Honda XR500L

[g00ner]

Looks like the Honda has to go - needs must etc

1982, personally imported (France). Duty/Tax paid, NOVA reference with bike plus original French registration docs.

I’ve tried looking online etc but prices are very varied. Is anyone more in tune with the classic bike scene give me an idea of value prior to advertising properly? I realise it’s a depressed market, hoping it hasn’t impacted this one too much

 

[enabb]

That’s lush

 

[HxH]

In the UK market, a 1982 Honda XL500R typically values between £1,200 and £4,700, depending on condition, original specification, and road-legal registration.

UK Market Value Breakdown​

Condition	Value Range	Description
Fair / Project	£600 – £1,200	Non-runner, missing indicators/lights, frame rust, or usable only for parts/off-road field use.
Good / Rider	£1,500 – £2,800	Sound mechanical condition, road-legal with V5C, cosmetic patination, or non-original setup.
Excellent / Original	£3,000 – £4,700	Low mileage, unrestored original or high-quality restoration, fully road-registered, intact graphics and plastics.
Collector / Mint	£4,700+	Exceptional low-mileage original specimens traded through specialist auctions or dealers.

Hope this guide helps.

 

[g00ner]

In the UK market, a 1982 Honda XL500R typically values between £1,200 and £4,700, depending on condition, original specification, and road-legal registration.

UK Market Value Breakdown​

Condition	Value Range	Description
Fair / Project	£600 – £1,200	Non-runner, missing indicators/lights, frame rust, or usable only for parts/off-road field use.
Good / Rider	£1,500 – £2,800	Sound mechanical condition, road-legal with V5C, cosmetic patination, or non-original setup.
Excellent / Original	£3,000 – £4,700	Low mileage, unrestored original or high-quality restoration, fully road-registered, intact graphics and plastics.
Collector / Mint	£4,700+	Exceptional low-mileage original specimens traded through specialist auctions or dealers.

Hope this guide helps.

It does, thanks muchly

 

[Robbieben]

Effectively its worth a maximum of £2k as it stands without a UK V5. If you register it & obtain a V5 then potentially £2.5k. I'd suggest advertising at £2750.00 and be prepared to drop from there. Anyone who knows the market knows what they are worth.
I buy & sell a lot of these bikes. For your bike I'd be paying 800-1200 euro from various places I purchase from in Europe. I then have import taxes, NOVA etc. Repairs, light restoration & parts soon add up. I sell a mint bike at £5000.00 but may have spent upwards of £2k on it after purchase & import taxes, allowing for my time on repairs, paint etc there isn't a huge profit to be had.

 

[g00ner]

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If this works..

 

[g00ner]

Effectively its worth a maximum of £2k as it stands without a UK V5. If you register it & obtain a V5 then potentially £2.5k. I'd suggest advertising at £2750.00 and be prepared to drop from there. Anyone who knows the market knows what they are worth.
I buy & sell a lot of these bikes. For your bike I'd be paying 800-1200 euro from various places I purchase from in Europe. I then have import taxes, NOVA etc. Repairs, light restoration & parts soon add up. I sell a mint bike at £5000.00 but may have spent upwards of £2k on it after purchase & import taxes, allowing for my time on repairs, paint etc there isn't a huge profit to be had.

Thanks Robbie. Maybe I’ll get the V5 first

Though at 800-1200 euro I’d be buying more, not selling my one.

 

[Udders]

I’ll start the bidding at £1k.

 

[Snaf]

XL500R, I recall you getting it a few years ago. I think that Honda XL's have held up better price wise than many others and this one looks to be very good and that's where its value is, people don't seem to want any projects these days or if they do they factor in paying someone else to do all the work and expect that to reflect in what they pay for it.
£2750 sounds a reasonable starting point but it might take a while to sell, £800 I and many others into classic scrambles would give you that for the engine alone.
Registering it would make it easier to sell. I can't recall the cost but I think the last honda that I did was easy enough, dating letter from Honda, mot, insure and register as you already have the Nova cert.

