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What bikes did you not like?

8K views 98 replies 60 participants last post by  Gabriel Syme 
#1 ·
Arferbrick make a good point in another thread about how to determine what style of bike you really need. I've done that and was really happy with my Honda Shadow and especially the Street Triple.
I've also researched bikes and after the first ride didn't like at all. The Ducati Multistrada just didn't fit my riding style at all. I think I was trying to ride it too slow.
There have been other bikes I've test ridden just for fun and didn't like. A CBR 1000 was a very short test ride.
What bikes that you've ridden didn't suit your style?


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#3 ·
Statista.com shows about a 300 average sales per month by HD in the UK. Yes, that is only 3600 per year. But, it is like that in all counties,that is why they are # 2 in non Chinese or Indian world sales numbers.

Doesn't hurt our feelings on this forum but may on HD forum that that Brits like.
 
#4 ·
Rode a 1200 HD sportster, a honda vtx. Didn't care for either.No character. Saw the speedmaster and bougt it. Happy so far!
 
#5 · (Edited)
The Harley 750 Street. Absolute crap. I rented one for a couple of days out in BC. I was very sorry that I did. When I hit about 90kmh, it felt like the front end was bouncing around—it did not inspire confidence in any way, shape or form. It's also made for a pretty short person. I'm six feet tall, and I felt like I was on a minibike. I was actually considering buying one... until I actually tried it.
 
#7 ·
Took the words right off my keyboard. A bobbed/chopped cruiser obviously being the devil's own creation.

Chiropractors the world over must just love cruisers. The unnatural position they force the lumbar spine into must have put many of their children through college.
 
#8 ·
Had a Sportster and loved it. Traded it in for a New Heritage Softail, that was a beautiful bike. But, never rode it. Just wasn't for me, not sure why. Love my Speedmaster, and Yamaha road Star. The Speedmaster is the most fun bike I've ever owned.
 
#11 · (Edited)
The bikes I really REALLY do not like would have to include the new Polaris Indian Chieftains and Scouts, the Victory Vision, and the Harley V-Rod which comes in a close third. The Indians and Victory are based purely on aesthetics (they may be perfectly good bikes but they hurt my eyes and my brain), the V-Rod mainly because of the people who buy it.

Of the bikes I currently own but really REALLY do not like, I have an old Harley Shovelhead I'd like to push off the end of a pier but can't afford to take the financial loss for that final act of defiance (plus getting caught would suck).

The bikes I really REALLY want to like but always end up disappointed and disillusioned in when I look at them closely are the Royal Enfields. I'd really like to see a RE with manufacturing details that look good under a magnifying glass. I would pony up some cash for one of those just to have it around.
 
#13 ·
The worst bike for me was the Electra Glide I rented in Arizona. I so wanted to like it. Was almost okay in town, but didn't cut it up in the mountains. I kept hitting the rev limiter at around 5k and the handling was pretty appalling. The bat wing fairing buffeted my helmet at any speed above 30 mph. Transmission sounded like bottles breaking. Basically the worst bike I have ever ridden. Sorry if that offends someone. But even that Electra Glide is like a sport bike compared to my buddy's Arlen Ness Chopper. He has to pull over every 20 miles because his hands go numb from the vibration and his back is screaming. And there is no chance he will keep up with the Bonneville in the mountains.

I also rented a BMW 1200RT for 3 days last summer. I was thinking of buying one so it seemed like a good way to try one out. Glad I did - it had a dry clutch and a clunky transmission and the gas tank was wider than I would have liked. Also the seat was curved like a very small saddle and after a couple hours it jammed my crotch against the tank. It did have its charms though and I still think about it. It was fast and I like the power wndshield.

I am going to rent a Goldwing next time and go 2 up with the wife and see if we like it.
 
#16 ·
I had a Yamaha SR500 back in the day and it never lived up to my expectations... and .... left me afoot one fine afternoon. Just about all the other bikes I've had over the years have had their good points and were enjoyable rides.

Brother Dear's 57 Sportster was flat-out hell to ride. No performance and above all no brakes. But relatively speaking when I rode it it was pretty damned aged and I had moved on to things like electric starters, reliable engines and disc brakes.
 
#17 ·
Putting aside bikes that I hate ie. almost all modern bikes which have been designed by the guy who used to do the special effects on the Transformer movies – the one machine that I have actually borrowed from a dealer and ridden, it was a Rocket 3.
I have to admit that I rather enjoyed the ride but all I could think of was the seismic reverberation that would be picked up world wide when I dropped it.
Sadly I have dropped every bike I have ever owned, though never at speed, and the idea of trying to pick up a Rocket did not bear thinking about.
A minor gripe was that I couldn't understand why a motorcycle needed handlebars the width of a two lane road. So no R3 in my life, thanks.
 
