Ever bought a bike and immediately realised your mistake?

[torags]

Originally Posted by (none)

uhhh...yeah...my K1200RS. Never rode or even sat on one before driving 5+ hours to pick it up. I could learn to deal with the heavy weight, even its appetite for premium fuel, i hated that it idled low, the FD input was leaking, i could tell it was going to eat tires, and every time i rode it i wondered what would break next. Oh, and the headlight sucked balls. That sublime power, awesome brakes, and good suspension just weren't worth it to me.
Sold it after 6 months with just over 3k miles put on it. I'd have sold it sooner, but Chicago BMW wouldn't send me the title (that a whole other can of worms...)

Sounds like my story. Bought a Sporty from the dealer & had it delivered to an aftermarket firm to work on. I had never rode a Sporty. Being old as dirt I figured I could buy a slower bike and be happy.

Rode it 350 miles to SF and knew I made a mistake. Two years later I sold it with 1100 miles. I tried to ride it but it gave me a headache.

Took a beating but it's best not to look back

[chazbird]

Last month traded my 91 K75S for a 08 KLR650 with 3000 miles. The jury is still out but so far I am unimpressed and have been giving it the name "Green Turd". It did have the three recalls taken care of (sign one?) So, its cheap, yeah, but it doesn't have to feel so cheap. Rev it past 4k and it sounds like a bailing machine going amok, the emissions system causes throttle hunting, it farts aplenty on off throttle, it sometimes isn't in neutral when the lights on, is difficult to downshift at slow speeds, the brakes feel wooden and require high effort (maybe that's good on dirt through) the temp fluctuates too much due to an indequate thermostat system, the legendary doo-hickey has been "fixed" but the spring isn't rectified, and of course later I find out there seems to be a problem with some '08's burning oil. Haven't found whether that applies to mine yet, but that'll really make you regret something. It also likes to corrode with abandon. All in all its a bike that rides fine, its the engine revving, the shifting and braking that's less than stellar, (or even good) and itsn't riding about that too? When you examine it closely it doesn't exude much quality or confidence. After several Honda's and Yamaha's I expect something better from Japan, Inc., but everyone loves them so I'll give it a go. It just doesn't inspire me to take good care of it - but we'll see if the adage of first impressions hold true. Maybe in a year of being in the Skinner box of operant training I'll love it too.

[brucifer]

Mine was an '03 Honda 1100 Shadow Spirit. Loved the way it looked in pictures, never ridden one or even sat on one.
My local dealer didn't have one so they had one brought in from another dealer. As soon as I saw it in person I knew it was a mistake. What the crack pipe was I thinking!
I never got used to the feet forward riding position or the lack of cornering clearance. Installed a jet kit and aftermarket pipes and although it livened up the motor a bit, it sounded terrible! Just a blatty, crappy sound!
Ended up selling it to a friend. Lost a few hundred on it but it could have been worse.

[Fundamental]

I bought a sweet RT that immediately was a complete lemon. Nearly made me swear never to buy another BMW. But now the k1300s is calling me, so I must be a forgiving sort.

[barnyard]

Not a bike, but.....

A couple of years ago, we were looking for a different car. Bonnie was getting sick of it and so was I. I really wanted a conversion van. While we were driving through a lot, Bonnie points at a Jeep Cherokee Classic and says, "have you considered one of those??"

Which I took to mean as, "You should get one of those, it would be awesome."

Even on the test drive, I had my doubts, but I bought it anyways.

Sold it a year later and bought a van.

Tom B

[Barnone]

Originally Posted by kraftwerk

It was so heavy and buzzy, and with only 100bhp it was like riding a clapped-out diesel.

Only 100hp? Gee, how much do you need?i

[sark]

Yamaha MX100. Abandoned it in a patking lot before I even made it home.

[beeper]

Kawasaki Spectre 750. Bought it cheap not running, cleaned it up got it running and painted it...after a 30 minute shake down ride on that torture rack with it's pull back bars and zero legroom it was parked out front with a for sale sign.
Most uncomfortable bike, ever. Never to be ridden by me again.

[MFS]

My first adult bike being a klx300 (awesome), I had gotten the bug for something different and on a visit to the local dealer got to talkin and he shows me this 1996 Husaberg 501 (fe?) in the back. I've bought 3 bikes off of this dealer now, but I'm pretty sure they lied through their teeth on the back story on this thing. I had "sucker" tattooed on my face that day for sure.
Kick start, left side, and often. Now this was almost 5 years ago, and granted my wrenching skills were nearly zero compared to what I know now.(thanks mostly to that bike). But when it ran it was by god the most awesome thing I have ever experienced. 2 months and only a few hours on it later, the bottom end went, split the cases, and there was sooo much aluminum in the bottom of that thing it was like a big soft metal sponge. Riding the klx while trying to fix the berg myself, and crashed my brains out every time, just couldn't downgrade my speed back down to kawi-capability.

