10 Cruisers That You Should Buy Used In 2026

Modern motorcycles offer a level of sophistication and safety that is far ahead of anything that has come before. The argument that “they don’t make them like they used to” holds no water, either. Product quality has improved across the board, and although we are starting to see some elements of planned obsolescence creeping in, it has not reached wide scale adoption just yet.

Unfortunately, there is a “but.” All the added safety equipment and nice-to-have features these new bikes come equipped with adds to the bottom line. Experienced riders shopping on a budget will either need to settle for less power, or turn to the used market. Over the past decade or so we have seen the demise of several great cruisers, and some of them represent fantastic used buys to the right buyer.

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1994 Honda Magna 750

Price Range: $1,000 – $3,000

Even if you are not particularly fond of cruisers, the old Magna 750 just represents incredible bang for the buck. This relatively lightweight cruiser was equipped with the same V4 engine found in the VFR750 sports bike. On paper, these bikes only had around 90 horsepower, but in the right state of tune, this is a bike capable of making well over 100 horsepower. If you are after a fun sleeper project, this is a great option.

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2002 Harley-Davidson VRSCA V-Rod

Price Range: $3,000 – $5,000

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After stagnating throughout the 90s, Harley-Davidson teamed up with Porsche to build a modern liquid-cooled halo model back in the early 00s. Although this might seem like an odd collaboration, Porsche successfully transitioned from air to liquid-cooling just a few years prior. History will tell us that this didn’t really work out, with Harley persevering with air-cooling up until today. But the V-Rod is still an iconic motorcycle that offers a lot of value to the right buyer.

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2005 Honda Rune

Price Range: $11,000 – $13,000

Honda

Honda reportedly lost tens of thousands of dollars on each Rune sold. Engineers and designers were allowed free rein, and it pretty much proved why this can’t always be the case. This expensive experiment proved that this particular kind of chrome-heavy custom cruiser was starting to go out of style. From a distance, it looks like your run-of-the-mill metric cruiser, but upon closer inspection, you will see unbelievable attention to detail and a host of one-off parts. It is already a highly collectible modern classic, but for now, it remains accessible and well worth a look at this price.

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2005 Triumph Rocket III

Price Range: $4,000 – $6,000

Triumph

The massive Rocket III will never be accused of looking like a “run-of-the-mill” metric bike, but it won’t ever be accused of being pretty either. Its impressive 144 horsepower excuses the less-than-spectacular styling. That record-breaking triple is very much the reason why anyone would consider buying the bike, but it is also far from perfect, as it lacks finesse and is certainly not the smoothest powertrain in the world. It is the sledgehammer of the motorcycle world.

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2005 Yamaha V-Max

Price Range: $5,000 – $7,000

Yamaha

The first-generation V-Max is a truly legendary motorcycle. While there were certainly muscle bikes that came before it, when this came out back in 1985, those other bikes suddenly became irrelevant. Unfortunately, its complex V-Boost system will eventually fail, and when it does, it will cost a small fortune to fix. A test ride is critical here.

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2011 Triumph Thunderbird Storm

Price Range: $3,000 – $5,000

Triumph Motorcycles

This is as big as any parallel-twin motorcycle has ever gotten. Naturally, it will vibrate a fair bit, but it also established itself as one of the best alternatives to a Harley throughout its production life. While these bikes are reliable, and the build quality is generally good, some level of corrosion is par for the course.

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2012 Harley-Davidson XR1200X

Price Range: $6,000 – $8,000

Harley-Davidson

The XR1200 was a strange model. It was always a great-looking bike that offered a neutral riding position, but struggled to lure buyers away from other brands thanks to a relatively steep asking price. Traditional Harley enthusiasts didn’t care for it either, with regular Sportsters costing a fair bit less, but now that prices have come down a bit, it makes a lot more sense.

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2012 Yamaha V-Max

Price Range: $10,000 – $12,000

Yamaha

The second-generation VMax came out in 2009, and took pretty much everything up to 11. With 200 horsepower, it wasn’t just the most powerful cruiser money could buy, but it is still the most powerful production bike Yamaha has ever built. Fuel injection replaced the failure-prone V-Boost system, so as long as the previous owners took care of basic maintenance, these bikes will remain as reliable as any Yamaha.

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2013 Moto Guzzi California 1400 Custom

Price Range: $5,000 – $7,000

Moto Guzzi

An Italian name and an unconventional transverse V-twin engine layout held the California 1400 Custom back. This is somewhat understandable, as most consumers would have been hesitant to buy anything Italian back then, but over time, these massive twins proved reliable. These bikes were also praised for having superior handling characteristics to contemporary alternatives, but the design was not the most original.

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2021 BMW R 18

Price Range: $9,000 – $11,000

BMW

BMW has lowered the price of the R 18 a couple of times already since its launch back in 2021. Customers who bought these bikes for close to $20k will be fuming because you can find them for under $10k just four short years later. At this price, it is a bargain because of the impeccable build quality, but the truth is, just like the aforementioned Moto Guzzi, it just won’t appeal to everyone.

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