OutHouse
Lifer
I have 46,000 on my BMW 1200RT. still a rock solid bike.
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Miles on a motorcycle
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I have 46,000 on my BMW 1200RT. still a rock solid bike.
Zenmervolt
Elite member
I enjoy them for what they are. 🙂 Next bike will likely be a CB1100 or, if I lose my self-control, a Rocket III though.
Harley sold 171,000 motorcycles in the US in 2014. That's out of 335,000 street motorcycles sold in the US in 2014. That's 51% of the total US street-use motorcycle market. If we include dual-sports, the total US market hits about 370,000, which drops Harley down to "only" 46% of the US market.
Basically, Harley makes up about half of the US motorcycle market (excluding scooters and dedicated off-road machines). Never underestimate the power of the mid-life crisis.
Even if you include off-road only machines and scooters, Harley still sells 2.25 times more machines in the US than Honda (the number two seller in the US).
ZV
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smackababy
Lifer
Everyone knows you don't buy a Harley if you like riding motorcycles. You buy them if you like working on motorcycles.
JulesMaximus
No Lifer
I'm not even sure I agree with that. At least with modern Harleys anyway and as long as you don't slap on all the aftermarket bullshit most Harley riders do. As they come stock they are probably no worse than a Ducati. Nowhere near the reliability of a Japanese bike though.
jdoggg12
Platinum Member
Just curious what experience the commentators in this thread have...
"I have friends that ride"
"I've ridden for the last couple years"
"I've ridden for a decade +"
"I'm a MC mechanic"
"I work in the industry"
"I did a quick google search so I could participate"
etc
I've ridden for 15 years and have worked in the industry for 6. My current job shares a warehouse with one of the more prolific mechanic shops in the SF Bay area and they all comment that Harley bikes are the least reliable bikes on the road.... but not due to craftsmanship. Their problems, according to the guys wrenching, stem from the ridiculous amount of vibration in them... by design. When you have a 600 lb machine that shakes like a washing machine on spin cycle with a brick in it, well, you're going to run into problems. haha I like Harleys but I've always believed this was (majority of) the cause for their problems - and they all agreed. It's hard to keep shit bolted together for a long time when it's doing its best to shake itself apart!
"I have friends that ride"
"I've ridden for the last couple years"
"I've ridden for a decade +"
"I'm a MC mechanic"
"I work in the industry"
"I did a quick google search so I could participate"
etc
I've ridden for 15 years and have worked in the industry for 6. My current job shares a warehouse with one of the more prolific mechanic shops in the SF Bay area and they all comment that Harley bikes are the least reliable bikes on the road.... but not due to craftsmanship. Their problems, according to the guys wrenching, stem from the ridiculous amount of vibration in them... by design. When you have a 600 lb machine that shakes like a washing machine on spin cycle with a brick in it, well, you're going to run into problems. haha I like Harleys but I've always believed this was (majority of) the cause for their problems - and they all agreed. It's hard to keep shit bolted together for a long time when it's doing its best to shake itself apart!
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JulesMaximus
No Lifer
I've ridden for more than 10 years and have owned Japanese bikes, Italian bikes and ridden Harleys, BMWs, MV Agusta, Hondas, Suzukis, Kawasakis, Triumphs and Ducatis. I have more than 60,000 miles experience riding and have done some wrenching on my own bikes over the years.
I've never owned a Harley and I doubt I ever will. They just don't appeal to me at all.
I work with a guy who has a 2003 Harley and he has put over 60,000 miles on his. He has had some trouble with it but nothing really major. He loves that bike.
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jdoggg12
Platinum Member
As a brand, what's been your favorite? I'm a Yamaha fan myself.
Harley isn't my style
Ducati is too expesive (for me, otherwise I'd love one)
Hondas are boring... they're great machines but they've never shined in any area... they just do everything well
Kawasaki is good but, like Honda, never excited me
Suzuki never felt refined enough for my taste. I never liked the clunky feel of their transmissions (compared to my Yamaha's at least)
Triumph - no opinion
I started riding on an SV650S. It was my roommate's but he never rode it... I put 10K miles on it before I got my first bike, an 03 R6. At the time it was, IMO, the best looking bike on the road. It was bullet proof and had a butter-smooth transmission. After looping it while doing a high chair I got an 04 R6. I would go to track days with friends and we'd swap bikes to see how they felt... R1, Gixxer 750, 998, and a few others.
