Your most reliable bike?

[Easy-X]

As is very apparent, I don't know much about these motorised velocipedes. I'm curious as to bikes you have had that have been surprisingly reliable.

(Setting aside consumables like fluids, chains, etc. unless it's "it was a great bike but I needed to change the oil every 1000 miles!")
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Husqvarna Vitpilen 401, Yamaha XSR700, Honda Rebel, Yamaha DT175, Suzuki SV650 (loan) Fazer 600, Keeway Superlight 125, 50cc turd scooter

[redeem ouzzer]

My YR5 is it's original form didn't get much fettling at all for the first 7 years. Plugs once a year, cursory look at the carbs and automatic oiling and that was it really. It was extremely tough especially considering the thrashing it received. Compare and contrast with it's performance this year. Three engine rebuilds so far (one to fix 6th gear and two to sort terminal piston failure).
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Be a REAL MAN!

[Diggs]

GSX750F and GSXR750M. As long as you don't ride them in winter....

My 885 Speed Triple has been no bother also - superb build quality!
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Now - Speed Triple, old ratty GS550, GSXR750M
Gone (in order of ownership) - Raleigh Runabout, AP50, KH125, GP125, KH250, CBX550, Z400, CB750FII, 250LC, GS550, ZXR750H1, Guzzi Targa, GSX750F, KH250 x2, Bimota SB6R and counting...

[garth]

XT600e. 13,000 miles offroad in three and a half months. Two chain adjustments, a front sprocket and oil and air filter changes.

That's it. Valves didn't move and 65+ mpg.
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You ain't a has been if you never was

[NJD]

ZR7S because it just worked, and started on the button in all weathers without hesitation.

Had the callipers in my hands plenty of times, but the time I'd come to sell it I could get round all three of them in no time at all.

Would probably own another one.
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The do it all, T̶h̶e̶ ̶b̶r̶o̶k̶e̶n̶ ̶o̶n̶e̶,̶ ̶T̶h̶e̶ ̶b̶i̶g̶ ̶l̶u̶m̶p̶,̶ ̶C̶h̶o̶n̶g̶ ̶N̶o̶o̶d̶l̶e̶

[stevo as b4]

Most of them were really, with the leisure riding I've done.

To pick I'd say my ZX6R and my first KMX 200.

Least reliable was my Peugeot speed fight (I messed with it), and the tatty TZR 250 I shouldn't have bought, as I didn't have the desire at the time to restore it. Got let down by my CG125 with a dodgy coil, but it was a simple cheap fix, so I'm not gonna dis it! Oh and I blew up another KMX 200 due to not changing the piston on time. You learn from such things though!

My current KMX 125 has had lots of niggles and electrical silly faults, but it's still not shaken down from a full restoration yet, and I've been messing with the engine again, so time will tell.

[weasley]

1997 Yamaha YZF600R Thundercat.

I bought it in 2001. I sold it in 2018. In that time the only thing that needed replacing that wasn't a consumable or serviceable part was a single spark plug cap (and even when that failed the bike still ran, just a bit more slowly).

When I sold it it still had the original clutch, rear brake pads, all brake discs and all wheel bearings. I only replaced the battery once. I never replaced a single indicator bulb.

It was bulletproof - I never once gave a second thought to whether it would start or get me to my destination (and it always did, even when that destination was 4 countries away).

Contrast that to my KTM. In the 18 months I have had it I have had to replace warped front discs, fuel filters (which stopped the bike running) and a failed MAP sensor (ditto). It's a decent ride but there's always a nagging doubt in the back of my mind.
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Yamaha XJ600 | Yamaha YZF600R Thundercat | KTM 990 SMT | BMW F900XR TE

[MarJay]

Any of my Buells.
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[pepperami]

Another vote for the mighty ZX6R
I keep on top of maintenance and so far it has never been any trouble and I’ve had it for years.
The only non consumable I’ve had to replace is a frayed clutch cable.

Second place goes to my Hyosung GT250R.
Four long Scottish trips + a couple of Welsh trips and all the stuff in between and it has only coughed once and that was in the middle of a rainstorm that would have worried even God!

Many moons ago I had a little Suzuki DR 125 that never ever caused me any trouble and went EVERYWHERE .
It was the carbed model and being a single cylinder, there wasn’t a lot to it.
Spares were never an issue for the little DR 125 being a Suzuki.

All the old two-smokes I have owned have needed more input to keep them on the road or competing (motoball).
That said, I still loved them.
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I am the sum total of my own existence, what went before makes me who I am now!

[stinkwheel]

'91 VFR750.

Only ever had consumables and tuning parts. I pre-emptively changed the reg/rec.

I killed a '97 one due to riding it through three winters. It also killed the original reg/rec. Also has some minor niggles with the instrument panel wiring and the starter motor clutch but nothing serious.
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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.

[DRZ4Hunned]

[doggone]

I tend to buy new or nearly new and look after them for at least five years, so none have failed to get me home.
On balance Yamaha have covered most trouble free miles between them, an XJ900 needed one ignition coil (still got home from France on two cylinders intermittently!)

