Shopping for a used turbo bike?

[ali123]

Step one when shopping is DONT take the sellers word for things when he tells you "IT just needs a good tune." When shopping used turbo bikes... Look for GOOD PARTS... RCC/NLR kits are the best... and really the latest best builds use these kits... older kits and pieced together kits maybe functional and put together right... but maybe not... As far as electronics go.. same deal look for good parts used.... and request receipts.... AMS boost controllers are allll the rage these days... and work great when set up correctly.

STEP 2...…. GET A COMPRESSION AND LEAKDOWN TEST done... This will tell you the overall health of the motor... Also, recent dyno sheets are a good thing also, just to verify the tune in the bike and see what kinda power the bike makes.... If a turbo bike has a hurt motor, this can become a very costly endeavor....

Step 3...… Don't think that all tuners are capable of tuning a turbo bike WELL... Just because a shop has some bad ass bikes outside doesn't mean he is turbo literate... Tuning a turbo bike is one of the most important steps, and sadly... a shop wont tell a customer that he isn't really turbo savy… the tuner will simply "do his best"... but these bikes can be finiky and need a turbo expert to dial in.... How many threads have we seen where a guy is assembling a motor because he hurt his last motor? Get a good tune immediately after the health of the motor is verified..... DO NOT run the bike hard or at all without a good tune... you will live to regret it. I hope this helps someone.

 

[Bumblebee]

…..is there a side story to all this folksy wisdom??

 

[ali123]

…..is there a side story to all this folksy wisdom??

I just wish I had a thread like this before I started shopping..... cost me a couple thousand to fix the wiring on mine when I bought it/plus a boost leak off the plenum.... but at least I lucked out on the motor being aces.... I SHOULD have had a compression and leakdown test done BEFORE I bought it....

 

[Bumblebee]

I just wish I had a thread like this before I started shopping..... cost me a couple thousand to fix the wiring on mine when I bought it.... but at least I lucked out on the motor being aces.

OK, gotcha, I was hoping I wasn't reading something bad in your wisdom based thread

 

[ali123]

OK, gotcha, I was hoping I wasn't reading something bad in your wisdom based thread

nope.... I lucked out.

 

[fallenarch]

WoW, sounds a lot more risky and complicated than buying a N/A bike!

 

[ali123]

WoW, sounds a lot more risky and complicated than buying a N/A bike!

that's because there are a lot of shadetree mechanics with misguided plans who are bargain shoppers.... an expert is needed... and a good kit is needed

 

[Boosted Cycle Perf]

As the guy that usually has to fix sub par set ups, I’ll say this.

Overall the core components on a lot of cheaper turbo bikes I’ve worked on have been useable. Most of the problems are with how everything is set up. Vacuum lines, fuel lines and tuning strategy is usually where almost every combo falls short.

Take busakillers bike. Pieced together kit, yes, but useable, definitely. The problem was how everything was set up, and then the two improper tunes that ended up costing him an engine.

 

[Hauie]

Most of the time, it’s still cheaper than building it yourself, even if you ended up spending 10-15k to fix it. I’m sure those parts on your bike costed more than 4x hat.

 

[POWERHOUSE]

I agree with Rob. Most of the turbos that come to us for a tune were "built" in the owner's garage or some shop with minimal experience. The main components are mostly there and bolting that stuff on is easy enough for most (not all). What to do and HOW to do it right can be different things, especially among turbo specialists. That not only applies to the basic install, but more so when it comes to fuel systems, hosing, and routing, and even the lengths of certain lines. Years of experience teaches you many things. Once you have the proper setup, a proper tune is next, the most critical part. If I built the bike, no drama there.

Most of the turbos that have rolled into my door over the years were not right, that's probably why they roll in in the first place. Most people don't know wtf they are doing, and we have to fix it $$$$$$$$$$. If you know where the bike was built, it has sheets and it's relatively fresh, you can ask questions, look close and go for it. You might consider having it checked out and gone through after you buy it, so you know its good to go.

My first choice would be buying a used Busa in good condition and letting POWERHOUSE build the motor and do an install and tune! Seriously, whatever you do you want to do once, have it right, and be able to ride it for the next ten years . . . invest wisely!

 

[busakiller]

All I have to say if your looking at buying a turbo bike you should first find a shop that has experience with them. Once you find one have them bring it to the shop to have it looked over.

