Posted by Witch Doctor on April 21, 2000 at 05:19:31:
In Reply to: Harleys Breakdown posted by Lynn on April 20, 2000 at 21:46:03:
Not just Harleys break down on the side of the road. I've had to be picked up many times on Hondas, Yamahas, and my oh-so-wonderful '98 model Suzuki Savage! My Harleys, when I rode them, tended to be *very* reliable. If you discount the fact that the ones I rode most were made in the mid-30's and were running mostly original parts, I could pretty much say I *never had* a breakdown. A properly maintained Harley Davidson, even the AMFs, will last for 40 or 50 years, easily. A properly maintained Japanese bike, on the other hand, will last *maybe* 10, if you're lucky. A lot of it just depends on the rider. As for the custom bikes not being put back together correctly, horseshit. Harley Davidson makes the most user-friendly motorcycle, period. A 10-year-old child can take apart and reassemble your average Harley, and it will run. Try *that* with a Jap bike! Half of the mechanics I know can't even put them back together right. The big bikes may seem to break down more often, but as Hogryder pointed out there are a lot more Harleys on the road than there are Japanese motorcycles. In regards to the one that broke down with about 200 mi. on the odometer, was the rider inexperienced or did they just not check the bike out before they rode it? And it's worth noting that you can easily get a lemon, no matter what brand you buy. For the first year and a half of ownership, that pretty much described the way I felt about my Savage. Once I got some time on it and did some necessary modifications, it ran great. Don't blame the brand for incompetent owners. If they don't know what they're doing, it doesn't matter what they ride - they'll break down or crash or have some other f-ck up that will result in the bike going home in the back of a pickup (hopefully in one piece).
As for having a truck full of spares, the Harley people don't really *need* the parts, but it is nice to have 'em along just in case (if that's really what they were doing). You have to remember that a lot of the modern Harley owners are *not* motorcyclists. They have money, they have spare time, they want to impress their friends, or they think that the hype and the corporate propaganda is true. They have no idea what they're doing, they have no business being on a bike (HD or other), and they need the security blanket feeling of having somebody along to bail them out when their poor pampered asses get sore.
***Get over it!*** A bike is nothing more and nothing less than a collection of various metals, plastic and rubber. They all work the same - they are all subject to the same problems. In a head-to-head contest, my money is on Harley Davidson and the people that actually know how to ride them.
-WD
PS: By the by, the best bikes I've owned were made in the USA. The Savage is a nice little toy. At 6'2", 230 lb., I damned sure want a big bike under me on a road trip!