Thinking of buying an '83 Vision

[Rikugun]

I've been in email contact with a party selling an '83 Vision. I think they might be lurkers on the site. The pictures I've seen seem to indicate it's in reasonable condition and they clain "new battery, tires, starter, garage kept with 16k miles, and runs well." It looks to be all stock - exhaust, mirrors, fairing w/lowers, etc.
My question to you guys is how much do you think this bike would be worth? I know it can vary and depends on lots of little things but a range would be helpfull, just something ballpark to use as a guide. Thanks.

[Re-Vision]

Mine has 19K and when I get everything in good shape I hope to get sixteen to eighteen hundred for it. Not many eighty-threes out there. Because there are a lot more eighty-twos than eighty-threes its much easier to maintain the older bikes. Make sure everything is in good condition.  BDC

[inanecathode]

I started out with an 82 then went to an 83, some observations:

Power wise they're identical. Brake wise, i havent noticed a huge difference. They're not worlds apart in any real functional way but theres a few things that are nicer:

Ergonomics are *way* different. The 83 is a much 'tighter' riding position. I'm sure there will be a barage of back pain complaints but if you ride it with the correct posture it's fine. Alot less sit up and beg than the 82.

The gas gauge is actually really nice. I can use my trip meter for other things besides fuel level monitoring, and its a hell of a lot easier to turn it on and look at the stupid thing than to do computations in my head for did i remember to reset the meter, was i riding up hill, did i leave the reserve on. The gas tanks will puke fuel back out though just like the 82s do tho.

The carbs, i don't know, i havent noticed any problems whatsoever, in the same vein i havent noticed any difference in driveability either. It may be the altitude, it might be something else but both my 82 and my 83 had the same WOT low rpm high load stumble.

Suspension is the other difference. I might be looking through the lense of time a bit too hard but i honestly can't say the 83 rode a whole lot different than the 82. The adjustment on the dampening didnt really feel like it did a whole lot. Going from the 83 shock to the 04 yzf600 shock was *lightyears* different i will tell you, which tells me the 83 might be the coolest thing since canned bread but its nothing compared to even the most basic of modern shock systems. The front springs on the 83 are still too soft, the air helps, but the air also can leak out and arguably wear your seals out faster.

Aesthetics are of course up to the individual. I dig the black pipes, but they're just that, black pipes. They never really did anything to the exhaust system other than change the finish. The gold wheels are just... gold, better looking imho but other than the dual disk front wheel theres not a big difference. The fairing helps smooth air out quite a bit, the dash provides a cool cockpit feel and provides good mounting spots for more gauges, the 'heater vents' feel like they're only good for breaking, but the best fairing addition are the mirrors. You can actually SEE things behind you instead of your own shoulder like on the 82.

The bad things:
If the pipes rot, you're totally screwed. You're not finding any 'good' 83 exhausts. You can always get 82 pipes or fix the ones you have but you cant replace the exhaust, not that im aware of, i've never seen a set for sale. If the shock looses it's oil, you're also screwed. Everyone else wants one of those so there wont be any for sale, if they're around they'll go for quite a bit.
I could go on but the best example of an 83 problem is if your petcock leaks, you're then residing in the head waters of shit creek. You can not fix that, ever. You could take it apart and dick with the diaphragms but theres no guarantee that will work.
The 83 is nice and all the cool little extra things certainly add up but give it a REAL good inspection to make sure the unobtanium parts are present and working, if you dont you could very well end up with a broke ass 82 you cant fix.

[starfire]

I really enjoy my 83 vs the 82 get the bike youll like it

[QBS]

Absolutely, get any and all the update modification history you can.

Inanes full of it regarding the '83 lowers.  They are wonderful in the cold.  Makes a huge differance in cold weather riding.  I've ridden my '83 in relative comfort with the temp down to 35 degrees F with just a windbreaker, gloves, and jeans  The heated vents of the factory full fairing are very unique among motorcycles.  After 35 degrees F things get a little chilly.

[inanecathode]

Well then qbs you must have a magical vision, or my bike is completely broken because with them on 'warm' it's tepid, with them on 'cool' it's tepid. Honestly how huge of a difference do you think it actually would make riding around in an open column of air? They're not heated, they're not ducted, they're just a relatively porous air dam you can unblock if you want, but most the air is still going to be going around the engine, through the frame, or out the ducts that are 3 inches below the 'heater' ducts.

[Walt_M.]

I'm with QBS on this one but my lower comfort zone is about 45F. In the 'warm' position, the air comes from behind the radiator and on 'cool' it comes from outside the fairing. I agree with Inane that the air on 'warm' is tepid but tepid beats icy blast any day.

[vadasz1]

I rode my 82 with the full fairings back on about the end of April and for the first few weeks the the temps in the morning were near freezing.  I can attest to the fact the vents warmed up my knees pretty well.  I could actually feel the difference one the bike got warmed up after about 10 minutes of riding.  And I am riding in the 60-80 KPH range going to work.

I now set them to COOL as I want to keep my knees as solid as possible.

[Brian Moffet]

I think Inane and walt are missing something in their fairings. The air that comes out of my heater vents is quite warm.

Brian

[h2olawyer]

My vents work great in cool / cold weather.  They aren't good in the heat, though.  I kept warm(ish) on a ride in Southern Wyoming with temps in the low 30s, a couple inches of slush on the road, thick clouds & fog (visibility about 10 feet at times) and my visor kept icing over.  (This was a late August ride!)  The internal baffling in the lowers does a good job directing air from the radiator to the vents.

I don't put up with heat nearly as well as I do cold, so when its hot out, I find myself wanting air conditioning on the bike - but I'm not ready for a Gold Wing yet!  There is some improvement with the vents set to cool, but it is still a hotter ride with the full fairing than it ever was with the shark.

H₂O

[kev10104]

I paid $1400 for my 83 a year and a half ago and it needed some fixing with the help of Tiger.I think it was well worth it.I seemed to have lost one of the flappers from my fairing on the last ride.Bummer.