I have been around turbo cars so I know a decent amount of stuff. But I totally over looked the vacuum lines on my bike. I also trusted the person I bought the bike from. Once I bought the bike and actually rode it I was in rude awaking. I brought it to a shop and this guy has tuned tons of bikes and turbo stuff. He has a pro street bike and races so I thought he would be able to fix the bike and the tune. He had the bike for 2 to 3 months. When I got the bike back it was more rideable then before and boosted ok. I was not impressed with the tune for the time he had it. Bike was rich at idle and lean in boost. The 2nd tuner fixed the afr in boost but the bike ran worse in cruising. I went to the 2nd tuner cause he did a awesome job with my buddies gen 1 turbo bike we built. That’s a rcc stage 1 bike. Rcc is so worth the money. Easy install and instructions are great.

Now the bike is at Boosted Performance. Sent it there for just a tune and fix the little issues it had. But that didn’t goes as plan. It would of gone as plan if I sent it there before dealing with the last 2 shops and just sent it to boosted.

So for people that are reading this think about buying a turbo bike. Do your research on the bike and who did the work. Make sure the shop has good experience with turbo bikes and has good feedback. Have the bike looked over good and compression and leak down test would be great to have done. If you do run into problems call Boosted Performance. He has been a huge help and looking forward to getting the bike I wanted when I bought it. He is also very budget minded.

 

[ali123]

I agree with Rob. Most of the turbos that come to us for a tune were "built" in the owner's garage or some shop with minimal experience. The main components are mostly there and bolting that stuff on is easy enough for most (not all). What to do and HOW to do it right can be different things, especially among turbo specialists. That not only applies to the basic install, but more so when it comes to fuel systems, hosing, and routing, and even the lengths of certain lines. Years of experience teaches you many things. Once you have the proper setup, a proper tune is next, the most critical part. If I built the bike, no drama there.

Most of the turbos that have rolled into my door over the years were not right, that's probably why they roll in in the first place. Most people don't know wtf they are doing, and we have to fix it $$$$$$$$$$. If you know where the bike was built, it has sheets and it's relatively fresh, you can ask questions, look close and go for it. You might consider having it checked out and gone through after you buy it, so you know its good to go.

My first choice would be buying a used Busa in good condition and letting POWERHOUSE build the motor and do an install and tune! Seriously, whatever you do you want to do once, have it right, and be able to ride it for the next ten years . . . invest wisely!

you did a GREAT JOB with this bike..... thanks frank.

 

[ali123]

All I have to say if your looking at buying a turbo bike you should first find a shop that has experience with them. Once you find one have them bring it to the shop to have it looked over.

I have been around turbo cars so I know a decent amount of stuff. But I totally over looked the vacuum lines on my bike. I also trusted the person I bought the bike from. Once I bought the bike and actually rode it I was in rude awaking. I brought it to a shop and this guy has tuned tons of bikes and turbo stuff. He has a pro street bike and races so I thought he would be able to fix the bike and the tune. He had the bike for 2 to 3 months. When I got the bike back it was more rideable then before and boosted ok. I was not impressed with the tune for the time he had it. Bike was rich at idle and lean in boost. The 2nd tuner fixed the afr in boost but the bike ran worse in cruising. I went to the 2nd tuner cause he did a awesome job with my buddies gen 1 turbo bike we built. That’s a rcc stage 1 bike. Rcc is so worth the money. Easy install and instructions are great.

Now the bike is at Boosted Performance. Sent it there for just a tune and fix the little issues it had. But that didn’t goes as plan. It would of gone as plan if I sent it there before dealing with the last 2 shops and just sent it to boosted.

So for people that are reading this think about buying a turbo bike. Do your research on the bike and who did the work. Make sure the shop has good experience with turbo bikes and has good feedback. Have the bike looked over good and compression and leak down test would be great to have done. If you do run into problems call Boosted Performance. He has been a huge help and looking forward to getting the bike I wanted when I bought it. He is also very budget minded.

that first shop that tried to fix and tune the bike.... the one that built prostreet bikes before and had turbo experience..... he should have noticed the system wasn't plumbed the way it should have been,,,, that would bother me to NO end.

 

[busakiller]

that first shop that tried to fix and tune the bike.... the one that built prostreet bikes before and had turbo experience..... he should have noticed the system wasn't plumbed the way it should have been,,,, that would bother me to NO end.

I totally agree. But that’s life. You learn along the way and this one was expensive one. Bike is great hands now and excited to see what it does.

 

[Bumblebee]

I totally agree. But that’s life. You learn along the way and this one was expensive one. Bike is great hands now and excited to see what it does.

I was once told, you have to pay to learn sometimes...in this case that seems true.

 

[ali123]

I totally agree. But that’s life. You learn along the way and this one was expensive one. Bike is great hands now and excited to see what it does.

I cant believe u didn't OUT the shop..... I would call the shop and let him know how bad he screwed up FIRST.... then I MIGHT out the shop.... I might.... depending on how he talked to me.... he needs to be told to NOT work on turbo bikes at a minimum.....

 

[faseljd]

Yup, live and learn