Are forums a good gauge for reliability

[bikesnbones]

Having been on this forum a short while, something strikes me as interesting.
I'm not reading any horror stories relating to our bikes.
I've been on numerous forums over the years, for various bike I've owned, and in all cases, they are full of people's woe's.
Some of them, if you had read the stuff being written, and were thinking about buying the bike, you would avoid it like the plague.
Apart from a few little niggles, this forum seems to be pretty much clear of any major issues being reported.
As we are the people living with the bikes, I guess that's a good indiactor that whilst not perfect, our bikes do at least seem to be pretty reliable ?

[Gibson335]

...heard they were changing the name of the CBF1000 forum to the Wonky Alternator Moan Society...

[Twinspark]

Generally, you will see lots of issues on forums, and it's a good gauge as to how severe the issues are.

Back in the 80s, if forums had existed, the Honda VF750 forum would have been full of horror stories about camshafts...

The R1100S seems to be a pretty robust bike - can't think of too many known and prevalent issues.

If I look at the Aprilia forums, the big issue for the litre twins seems to be sprag clutches due to a weakness in the charging circuit wiring.

[Boxered]

It really does vary from forum to forum, But I have always found this one to be head and shoulders above any other that I've frequented, mainly because most owners tell it like it is, some have other favourite bikes/marques, some just love the BM foibles and accept the little niggles, I''m in the latter category.
Some forums will admonish you for daring to suggest that their chosen totem is perhaps fallible, and will therefore launch a veritable shitstorm ( this is now a certified term thanks to Germany's premier) but OUR forum is considerably better than theirs

Steve

[bikesnbones]

Some forums will admonish you for daring to suggest that their chosen totem is perhaps fallible, and will therefore launch a veritable shitstorm ( this is now a certified term thanks to Germany's premier)

Yeah been there.
I have a BMW R1200C and the main forum for this model is called Chromeheads based in the USA.
Dare to suggest there that the R1200C is anything less than the best cruiser ever made, and you'll be shot down in flames.
Actually speaking of this model.
There have been some very significant problems reported on this forum relating to final drive issues.
On the Guzzi forums, huge problems are being reported with the later 8 valve engines.
We're talking top end melt down here.
Niether of the above are isolated one off's either.
As I say, I don't seem to be reading of any major common issues here, leading me to think that the R1100/1200's are tough old boots.

In fact I even tried googling the subject, and turned up this interesting quote from a guy expressing an interest in the R1200S on an Aprillia forum.

I haven't been able to find any signifigant problems in any forums anywhere, in fact the only reference to problems is that there were none.

[Steve1200S]

I think the general activity of the forum counts too.

Most forums are hardly used (especially when compared to this one!) and almost inactive. The only reason people go on them is to ask for help with problems. People sign up, post for help on a problem, don't get a reply, then never bother again. So you have a forum full of issues and nothing else.

Their are issues posted up on here, but about 10x as many posts of Boxerbollox and general banter to water it down.

[eyore]

One thing I have noticed about this forum is the longevity of membership which is extraordinary as it shows people are keeping their sporty boxers. Most forums are transient places where people keep bikes for a year or two then disappear when the bike is sold.
Compared to the GS forums with their endless technical and mechanical problems, the S boxers seem far more reliable. (Reaches over to touch the nearest plank of wood.)
Regarding one make forums being an accurate barometer for reliability,I am not so sure as there is always going to be a somewhat biased and perhaps uncritical viewpoint. After all despite any problems people are still going to remain faithful unless we are talking GS

[Gromit]

It really does vary from forum to forum, But I have always found this one to be head and shoulders above any other that I've frequented, mainly because most owners tell it like it is, some have other favourite bikes/marques, some just love the BM foibles and accept the little niggles, I''m in the latter category.
Some forums will admonish you for daring to suggest that their chosen totem is perhaps fallible, and will therefore launch a veritable shitstorm ( this is now a certified term thanks to Germany's premier) but OUR forum is considerably better than theirs

Steve

^This^ very much so in fact.

If a search is done through many, many threads on the subject of issues with the 1100/1200S then yes, you will come across folk having had problems. The great thing here though, is that folk get on with fixing what problems do occur, and move on rather than bleating on endlessly about it.

Says a great deal about the maturity (lack of whinging basically) of the great folk on this forum.

The Blackbird forum (B.I.R.D) is also pretty good - there are some bell-ends on there - it's a big forum after all/law of averages etc - but they're remarkably objective on the whole.

