I didn’t decide I wanted a Super Tenere until this past July. By then of course it’s too late to order one and all the bikes that are coming are spoken for. One dealer in town said they might get one in before the end of the season but no guarantees. So I continued lurking and moping here and at ADVrider and then I saw a post by Chadx. He had ordered a bike and it was in but a change in circumstance meant he was not going to be able to take delivery, so there was a bike available in Helena Montana. Chad was also offering his services if anyone wanted to do a fly and ride, he would pick up at the airport, drive to the dealership and also offered his garage for an oil change after 100 miles. So I started investigating what it would take to import a bike from the US into The Great White North. Lots of paper hoops to jump through but it was totally doable and I could save $3000 in the process. This sounded like it could be an adventure so I PM’d Chad. He told me the bike was still at the shop and hadn’t been sold and if it didn’t sell soon he was in jeopardy of losing his deposit. So not only could I save $3000 by buying his bike, I would be helping out a fellow inmate. It could be done. It should be done. It would be done.
The next day I called the dealer and told him I was calling from Calgary and was aware he had a Super Tenere in stock and I was interested in buying it. He said, “I can’t sell it to you”.
“What?” I have never had a dealership turn down my money before, this was new.
“I can’t sell it to you. Yahama prohibits dealers from selling bikes out of the country. I could lose my franchise.”
Well I was disappointed to say the least but when I thought about it, not surprised. After all, Yamaha has to protect the $3000 gouge they are getting from us north of the border. I let Chad know the bad news but he was undeterred and said he would talk to the dealer, so I waited not daring to hope.
A couple of days went by before the next message from Chad. He had talked to the dealer and had a proposition; I would pay the dealer for the bike, the dealer would issue the title in Chad’s name then Chad would have the title transferred into my name so I was essentially buying a used bike from Chad and everyone would be happy. I had talked to Chad a few times on the phone and got a good, honest vibe off him and I talked to the dealer and he assured me he wouldn’t release the bike to anyone but me so what the heck, I said let’s do it. When I told my wife the plan her response was, “so you’re going to send your money to a dealership in the US that you have never been to and he is going to give your bike to some guy you’ve been talking to on the internet but have never met?”
“Well it does sound a bit sketchy when you put it like that, but I have a good feeling about it”
“Have you completely lost your mind?”
We’ve been married for 23 years, you’d think she would know the answer to that question by now.
Chad had worked a pretty good deal on the bike that included the YES plan. I couldn’t use the plan up here so we started negotiating a new deal. We ended up with the bike out the door for under $13,500 with the low seat included so I was very happy with the deal. I overnight couriered my money to the dealer and crossed my fingers, hoping my wife wasn’t right.
I called the dealer the next day to confirm he had received he funds. He had and assured me he would do up the paperwork that evening and issue the title to Chad the next day. Sure enough the next day I got a message from Chad that he had the title and was starting the transfer process. Up here, that would be pretty simple – I sign an ownership transfer form and bill of sale and the new owner takes it to the Registry. Done. Not so in Montana. The process there involved 2 branches of the DMV, a Notary Public and special dispensation from the Pope – so we put a “rush” on it.
A few days go by, my wife is convinced Chad is in Mexico by now enjoying my new bike but I am still confident, anxious but still confident. Chad is bugging the DMV but there is little he can do. Finally, after a week that seemed like a month, a message from Chad that he has the new title and a temporary plate to get me to the border. This is the Thursday before the Labor Day long weekend and the dealership will be closed on Saturday so that means it’s tomorrow or wait another week. Waiting isn’t an option. I called the dealer, yes the bike is ready. I called Chad, yes he can pick me up the next day. I checked the weather – nothing but sun from Helena to Calgary for 5 days. I called my buddy Paul, "fire up the private jet, you’re taking me to Helena Montana tomorrow".
“Cool”, he says.
End of Part 1.
The next day I called the dealer and told him I was calling from Calgary and was aware he had a Super Tenere in stock and I was interested in buying it. He said, “I can’t sell it to you”.
“What?” I have never had a dealership turn down my money before, this was new.
“I can’t sell it to you. Yahama prohibits dealers from selling bikes out of the country. I could lose my franchise.”
Well I was disappointed to say the least but when I thought about it, not surprised. After all, Yamaha has to protect the $3000 gouge they are getting from us north of the border. I let Chad know the bad news but he was undeterred and said he would talk to the dealer, so I waited not daring to hope.
A couple of days went by before the next message from Chad. He had talked to the dealer and had a proposition; I would pay the dealer for the bike, the dealer would issue the title in Chad’s name then Chad would have the title transferred into my name so I was essentially buying a used bike from Chad and everyone would be happy. I had talked to Chad a few times on the phone and got a good, honest vibe off him and I talked to the dealer and he assured me he wouldn’t release the bike to anyone but me so what the heck, I said let’s do it. When I told my wife the plan her response was, “so you’re going to send your money to a dealership in the US that you have never been to and he is going to give your bike to some guy you’ve been talking to on the internet but have never met?”
“Well it does sound a bit sketchy when you put it like that, but I have a good feeling about it”
“Have you completely lost your mind?”
We’ve been married for 23 years, you’d think she would know the answer to that question by now.
Chad had worked a pretty good deal on the bike that included the YES plan. I couldn’t use the plan up here so we started negotiating a new deal. We ended up with the bike out the door for under $13,500 with the low seat included so I was very happy with the deal. I overnight couriered my money to the dealer and crossed my fingers, hoping my wife wasn’t right.
I called the dealer the next day to confirm he had received he funds. He had and assured me he would do up the paperwork that evening and issue the title to Chad the next day. Sure enough the next day I got a message from Chad that he had the title and was starting the transfer process. Up here, that would be pretty simple – I sign an ownership transfer form and bill of sale and the new owner takes it to the Registry. Done. Not so in Montana. The process there involved 2 branches of the DMV, a Notary Public and special dispensation from the Pope – so we put a “rush” on it.
A few days go by, my wife is convinced Chad is in Mexico by now enjoying my new bike but I am still confident, anxious but still confident. Chad is bugging the DMV but there is little he can do. Finally, after a week that seemed like a month, a message from Chad that he has the new title and a temporary plate to get me to the border. This is the Thursday before the Labor Day long weekend and the dealership will be closed on Saturday so that means it’s tomorrow or wait another week. Waiting isn’t an option. I called the dealer, yes the bike is ready. I called Chad, yes he can pick me up the next day. I checked the weather – nothing but sun from Helena to Calgary for 5 days. I called my buddy Paul, "fire up the private jet, you’re taking me to Helena Montana tomorrow".
“Cool”, he says.
End of Part 1.
