# Help needed please with buying a motorbike here in Spain



## Joe Kilroy

Hi, I live in Spain , not far from Gibraltar and am going back to the UK soon to pass my full motorbike license. 
To start with i was going to buy a 2nd hand BMW and ride it back to Spain, but the costs of this are high as well as the pain of riding so far in Winter conditions.

I'm therefore thinking of buying my bike here but am afraid of making such a purchase as I don't speak Spanish. I have found some sites where there seem to be a good selection of 2nd hand BMW bikes but I am here to ask if anyone has or knows anyone who has experience of buying a bike in Spain or if they even know of anyone who might be selling a bike in ok condition for around 1500 EU. 

If not, if there is anyone who knows anything about bikes, who, when I call the seller, could perhaps on my behalf ask a few knowing questions in Spanish to help ascertain the condition of the bike and the authenticity of the seller,

Thank you
Joe.


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## happy_man

Hi Joe,

I'm interested in getting a moto next year (everyone seems to have them in Barcelona!) and some folk on a bikers forum who had or were still living in Spain recommended ebay.es and moto.es - but can't really give any advise of mine own, sorry! Only that perhaps you should check out a bikers forum! Oh yeah, i think lots of people sell second hand on loquo.com but will be in Spanish


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## VFR

Joe Kilroy said:


> Hi, I live in Spain , not far from Gibraltar and am going back to the UK soon to pass my full motorbike license.
> To start with i was going to buy a 2nd hand BMW and ride it back to Spain, but the costs of this are high as well as the pain of riding so far in Winter conditions.
> 
> I'm therefore thinking of buying my bike here but am afraid of making such a purchase as I don't speak Spanish. I have found some sites where there seem to be a good selection of 2nd hand BMW bikes but I am here to ask if anyone has or knows anyone who has experience of buying a bike in Spain or if they even know of anyone who might be selling a bike in ok condition for around 1500 EU.
> 
> If not, if there is anyone who knows anything about bikes, who, when I call the seller, could perhaps on my behalf ask a few knowing questions in Spanish to help ascertain the condition of the bike and the authenticity of the seller,
> 
> Thank you
> Joe.


Hi Joe.
All the prices I have seen here in Spain are way over what you would pay in the UK & I sold my VFR V-Tec here for more than I paid for it in the UK 4 years previous.
To be honest you are unlikely to get anything here worth having for 1500eu, but I am happy to look at any links to bikes that you are interested in to give my opinion (spend most of my time on here ....... Bikers Oracle Central - Powered by vBulletin
In the for sale section you can get a good idea of what they sell for in the UK & the vast bulk are known bikes, from known members.

BTW the best route back would be vis the Santander route as it should not be told cold/wet if you pick your time.


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## Joe Kilroy

happy_man said:


> Hi Joe,
> 
> I'm interested in getting a moto next year (everyone seems to have them in Barcelona!) and some folk on a bikers forum who had or were still living in Spain recommended ebay.es and moto.es - but can't really give any advise of mine own, sorry! Only that perhaps you should check out a bikers forum! Oh yeah, i think lots of people sell second hand on loquo.com but will be in Spanish


Thanks and sorry for my late reply.

It just got a bit more complicated, as I'm buying the bike off my friend in Germany now.

If anyone could advise me on what procedures I will have to go through, i'd be very grateful indeed.

Thank you
Joe.


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## Joe Kilroy

Joe Kilroy said:


> Thanks and sorry for my late reply.
> 
> It just got a bit more complicated, as I'm buying the bike off my friend in Germany now.
> 
> If anyone could advise me on what procedures I will have to go through, i'd be very grateful indeed.
> 
> Thank you
> Joe.


Playamonte,

I don't know why I only just saw that post, cheers for the advice, and Happy Man too! 

The bike I've been offered in Germany seems like a bargain, do you know what practical hurdles I'll face riding it here in Spain? Can't I just say Im a tourist? Is it obligatory to get Spanish plates??

The UK is an option still, I don't know about the Santander route, have you done it?