[Herb]

This is a good forum for a number of reasons. I can't comment on the 11s, but with the 12s, there are so few around that forums like this and Pelican are very useful, and any problems will hopefully show up.

This forum is the friendliest but Pelican attracts a more global audience and is a useful resource. I rarely post there though, as there seem to be more people on there that are only interested in their own inflated opinions.

There are certainly horror stories out there about the 12s, but they do seem to be few and far between. One guy here had a total engine failure in the early days, but that seems to have been a one off. Final drives are considered fragile, but most failures were on the GS, but given the very similar design, it is an area I am vigilant about maintaining.

Quite a few battery issues show up on the 12 for some reason. I was talking to a fellow owner a few days ago and he had warped discs, which I have also seen other people have. Internal headlight mechanism seems to break on every bike that has a bulb change. Apart from some areas of poor finish like the front cover, thats about it as far as I know. They seem to be mostly reliable, and quite a few have done massive miles with only minor issues.

[slparry]

This is a good forum for a number of reasons. I can't comment on the 11s, but with the 12s, there are so few around that forums like this and Pelican are very useful, and any problems will hopefully show up.

This forum is the friendliest but Pelican attracts a more global audience and is a useful resource. I rarely post there though, as there seem to be more people on there that are only interested in their own inflated opinions.

There are certainly horror stories out there about the 12s, but they do seem to be few and far between. One guy here had a total engine failure in the early days, but that seems to have been a one off. Final drives are considered fragile, but most failures were on the GS, but given the very similar design, it is an area I am vigilant about maintaining.

Quite a few battery issues show up on the 12 for some reason. I was talking to a fellow owner a few days ago and he had warped discs, which I have also seen other people have. Internal headlight mechanism seems to break on every bike that has a bulb change. Apart from some areas of poor finish like the front cover, thats about it as far as I know. They seem to be mostly reliable, and quite a few have done massive miles with only minor issues.

I was quite surprised during a conversation with Peter (Herman) last week to hear his bike's still on the same clutch at 70,000 miles. Distills a little more confidence in my 11 as changing the clutch is the one thing that scares the bejeesus out of me as it appears to be quite a daunting task.

[bikesnbones]

[Distills a little more confidence in my 11 as changing the clutch is the one thing that scares the bejeesus out of me as it appears to be quite a daunting task.

It's not a pretty sight.
My dealer has a GS in for a new clutch at the moment.
Kinda looks like a horses head without it's body.

[Twinspark]

Somehow, I've ended up with a couple of bikes which are generally very robust and reliable (the 11S and Ducati 750SS) - but which have some expensive maintenance habits.

The 11S clutch and the 750SS belts.

Sometimes I wonder if I should just get something Japanese again as they run for years on little more than oil changes - but then I do something silly like buy Ducatis or Aprilias.

A bit like my cars - despite what everyone tells me, I always end up buying Alfa Romeos when I have a choice.

[Herb]

Somehow, I've ended up with a couple of bikes which are generally very robust and reliable (the 11S and Ducati 750SS) - but which have some expensive maintenance habits.

The 11S clutch and the 750SS belts.

Sometimes I wonder if I should just get something Japanese again as they run for years on little more than oil changes - but then I do something silly like buy Ducatis or Aprilias.

A bit like my cars - despite what everyone tells me, I always end up buying Alfa Romeos when I have a choice.

You have 2 bikes that are a doddle to home maintain. I used to change the belts on my 750 myself. The belts are pretty cheap and easy to change.

[Twinspark]

I don't like the idea of doing a belt change myself... I'm tempted, but it scares me!

As for the 11S, I still haven't got around to looking at changing the gearbox oil or bevel box oil etc.

I did about 25k miles on my old VFR800FI and only ever did annual oil changes - I'm not convinced either the BMW or Ducati would be happy with that.

[Herb]

I don't like the idea of doing a belt change myself... I'm tempted, but it scares me!

As for the 11S, I still haven't got around to looking at changing the gearbox oil or bevel box oil etc.

I did about 25k miles on my old VFR800FI and only ever did annual oil changes - I'm not convinced either the BMW or Ducati would be happy with that.

Seriously, belts are intimidating, but really easy. Check out the Allen key method on you tube.

11s. Fluids, time consuming because you have to do 3 lots, but again very straightforward, as are valve clearances and most of the other routine stuff.