you feel down.

Register it in the UK and sell it. You won't need to pay any import duties as the bike has been owned by you for some time, though you may need to hang on to it for a few months yet as I think there's some rule about not reselling immediately to discourage grey imports.

https://www.gov.uk/importing-vehicle...g-vat-and-duty

You can either get it back up running, which will no doubt improve its resale value, but with 75K on the clock and a non exotic model it won't be worth that much anyway, whatever its emotional capital to you, or sell it as-is as a project to someone willing to do the work.

What I wouldn't do, personally, is hang on to it if you're not going to carry on using it. Your memories will always be there and the bike will just be sat in a corner as a sad reminder of when you were using it but can't now, rusting away, taking up space with spares getting harder to find if you ever do get round to resurrecting it. Let someone else give it the use and love you'd want it to have.

It's a hunk of mass produced metal and plastic that has served it's purpose.

Sell it on to someone who will use it...

Use the money to make new adventures with your family.


Bike's don't like to be stored and not used. They corrode, dry up, seize and fall apart.


Use it or lose it..

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Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

The second after-market fuel pump I bought fit the bike, it has now been MOT'ed and only 350 quid and a few trips to the garage later is road worthy again. I built up the courage to start the DVLA process to register the bike in the UK (so I can then sell it), but the online forms don't seem to accommodate for my circumstances very well... it's a privately owned bike, which I bought brand new in Greece 13 years ago. I asked for a "registration pack" via the DVLA website and they sent me a pack in which I learned that I've already broken the law because "I must notify the authorities within 14 days of bringing the bike to the UK" - well guess what, that's news to me. The bike has been in the UK for over 10 years now. I never used it much (I live in London, so commuting was always public transport or bicycle), and have not used it at all in the last 7 years (since having kids). As a EU national, I didn't have to get a permit to move to the UK to live here permanently. I never realised I needed such a permit/registration for my bike, and since it was registered, taxed and insured (full EU coverage) in Greece, I thought it was all kosher. It's not as if they told me at the border last time I drove the bike through Dover... I wonder when this requirement came into force and how people are supposed to know.

So with a very heavy heart I decided to go ahead with the registration (this is costing me time AND goodness knows how much money by the time I'm done paying the fine for missing the 14-day deadline). I then realised that DVLA want me to register with HMRC first, who want me to go through the NOVA (Notification Of Vehicle Arrivals) process. This process does not appear to have a "I brought my own vehicle to the UK" option; it's all about buying something from abroad and bringing it into the UK. So I'm kinda stuck and landed exactly where I did not want to be when I embarked on this journey to "do something useful" with my disused Vstrom; on the wrong side of the law, and with unpredictable time and monetary costs ahead of me.

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2011-2012: 5 months in Chile
2009-2010: 5 months in Turkey-Iran-Pakistan-India

But haven’t you just brought the bike over from Greece in the back of your mate’s van and decided to get it UK legal?

As Jay_B says or ... take it for a trip to Calais (in a van) and start afresh. Or get a transport to invoice you for the journey?

The gov.uk website is actually quite clear on the topic. You just needed a bit of research before engaging with bureaucracy.

My various insurance policies have never permitted trips abroad of more than 30day -even within the EU. I 've had to get special dispensation on longer trips, and it wasn't a fore-gone conclusion they'd extend the cover period.