Tiger 955 advice please

[roadkill]

Currently own a 99 Tiger 885 which has never missed a beat in over 12 years of London traffic use. Blinding!!
Fancied something a bit later and spotted a 2007 Tiger 955 on Fleabay with 13000 on the clock claimed as 'good condition'  Went to view it and it's in fair condition, but pretty sad for a 2007 nonetheless. No history to back up the claims and It's been left out in the elements for all of its life with a lot of corrosion to the engine casings and has clearly not been cherished or particularly cared for. Usual rust on the bolts and clips, bubbling to some of the black work and slight pitting to the tops of the fork stanchions. Loose ignition barrel, that kind of think. Paintwork to tank, fairing, mudguar and panniers all in good condition bar a few scuffs on the panniers, handlebar ends and hand guards. The current owner bought it off a fella in the forces six weeks ago and freely admits that the bike has been stood around  for a good while. Last time it was taxed was May 2011 according to the disc and  it passed its current mot with a bit of cleaning and new pads, calipers cleaned and a new battery. It appears to have a recent chain on it too.
Long story short, the bike was displaying signs of overheating with the temp guage just over half way and the fan kicking in as it should. Radiator filler tank is full of brown looking water which would suggest tap water and possible rust. Breather hose under the saddle was blowing clean and clear, slightly viscous water suggesting a lack of antifreeze and possibly a touch of oil although some antifreeze does have a slightly viscous feel to it. Further investigation pointed towards a blocked feed pipe on the radiator filler tank as the return appeared to be working with evidence of bubbles. Checked the water pump and its fine, but clearly rusty water in the coolant system. No water in the oil at first glance although the oil is clean and would suggest that its been changed recently perhaps by the original owner as the current owner claims not to have changed it.
I suggested that the current owner make further investigations and I received a call from him this evening to say that he had stripped the filler tank and found it to be full of sediment and the feed pipe to be blocked.
My question is this, if water has not been circulating and the bike has been run for forty minutes as the current owner admitted it has, what damage if any has been done. The engine sounds sweet but, if whatever water was in the engine came out of the breather pipe under pressure in that forty minutes, allowing the jacket to run dry, has it done any damage to the engine. Is the temperature sensor located where it could pick up and read such a problem correctly because while I ran the engine, it never moved into the red and I am fairly convinced that there is not a cylinder head problem. The other issue is that as the bike has not been correctly serviced since 6000 miles and possibly had an oil and filter change when the chain was replaced 1800 miles ago, has there been any lasting damage to the engine by not using the correct Triumph approved coolant. The bike is £2850 and although a bit scruffy, will scrub up with a little TLC, barring the obvious corrosion which is quite noticeable in places. The owner has offered to drive it down to London by way of apology which is a 75 mile trip, so I am assuming any cyclinder head/block issues as a result of 'running dry' will manifest itself in the normal way. Your thoughts please!!

[PeteH]

Walk away....£2850 is seriously cheap for an 07...theres a reason.

[Sin_Tiger]

+ 1 uncared for, a project perhaps but only at half that price.

[Chris Canning]

Walk away....£2850 is seriously cheap for an 07...theres a reason.

Absolutely actually I run not walk!! when I've bought a bike the first question 'Has it ridden in the winter' if the answer is yes I'm gone,I'll do that if I want to,but I wouldn't buy a bike of any one else that has.

When there's stuff like this out there and he'll take an offer

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Triumph-Tiger ... 20c8a78d74

[roadkill]

Actually I ended up buying it.....for £2700 with 6 months tax and a years mot

Turned out to be the radiator cap...

Cleaned up quite well...

Rides as it should...sweet engine and box...

Fitted a Hagon adjustable shock and a Triumph sports exhaust

Had it checked over and its had its 12000 mile service together with a new chain, pads and tyres...so all in all a bit of a bargain I'd say

[gilly527]

I'm glad that all worked out for you, I have to admit, I would have ran away from it. Let us all know if you come across any other issues.

Treat her well!

[HockleyBoy]

Actually I ended up buying it.....for £2700 with 6 months tax and a years mot

Turned out to be the radiator cap...

Cleaned up quite well...

Rides as it should...sweet engine and box...

Fitted a Hagon adjustable shock and a Triumph sports exhaust

Had it checked over and its had its 12000 mile service together with a new chain, pads and tyres...so all in all a bit of a bargain I'd say

Good to here it worked out well. Probably not worth splashing out on a perfect bike anyway as it sounds like you are like me and commute into London all year round, which is pretty hard on any bike.