Least favourite bike owned

[Stu]

What's your least favourite bike that you have owned? 

 

For me its the 2001 FJR1300! I never really gelled with it to be honest and while it was a good bike for touring two up it was not a bike for riding on my own! 

 

It was fast which could give you the thrill if you wanted but the aerodynamics spoilt it massively.

 

Low speed manoeuvrability was hard work the seat was hard and only good for around 150 miles.

 

I am not sure if its because I came from sports bikes to the FJR why I never gelled with it but it just never felt right and I could never pin point why! 

 

So why did I buy it? Well I was doing very little mileage on sports bikes as the missus wouldn't get on them and working stupid shifts at the time meant I had limited weekends to get out! We took a mates FJR out and she liked it so I took the plunge and got one. My initial thought was its not a bike for me but I would get used to it after all its just like riding a bike  I never did get used to it  Financial reasons meant I kept it for 7 years where things got better but never great. 

 

So over to you lot

[Tiggie]

A Chinese grey import 50cc moped. Think the brand was called zippy  

 

This was around 1999/2000 before the Chinese imports had properly started. Cost me £499 brand new.

 

After two weeks the exhaust fell off,  it was woefully underpowered to the point of having to get off and push to go up steep hills 

 

And as it was a grey import I couldn't find any insurance company who would insure it. I was still using it to get to work and back while trying to get it sorted when I got pulled over by a police bike trap.

 

6 points and a £400 fine. Not what you want at 19  (yes I know it was my own fault!) 

 

Edit: found a pic to give you all a laugh

[Bender]

1 minute ago, Tiggie said:

A Chinese grey import 50cc moped. Think the brand was called zippy  

 

This was around 1999/2000 before the Chinese imports had properly started. Cost me £499 brand new.

 

After two weeks the exhaust fell off,  it was woefully underpowered to the point of having to get off and push to go up steep hills 

 

And as it was a grey import I couldn't find any insurance company who would insure it. I was still using it to get to work and back while trying to get it sorted when I got pulled over by a police bike trap.

 

6 points and a £400 fine. Not what you want at 19  (yes I know it was my own fault!) 

Expensive cheap bike then. 

[geofferz]

Only had my gixxer, mt10 and mt125, all were great. 

[Gerontious]

I tend to keep bikes for years, aside from one that I owned for 9 months. My first brand new bike a 1994 Triumph Trident 750. I took it into the dealership for its first proper service and in the showroom they had a Speed Triple 900. The original. I couldn’t take my eyes of it. This was noticed. Salesman descended upon me and like a fool I asked about the trade in value of the 750. The answer came and the deal was done. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the 750 but of all the bikes I’ve owned it was the one I was happy to part with in exchange for one of these.

[Steve_M]

10 hours ago, Stu said:

What's your least favourite bike that you have owned? 

 

For me its the 2001 FJR1300! I never really gelled with it to be honest and while it was a good bike for touring two up it was not a bike for riding on my own! 

 

It was fast which could give you the thrill if you wanted but the aerodynamics spoilt it massively.

 

Low speed manoeuvrability was hard work the seat was hard and only good for around 150 miles.

 

I am not sure if its because I came from sports bikes to the FJR why I never gelled with it but it just never felt right and I could never pin point why! 

 

So why did I buy it? Well I was doing very little mileage on sports bikes as the missus wouldn't get on them and working stupid shifts at the time meant I had limited weekends to get out! We took a mates FJR out and she liked it so I took the plunge and got one. My initial thought was its not a bike for me but I would get used to it after all its just like riding a bike  I never did get used to it  Financial reasons meant I kept it for 7 years where things got better but never great. 

 

So over to you lot

Funny you should say that. My least favourite was my Honda CBX750, but the FJR ran it a close second for many of the reasons you mention. 

[Stu]

4 minutes ago, Steve_M said:

Funny you should say that. My least favourite was my Honda CBX750, but the FJR ran it a close second for many of the reasons you mention. 

