Visordown - The Top 10 Bikes that Deserver Better

Thing is, in years to come its the low volume bikes with loads of "character" that are an apprciating asset.

I reckon the 1098 Streetfighter values will stabilise & eventually go up in the not too distant future.

I like lists like these means the 1000R I have will go up in value too as people obviously want these and not the inferior V4 ********runs and hides***********

Sport Tourers were all the rage, then ADV's (still growing actually) then naked street fighters were all the rage, and now who knows. Ducati is dropping the Streetfighter unfortunately but has come out with that new smaller monster that looks like the 1200. Triumph is rumored to be redesigning the Speed Triple (good because the newer models sucked) and possibly making it bigger. But I don't think this particular class (ours) is going anywhere or BMW wouldn't have come out with the 1000R and the Jap makers wouldn't have all come out with nakeds in the past two years. However, bikes do seem to be getting bigger for the most part.

One thing for sure, the mid-weight sport tourers seem all but dead, and are being replaced with sport ADVs which sucks. A 550 lb sport bike with luggage is my favorite type of bike. Triumph discontinued the Sprint ST which I loved and replaced it with the GT, which I have and still love but not as much, and now that's been gone since 2011. Honda is not selling the VFR in the states anymore either. THat leaves nothing under 600lbs. The BMW R1200RT is just about 600 but is as boring as my ex's lovemaking.

I hate to say it but I think it's us older guys that are screwing with bike styles as the motorcycle demographic keeps shifting more and more to older riders. The shoulders, wrists and backs just seem to be catching up to allot of folks forcing them into more upright riding postures which usually brings a bigger chassis along with it. Look at Ducati now as opposed to 10 years ago. The global edgy sport bike co. is now a psuedo cruiser co.

I like most of the bikes on this list and wish they all stayed around. However, I think the Vstroms, Multis, Concourses, are here to stay along with the polarity of the lighter smaller Jap sport bikes. Nothing in between it seems. It is even rumored the K1300S is no longer being produced. ANd the younger turds in NY all seem to want the classics for some reason and aren't helping the curve any to compensate for the aging demographic. Every dork in Brooklyn rides a Bonnie or a Scrambler. Great, a proliferation of under performing, poor handling throw back bikes to counter the Italian sport cruisers. Just what we need!!!

ARGH!!!

I don't know about that but I also think that Mr police man can spot a power ranger on a crotch rocket a mile off and so gives them a tug.
where as me in my jeans and jacket on the sensible upright go sailing past, even if I go sailing past faster than the power ranger was going.

I borrowed a Streetfighter for a day while my own bike was being serviced.It was a fookin' horrible thing,...I could'nt wait to take it back.

I test rode the Ducati Street fighter before buying the V4. Awful bike. More uncomfortable than a sports bike and couldn't feel the front. Hated every moment on it.

Mikkel said:

I test rode the Ducati Street fighter before buying the V4. Awful bike. More uncomfortable than a sports bike and couldn't feel the front. Hated every moment on it.

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Yep,same here.

Worrying for Aprilia though. They should have made a fortune out of the Tuono and the RSV4. Both class leading bikes.

Down to a weak UK dealer network and poor marketing I think. Not that I mind having an amazing and relatively rare motorcycle mind...

It amazes me that there aren't more Aprilia dealerships, the bikes are awesome and would surely sell like hotcakes.

Strange really!

Dealers and owners hate dealing with Piaggio in the states. Allot of dealers have dropped Guzzi and/or Aprilia due to really poor warranty honoring and customer service. That and we wait a month for parts to arrive from Italy. Piaggio as a company is a nightmare. Vespa is about the only thing they seem to care about.
Now, I'm told Aprilia is the least problematic of the Piaggio groups and is easier to work with, but we have pretty weak dealer support around here and there's a reason for that. That and few people even know they even exist. Naked and euro bike fans do, But none of my harley or Jap bike friends ever heard of them. They ask "is that a Ducati?" I'm like no, it's an Aprilia. Guzzi's are a little more popular for some reason, but have an equally weak dealer network.

I like having a unique bike but I don't want Aprilia to pull out of the US market. But then, if this bike turns out to be a headache I may not want another Aprilia anyway.

Holy ironic coincidence. Just as we are speaking about this I go to the dealer today to look at something and he tells me they are going to stop selling ALL piaggio products next year. Aprilia, Vespa, Piaggio scooters, and Moto Guzzi. THey just got Ducati in and no one cares about the other Italian bikes anymore. THat and they say what everyone else says, Piaggio is a headache to deal with. This concerns me a little as a still have a year and a half of warranty left and they only have one devoted Aprilia tech, from Italia, at the moment.

THat leaves only one dealer far away from me in Brooklyn NY. Pretty much the only Euro bikes that are safe to buy in the US are BMW, Ducati and Triumph. And I'm done with Triumph plus they lost two dealers in my area recently. KTM doesn't seem to be hitting mass appeal just yet. The only other bikes I would want are the BMW S1000R and the KTM Super Duke 1290. It gets better, the closer of the BMW dealers sold off it's Franchise and now the nearest one is an hour away. BMW's tend to have allot of recall issues.

Ducati here I come! Oh wait... they don't have anything I like -

WTF?!?!??!

Take your Aprilia to the Ducati dealer. They are all bike mechanics and a bike is a bike. The only issue is parts, but everyone outside of Italy has that issue.

with these funky electronics (different on all of them) and a V4 vs a L-Twin? I dunno. I suppose the Duc mechanic would be the next best thing. Outside of warranty that is. True on that parts. It's going to suck either way.

Ric Flair said:

It amazes me that there aren't more Aprilia dealerships, the bikes are awesome and would surely sell like hotcakes.

Strange really!

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They treat the dealers like *****, the warranty work decisions take forever, the spares backup is dire.
You will not find anyone praising the speed and efficiency of the spares back up service.

Caveman said:

with these funky electronics (different on all of them) and a V4 vs a L-Twin? I dunno. I suppose the Duc mechanic would be the next best thing. Outside of warranty that is. True on that parts. It's going to suck either way.

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Try an MV Agusta :dunno

Dealer support's worse for those.. Purdy things though.

The Ape dealers up here aren't too bad, have used Allen's for parts and they are good for that. My local workshop has a mechanic who has owned a rsvr for years so has dealt with all the little niggles etc. Also helps that Griff does regular tours as well. Not sure if I would get a V4 as there aren't as many about where as there are lots of parts on evilbay for the V2. Not much help for those in the US though