New 2.99% finance offer just announced from Ducati

[hbliam]

two things:

2) the vast majority of lawyers make under $100k.

Not around here but you are missing my point. Many "toy" owners don't see 15K at one time much. I actually could save that up in short order but choosing to finance a toy isn't "bad". Certainly not "very bad".

Going in for DUI overtime now. I think I'll ride my very bad idea in.  

[Dave R]

if you dont mind me asking how much is a 696 at MSRP per month on the 2.99 / 60 month?

finance 9K, 60 months should be around 162.00 and about $700 interest over 5 years.  So less than one extra payment a year to borrow 9K..    
In this case if you qualify for the "tier 1" rate but you're still considering "paying cash for your toy" it might be smarter to invest your cash and hopefully earn a bit more than it will cost you to finance the bike..  BUT I am certainly not an investment counselor! Far from it!!   
All I do know it is basic math, this is a very fair straight rate, no variable after so many months etc.

[Statler]

My dilema with it isn't financial in terms of extra money....my dilema is that motorcycles are very easy to turn into expensive paperweights.

Perhaps I should have said I personally recommend making sure if you borrow money for a bike you are insured for as much as you owe on the loan.   If the bike gets totalled.....easy enough to do most folks agree...it is painfull to be paying the bank for something that no longer exists.

Scott is absolutely correct that simply saying if you can't afford to do cash you can't afford the bike was over simplistic and incorrect....and I am guilty of saying it a lot.      

I'll work on being a bit more clear and thanks for the headslap, Scott.  

(oh...and my coffee/lunch budget is $10 per week...so I can get coffee all week, or one sandwhich one day...both our cars are over ten years old and 100K+ miles....but I got your point).

[Dave R]

All lenders will require full coverage insurance when financed. 

[Howie]

Our new car is financed (sorta, home equity).  The last two cars were financed.  0% loans.  The bike was financed.  All could be paid if cash if needed.  In other words, we could afford it.  We financed because it saved us money.  If you need to finance the toy in order to buy it, don't do it.  

[GLantern]

My dilema with it isn't financial in terms of extra money....my dilema is that motorcycles are very easy to turn into expensive paperweights.

Perhaps I should have said I personally recommend making sure if you borrow money for a bike you are insured for as much as you owe on the loan.   If the bike gets totalled.....easy enough to do most folks agree...it is painfull to be paying the bank for something that no longer exists.

Scott is absolutely correct that simply saying if you can't afford to do cash you can't afford the bike was over simplistic and incorrect....and I am guilty of saying it a lot.      

I'll work on being a bit more clear and thanks for the headslap, Scott.  

(oh...and my coffee/lunch budget is $10 per week...so I can get coffee all week, or one sandwhich one day...both our cars are over ten years old and 100K+ miles....but I got your point).

As far as i know all banks require full coverage on a bike if you have a loan on it.  So being covered for your purchase is not a problem.  And financing really is not evil i payed 18k OTD for my 1098 with 2% on a 3yr loan.  I am paying before 2 years is even up but if i waited till 3yrs i would only be charged somewhere around $450 in interest.  I financed around 12k.  I think if you really want a toy and can swing it without hurting yourself then go for it.  I wanted a Ducati my whole life and i'll be damned if i was going to wait another 2 years just to save and buy one out right.

[DucofWestwood]

Tough crowd, Dave R.
You were doing us a favor giving us the heads up on a good deal. Bet you didn't think you'd set off an argument about who's got the most solid finances!

Anyway, thanks for the heads up. That's a great rate indeed. Full stop.

[Dave R]

Tough crowd, Dave R.
You were doing us a favor giving us the heads up on a good deal. Bet you didn't think you'd set off an argument about who's got the most solid finances!

Anyway, thanks for the heads up. That's a great rate indeed. Full stop.

Not really, after 15 years of posting on boards I have developed a bit of a thick skin      I don't take it personally by any means!   

[hoyden]

<mini rant>
I keep seeing people refer to motorcycles as "toys," as if this designation is a matter of fact. "Motorcycles are toys."

I guess some of you think of bikes as toys, but a lot of us don't.
Maybe it shouldn't bother me when people state that as if it were a universal truth, but it does.
I consider my bike a completely valid form of transportation. I commute to work, I run errands, I go to social activities on my bike.
For a number of years a motorcycle was my only form of transportation.

A toy is something disposable. Something frivolous and unnecessary. A thing or matter of little or no value or importance; a trifle.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/toy
These are not words I'd ever use to describe my bikes.
I've been riding for somewhere around 20 years and have owned around 14 bikes.

The thing that comes to mind when I read someone writing about their bike as a "toy" or calling motorcycles toys is that they are a person who doesn't ride or rides hardly at all.
If your beautiful M900 is just a toy to you, give it to me! It's just a trifle after all....
</mini rant>

[Drjones]

Probably better stated as don't finance things with engines in them, since by and large they're all depreciating assets.

You'd be better off buying used a cheap for a couple of rounds and socking away what you'd be spending on a loan for a new one in a money market account and use that as your "bank." The bank of you.  Yeah, 3% is lower than it has been in the past, but your still spending more for something than you could be.

[Howie]

I should probably explain my definition of toy.  If what you are buying is beyond necessity it is a toy, or at least partially a toy  A used Honda Civic will get you to and from work.  If you buy a Ferrari you have gone beyond that.

[Raux]

but if you compare the cost of transportation. a motorcycle is much more economical.
lower entry costs
lower maintenance costs
lower fuel costs

comparing new to new or used to used, it's the same.
that's one of the reasons in Europe it's a sea of 2-wheelers.
not because they are all toy happy here. because it makes economical sense.
 

[kopfjäger]

not because they are all toy happy here. because it makes economical sense.
 

From what we have heard. More scooters than motorcycles. More economical.    Oh, and I would never finance a moto.

[Statler]

Tough crowd, Dave R.
You were doing us a favor giving us the heads up on a good deal. Bet you didn't think you'd set off an argument about who's got the most solid finances!

Anyway, thanks for the heads up. That's a great rate indeed. Full stop.

I don't think any of this was aimed at Dave.   He's a good egg and he's one of the dealers with the best reputation around.   And as I said I hope he sells a ton of bikes and if the financing deal helps with that then fantastic!!!!

[hoyden]

Yes, if you look at strictly the economical aspect of financing a vehicle, of course you lose.

The way I sometimes look at it is measuring the quality of life cost / benefit and take into account the economical aspect.

After years of driving crappy four-wheeled vehicles that would sometimes break down at inopportune times, I financed my car because I could afford the payments, and it was worth the financial loss to have reliability and a solid vehicle. I don't regret that choice at all.

If the payments on the bike are affordable and the joy you will get out of it is worth the financial loss, then by all means.

I tend to agree with this assessment: "A used Honda Civic will get you to and from work.  If you buy a Ferrari you have gone beyond that."
To me, spending over $5000 on a bike is excessive.  But that's my comfort zone, and that might change if I were more gainfully employed.
I also remember when I thought that spending $20 at one meal was just crazy talk.
I'm not saying that excess doesn't exist, it most definitely does.
Just be careful how you judge someone else's choice. People in glass houses and all.