[DaveInWoodland]

Reliablity by brand
Brand Percent failed
Yamaha/Star 11%
Suzuki 12
Honda 12
Kawasaki 15
Victory 17
Harley-Davidson 26
Triumph 29
Ducati 33
BMW 40
Can-Am 42

 

[Hui]

You could have one hundred surveys and you would get one hundred different out comes.
Who gives a.... Everybody knows a bike is bought with the heart not the head, unless you're using to deliver blood or pizzas that is.

 

[62Yellow]

Interesting numbers, who put those together? I agree with Hui....
I like to think Statistics are just dead data, and have no direct affect on future data, (my Scrambler) Full Speed ahead, damn that data!!!!!....

 

[DaveInWoodland]

And I am thinking that people that bought Covairs and Edsels may have felt the same way

I have trusted Consumer Reports over the years and while they are never 100% they have been relatively close when recommending or not recommending a product. While in the big picture 33 out of a hundred isn't really a giant difference then 15 out of a hundred it is a statistical consideration.

I guess I will let everyone know a year from now if I am in the 33 percentile or not.

 

[Glaggs]

Years ago early 90's would never have touched a ducati or a Kawasaki and certain Suzuki's as they had terrible reliability . I know 1st hand as I was in the trade. Today Ducati is as reliable as any other - again I'm in the trade. Just ride, service and ride.

 

[DaveInWoodland]

Yeah and I'll keep my fingers crossed as well too I imagine. Oh well you only live once.

 

[CookieKing]

As long as most of the time it goes and most of the times it stops I will be ok.

 

[Hui]

Time will tell.
Remember for the last five years not many people chose Japanese bikes and European bike sales went through the roof.
If they are just going to churn out the same old boring stuff using old technology then of course they will/should be reliable.
On the other hand If you push the boundaries a wee bit like Ducati, BMW and KTM do then a certain amount of risk will be present.
Yamaha for example had to do something about falling sales and came out with the MT07-09, as for the rest, well.

I can't buy a Ducati from Yamaha etc. so that's me stuffed.

 

[NickJ]

The Scrambler engine is not a new engine for Ducati, so I don't think that they will have any major issues with it. It, being an introductory bike for a lot for a lot of people to the Ducati brand, I can imagine that they wouldn't put out an engine that will be prone to a lot of failures and high upkeep. They have been putting an 803cc engine in the HyperMotard, and the SuperSport since the around 2009. In 2011, they put it in the Monster line.

They could do a lot of damage to the Ducati and Scrambler brands if they put out a crummy engine package. I think the bikes will be pretty sound.

 

[CookieKing]

The Scrambler engine is not a new engine for Ducati, so I don't think that they will have any major issues with it. It, being an introductory bike for a lot for a lot of people to the Ducati brand, I can imagine that they wouldn't put out an engine that will be prone to a lot of failures and high upkeep. They have been putting an 803cc engine in the HyperMotard, and the SuperSport since the around 2009. In 2011, they put it in the Monster line.

They could do a lot of damage to the Ducati and Scrambler brands if they put out a crummy engine package. I think the bikes will be pretty sound.

and sound pretty.

 

[Hui]

The Scrambler engine is not a new engine for Ducati, so I don't think that they will have any major issues with it. It, being an introductory bike for a lot for a lot of people to the Ducati brand, I can imagine that they wouldn't put out an engine that will be prone to a lot of failures and high upkeep. They have been putting an 803cc engine in the HyperMotard, and the SuperSport since the around 2009. In 2011, they put it in the Monster line.

They could do a lot of damage to the Ducati and Scrambler brands if they put out a crummy engine package. I think the bikes will be pretty sound.

Well put.
I don't think we'll see many roadside breakdowns from any manufacture nowadays bar the odd immobiliser maybe.
Most problems get taken care of at service visits and we only know about them because information is more freely available.
Back in the day a lot of wee problems were sorted behind the scenes.

 

[nuttynick]

As a Ducati owner for over 20 years I've never been left at the side of the road by one, including multiple long distance trips ;-)

 

[DaveInWoodland]

Thats good to hear nuttynick, its not like I plan on taking a cross country trip on it in any case. I'll just be diligent on the maintenance and hope for the best.

 

[Kem]

Warranty will protect you

 

[AnotherHobby]

I have trusted Consumer Reports over the years and while they are never 100% they have been relatively close when recommending or not recommending a product.

I have owned a lot of fun things in life by ignoring Consumer Reports.

 

[NickJ]

I have owned a lot of fun things in life by ignoring Consumer Reports.

Consumer Reports are really good at refrigerators and washing machines... I dunno if I will take their word for autos and motos.

 

[DaveInWoodland]

Not to argue facts with anyone but you do realize that Consumer Reports just "reports" the facts that actual owners have reported to them then tallies those to come to a conclusion right?

 

[NickJ]

Did you report that your motorcycle is operating properly?

Consumers are 2 times more likely to share their bad customer service experiences than they are to talk about positive experiences

 

[DaveInWoodland]

The times I have done any surveys on my varied bikes I just reported yes or no to the survey questions as presented which if you haven't taken one the questions are extremely basic, such as:

Have you had any issue that required warranty repair? Have you experienced any issue out of warranty?

then if yes you can report what was repaired.

etc etc.....Not to beat a dead horse but the data collection done is pretty simplistic in a yes or no format

 

[Skippy]

I bought a new Royal Enfield a few years back and it was a nightmare from the day I got it to the day I finally got rid, sure the Scrambler is going to be 100 times more reliable and sure the Japanese stuff may prove a bit more reliable but nothing on the market in the Icons price range is of any interest to me.