What's to Like about Motorcycles

I agree that 883's are slow. I bought my vtwin to go fast in straight lines or corners. However, I had to set the bike up to that.

I am buying a zx1400r in the next few weeks for a purpose built racer, I do agree, for all out track performance, I think the metric sport bikes are better.

 

A Chinese knockoff with a fancy name, a high price, and an engine that shakes it apart on the highway? SERIOUSLY?!?! Can you get parts for it? Honestly...I'd rather have a Rebel. At least I KNOW that will run 20 years with even spotty care!

 

What the heck are you comparing, dude? My Helix managed 70+MPG, my wife's Comet handily tops 65 and will touch 70 with some care, and even my 485lb Burgman manages 56. My coworker's V-star manages high 60's.

An oil change on my Helix (1000-1500 miles) cost me $5! Might cost $10 on the Burgy. (3500 miles) On my Dakota (every 5K)...it's a little more.

 

Women are not impressed by a vehicle that is dangerous, uncomfortable, and dirty. Women like speed, yes, in fact it's probably the best drug there is to make them horny, but if you put a woman on the back of a Ducati going 200 she'll probably knife you when you stop, whereas when you remove her from the Lamborghini in some Italian forest glen she'll just tremble gently and look faraway as you lay her down.

 

Johnypag is an American motorcycle.

Were you thinking of this?


http://www.scooterdepot.us/250cc-custom-bobber-motorcycles-street-legal-bikes-p-731.html

 

Shut the hell up...

 

An 883 will easily break every speed limit in the US that I'm aware of but then so will any 500 cc motorcycle I'm aware of. If a motorcycle can easily break the speed limit then it's "plenty fast enough" for riding on the street.

Harleys are designed for crusing though the twisties and only idiots ride winding roads like they're on a race course.

I would agree that the Street 500 and 750 are designed for average size men and women and not for a 6' person regardless fo whether they happen to be male or female. Any person above about 5'8" might find it a bit cramped but until I actually ride one it's hard to be sure.

 

JP bikes are built in China, shipped here for final assembly. Honestly, Id rather have that one...if I get a China bike, that one is half the price of a JP!

 

and that's why there are so many choices out there. You find what suits your personality as well as your application.

 

A Helix is a 250cc scooter, burgman is a scooter. 50mpg is what the average motorcycle gets. I have a Majesty. Filter is 10 dollars, oil is 9 dollars a quart times 2 quarts. Not sure what kind of oil you're putting in your bike, but it obviously doesn't have a filter. That's 30 dollars per oil change in my bike. My car is 5 dollars a quart times 5 and a 5 dollar filter. Same price.

Tire changes for a motorcycle: 85/tire, 4 times in 40,000 miles

 

I average 41 mpg city/highway on a very large displacement motorcycle.
1,440cc

A rear tire will last about 5,000 miles on it.

 

That's right. He posts about a long-out-of-production 250cc scooter. That's not the average motorcycle. A burgman isn't the average motorcycle either. Scooters are outsold like 100 to 1 to conventional motorcycles.

 

Are you hammered?

 

Liz's Comet is a 2010...Yamaha still makes the Vstar. Perhaps yours would get better mileage if it ran properly? Comparing a tiny economy car to an 1800cc $25,000+ touring motorcycle is idiotic.

 

Nobody did that. Harley's get about 45mpg. A tiny economy car? The ford focus isn't tiny. What's idiotic is to say that riding a motorcycle is more economical than driving a car. It's not, and I've proven why. I never said compare it to a 25k touring bike. Just compare it to a Vtwin harley, which is every other motorcycle on the road today, about 45mpg. I know, I've talked to enough owners.

 

I only know one person with a Harley...a 2004 Sportster 1200. He's averaging 53-54mpg. Perhaps something is wrong with your bike?

 

Bull(*)(*)(*)(*).

http://www.hdforums.com/forum/touring-models/546666-average-mpg.html

Overwhelmingly people are in the high 30s to low 40s. I went up a few mpg and went to 45.

 

my sporty, a very tired 94 1200, got over 50 on the hiway, but did bad in town, about 35

- - - Updated - - -

your avg harley rider, blips the throttle, or is hard up to speed, ive seen over 50 mpg myself. LOL just looked at the thread, yes, ultra's dont get the same mpg as a sporty LOLOLOLOL

here ya go. http://www.hdforums.com/forum/sportster-models/239108-sportster-mpg.html

 

I'll be damned, they ARE built in China!