 

Glad its not just me then! and am I right in thinking yours was newer than mine? 

[husoi]

I can't say that I had a bike I didn't like.

Africa twin was a great teacher

VFR800, well is a VFR, had 2 of them

Pan european is a great tourer with a spetacular 250 miles range

Shadow VT700c is a cracking cruiser fun to ride.

 

So I shouldn't really reply to the thread  

[fullscreenaging]

It was my first bike. A GS500E. I bought it off a mate just before I did my DAS as I thought it would do me for a year or two while I gained experience. It lasted me two weeks!

 

I didn't have it long enough to say what I didn't like about it apart from it was just waaay under powered and boring for my liking.

[Six30]

liked em all, i just see other stuff and want .

[Fozzie]

Yamaha XJ6 Diversion

 

It took an amazing bike, the FZ6 which I've also had and did everything wrong you could just about do. Took off nearly 20BHP with no noticeable change to the bottom end performance, added weight, bolted very cheap suspension to it, and the rev limiter in top gear limits it to a top speed lower than the twins in the same class (SV650, ER6F) which wouldn't have been so bad if the price wasn't so much higher for one at the time. It was buzzy and frustrating to ride, and then returned no better MPG than a CBR600RR I'd had.

 

Worst bit was I had very limited options at the time as I was on one due to insurance not touching me on much else (2 bike theft claims, and 2 where I'd been pulled out on) so I had to live with it for a while.

 

 

[rennie]

Worst bike I've ever had was a 2nd. hand GPZ750R!

I'd been without a bike for a while and just bought it.

It was a shed when I got it and even worse when I got rid.

I didn't like anything about it

[Mr Fro]

2 hours ago, Six30 said:

liked em all, i just see other stuff and want .

Same here. I'd like a new bike but haven't seen anything I fancy for aaaages.

[bonio]

The Tiger 800. It was a good enough bike, but when it was stolen I wasn't the least bit sad, and I've not missed it for a moment. I was just a good enough bike.

[skyrider]

i think mine was a 550 zephyr i rode it once and sold it it rode like a gyroscope but that could have been down to the head bearings i have heard that kawasaki dont like grease 

[Steve_M]

5 hours ago, Stu said:

 

Glad its not just me then! and am I right in thinking yours was newer than mine? 

Mine was a 2010, bought in 2016 sold in 2019. 

[Pie man]

The Last of the flying Brick - BMW K1200RS SE. A superb high speed mile muncher that could carry luggage and pillion - no problem however, the problem was the weight, brilliant for two up touring, but not something I enjoyed riding on a Sunday afternoon scratch for an hour or two. 

[manxie49]

Kawasaki Z1100, most unreliable bike I ever had!  If it could break on a bike I guarantee it broke on this one .... The last straw before getting rid was the starter motor packing up when I went to the NW200

 

[geofferz]

4 hours ago, Six30 said:

liked em all, i just see other stuff and want .

Actually that's me too. Kinda want an r1 next maybe. 

[MarkZ]

CX500 Maggot, more unreliable than the T140 I had. 

[Throttled]

I am another who will reply to say I have never had a bike I did not like. OK, my YBR125cc was pretty crap, but we all have to start with a 125cc, I had lots of fun on it and I would jump at the chance to ride another one.

[Stu]

4 hours ago, Steve_M said:

Mine was a 2010, bought in 2016 sold in 2019. 

 

Which is supposed to be better than the gen 1

[rennie]

I went to test ride a sprintST (same place as I got the vfr)

As soon as I got on the sprint I got straight back off!

just didn't feel right to me at all.

I know other people love them

[Steve_M]

1 hour ago, Stu said:

 

Which is supposed to be better than the gen 1

I never got into the “gen n” aspect. 

[Stu]

Just now, Steve_M said:

I never got into the “gen n” aspect. 

 

I gave up after gen 2! the American market is different again with the gen 1 etc