Reliability?

[bigdom86]

Hi all

Growing up i was always told to stick with Japanese bikes as they are reliable especially as a daily commuter, have always had honda since then. Looking for a new commuter and im almost set on a kwak z800 or 1k however the new duke 790 and also the old duke and hypermotard. Generally are ktm and Ducati still seen as unreliable or have things been ironed out now?

Cheers

[stinkwheel]

A friend bought a new Diavel last year. It's been back under warranty three times now.

So it would appear to be business as usual then...
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[chickenstrip]

Some people have bikes that are reputed to be unreliable, and never have a problem. Others have bikes that are reputed to be the pinnacle of reliability, and have nothing but problems. But on the whole, some bikes seem to have less problems than others. I hope this answers your question
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Chickenystripgeezer's Biking Life (Latest update 19/10/18) Belgium, France, Italy, Austria tour 2016 Picos de Europa, Pyrenees and French Alps tour 2017 Scotland Trip 1, now with BONUS FEATURE edit, 5/10/19, on page 2 Scotland Trip 2 Luxembourg, Black Forest, Switzerland, Vosges Trip 2017
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[Alex A]

If you're concerned about out-of-warranty maintenance costs, then IME the lowest risk option is to stick with Japanese-made stuff.

I've owned 13 Honda motorcycles, and the only non-consumable issue I ever had was a failed Reg/Rec on a 1992 VFR750F. It was 16 years old / 40k miles at the time. The four Yamaha's I've owned have been absolutely faultless. One of three Suzikis I've owned had an issue (burned out stator on a DR-Z400SM).

I've owned 8 Italian motorcycles, Guzzi, Aprilia, MV & Ducati (some new, some old). 6 had significant problems. 1 had a moderate problem (failed quickshifter). 1 was perfectly reliable.

I haven't owned a KTM, but everyone I know who has has experienced issues.

Triumph are very reliable in my personal experience, and based on feedback from owners I know. BWM - I don't know.

All of that being said, it won't stop me buying Italian bikes! But you need to be prepared the the inconvenience and cost (out of warranty).
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Current: Ducati Panigale R / Ducati Streetfighter S / Suzuki GSX-R1000 L5

[RhynoCZ]

Speaking of single cylinder KTM motorcycles, the cylinder and piston are consumables on most of them.
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[Alex A]

[RhynoCZ]

Thinking of it, what about Honda FMX 650? Not very exciting to ride, however it is very reliable and good enough as a commuter. A friend of mine used to own one and once you remove the EGR it performs alright. I enjoyed riding it in the city trafic, not great on the highways (vibrations), but that's gonna be a problem of all the single cylinder enduro/supermoto type of bikes.

Also, Suzuki DR400, I'd call this one a KTM done right.
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'87 Honda XBR 500, '96 Kawasaki ZX7R P1, '90 Honda CB-1, '88 Kawasaki GPz550, MZ 150 ETZ
'95 Mercedes-Benz w202 C200 CGI, '98 Mercedes-Benz w210 E200 Kompressor

[trevor saxe-coburg-gotha]

[ThatDippyTwat]

My Korean Hyosung is more reliable then my VFR.

Forum clickbait aside, it's actually true, and it's down to neglect. The Korean bike though ratted because it was cosmetically rough, was looked after mechanically by the previous owner(s).
The Honda wasn't. One of them was a fucking gorilla with a breaker bar. The Honda's been on the back of a recovery truck when it spat an oil cooler pipe in the outside lane at 70*

*it was 70, honest...
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'98 VFR800 (touring) - '12 VFR800 Crosrunner (Commuting) - '01 KDX220 (Big Green Antisocial Machine)

[chickenstrip]

I haven't ever had a bike give me reliability issues. All Jap except for the Street Triple. Strokers, including a couple of tuned ones (but to be fair, didn't have those long before I punted them out). Mostly IL4s, which I do tend to consider as the most likely to remain reliable, but wasn't always my reason to choose them.

Some have had daily use, some not. But then, until my current bike, I haven't kept anything much longer than a year.
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Chickenystripgeezer's Biking Life (Latest update 19/10/18) Belgium, France, Italy, Austria tour 2016 Picos de Europa, Pyrenees and French Alps tour 2017 Scotland Trip 1, now with BONUS FEATURE edit, 5/10/19, on page 2 Scotland Trip 2 Luxembourg, Black Forest, Switzerland, Vosges Trip 2017
THERE'S MILLIONS OF CHICKENSTRIPS OUT THERE!