Are bike made of cheese now then...

I tend to swap bikes a lot ,normally 6mths to 18mths ,the odd one I keep longer

Sold my 2002 Kawasaki W650 and a 125 Benelli ,had the Kawasaki for quite a few years

Bought a 900 Hornet off a mate as I need a all year winter hack, and used that all winter last year

The hornet had 36k and had been used daily, the bolts ,brackets and general paint was still pretty good for a 16yr old bike,the W650 was no where as good ,frame, plating etc suffered even though it was summer bike and garaged

Bought a 2015 er6n ,4k miles off another mate ,it's been kept under a cover not ridden over winter

The finish again is poor,all black brackets bolts are going white ,some paint on engine has lifted ,forks have rust spots

Was looking for a 700 Tracer next ,again I've looked at a few parked up and online reviews,poor finish bolts and swingarm

Are there any bikes that don't come with tons of electronic aids ,but have a better all round quality and don't cost the earth?

Are Honda still the best these days ?

It can't be just me as a friends new BMW has white marks on black fittings and he doesn't commute and keeps it clean

It seems they are made more cheaply than ever, yes. My 2016 Kawasaki has been quite the melter.

I don't know who's best now, every modern bike I look at seems to be rushing to the scrap heap.

Triumph seem to be of fairly good quality my daughter has the 765 on a 68 plate and it looks very good.

Honda were always best but I don't k ow these days ,but not looked at any Triumphs,I did borrow a Triumph Tiger 800 for a euro trip last summer ,that was pretty good ,apart from the internal gear shift lever shearing it's pin on the 1st day,so rode it with a bungy cord around the lever for a week.

Nice bike for the trip ,he is selling it too I found out last week ,but just too big to commute on every week which is a shame as I quite liked it

You would be amazed how shoddy the paint is on MODERN Harley Davidsons . Gloss paint is sprayed directly onto raw steel and it is not uncommon for it to flaking off after one or two years . I'm so glad I couldn't afford a new one . Fortunately mine dates back to before quality control went to shit.

I've bought my 1st Harley last autumn, a 2002 Fat boy, all the new ones seem to have problems with wheels getting marked by brake dust ,so I'm assuming the anodizing is also rubbish on new bikes along with the zinc and paint

I'm not overly impressed with my 2013 Triumph, I had it ACF50'd for winter but only took it out when it was above 5 degrees and no salt kicking about with a few rainy days thrown in, washed it and put it back in the garage for the last 6 weeks. Took the bike out to deep clean it during COVID lock down last week and most of the bolts are looking a little rusted/ weathered as well as the radiator mounting bracket.

Engine paint at the front underneath the radiator is coming away and there is some bubbling on the N/S engine case.

My last bike which was an Aprilia Dorsoduro fared much better during the winter months and that didn't have any treatment on it, surprises me that an Italian bike would fair much better than a UK one to a UK winter.

I've bought my 1st Harley last autumn, a 2002 Fat boy, all the new ones seem to have problems with wheels getting marked by brake dust ,so I'm assuming the anodizing is also rubbish on new bikes along with the zinc and paint

Most of the reports I am aware of are from Sportster forums or FB pages so I cannot speak for the bigger , more expensive bikes . Like myself , I don't think you have too much to worry about on a 2002 bike .

OK I admit I've never had a cruiser before this one

and I've never really been into polishing shiny bits

I've been trying really hard with this one.

I'm hugely disappointed with the quality of finish on my 63 plate Yamaha!

So my answer to the original question is yes

The various bolts on my YS125 are all rusting away quite merrily and the paint is bubbling/flaking off the exhaust in various places. The center stand is in a right old state. The main parts on the frame etc however seem perfect. The bike is 2 years old in September and has had use year-round since day 1. Try to wash it regularly and rustproof it but its a losing battle I'm afraid. I just put it down to it being a cheap Made In Virusland bike however its not uncommon so it seems.

Same problems noticeable on cars. My 8 year-old Mondeo (had it since new) had rusty nuts 'n' bolts from 6 months old. Rest of the bodywork, underside etc is all solid however. My dad had to get new brake disks on his Ka at 2 years old due to corrosion. Unbelievable. Must be the cheap Chinese steel used these days.

All the bikes I have has the build quality has been great but they have all been older bikes! I have seen newer bikes in a worse state than older bikes with 3 times the mileage!

Mine's still under 5K miles!

Mine's still under 5K miles!

Mines almost 50k and apart from a few fasteners and the final drive its not too bad for the mileage

Mine's still under 5K miles!

