| Author | Message | ||
     Normanjf |
So I'm considering buying a Ulysses but I'm concerned with the bikes reliability (its hard not to be after reading through the forum). Right now I'm riding a SV650S, but my trips are getting longer and taking me farther off the beaten path. My last trip was 3500 miles to Newfoundland, and needless to say the SV was never intended for that. It seems like there are a host of problems that Uly owners contend with, but what specifically concerns me is poor running conditions and ECM problems (I don't want to be a 1000 miles from a HD dealer when an ECM goes). If I'm going to be taking this bike on trips in the 4k mile range and out into the middle of no where is this the right bike or am I getting into BMW range? I appreciate any honest feedback, thanks! | ||
| Panhead_dan |
Is the Uly reliable? Mine is. At least it's as reliable as anything else out there. Failures do occur on anything made by man. Studying known issues on forums like this has allowed me to be able to fix a gremlin before it raises it's ugly head (mostly). That and listening to the motorcycle talk. It tells me when somethings not right. Being the only person that works on it is the key to this relationship. The ecm issue is easily avoided by eliminating the contact between the seat and the electrical connectors on the ecm. (Message edited by panhead_dan on September 05, 2011) | ||
| Froggy |
May are, some aren't. I wouldn't say its any better or worse than the competition. As you can see on the threads here, there are a few weakspots that can be easily fixed, like ECM location. Also you need to keep in mind, people usually don't post the 99% of the time they aren't having an issue. | ||
| Normanjf |
Very true Froggy, thanks for the input. Just want some input before I take the plunge | ||
| Andymnelson |
Yup. As bad as the forum sounds, its only the problems that get posted. HOWEVER, you'd be wise to read up on the problems so you know how to avoid them or at least be preparred for them. The only issues I've had are a bad stator (at 23,000 miles. Fixed with about 1.5 hours work with a $30 uses part), and worn out rear wheel bearings (caught while doing preventative maintenance and swapped by myself and local Bueller at a cost or about $45 for the parts). Both of these I was preparrred for, not shocked by, and was able to easily and cheaply fix thanks to the time I had previously spent reading here. | ||
| Schwara |
I'm going on around 4-5 months with mine at this point& while it of course has had it's issues it's had no more than any other bike I've owned with 20K miles. One difference is that I like it so much I'm putting 2-3 times more miles on it / month than I have with any other bike. Another difference is that with the people on this site I've done much better preventive maintenance myself and I also have my list of future maintenance that would be good to help avoid future issues. Before a really long trip I will have my extra used belt for emergencies on hand, my original ECM as a spare, and I will check all grounds as well as my bearings. I never had the confidence for any kind of real trip in the past and now I'm just looking for excuses& available vacation time. | ||
| Tootal |
The 06 and 07's had some teething problems. The new parts were better than original and everything I've fixed has stayed that way. One thing Buell did was make things retrofit the older models so you could improve your older bike. Well, except for the crank and oil pump on the 08's. Now that I've been through my 06 it's very dependable and is my daily commuter. I would have no problem riding it anywhere. How was Newfoundland? I was there the first week of August and had a lot of rain. Any problem getting on the ferry? | ||
| Pitchondesign |
I asked myself the same question. My 06 has been reliable, but it only has 5000 miles. I have looked at forums for other motorcycles to see what other rides are having issues with. Although it is hard to generalize, the owners of Japanese and German bikes don't seem to focus or think about reliability. They discuss add-ons. None has a new owners information area to address reliability issues, as we have. The one bike that stands out as an exception is KTM Super Duke, where all sorts of things go wrong. My conclusion is if a bike has issues, it shows up in the forums. The Uly has issues. But as others have said, if you are willing to address these known issues, you can have a great bike at a very affordable price. I like mine just fine. | ||
| Normanjf |
Tootal; Newfoundland was great... except for the rain. I was there the second week in August and it literally rained every day, but I was prepared so it wasn't that miserable. Only complaint is that I didn't give myself enough time to explore the island. Only problem with the ferry was my ignorance of the time change at the border. Had a nice 100mph blast down the highway to make the ferry we were taking to Nova Scotia. Other than that the ferry to Newfoundland was really nicely equipped and the people very helpful when it came to lashing the bike down. Lots of good input from everyone. It sounds like with the right preventive maintenance and being proactive and addressing the known issues before they become problems the bike will be as reliable as anything else. | ||
| Dynasport |
