first the general appearance is important. Is the bike clean, plastic look good? A dirty, scratched up bike can indicate poor maintenance. Check the frame tubes, particularly the bottom tubes under the engine for bent or broken spots. Is the air filter dirty? You have to pull the seat, but a dirty filter also indicates neglect.
Check the oil sight glass at the bottom right side engine case to see if the oil looks dirty or milky. Kick the bike through paying particular attention to how much resistance you feel to gauge compression, also pay attention for any disengagement in the kichkstarter stroke which could be a bad idler gear. Look for obvious dents in the wheels loose spokes, worn out tires or thrashed chain and sprockets. Wiggle the front and back wheels listen for noise and see if there is any side to side play in the wheels this would indicate worn wheel bearings. Bounce the bike up and to check for any suspension binding or noise indicating bad suspension bearings. Grab the swingarm and try and move it side to side to check for bad bearings. check for obvious leaks on the forks and shock. Move the handle bars side to side checking for binding or looseness. Start the bike and look for smoke while it is warming up. If it smokes while warming up and then stops it could have worn valve guides. If it smokes and does not stop, the rings are going. If it spews a lot of white smoke it could have a blown head gasket or bad waterpump seal. Listen for excessive vle clatter or engine knocking. Does it idle smoothly? Run it through the gears and make sure they engage properly and do not make noise or jump out of engagement. If you have the room I would put the bike in third gear while going about 10 mph and try and accelerate to see if the clutch slips. If the bike has even minimal maintenance , and has not had the snot run out of it it should be fine. these things I have mentioned should give you a good indication of the bikes general condition. hope it is i great shape and you are getting a good deal. :) :)
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You weren't born knowing this stuff.
[This message has been edited by penguin (edited 04-16-2001).]