Thanks again!!!

Joe.


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## VFR

Joe Kilroy said:


> Playamonte,
> 
> I don't know why I only just saw that post, cheers for the advice, and Happy Man too!
> 
> The bike I've been offered in Germany seems like a bargain, do you know what practical hurdles I'll face riding it here in Spain? Can't I just say Im a tourist? Is it obligatory to get Spanish plates??
> 
> The UK is an option still, I don't know about the Santander route, have you done it?
> 
> Thanks again!!!
> 
> Joe.


Its a German bike & I take it you are not a German resident, that being the case you will be riding illegaly. The first hurdle you will face of course is trying to get some insurance cover I guess.
No I have ridden across Europe, but you were concerned about the cold at this time of year, so to cut down on the coldest section (Central France) I would use the Santander route to get you straight into northern Spain.
Did you look at the Bikes for Sale in the link I posted ? as that VFR 750 in the add *How Much* is great value for a good *known* solid bike (I do not know the owner, just good value) and if I had the funds to spare it would be mine 

You really need to be thinking about changing any bike you buy onto Spanish plates as its odds on that you will drop the thing at some stage & being insured in another EU area will be a real hassle (to say the least)
Yes you can get away with being a visitor for a spell, but its no big deal to get a vehicle changed onto Spanish plates apart from a few quid of course.


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## Joe Kilroy

playamonte said:


> Its a German bike & I take it you are not a German resident, that being the case you will be riding illegaly. The first hurdle you will face of course is trying to get some insurance cover I guess.
> No I have ridden across Europe, but you were concerned about the cold at this time of year, so to cut down on the coldest section (Central France) I would use the Santander route to get you straight into northern Spain.
> Did you look at the Bikes for Sale in the link I posted ? as that VFR 750 in the add *How Much* is great value for a good *known* solid bike (I do not know the owner, just good value) and if I had the funds to spare it would be mine
> 
> You really need to be thinking about changing any bike you buy onto Spanish plates as its odds on that you will drop the thing at some stage & being insured in another EU area will be a real hassle (to say the least)
> Yes you can get away with being a visitor for a spell, but its no big deal to get a vehicle changed onto Spanish plates apart from a few quid of course.


Thanks for the reply,

The insurance question is tricky, I was told by Carole Nash in the UK that I would have to have UK plates and be registered there to get insurance with them. I still might be better off getting my bike in the UK because like you say the prices here seem higher all round. It would cost me around 300 EU just in petrol to get it back down to Andalucia .Thanks for that link I checked it and to be honest I am dead set on a 2nd hand BMW, probably BMW-75 C, size and power wise it's fine for me, I am after a long-term reliable tourer rather than a speed monster. If you stumble across any please let me know. If insurance is my main problem, I might just make sure my bike ownership papers are in order from my German mate , try to fix up insurance and ride into Spain as a visitor and sort out Spanish plates later. Any ideas about insurance? Guess I will need to sort that in Germany?


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## VFR

Joe Kilroy said:


> Thanks for the reply,
> 
> The insurance question is tricky, I was told by Carole Nash in the UK that I would have to have UK plates and be registered there to get insurance with them. I still might be better off getting my bike in the UK because like you say the prices here seem higher all round. It would cost me around 300 EU just in petrol to get it back down to Andalucia .Thanks for that link I checked it and to be honest I am dead set on a 2nd hand BMW, probably BMW-75 C, size and power wise it's fine for me, I am after a long-term reliable tourer rather than a speed monster. If you stumble across any please let me know. If insurance is my main problem, I might just make sure my bike ownership papers are in order from my German mate , try to fix up insurance and ride into Spain as a visitor and sort out Spanish plates later. Any ideas about insurance? Guess I will need to sort that in Germany?


Hi Joe.
Yes I know what you are looking for & that is why I pointed you to that add as the VFR 750 is without doubt the best long term (all rounder) tourer ever made.
http://www.bikersoracle.com/vfr/forum/showthread.php?t=116071

Still your heart is set on the beemer & if I see one advertised I will post a link. 


