Bet you already heard the news or caught it here in Ridin’ On—Pope Francis let go of a sick Harley, a custom Dyna Super Glide gifted to him by the Harley bigwigs during their 110th anniversary bash in Rome back in 2013. But instead of tearing up the streets, His Holiness put it up for auction and handed over the cash to charity. That holy hog didn’t go cheap either. It raked in a jaw-dropping $327,000 at a Paris auction, with every dime going to Caritas Roma, a charity feeding and housing the homeless. Now that’s one way to turn throttle into good karma.
Since it’s April—tax season and all—I figured now’s a good time to talk about how you can donate your ride too.
Feelin’ extra generous? You might think about handing over your ride for a good cause. But unlike the Pope—who doesn’t have to deal with Uncle Sam—you gotta check the IRS rules before you roll up to donate your bike, car, truck, RV, boat, or even a damn airplane.
Plenty of charities are more than happy to take your wheels off your hands, and many already have solid programs in place to make it easy. Still, don’t just toss ‘em the keys—check ahead to see if they have any gift acceptance policies that might affect your donation.
And here’s the deal—just because a group is nonprofit doesn’t mean you’ll get a tax break for your generosity. Your councilman’s campaign or your weekend riding club might be nonprofit, but giving them your bike won’t get you any write-offs. Only qualified charities can hook you up with that tax benefit—meaning they gotta be IRS-approved as a 501(c)(3) organization. Religious groups? They count too, even if they haven’t filed for that official status.
If all you wanna do is ditch your old ride, donating it is easy—just call up a charity that takes vehicles, and they’ll haul it off, no questions asked. But if you’re looking to get the most out of the deal—for both the charity and yourself—it gets a little trickier.
Back in the day (before 2005), folks could write off the full fair market value of a donated bike, car, or whatever, knocking down their taxable income big time. The IRS defined fair market value as the price a willing buyer and seller would agree on—no pressure, no BS, just a straight- up deal.
Well, turns out too many people were cashing in on that loophole, and Uncle Sam wasn’t having it. So now, the IRS has cracked down hard. These days, you can only deduct fair market value under specific conditions—which we’ll break down for you. And don’t forget, if your state or city has income taxes, they might have their own set of rules to follow too.
If you’re donating a ride worth more than $250, you’ll need more than just a handshake. No receipt? No deduction. Simple as that. The nonprofit’s gotta give you a written acknowledgment that says:
• You didn’t get jack in return—no freebies, no perks.
- If you did get something, they need to spell out what it was and what it was worth. That amount gets knocked off your tax break.
- If it was just “intangible religious benefits”, they gotta say so.Now, if your ride’s worth more than $500, the nonprofit’s gotta add your name, tax ID, and the vehicle’s VIN to the paperwork. And yeah, you’ll need to file IRS Form 8283, Section A with your taxes.If we’re talking over $5,000, things get even more official. You’ll need IRS Form 8283, Section B, and in some cases, a legitimate and qualified appraisal to prove your bike’s worth.Most charities ain’t looking to keep your ride—they’ll flip it for cash ASAP and put that money to work. When that happens, your tax deduction is only worth what they sell it for—no more, no less. They’ll send you a report with the sale price, so there’s no guessing. But in the rare case a nonprofit actually uses your bike for its mission—like a church running deliveries or a charity using it for community rides—you might be able to claim fair market value instead.One more thing—don’t think you can just slap that donation on your taxes and call it a day. You can only deduct charitable contributions if you itemize using Schedule A of IRS Form 1040. And there might be other limits on how much you can write off, so do yourself a favor—check with your tax pro, your software, or straight-up with the IRS before you start dreaming about a huge tax break. You can call the IRS toll-free at: (877) 829-1040.When it comes to taxes, donating your ride is a deduction from your income, meaning the tax benefit depends on your tax bracket. So, if you’re cruising in the 28% tax bracket and you donate a vehicle worth $1,000, that’ll only cut your tax bill by $280. Not bad, but it’s not a full- on throttle either.Depending on your situation—and the ride you’re working with—you might wanna take a page from the Pope’s playbook. Instead of handing over the bike, sell it yourself first and donate the cash. That’s exactly what he did with the Pope-cycle, and damn, did it pay off. His Dyna Super Glide sold for more than 20 times what it would’ve pulled in without that holy signature. Now that’s how you play the game—max donation, max tax break.On the flip side, a California businessman recently dropped $26,000 on a 2011 Fat Boy at a charity auction for veterans, then flipped it again and raised another $12,000 for the cause. Not a bad move, huh? Tax-wise, he can’t deduct the full purchase price of the bike, but he can claim the difference if he knowingly paid more than the bike’s fair market value. As for the $12,000 he made by reselling it? That’s a straight-up cash donation and fully deductible.So, whether you’re clearing out space for a new ride or helping a cause, donating your bike could be a win-win. Time to make room in your garage and do some good!
