Triumphrat

OhioSpeedmaster

Hello Everyone,
Longtime lurker, First time poster!
I have a qestion for all the die hard bonneville riders here;
I have been a long time rider ( 20+ years ). My last two bikes were a 2000 Harley Davidson Fatboy and a 2004 Harley Davidson Road King Custom. I have owned just about every make of motorcycle out there. I am fortunate enough to be in the financial position that I can purchase just about any motorcycle I want. I am unfortunate enough to be in a marriage that will only allow me to own one bike at a time!
I am getting a little tired of riding a scooter that everybody on the block has and for a little over a year I have been really wanting to purchase a Bonneville Black.
My concern is that although I truly love this site and the posts on it...it seems like everyone has alot of problems with their Bonnies. I am use to getting on the back of my Harley and riding 10,000 miles plus a year without anymore than routine mainenance required.
My question is can I expect the same trouble free riding from a Bonnie? Or am I better off just sticking with the "same old, same old"
Any helpful comments would be greatly appreciated.
Happy riding to all!

tba-golfer

Welcome Ohiospeedie!

You may have just raised the eyebrows of every poster here... in that a goodly amount of time is spent decrying the dependability of HD's vis a vis Triumphs.

You may be taking our detail oriented fascination and nit picking, for complaints, grousing and angst about dependability. I think you'll find that overall, we are thrilled with the engineering and reliability of our beauties.

Again... welcome!

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What's the most amazing thing you've ever found?
Impossible to say. You see there's something amazing every two or three weeks.

Local Hero (1983)

Geoff

people may only get on line to figure out a problem, but they never do when its just another day on the road.
my 2005 t-100 has 6500 trouble free miles on so far, and we're looking forward to many more.
Geoff

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I never wanted to lead, and I never wanted to follow.
I just wanted to ride

DrPat

these things are utterly dependable mate - much more so that Harleys in general, in my experience - I've owned both, like V-twins too, but the Bonnies are brilliant. Anyway, worth a try - you can always go back - good luck with the decision - cheers, Pat

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Dr Pat

Big_Rick

Ohiospeedmaster, go for the Bonnie. you'll love it. I've only had a new Bonnie since the spring, but put on 16500 km (just over 10000 miles) from April to October and loved every one of them.
An absolutely excellent bike.

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Some people are a lot like Slinkys.
Not really good for anything, but bring a smile to your face when you push them down the stairs.

Copper

One thing to remember is that people post on here when they have a problem, but nobody posts just to say their bike is running great....

That said, I have found my bike to be extremely reliable, I have almost 19,000 miles in two years and have never been stuck on the side of the road....The one thing to watch out for is that it takes a LONG time for parts to come in, even simple things like speedo cables and stuff. I have had the bike laid up for as long as a month waiting for parts to arrive in the past.

Good bikes, though...I would get it. Obviously, since I did....

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My Baby

Hilts

My bike has 12,000 km and I've had no problems except a broken case gasket, which I replaced in about 30 min. I think a lot of the problems with the Bonnies, and many other bikes for that matter, is from unnecessary tinkering, which is why a lot of people buy them in the first place. But if you want a reliable bike, get a Bonnie and leave it stock.

DickBender

No problems in 22,000kms. Other than the clutch but thats more my fault.
BTW I wouldn't have my address on the signature part. You can't be too careful.

Darcy

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-Darcy-
BIR #174


"My eyes.....the goggles do nothing!"

Rainier Wolfcastle

keef

Welcome OhioSpeedmaster.

My bonnie has been very reliable, despite having been bored out to 904cc and tweaked and thrashed to within an inch of its life.
Get the bonnie, you'll love it - it's a way of life.

Oh, and Darcy might have a point about the signature though.
The white zone is for loading and unloading only.
If you want to unload, go to the white zone - you'll love it.
:-D

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whoa

It's not a matter of reliability, but your satisfaction with Triumphs twin. I passed on the Bonnie for a Tiger, but a year later traded for the Thruxton. Been having a blast ever since.

Big difference in power and performance, but I love the style and its really a fun bike.

Hopefully you have a dealer nearby that can get you a on a test ride.

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05 Thruxton