Now I ride a WR250X... it's the most fun bike I've ever owned!
JulesMaximus
No Lifer
Hehehe, I put almost 17,000 miles on an SV650 I used to own. Great bike. :thumbsup:
I love Ducatis and I have owned 2 of them (my current bike is a 2014 Multistrada 1200 S). The Multi cost me a bit more than other bikes in its class but not that much more really and it is far better equipped than comparable Japanese bikes. Better chassis, better brakes, electronically controlled semi-active suspension. It was approx. $17k OTD.
I was able to negotiate a pretty good deal on a new 2014 as the completely new 2015 Multistradas were going to hit showrooms soon and they wanted to move the 2014s they had in stock.
Plus, it came with panniers, heated grips and a center stand. I had ridden one a couple years before I bought mine and fell in love with the way it rode, the power and how comfortable it is. Just a great all around bike.
So, yeah, I'm a Ducati guy I guess. Although, I would own other brands.
Oddly enough, I've never ridden a Yamaha (actually, that's not entirely true, I haven't ridden any modern Yamahas-I rode a cafe'd 650 from the late 1970s once which was cool).
OutHouse
Lifer
http://www.moneytalksnews.com/the-most-reliable-motorcycle-brand-not-harley/
this put quite the buzz on the RT forums
this put quite the buzz on the RT forums
Zenmervolt
Elite member
Ridden for almost 20 years now.
Started on an old Honda CB, still have it, and bought a 1200cc Sportster about six years ago that has since been my primary bike. I'm admittedly a light user (~3,000 miles/season) but I've been around a while.
Honestly, I think the biggest issue with Harleys is the typical owner. There are a lot of people who buy the bikes for the lifestyle and have very poor mechanical understanding. This leads to indifferent maintenance and some very poorly installed aftermarket parts when Joe, who has a basic tool set from Target, thinks he can install things on his own. The number of owners who install questionable piggyback engine management systems or disconnect oxygen sensors for "performance," etc is absurd.
When owned by an appropriately mechanically sensitive individual I don't think they're that bad. The current ones are actually pretty good, in my experience. I would agree that they're not quite as perfectly made as Hondas they aren't puddle-leaving crap buckets either. My Sportster has definitely been more reliable than my friends' (modern) Triumphs and a little better than my friends' Ducatis (and FAR easier to work on, almost infinitely easier), but I do think the Japanese bikes still have them beat.
ZV
pauldun170
Diamond Member
Harley Twin Cam engines have had issues for several years now. 1999 - 2006 you could expect tensioner issues around 20K and after 2007 you could expect 80K.
Basically if you have a Twin Cam Harley you need to check the tensioners every 20K.
In addition to some other issues, you have owners who as soon as they purchase the bike and prior to even riding it they have the all sorts of mods don to the bike. Next thing you know you have pieces breaking off, parts failing and electrical problems that you would not see if the bike was left alone.
Basically if you have a Twin Cam Harley you need to check the tensioners every 20K.
In addition to some other issues, you have owners who as soon as they purchase the bike and prior to even riding it they have the all sorts of mods don to the bike. Next thing you know you have pieces breaking off, parts failing and electrical problems that you would not see if the bike was left alone.
Hard to go by those figures. The problems aren't always the quality of the make/model but with the owner and or dealer.
Take the Can Am Spyders.... Disclaimer, I own one. I owned several bikes before that. The Spyder suffered from some pretty serious recalls with the early models as well their ability to spontaneously burst into flames. Not surprising given this was a new product segment for BRP.
Add to that a dealer network that primarily offered BRP watercraft and ATV's. Many Spyder dealers were ONLY BRP dealers...Not used to the aspect of a product that could be used a a daily driver and not simply a toy. Service quality at the dealers was horrible and still is with many of them.
Me? I've had pretty good luck with most of my rides, but I work on them myself as much as I can and stay on top of things. I think the percentages presented in your post are way higher than they actually are.