Put a grand of parts into the Berg, bent the intake valves after putting er back together incorrectly, and purchased a spankin new 2005 525 exc. Other choice was a wr 450, went orange knowing that after my Berg experience, I knew exactly what the inside of that KTM looked like. Sold the Husaberg in the spring to a mech buddy of mine for $800. Lost $4000.00 total.

Have had the KTM for 4 years now, incredible, awesome, durable ride.

When I dream at night, I'm riding that 501.

And when I wake up, I realize that my 4 grand learning experience was the best I ever had involving a motorcycle. It has tought me more than the bullet proof KLX and the awe-inspiring Katoom ever will.

On second thought, maybe I'm in the wrong thread, the mistake I'm realizing now is giving up on that sucker!


MFS

[rhys]

I bought an Aprilia Mille RSV1000, Arrow can, mapped, BEAUTIFUL! What I didn't know was that the '03 Mille was a bike too long in the saddle for normal height folk, let alone my 5' 2"ness. I considered options, all of which would butcher a sexy machine, none of which would address the fact that the bike simply needs a tall(er) rider. My torso & arms were waaaay too short to counter-steer the handlebars. My bad.......

So I traded it toward purchase of a brand new '08 Bandit 1250S. Cut the Bandit's seat down, promptly logged over 15,000 miles on it, loaded it up with beautiful Givi hard bags, performed a Holeshot Stage II, then at 19,000 miles put Cogent Dynamics / Holeshot suspension front & rear, TB synch', PR2's, and recently put a really fine ceramic coated header sans CAT' on it. OHMYGOD, what a bike!

Now...... at 24,000 miles, trips to Yosemite, Northern Cali' dream roads, runs over Monitor Pass, Ebbits, Sonora, etc., our local "Mini Dragon", Alice's Resteraunt, The Junction, and on & on (and on....)..... all in only a year's time,

I have to come to grips with the fact that my 55 year old overweight body at 5' 2" is too short for the bike. I can't clear the hard bags when I swing a leg over, and any road surface slanted or irregular is too much of a challenge to get the bike off the side-stand so I can drive off; forget about stopping on goat trails unless there is a boulder near by to mount from.

I'm now the PROUD owner of a bike that is going to result in a pulled hamstring, cramped calf, some kind of strain, a hernia, or...... like that afternoon on a distant goat trail, unable to get out from under a 630 pound bike that (almost) fell on me because of a soft surface and wrong place to have parked.

No..... I didn't "immediately realise (my) mistake". And I still owe lots of money on it, I've poured money into it, it's customized for MY weight and MY short arms, and I'm stuck with a 130 hp / 96 ft.lb. (at the rear wheel) machine that's waaaaay too big and heavy for the likes of the troll I AM.

Again..... my bad.

[tundrawolf]

When I was younger, 16 or so, I saw a small Suzuki dirt bike in some guys yard. I asked him what he wanted for it, and I arranged a deal with his son to buy it for $50.

I took it home, cleaned out the carb, and got it to run. It only ran once. It barely had any power. When I took it apart, I found out there were major scratches inside the cylinder. That's why it never started again. I am talking deep scratches.

It was a learning experience and I really don't regret it too much.

[Snapper]

30+ years of riding and I finally bought my first Harley, the XR1200. Kept hearing how high quality the modern Harleys are.

Well, after 30 years of being a two and four wheel enthusiast, I might just have me another "first"..... a lemon law vehicle.

Too bad, I really do enjoy riding this thing.

[High_Side]

After spending a year lusting over a Ducati GT1000 I took the plunge. It took me just about a full day to get through my denial that Ducati could ever build such a lousy motorcycle. Unfortunately I had it for a full year. Fortunately KTM builds and excellent motorcycle in the Superduke

[SlowRoll]

Back in the early 70s I had been riding Brit bikes but was intrigued by the Harley. Traded my Triumph on a Sportster. Big mistake. It handled terribly & had no power. Only kept it about 2 months. Picked up a good BSA that made me smile again.

[kraftwerk]

Originally Posted by Barnone

Only 100hp? Gee, how much do you need?i

I reckon it would need at least another 65 to feel anywhere near 'lively'.