 

[g00ner]

I’ll start the bidding at £1k.

I promise I’ll do an advert when I know where to put it so no one is losing cash ideally

 

[g00ner]

XL500R, I recall you getting it a few years ago. I think that Honda XL's have held up better price wise than many others and this one looks to be very good and that's where its value is, people don't seem to want any projects these days or if they do they factor in paying someone else to do all the work and expect that to reflect in what they pay for it.
£2750 sounds a reasonable starting point but it might take a while to sell, £800 I and many others into classic scrambles would give you that for the engine alone.
Registering it would make it easier to sell. I can't recall the cost but I think the last honda that I did was easy enough, dating letter from Honda, mot, insure and register as you already have the Nova cert.

Yes, you’re right about registering. Just not enough time it seems and part of the reason for selling to be truthful. I’ve the original French dating document etc so it really shouldn’t be an issue for me

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

Is it a good starter ?

 

[Smartbazza]

looks quite tidy too. if you were smart this is a good way to drum up interest prior to putting up an ad. glws.

Barry

 

[g00ner]

Is it a good starter ?

Put the spoon down JB

It starts. I’m not very good at it

 

[g00ner]

looks quite tidy too. if you were smart this is a good way to drum up interest prior to putting up an ad. glws.

Barry

I’m not that smart Bazza. I need to sell to release funds to help someone who needs the help. Soon as I’ve got the advice (which it looks I have now) I’ll advertise at a price to sell. Love the bike which has put me off selling before, now someone else needs the assistance.

 

[Smartbazza]

I’m not that smart Bazza. I need to sell to release funds to help someone who needs the help. Soon as I’ve got the advice (which it looks I have now) I’ll advertise at a price to sell. Love the bike which has put me off selling before, now someone else needs the assistance.

youve hooked me and a few others! hopefully this helps in getting a fair price and release funds for you.

best

Barry

 

[JohnnyBoxer]

Put the spoon down JB

It starts. I’m not very good at it

They’re easy - it’ll have an auto decompressor when starting with kickstarter

 

[Robbieben]

Thanks Robbie. Maybe I’ll get the V5 first

Though at 800-1200 euro I’d be buying more, not selling my one.

To be honest they are getting harder to source even in Europe where prices are generally a lot lower than here in the UK which has pushed prices up a little.
If you can I'd suggest getting it UK registered and then make use of it. They are lovely to ride and in a couple of years will have gone up a bit more in value. Not by a lot but they are slowly creeping up.

 

[g00ner]

To be honest they are getting harder to source even in Europe where prices are generally a lot lower than here in the UK which has pushed prices up a little.
If you can I'd suggest getting it UK registered and then make use of it. They are lovely to ride and in a couple of years will have gone up a bit more in value. Not by a lot but they are slowly creeping up.

Thanks again. It was bought as something to engage with someone who needed an interest / distraction. Road trip, collection, interest. That person still needs help, more than I’m qualified to give. Money will pay for that help so it’ll still meet the reason for buying. Value isn’t the issue, more I get for it the more I can help hence the question re value. Appreciate your advice

 

[Robbieben]

Thanks again. It was bought as something to engage with someone who needed an interest / distraction. Road trip, collection, interest. That person still needs help, more than I’m qualified to give. Money will pay for that help so it’ll still meet the reason for buying. Value isn’t the issue, more I get for it the more I can help hence the question re value. Appreciate your advice

The big issue with the XL500R is that they aren't desirable as an off road bike as only producing 32 Hp they are underpowered & being 160 Kg are seen as heavy by most trail & green lane riders. However they are an exceptionally good bike to ride over distances with a little bit of light offroad thrown in.
They do have a market & as suggested, it will sell but you'll make more by having a V5 in your hand. It would still sell without but not perhaps where you expect it to be. I could be wrong & you might find the right person who is looking. Ironically now is a good time to sell the bike as many will be looking for a bike like yours to ride on the lanes in the winter months.
Put it up at what you want for it & see what interest you get, you can easily adjust down if you get a serious offer. GLWTS