 

Mines almost 50k and apart from a few fasteners and the final drive its not too bad for the mileage

Mine has something around 37k and looks pretty good has a few bits and bobs but generally in fair condition.

My Multistrada is coming up for 8000 miles and 2 years old. Stored mainly outside under a cover except when I'm away then it's in my daughter's garage. Gets used year round when I am home so the only real cosmetic issue is the underside of the cat. That's prone to discoloration. A gentle scrub with heavy duty bleach followed by a wash brings it up shiny. Quite pleased with it really given its Italian. Been (touch wood) totally reliable.

Mine was registered new Sept 18 and has done about 2500 miles. Used mainly for commuting (5 miles round trip daily) hence the low mileage in all weathers. Keep it in the garage overnight and try to look after it - washing, drying, lube, corrosion-proofing etc. Aside from the rust & exhaust paint, I've had the starter solenoid, temp sensor and clocks all replaced under warranty. Bikes are more susceptible to problems that cars as everything's exposed but there's more gone wrong than I'd expect if I'm honest. Being something of a Japanophile I'm a fan of Yamaha's products, along with that of most other Japanese manufacturers, and not just bikes! Have had experience of Yamaha guitars, basses, keyboards, all excellent quality products and fantastic in use. I love the YS but I don't think the quality's great. That said, I also have realistic expectations; it's a budget bike, Made In China, and I'm using it year-round in the Scottish Highlands. I'm not sure how it compares to the Honda CB125 or other commuter 125s quality-wise however I'd be interested to know...

The majority of the lower cc bikes from the main manufacturers are made in china, and more often than not in the same place, this is why it is so easy for the chinese to clone so many parts and make cheaper items to sell, as they don't have to spend on new tooling

That makes sense dynax, I know that a massive number of guitars (one of my other interests, one of the few I can actually enjoy at this dastardly time as everything else is banned!) from assorted manufacturers are all made in the same factories with each other. Happens in other cheap labour countries such as Korea, Indonesia etc. I think the CB125 is made in India though? I may have that wrong.

The majority of the lower cc bikes from the main manufacturers are made in china, and more often than not in the same place, this is why it is so easy for the chinese to clone so many parts and make cheaper items to sell, as they don't have to spend on new tooling

The phrase you're looking for is "robbing bast*rds"

How about 5 to 8 year old Ducatis ?

Be cautious. Personally I'd be wary of one that age due to the ownership at the time. Like everything else "buyer beware".

You would be amazed how shoddy the paint is on MODERN Harley Davidsons . Gloss paint is sprayed directly onto raw steel and it is not uncommon for it to flaking off after one or two years . I'm so glad I couldn't afford a new one . Fortunately mine dates back to before quality control went to shit.

Commuted my '08 FLHTCU 100 miles a day through two winters and it still looked very decent when it left me. That looks shocking tho - but then they are desperate to maintain a profit margin on woeful sales. Triumphs went through a really bad patch when they started shipping out production, some still look ropey. I went to try a Speedmaster when they came out and the state of the rust on it had me walking straight out of the showroom.

My Guzzi Vintage did ok through winter commutes too, unlike the old EV I had that fell apart over one summer. I do wonder if they've really improved, but having been bitten twice it's one of those brands I won't consider at all now.

You would be amazed how shoddy the paint is on MODERN Harley Davidsons . Gloss paint is sprayed directly onto raw steel and it is not uncommon for it to flaking off after one or two years . I'm so glad I couldn't afford a new one . Fortunately mine dates back to before quality control went to shit.

 

Commuted my '08 FLHTCU 100 miles a day through two winters and it still looked very decent when it left me. That looks shocking tho - but then they are desperate to maintain a profit margin on woeful sales. Triumphs went through a really bad patch when they started shipping out production, some still look ropey. I went to try a Speedmaster when they came out and the state of the rust on it had me walking straight out of the showroom.

My Guzzi Vintage did ok through winter commutes too, unlike the old EV I had that fell apart over one summer. I do wonder if they've really improved, but having been bitten twice it's one of those brands I won't consider at all now.

Here you go . Someone posted to the effect of , Why should they pay £10,000 for a High End Product with quality control like this ? Well , in the scheme of things £ 10,000 for a 1200 cc bike isn't all that steep . In fact that's almost an Economy motorbike .

I wonder if that's rust or weld spatter

I bought an MT07 brand new and that was rusting merrily after the first winter. None of the Yamahas I've looked at since appear to have been any better finished.

My current steed is a Bandit 1250, also bought new. That's been through three winters now and seems to have fared better with just a few crusty fasteners which I'm gradually replacing with stainless ones. Not too bad for a budget bike.