Where do used parts come from?
From used bikes, silly! Seriously … many parts come from trade-ins or bikes we buy outright that aren't suitable for resale or restoration, but most parts, in fact, come from bikes that have been in accidents. A bike doesn't’t have to be damaged too badly for an insurance company to call it “totaled”. We can then acquire it as salvage and take it apart. We throw away the parts that are obviously ruined and carefully examine the rest for excessive wear or hidden damage. The parts that pass this scrutiny are then cleaned, tagged and put in our used parts inventory.

How do I understand the condition ratings?
We rate every part on a scale of 1 to 10, with '10' being the highest rating. A '10' means that a part is essentially like new. A rating of '1' means the part is in very poor condition. While we won't sell parts that would be considered "unusable", a '1' rated part may need repair before it is useable, or it may even be more suited for some purpose other than that for which it's intended, such as door stop or paperweight. Frankly you won't see too many 1's or 2's here. Most will be '6' and higher. Of course, the prices vary according to the condition rating.

How much will I save if I buy a used part?
At least 30% and as much as 90% off the retail price of a new one! Here’s how works. We start with a price that is half what the suggested retail price is, then take into account variables such as the cosmetic condition, amount of wear, or mileage – and, of course, supply and demand. This means that if a part shows more than average wear the price goes down. At the same time, if we have an abundance of those parts in stock and not many requests for it, the price could go down even more. The price goes up, on the other hand, when a part is in exceptionally good condition and/or it’s a part that a lot of people want but is seldom available. It’is a little like horse trading, and because we know that not everybody is comfortable with that, we do ever everything possible to make it easy. We’all take the time to explain exactly what the part looks like, its features or possible flaws, what sort of service or performance you can expect from it, and finally, what was involved in putting a price on it. The vast majority of our used parts are sold for between 40% and 60% of their new cost. It’s actually an easy process, and remember… you always save!

What about body work? Can I get parts to match my paint color?
Yes. We always have lots of good used body work in stock, although we obviously can’t guarantee we’ll have the piece you need in your color. As BMW has different prices for body parts in primer and ones that are painted, so do we. When we have a used body panel where the condition of the original paint is very good to excellent and there’s no structural damage, we figure the price based on the list price of the factory painted part. These are parts you could install right away and they would match your stock paint. (Note: paint left in the sun can fade over time, and some paints, such as pearl white or metallic red, have some variation among individual bikes anyway, and therefore, may not exactly match yours.)

If a used part has minor structural damage (repairable, of course) or if the paint has excessive wear or scratches, we consider its paint color irrelevant and figure the price based on the cost of a new part in primer – usually much less than a painted piece. Typically, these are parts you would buy when you’re planning on doing some painting or restoration anyway.

What if I’m not happy with the part I bought?
It’s basically the same as our policy for new parts: if you’re not completely satisfied with the condition or applicability of a used part, call us right away and we’ll solve the problem – you can return it for an exchange or a full refund (within 10 days of the date of purchase, in the same condition as we sent it to you, and accompanied by a copy of the invoice). Electrical components, as always, are the exception: they’re guaranteed good upon installation only. Click here for more details about ordering and returns.