For sure you will need to sort some kind of insurance from Germany, but you really need tyo check out via your friend who lives there (?) just what route to take via exporting this bike, of course it can be done as a Spanish person I know bought his VW there and bought it back here & saved a lot of cash.


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## gus-lopez

A german bike will probably be the same as a car. They are sold without number plates & at some point your friend will need the number plates ( yes, the actual plates ! ) returned , otherwise he will be paying the road tax for the rest of his life. 

If you are proposing to buy the bike from your friend & he doesn't want to let it go with the plates then you will be able to insure the bike here in Spain on the chassis number . Then you will have to go to the traffic registration dept. in the local area to obtain export plates which will allow you to ride the bike out of the country. You cannot obtain the plates without insurance. Once here you can change it on to spanish plates. 
If he allows you to take it with the plates you can insure it here on them & , once here, re-register it on to spanish plates & return the german ones to your friend.


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## Joe Kilroy

gus-lopez said:


> A german bike will probably be the same as a car. They are sold without number plates & at some point your friend will need the number plates ( yes, the actual plates ! ) returned , otherwise he will be paying the road tax for the rest of his life.
> 
> If you are proposing to buy the bike from your friend & he doesn't want to let it go with the plates then you will be able to insure the bike here in Spain on the chassis number . Then you will have to go to the traffic registration dept. in the local area to obtain export plates which will allow you to ride the bike out of the country. You cannot obtain the plates without insurance. Once here you can change it on to spanish plates.
> If he allows you to take it with the plates you can insure it here on them & , once here, re-register it on to spanish plates & return the german ones to your friend.



Actually guys he is an experienced rider checking and buying the bike on my behalf, then I would go and hopefully ride it back to Spain. There are two sides to this as part of me thinks this would be a good way to 1) Save money 2) Get to know the bike, but my more sensible side says 1) Pay a bit more and get the bike in Spain 2) Don't try such a long journey as a new rider ( I rode a Vespa in Moscow's mad traffic but it's different). 

Can I just ask please, regardless of all the faffing about I have to do once i am back in Spain ., assuming I do go through with this mammoth trek, will I actually be allowed into Spain and to ride around my local area with German plates while I sort all the paperwork / Spanish registration etc?? Or will they simply impound my bike until it's all sorted out?

Thanks again.

Ps- I like BMW as toureres because...well just because.


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## gus-lopez

Joe Kilroy said:


> Actually guys he is an experienced rider checking and buying the bike on my behalf, then I would go and hopefully ride it back to Spain. There are two sides to this as part of me thinks this would be a good way to 1) Save money 2) Get to know the bike, but my more sensible side says 1) Pay a bit more and get the bike in Spain 2) Don't try such a long journey as a new rider ( I rode a Vespa in Moscow's mad traffic but it's different).
> 
> Can I just ask please, regardless of all the faffing about I have to do once i am back in Spain ., assuming I do go through with this mammoth trek, will I actually be allowed into Spain and to ride around my local area with German plates while I sort all the paperwork / Spanish registration etc?? Or will they simply impound my bike until it's all sorted out?
> 
> Thanks again.
> 
> Ps- I like BMW as toureres because...well just because.


Yes, no problem. There is no border between Germany & France or France & Spain. You wont even know you've gone from Germany into France as there is nothing to indicate where it was whatsoever. The old buildings still exist between france & Spain ( La Jonquera ). Most cross at the speed limit.


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## Joe Kilroy

gus-lopez said:


> Yes, no problem. There is no border between Germany & France or France & Spain. You wont even know you've gone from Germany into France as there is nothing to indicate where it was whatsoever. The old buildings still exist between france & Spain ( La Jonquera ). Most cross at the speed limit.


Thanks, so it is possible for me to ride on the German plates here, and have no problems as long as I say that I am sorting it all out here with Spanish plates and insurance etc,...? Sorry to keep pestering, I just want to be sure , I;ve waited so long finally to be able to do this....


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