#19 ·
I've rented two bikes in the last year.

K1100RT, too compact of a sitting/cockpit/foot pegs for this 6'2" soul, actually had elbow problems for a couple of weeks from holding them in an upright position.

Road King, same upright compact position for my frame and hated the forward controls. Without a backrest I just can't see how that cruiser position would be tolerable for more than a couple of hours.

Both made me realize how much I love the day long comfort of my Sprint.
 
#21 ·
There's only one bike that I don't like. Just one. And that bike is the one that starts with the letter "H". All because I ran head first into a goalpost one time. You know the one...






The Hyosung. Yeah, that's it.





And, and also maybe the Husqvarna.


Oh, and the Horex.








And the Humber... and the Hongdu, and the Honda... all the Hondas, and the Holden. And the Hodaka, and the Hobart, the Hinde, and the Hesketh. The Hercules, the Henderson, Heinkel, the Hecker, and the Hazelwood. The Hagg Tandem, and, and, umm? Did I forget one? I thought there was one more that I hated with all the white hot hatred of a thousand burning dumpster fires. Gee, now I feel silly about all these H-bikes. But oh the joy of a good dislike thread! Thanks for the opportunity for another magnificently sub-standard post!




Nort

(with special thanks to Roger Hicks "The Encyclopedia of Motorcycles)
 
#22 ·
Hey, my dad had a Hercules back in the day.

I can honestly say I've never ridden a motorcycle I didn't like at least a little bit. However, I like some more than others. I'd say the Rebel 250 was the one I liked the least, but it was still better than not riding.
 
#23 ·
I thought I liked my Honda Shadow until I tried something else.

Sorry to say this, but the Thruxton. Though it's a modest forward lean it was too much for my arthritic back. Same with the Sprint. I liked the engines, but not the ergos. On the flip side the Bonneville and Tiger 1050 are very nice (upright seating).

Thunderbird, 20 minutes and my back was done in, but that happens with any cruiser with feet forward.

Indian Scout. Blah, Blah, Blah. Much prefer my T100.

KLR 650. Not my style.
 
#24 ·
I had a Harley Dynaglide, I couldn't ride it 60 miles without my back screaming, only bike I ever rode that did that, I've ridden a 78 cb750 cross country. Second time I went through a stop sign because I couldn't stop, I sold it.

Had a KLR 650 for a year, put about 200 miles on it, slow, piggish, super top heavy, and my knees are too shot for off-roading, anyway. Traded the 2007 KLR for a 1980 r80, I got the better end of the deal.
 
#25 ·
Bikes I hate? The industrial BMW GS series (and Triumph Tigers, for that matter) than require the rider to be at least 7' tall and not be bothered by owning an RV of a motorcycle that looks like an erector set. A bike meant to ride through Alaska that usually only goes to Whole Foods or somebody's office. Also hate the bros' Hayabusu modified with the extended chrome swing arm and two rear tires.
 
#26 ·
I rented a Harley Electra something or other a few years back for a 2 day road trip. God, that was the worst piece of crap and it should be illegal to have those on the road. The worst brakes and my butt was sore after 20 or so miles. I think HD has only one engineer on staff. They do not need an engineering staff, just a few guys or gals to pick the new colors and new crazy names for the new model year. My 2nd choice is the BMW GS series. I see these guys at gas stations and they have about $4,000 of off road extras on there bikes and the only off road they do is when they pull on to the side of the road to argue who has the best GPS and the biggest metal boxes hanging off the sides of there bikes.
 
#28 ·
First bike I hated -- 1968 Harley Sportster 1000. After 35 miles, I literally had to be helped off the bike, as the seating position (not to mention the joke of a seat) caused my legs to go to sleep and I couldn't move them.

2nd bike -- 1969/70 Triumph Trident. Most unreliable piece of c--- I've ever owned, and the only bike that has ever left me stranded on the side of the road.

3rd bike(s) -- any bike with the footpegs behind the hips. My arthritic hips just don't allow my legs to bend that way! This includes the Triumph Thruxton, the Suzuki SV650, the Honda 919, and just about any similar bike I've tried to ride. The pain in my hips just isn't worth the ride, no matter how much I like the looks of the bike(s)

4th bike(s) -- any bike with forward controls. I don't want to sit up straight with my legs sticking out in front of me. This includes many H-D models and a few Triumph models. Tried a bunch, my back just couldn't take it.

YMMV
 
#29 ·
I had always sort of liked the styling of Harley Vrod, but then I took one for a test ride. They look cool, but it's not a comfortable position at all.

My brother and his sons rented Harleys for a day and we all took a ride together. We kept swapping and comparing the different models, but I didn't like any of them. I think they enjoyed my little SV650, though.

 
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