JulesMaximus
No Lifer
Having owned a first model year Ducati I don't think I'd ever buy one again. They have too many bugs to work out at first. When the 2010 Multistrada 1200 was released they had a bunch of issues but by the 2014 model they had those issues long worked out. I saw the 2015 model at the IMS in Long Beach a month before I bought my Multi but decided it would probably be better to see if I could get a good deal on a 2014 rather than wait and pay full price for a 2015 model.
I'm glad I did because the forums are full of reports of issues with the new model. Mine has been relatively trouble free. Other than a wonky fuel gauge I've had no trouble with the bike. The fuel gauge sending unit has been replaced by Ducati with a rev D part that seems to have cured that issue.
For the most part it is stupid little things like that (along with the plastic fuel tank issue) that probably contribute to the Ducati scoring slightly worse than Harley on the reliability rating. Ducati engines are fairly bulletproof if somewhat maintenance intensive but their motorcycles are as competent as any other brand as far as performance.
If you have an excellent dealer, and I do, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Ducati to anyone looking to buy a bike. If you have a dealer with a poor reputation I probably wouldn't recommend Ducati unless you feel you are up to the task of maintaining it yourself.
I like Ducatis because they are different, fast, sexy and fun to ride. I really don't want a cookie cutter bike like everyone else has.
I'm glad I did because the forums are full of reports of issues with the new model. Mine has been relatively trouble free. Other than a wonky fuel gauge I've had no trouble with the bike. The fuel gauge sending unit has been replaced by Ducati with a rev D part that seems to have cured that issue.
For the most part it is stupid little things like that (along with the plastic fuel tank issue) that probably contribute to the Ducati scoring slightly worse than Harley on the reliability rating. Ducati engines are fairly bulletproof if somewhat maintenance intensive but their motorcycles are as competent as any other brand as far as performance.
If you have an excellent dealer, and I do, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Ducati to anyone looking to buy a bike. If you have a dealer with a poor reputation I probably wouldn't recommend Ducati unless you feel you are up to the task of maintaining it yourself.
I like Ducatis because they are different, fast, sexy and fun to ride. I really don't want a cookie cutter bike like everyone else has.
marincounty
Diamond Member
Most motorcycles are junk at 100k miles. The wheel bearings are shot, brakes are shot, etc, etc...
Motorcycles are ridden much harder than cars are driven in most cases. They rev much higher than car engines, increasing wear.
Plus motorcycles are improving very fast, by the time you have 50k or100k miles on a bike, they have come out with much better new bikes, faster, better handing, safer with electronic rider aids. Time to buy a new bike.
And Harleys have improved a lot, with much better production quality than old ones.
They still don't compare to a Japanese motorcycle in power, handling, reliability or anything else. But, different strokes for different folks, I salute anyone that rides a bike.
Motorcycles are ridden much harder than cars are driven in most cases. They rev much higher than car engines, increasing wear.
Plus motorcycles are improving very fast, by the time you have 50k or100k miles on a bike, they have come out with much better new bikes, faster, better handing, safer with electronic rider aids. Time to buy a new bike.
And Harleys have improved a lot, with much better production quality than old ones.
They still don't compare to a Japanese motorcycle in power, handling, reliability or anything else. But, different strokes for different folks, I salute anyone that rides a bike.
OutHouse
Lifer
my 1200RT has a fuel strip in the tank instead of a float. ITS ABSOLUTE SHIT. Its so bad BMW has warrantied that part until 2021. ive had mine replaced 5 times and each time the dealer charges BMW 500 bucks. BMW stopped using that pos strip and went back to the float in 2009.
JulesMaximus
No Lifer
The Multistrada has a float but there is an o-ring in the mechanism that swells when it sits in gas that contains ethanol so the float gets stuck, usually at the bottom of the tank, or that's what they're saying on the forums anyway. I've seen pictures of the sending unit and it is definitely not a fuel strip.
From what I've read this has been an issue with the Multistrada for the past 5 years and they're now on rev D for the part. I had the rev D part installed in my bike under warranty back in August and it has been fine since.
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