 

This dude lives in Rapid City...I imagine his riding is ALL highway. (Well, mostly secondary 2-lanes. He reports the bike has a "sweet spot" at about 60.)

Also: a H-D isn';t broken in until 8-9,000 miles. His mileage steadily rose from 47-48 to 52-55 between 4K and 9K miles.

 

I agree completely.

 

How many mpg I get with my Sportster (1200cc) depends a lot on my riding. If I'm doing winding mountain roads I'm on and off the gas a lot and I'll get about 45 mpg but on long straight highways I can top 50 mpg without much of a problem. Around the city I often never get higher than 3rd gear with a lot of stop and go and obviously my mileage will drop down to about 40 mpg because of it.

It is also true that the break-in for a Sportster is about 5,000 miles because my mpg increased about 5 mpg after I reached that point. The engine is tight when first purchased and then loosens up over time and that results in better gas mileage.

 

China has very high quality machining capabilities using the latest CNC machine technology. That doesn't mean you can't get junk products from China because they will cut quality for price reasons but that typically isn't because of the machining quality. In short the parts can be very good but the products may not be.

For example when I investigated forks for my Stone Free II chopper project there are some springer forks from China that I could purchase for less than $900 but they don't have the same quality as the American made forks from Motorgirl. I'm actually going to use a girder front fork but I did investigate the springer forks as well as both are "old school" when it comes to choppers ("glide" forks should not be used on an extended fork motorcycle).

 

I get such a kick outta most you Fat Boys.Or Fat Bobs.Whatever.
One's MPG will depend almost entirely on what RPM you spin.
Bit then that sin't even accurate because Harley Bubs are kinds thick in the
head.They Live to blip their throttles.Every blip lowers the MPG,without even
moving a foot.
Plus this business of breaking-in an engine.That once the engine is properly broke
in VOILA ... better gas mileage.Don't expect much better MPG just because an engine's
internals are broken-in. That might have been the case 50 years ago when
the tolerances of manufacturing an engine weren't as strict.
Which means todays engines could start off as new with full synthetic oil.
I remember when I bought the new model M109 and was on a forum.
Everyone was in a hurry to get aftermarket exhaust to sound deeper.
The aftermarket took it's sweet time in getting out new exhaust.Cobra used to
always be the first out.And Vance & Hines was always last.
I remember a M109 Forum member said the mechanic at the dealer he bought
the bike told him that the M109 will start to sound deeper once it's broken-in.
That the OEM exhaust will open up after a while.
Total Urban Myth.
Yes,after maybe 50,ooo miles and 15 years,the OEM exhaust will eventually
rust out and develop holes.That will cause a deeper roar.
Another Myth that Harley dealers used to tell new customers { I heard it
firsthand and my Harley riding buddy bought right in }
is to make sure and always use premium. That Harley Cruisers reguire premium.
Total bullcrap. That depends on the Compression ratio.
Like take the CVO HD- Screaming Eagle Fat Boy of '05.
It has a compression ratio of 8.8:1. A cruising range of 168 miles
and Fuel mileage of { 36/46/42 } low/high/average with a price of $27,996.
For a bike to reguire Premium the compression ratio would need to be
9.5:1 and higher. Even at 9.5:1 a bike could run on regular unleaded.
Basically a Break-in is for making the piston rings conform as precisely to the
bore and " fine finish the bore ". Rings have to SEAT.Components carried in
a plain bearing like the crankshaft and camshaft also have to seat and conform.
Break-in should be done as thermal cycling.With as many cycles { 3 or more trips }
where you ride the bike until the engine gets to full operating temps and then
park the bike until it's cooled down completely.Just short trips,not extended ones.
Also do not baby the bike.If you baby the bike during break-in you will never get the
maximum performance out of it.Because the engine has to have enough stress
generated to push those rings in and seat properly.That does not mean red line.
Halfway to 2/3rds of red line.Anything more will probably create too much heat.
heat is the enemy of an engine because it effects the connecting rods and
main bearings,
Also never Lug a new engine.Thats THE worst thing to do.

 

Air-cooled engines need higher octane fuel...they run hotter & detonate more easily. And yeah, Harleys aren't fully broken in until 8-9k miles.