Should I buy a Goldwing that has been laid down? GL 1500

Hey BFM,
Being as there is only "14,000 and some" miles on her...you can bet that the only maintanance she's recieved is a few oil changes.
Things to take into account:
Timing belts will need replaced. Not from mileage. From being 17 yrs old.
It is an interferance engine. They break...she's done.
Fuel filter.
Air filter...Possibly.
Cruz and Sub filters. Again...an Age thing.
Oil & Filter. Due to condinsation.
Vacuume hoses. Don't forget you gotta pull the carbs to get the ones under the ruber mat.
Drain & refill the rear Diff gear oil.
That's just a few things off the top of my head that will need done pryer to any lengthy jaunts away from home.
Hopefully you're a DIYer like myself. Otherwise ya need to take the Labor into account also.
I'm new to the Goldwing world myself.
I just picked up my first goldwing 96 GL1500se (teal green) late fall 2012.
She has only 45,000 on her. I took the winter and did all the above maintanance and a few other things she needed.
She purz like a kitten now and a real confort to ride. Picked her up for a song...$4000. Best 4 grand I've ever spent.
Hope I've helped or atleast shed some light on the subject.

I will second on all the maintenance issues
Fork oil
Molly on the rear splines and drive
time for new brake lines and flush of brake fluid
wheel bearings, front and rear

Most of all this and some others is the age and not mileage
regardless of what Goldwing you buy, much of this will need to be done, if the previous owner can't show you when it was done.

You will also want to look at Progressive springs for the forks, and maybe for the rear, also the alternator may be an issue as well.

there is more, just can't remember it all now.
Its your money, but see what similar GW are going for and see if it is comparable
You may visit with the owner and ask about all the listed items and see if anything has been done?? You may get him to drop the price once you have shown that you have a load of stuff to fix if you buy it.
Good Luck

I think the price is to high for a bike that has been dropped, even with the low mileage. Remember all the sitting can cause more damage than riding.

One thing about Goldwings, especially the 1500s, is that they have so much plastic to absorb the impact that unless it was a serious crash, there is not likely any frame damage. However you may still encounter bent or broken mounting brackets and other minor damage under the new plastic.

I have been looking at 1500s, and realize that it will take a whole lot of work on one even if it runs fine before I am going to go very far on it. The belts are the easy part. I would tear the whole rear end apart, inspect everything, lube everything, do the same with the steering head bearings, brakes, oil, coolant, remove and clean the carbs, the list is almost endless. It could easily take months if you have a full time job. And I have bought to many used bikes and cars that had a lot of small problems that would have become major if I had not found and fixed them right away.