With the steady increase in prices for Velorex due to the lower $ value I have to wonder what will take it's place as the best choice entry level or low cost rig in the future.
Will Texas Sidecars become the best first choice? Not that it isn't close to that now. 😉
Or is there another that could overtake the Velorex for the low cost market?
Originally written by JerryR on 4/25/2008 5:54 PM
With the steady increase in prices for Velorex due to the lower $ value I have to wonder what will take it's place as the best choice entry level or low cost rig in the future.
Will Texas Sidecars become the best first choice? Not that it isn't close to that now. 😉
Or is there another that could overtake the Velorex for the low cost market?
I vote for the Ural. Built to take whatever abuse you give it, lots of room, and easy to adapt to about anything. The Velorex became popular not only because it was cheap, but also because it worked so well on the 350 and 400 cc machines that were popular back then. These days everybody wants bikes so much bigger that I think the Ural or it's clones are the best starter cars. YMMV
Irbit wanted $60,000.00 up front to import a container of 18 URALs.
That's $3,333.33 a pop sitting on the dock dismantled. No guarantee on when they would arrive either.
That didn't sound like a bargain to me so I passed.
Lonnie
Northwest Sidecars
Originally written by Hack'n on 4/25/2008 9:10 PM
Irbit wanted $60,000.00 up front to import a container of 18 URALs.
That's $3,333.33 a pop sitting on the dock dismantled. No guarantee on when they would arrive either.
That didn't sound like a bargain to me so I passed.Lonnie
Northwest Sidecars
No worse than the guy on ebay trying to get $2900 for new 562's. What do they actually retail for these days?
Don't forget that the value of the US dollar has an effect on everything.
Purchasing power on the foreign market is not what it was. Hard call.
With the dollar devalued against foreign currencies, a US built sidecar might be the best choice for entry level. Texas Sidecars, maybe Kenna?
Anyone hear opportunity knocking? 😉
What happened to Velorex??Had one on my Guzzi back in the 80s.One of the newer ones!Memory fadeing but know bought it for a few humred and sold same way.Was looking to replace it as still have the mounts on the bike, now I see them for couple thousand did I miss something??
I'm curious as well. What is the cost effectiveness of plastic bodies versus a metal body like the Ural. A while back I had a tailgate made for a Land Rover. The local Heating and Air Conditioning shop used one I had borrowed as a pattern. All told it was 9 or 10 pieces of aluminum that had to be cut and bent. It took them less than two hours to complete, from measuring the old one to taking my money and sending me home with it. At the time, Rover was getting $350 for a gate. Even after I bought all the trim and mounts, I had less than half that invested.
I own a couple of really high quality firearms that are now being built affordably in shops that once supplied car parts for Detroit. There might be similar businesses that could stamp out steel or aluminum bodies for sidecars. Think about it. To build a Dnepr body you only need a left side and a right side and you could almost weld a flat panel between them. Inquiring minds want to know. :0)
a plain-jane 562 is $3600-$3800 plus install here,..with the can$=US$, $2900 plus shipping don't sound so bad .......crawf.
The current Velorex products are a far cry from the 560,s and 562E models that were made for the 350 and 500 Jawas. The new Cruiser and Tour trend determines what direction progressive manufacturers must go to survive. Ergo, Velorex's new products are designed for the current motorcycle market that consists mainly of Harley cloned cruiser bikes, no matter what country of origin. They are also adaptable to many "Crotch Rocket" models and can retrofit the oldies with a classic styling.
Ten years ago URAL sidecars were being sold by Cosco and Walmart for $1,600.00. When last imported by Dauntless the price was $3,295.00 or better. Same /2 clone sidecar with better quality control.
Ten years ago I was selling 562's for $1,199.00. Currently our sales price is $2,599.00 for the 562C's, which is a much upgraded sidecar.
Ten years ago gas was way under a buck a gallon and diesel was cheaper than that.
Yes, inflation is alive and well in the good old US of A, but as the Limeys say: Ya pyes yer mooney and ye tykes yer chioce!
Lonnie
Northwest Sidecars
Vendors of "Affordable" Velorex quality products.
Originally written by crawf on 4/26/2008 10:38 AM
a plain-jane 562 is $3600-$3800 plus install here,..with the can$=US$, $2900 plus shipping don't sound so bad .......crawf.
My Velorex 563 Tour was $2975.00, delivered to my home in California,
and purchased direct from the internet from http://velorexusa.com.
They shipped it FedEx Freight from Florida and I received it 3 days later
in California. This was last October and I understand prices went up after
the first of 2008. I looked and looked for a used one without success and
decided to buy new.
We offer free technical assistance with all of our sales, based upon decades of sidecar installation experience. For the same price as buying a sidecar directly from Velorex,USA.
This is a commodity the distributors and eBay sellers cannot match. That is what legitimate dealers are for (or should be).
Lonnie
Northwest Sidecars
Originally written by Hack'n on 4/26/2008 2:50 PM
We offer free technical assistance with all of our sales, based upon decades of sidecar installation experience. For the same price as buying a sidecar directly from Velorex,USA.
This is a commodity the distributors and eBay sellers cannot match. That is what legitimate dealers are for (or should be).Lonnie
Northwest Sidecars
Had you been in the neighborhood, I certainly would have bought from you and had you done the install. I un-crated and did the install with a broken leg as there are no sidecar oriented businesses locally to me. I had anticipated buying from Doug Bingham, however he is 50 miles away and I couldn't drive. There is a certain satisfaction to doing it yourself as you learn from your mistakes and know how it's attached.
You get what you pay for. When I bought my sidecar I contacted Velorex with some questions and they were short and basic no answers other than price and shipping fee. so I contacted Lonnie . He spent a lot of time with me and answered all my questions. His price was the same and shipping was only $50 more. I installed it myself. When I had problems he treated me like a friend rather than a customer. With his help in least than a week my rig was running true with no head slap. Was this worth the extra $50 no, it was worth $600 that is what somebody else would have charged me and I won't have had the experience of setting it up and knowing how to adjusting it in the furture ( worth hundreds of dollars in the furture). THANKS LONNIE. Keep up the good work in your business and on this web site.
Originally written by thekid on 4/27/2008 7:19 PM
You get what you pay for. When I bought my sidecar I contacted Velorex with some questions and they were short and basic no answers other than price and shipping fee. so I contacted Lonnie . He spent a lot of time with me and answered all my questions. His price was the same and shipping was only $50 more. I installed it myself. When I had problems he treated me like a friend rather than a customer. With his help in least than a week my rig was running true with no head slap. Was this worth the extra $50 no, it was worth $600 that is what somebody else would have charged me and I won't have had the experience of setting it up and knowing how to adjusting it in the furture ( worth hundreds of dollars in the furture). THANKS LONNIE. Keep up the good work in your business and on this web site.
That is th ekind of report I love to hear. It is not an uncommon one in the sidecar world either.