[om15]

I had five Hinkley Triumphs over 19 years, not one problem, ever, top build quality and reliable components.
Yamaha very good, DT175, XT500 and currently Tracer 700, all good bikes.
All BSAs have been challenging and required constant attention, surprisingly on my second Royal Enfield and have not yet experienced any problems, but both bikes later Efi models.
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Alcohol doesn't solve problems, but neither does milk

[wr6133]

'91 zzr600. Did silly mileage, lived outside under a tatty cover, treated it like the disposable £400 hack that it was. Crashed it a few times as well. Was impressed enough with its refusal to die I ended up buying a nice clean '04 one.

[Polarbear]

I can't remember any of my Hinkley Triumphs having problems.

The only problem I had with my Goldwings was the 1800 in Germany in absolutely atrocious rain when the speed sensor on the front wheel stopped worked. It dried out OK though.

The one bike I owned that sticks in my mind as bad was a Suzuki GT500 which had issues from new but of course that was back in the 70's.
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Triumph Trophy Launch Edition

[garth]

[1198]

My beloved 1990 ZZR1100. Bought to keep for a summer only seven years and 40k later it’s bad little more than consumables and a new (second hand) oil cooler. It’s now on 75k, and despite looking tatty is still good for 160mph (on an autobahn!!!).

[Easy-X]

Seeing a lot of love for Jap bikes... pretty unsurprising
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Husqvarna Vitpilen 401, Yamaha XSR700, Honda Rebel, Yamaha DT175, Suzuki SV650 (loan) Fazer 600, Keeway Superlight 125, 50cc turd scooter

[Sister Sledge]

Honda Cub 70. Yes it shat a main bearing one day but it kept going for two weeks until I could be bothered to fix it - I did that in a cramped kitchen using basic tools on an evening. I reused gaskets and the engine oil too. Mesh oil strainer? Is there one?
This bike was abused. Constantly flat out and spent most of its life with me taking short cuts to work across ploughed fields. Bought the bike for £45 and sold for £35.

https://live.staticflickr.com/4888/45871363885_5e853bbeaf_b.jpgGrandad! by Craig David, on Flickr
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CCM 404 DS

[Ice Burger]

I've got a 2013 Peugeot tweet 125. Picked it up for £400 with a year's MOT.

It's in rough shape, the speedo is bust and the odo has been frozen on 43,000 miles (yes miles not km!) since I got it. The exhaust is shot out and sounds like a lawn mower, the brakes have 3 settings, off, not working and total lockup, also the idle speed has a mind of it's own and will pick anything from 1000-3500rpm. The kick-stand requires an actual kick in order to move it and the high-beam switch is a permanent choice once activated.

However I love the bike, it goes from A to B and will even take you to C. I've adapted to the described problems and have a tool to get round on that leaves me without anxiety when I abandon it in a dark East London corner. I'm bloody pleased with my purchase because I've gotten well what I paid for and see absolutely no signs of the motor stopping.

[martin734]

My current Pan-European. It is more reliable than most of my cars have been.
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Current bike: ST1100 "Big Red"

[Suntan Sid]

RD350 YPVS F1
Thrashed it, crashed it, used it, abused it, couldn't kill it!

Despite the scare stories that people perpetuate about older 2 strokes, I can't recall any, of the many I've owned, letting me down!
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"Everybody needs money, that's why they call it money!"

[Bhud]

Quite a tough question - not sure know how to answer this one, because a bike that runs well up to, say, 120k miles before becoming uneconomic or difficult to fix isn't what I would call reliable. If you need to replace, say, a primary chain or starter clutch, and the costs of doing so mean you might as well be restoring a 70s superbike, then it's not really reliable, because who could be bothered to do that with, say, a 600 Diversion? So, taking into account the cost of parts (some reliable bikes have poor parts availability for major components) and the cost of splitting the cases and buying fresh gaskets and seals when that major engine work time comes around, then either the C90 or CG125, out of all the bike I've had, would win the "most reliable" award. C90 - no issues even after putting in the wrong oil. CG125 - no issues except a flasher relay needed replacing.

[chickenstrip]

Apart from a 400 Superdream, I haven't owned an unreliable bike, but then, I haven't owned anything Italian!
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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!

[trevor saxe-coburg-gotha]

'90s cb500 has been decent - did have a do w/ sticking float needle at one point a couple of years ago and think it was on the verge of some kind of hydro lock catastrophe. It sounded ghastly when I tried to start it. But that was then and this is now and it runs as good as it ever has, seemingly. Otherwise, it's been fine. Got 40 odd k on it.

zx9r has been solid as fuck internally but the cycle parts surrounding it are all *very* "consumable". Great engine though - got 60k on it.

I could list three or four more Jap efforts that I've put 10k+ miles on. They're all great bits of machinery - and all from the '90s / early 2000s. All they ever want is air in the tyres, fuel in the tank and new oil every 4-5k. The odd valve check helps, but you could probably skip them tbh, at least if they were adjusted properly at around 10-15k and you don't rag the living fuck out of them all the time. A clean and oily chain also helps.
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"Life is a sexually transmitted disease and the mortality rate is one hundred percent."

Mobylette Type 50 ---> Raleigh Grifter ---> Neval Minsk 125