• There has been a recent cluster of spammers accessing BARFer accounts and posting spam. To safeguard your account, please consider changing your password. It would be even better to take the additional step of enabling 2 Factor Authentication (2FA) on your BARF account. Read more here.

Motorcycle brand loyalty....why?

wannabe

wannabe

"Insignificant Other"
Joined
Aug 4, 2002
Location
San Jose, CA
Moto(s)
yes
Name
Aris
BARF perks
2006 Barfie
OK, seeing all the gazillion threads about the ZX-10, CBR1000, R!, & GSXR1000, I noticed a lot of people already made up their minds about which bike is the 'best.' I actually have no problem with that. I know that my loyalties are with Kawasaki, so I prefer the ZX-10. The reason for this thread is that I was just wondering if any of you have really taken the time to think about your particular brand loyalty and why you have it.

OK, I'll start. I am loyal to Kawasaki, and I have been for a while because I have been riding Kawasaki motorcycles for a long time. I like to think that I have built up a decent knowledge base of how Kawasaki does things. I'm not all that sure that I want to relearn the systems (virtues and pitfalls) of another manufacturer. It's kind of like 'the devil you know' type of logic.

I know a lot of the differences are small, but it's the small details that usually get you. So, until Honda comes out with a slightly detuned V5, I'm gonna stick to Kawasaki.

What about the rest of you???
 
I prefer to go against the grain and not have a gixxer or R1.... just because...So, I am partial to the ZX10R... BUt I still like the Red R1...


With my dirt bikes however, Honda just so happens to make the dirtbikes that fit EVERY aspect of my families riding at the time..
 
Yeah, I think you hit it on the head. My family (no flames, please) has traditionally been a Ford family and I've had Acuras. Would I buy a Ford over a Chevy, probably.

Companies spend millions on brand loyalty and that plays a huge part of it. Magazines also play it up all the time as well (Ford vs. Chevy, Honda vs. Yamaha, etc.). If you've had a car/bike/tool/whatever that lasted 100 years, that's also going to say a lot for where you place your allegiances.

Why did I buy a Yamaha? Well, I was close to getting a Suzuki, but after talking to friends who had both, I chose the Yammie. I also liked the look of Yamahas more.

Ah, it's hot and I'm rambling, but hopefully this makes some sense.
 
the funny thing is, when I went shopping for a sportbike, I went with a buddy who "knew everything"....:rolleyes

Never even looked at the R6, cause "yamaha sucks"....


I wish I would have been a better student of the sport before I bought...
 
I'm not manufacture loyal but I am model loyal....

The VFR/RVF V4 motor is the ONLY bikes that I love of any year....
 
Brand Loyal..? Hah... I've had a Honda, Yamaha, and now a Suzuki... However, the Yamaha has impressed me the most with the fit/finish... Therefore, I'm going back to the Yammy Side...
 
Liquid GSX-R said:
Brand Loyal..? Hah... I've had a Honda, Yamaha, and now a Suzuki... However, the Yamaha has impressed me the most with the fit/finish... Therefore, I'm going back to the Yammy Side...
Click to expand...


Actually, K-money, I think your case is kinda like going through relationships with women where you were the one who always ended the relationship. Then, all of a sudden, a girl breaks up with you. You end up finding later in life that you never manage to forget this woman.

Maybe that's why you're still hung up on Yamahas. :teeth
 
I just like being on the winning team :p

and I've had good luck w/Honda. I do I admit dream about Duc's but that not gonna happen in this economy. oh, the new motoguzzi's pretty sweet too
 
think ppl get bit in the ass w/ somethings (i dunno... kawi transmissions) and swear them off
 
I like them all.I will buy what I feel is best horepower per $ for the budget I'm working with,regardless of manufacturer.
 
opd said:
think ppl get bit in the ass w/ somethings (i dunno... kawi transmissions) and swear them off
Click to expand...


They're not perfect, but they're easy to work on. :teeth
 
Whatever's gonna get me across the finish line first...
 
I am not brand loyal, I have had suzukis, kawasakis, and hondas. A lot of things come into play when one is spending their money on a bike: techonolgy, performance , reliability, looks, etc. so I consider every bike on its own. However, if I were to close my eyes and pick a bike amongst a series of equivalent ones, with zero knowldege about them, I would pick the one that says Honda on its tank.

Why? I believe in Honda's design and engineering, the company's philosophy of building performance and reliability into each one of their new bikes. I guess you can call me a brand "leaning towards" rather than a brand loyal. :teeth
 
I tend towards Honda's because I've owned and operated 3 of them and they've never really let me down. I really appreciate that about my Honda's, and that is why my first dirtbike will most probably be a Honda, and my next sportbike too.

I have had some bad experiences with Yamaha in terms of how they build their bikes and they always have problems. For example, FZR's and R6's are known for weak transmissions, etc. Honda's are all known for poor electrical systems but that is more in my realm of comfort :)teeth)...

I think Suzuki's just look like they are made cheap.

Kawasaki is the next brand I'll try, most likely.
 
I'm not brand loyal, owning a Buell, Suzuki and now a Honda. Basically it now comes down to a couple of easy factors in no particular order:

Performance: does it do what I feel I want it to do at this point in my riding career.

Ergonomics: how I feel on the bike. For me this is probably most important. Am I comfortable or am I adapting uneccessarily. (this is the #1 reason I don't like the gixxers, they stretch me out over the tank entirely too much)

Looks: does it rev my motor when I look at it.

I always seem to be more drawn to the Honda's and Yamaha's, but I have yet to own a Yammie so I can't draw an honest conclusion.

Kawi's....guess it just doesn't do it for me that's all
 
I found myself with only one brand loyalty issue: didn't like Hondas because Honda owners seemed to be so blindly loyal :laughing
 
I am a kawasaki guy. i have always liked the flagship green color scheme of the bike, but more importantly - the race schools in California (other places too?) all exclusivly use kawasaki. to me, that says something. the kawasaki's genearlly have a better powerband than Honda. i find that flooring a 600cc Honda from idle is boring in compairson to the Kawasaki. with Honda, the power is smooth all the way up - there is not 11,000rpm to 14,000rpm crazy power punch like the Kawasaki delivers. Kawasaki bikes i have always thought they were a bit wide, and a bit bulky perhaps because of it. but they also feel very solid, unlike my experence with Honda, and especially with Yamaha. but Suzukis are very solid, but too much so for my tastes - and yea leaning way the hell over the tank sux too. but how the Kawasaki feels to me, it has this solidness which leads to the confidence i have in the bike.

I'd still trade it straight up for a Ducati tho :)

perhaps when i win the lotto :laughing
 
Last edited:
I'm a Honda gal

I'm Pro-Honda! :thumbup

A couple of years ago I owned an old '83 Honda Nighthawk with a gazzillion miles on it. Engine always ran smooth as silk.

'88 Honda Hawk with 50k miles - silky engine! No leaks whatsoever. Thing was a tank. You could shoot bullets in that thing and it would still run.

'93 CBR F2. Used to be an abused race bike. Crashed many times, redlined many times. Great ride! The transmission finally died, but rightly so! The bike's been through hell.

Owned a Kawasaki - always had problems. Cylinder seized, I think.

I still like Yamahas, Suzukis, Ducs etc, but certainly partial to Hondas.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top