Sticky webpage Stevie?
It does seem true that bikers won't trust bikes that have mileages over 30/40k unless they're tourers like FJRs, Pan Europeans, BMWs and so on. That kind of bike seems to escape the panic that high mileage brings on. Sportsbike don't seem to get to those mileages. If anyone's in the trade on the forum, please do tell us, but I suspect they end up in breakers yards.
But there's no question, since metallurgy and manufacturing improved in the 1990s and water-cooling became standard, the mileages that bikes can tolerate have gone through the roof. I had an early 89 VFR750 that people rave about for reliability but in the years I had it and the 30k miles I put on it, the only thing that didn't need replacing was the engine. The exhaust rotted through (£1200 to replace back then), the rear bodywork cracked, the discs went, the suspension bushes needed replacing, the shock was done for… it cost a bomb.
These days, as long as they've been serviced and not raced, even sports bikes are probably good for 100,000. Mind, I'm not a dealer, I'm just going on my R1 based bike and 30 years of reading about bikes in magazines and the Internut.
And then there's Kevin Sanders and his round the world R1s. Now that thing took some punishment (up to the axle in sand in the deserts for instance see video) and didn't have a single problem. Meanwhile, the Charlie and Ewan BMWs had all sorts of issues.
Nick Sanders Parallel World Tour - Kenya and the Desert: Pt 2
It does seem true that bikers won't trust bikes that have mileages over 30/40k unless they're tourers like FJRs, Pan Europeans, BMWs and so on. That kind of bike seems to escape the panic that high mileage brings on. Sportsbike don't seem to get to those mileages. If anyone's in the trade on the forum, please do tell us, but I suspect they end up in breakers yards.
But there's no question, since metallurgy and manufacturing improved in the 1990s and water-cooling became standard, the mileages that bikes can tolerate have gone through the roof. I had an early 89 VFR750 that people rave about for reliability but in the years I had it and the 30k miles I put on it, the only thing that didn't need replacing was the engine. The exhaust rotted through (£1200 to replace back then), the rear bodywork cracked, the discs went, the suspension bushes needed replacing, the shock was done for… it cost a bomb.
These days, as long as they've been serviced and not raced, even sports bikes are probably good for 100,000. Mind, I'm not a dealer, I'm just going on my R1 based bike and 30 years of reading about bikes in magazines and the Internut.
And then there's Kevin Sanders and his round the world R1s. Now that thing took some punishment (up to the axle in sand in the deserts for instance see video) and didn't have a single problem. Meanwhile, the Charlie and Ewan BMWs had all sorts of issues.
Nick Sanders Parallel World Tour - Kenya and the Desert: Pt 2
![[Image: 125377.png]](http://mefi.us/images/fuelly/smallsig-uk/125377.png)