Reliability is important to me as well. I too have gotten concerned when reading on this forum as well as on advrider. I took the plunge regardless, because I like the bike so much and am hoping that the issues are somewhat exaggerated by the fact that a few problems can look like a lot of problems on the internet. I've had my bike a couple of months short of two years now and only have between 10,000 and 11,000 miles on it. I have had the dealer to the scheduled maintenance and I have added a few accessories myself. I haven't had to have anything replaced or repaired as of yet. I hope it stays that way. I was out with a buddy Saturday and we went by a dealership just to look around, not shopping just looking. I sat on several bikes. I did a lot of test rides in Daytona this past year just cause I am curious and like to ride different bikes. I have actually done that for the past three or four years in a row now. The bottom line is that there really isn't another bike out there I'd rather have right now. So, mine better be reliable, I plan to ride it a long time. | ||
| Sirvait |
What you want my friend is a ......wait for it........ IS A DL650 V-strom. jm2c. | ||
| Uly_man |
"My last trip was 3500 miles to Newfoundland" and "Newfoundland was great... except for the rain". Both may cause problems, on a 06 Uly, I know I had one. I love these bikes and have had both, 06 and 2010 bikes, ends of the scale but they have problems and even my 2010 bike has gone bad. It may sound pissy but I am starting to get f_ck+d off with the bike. Yes it does what it does so very well but its no use to me if its standing like a 2 cent hooker at the dealers waiting for me to spunk up like its a holiday. | ||
| Ratbuell |
i don't see how people are breaking their Uly's. I've run mine over with a runaway M35a2 deuce and a half. it broke a front brake lever and a mirror. I just got back from NJMP on it, too. I'm pretty sure I checked the oil at some point on the trip...and I did clean the headlight lenses. Regular maintenance, syn3 throughout, tires as needed, replaced the 77 a while back, replaced one belt (rider error broke it), black seal bearings in the rear wheel as preventative maintenance at 5k miles, added some farkles (driving lights, voltmeter, CR mirrors, brakelight flashers)...and just do a lot of riding. 23k-ish on it now. i don't poke. I don't pick. I don't obsess over all the 'problems'. I carry a compressor and plug kit under the seat; a spare belt under the topcase; a toolkit; spare fuel; a first aid kit; and a quart of oil. I don't hesitate to go anywhere, at any time, on the bike. Rain, shine, salt, snow...whatever. | ||
| Froggy |
When are you going to start carrying spare Dunlops? | ||
| Etennuly |
Well what you have seen on this thread is realistic. But then you could add in that what ever you are paying for the bike is probably half price or less of what it would be if HD continued it. And the other side of that coin is of course that it is discontinued. A heck of a lot of people who ride them say the same thing about riding them as do I, nothing else has ever been as permagrin inspiring. If you have a bit of mechanical skills and some patience you can go a long way having a great time. If you expect a mechanically perfect machine.....well there are some but those guys are out riding so often they don't get back here. I have done a crap load of work on my Uly to keep it running. I think it would have been easier to buy one later, as in where you are, because learning what causes what symptom was well more work than fixing any of it. At 57,000+ miles since new my Uly runs better, and smoother as the miles goes on. If I bought a low miles near new '06 Uly I am sure with few exceptions I could spend less than $500 and ten hours to have it PRE fixed for a long time of riding to need just normal maintenance. I have personally not had a better all around ride from any other motorcycle.  I am waiting to see what the new offer from Erik Buell Racing in this category of bike will be. But I am in no hurry. This one has a long way to go. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
Mine has been very very good to me. If you are the type that has to take it to the dealer for an oil change then maybe you better look elsewhere. If you are like me and most others that own a ULY, you'll learn to be self sufficient and stay ahead of curve, maintenance wise, so to speak. It's a great bike if you like to take corners like a madman. If I were you and really interested in buying a ULY then I'd get an 06 bike with low miles. The other years have more problems from what I read. The first year bike will be the cheapest and most reliable. I've got the 06 and it has been very reliable for me. | ||
| Rdkingryder |
What you have been reading is usually the worst of scenarios. Of the ones that gets posted here, most are the ones that have had problems crop up. That's normal with any forum, pretty boring if the forum had vehicles with no problems. I'm on a Willys forum, Audi forum and GR650 forum and most posts are problems. They're just posts from people looking for a fix, not really indicative of problematic vehicles. I used to have a DL650 and post counts were of the same problems, not starting after washing, not starting after a drop, turn signal replacements due to drops, how they fall due to height, etc. One would think Suzuki should do something about the bike falling too much. At the car dealership I used to work at, many problems crop up and could make you scared if you bought one of them since seeing so many weird problems, usually the ones other shops could not fix. As Etennuly said, get the latest model you can afford as EB had been revising them from the beginning and if he were allowed to keep building them, they would be really good now. | ||
| Normanjf |
Performing maintenance isn't an issue for me, I enjoy working on bikes. My SV has reached the limit of things I'm going to improve on it (swapped the original front end for a Gxsr's, custom paint, touring accessories, etc.) My concern was with problems arising that are not easily fixed on the road, poor running conditions, not starting when wet and other electrical problems. I've had to pull a MacGyver or two before on the road and to me it’s all part of the adventure of getting out there. That being said, I don't want to be loading the bike in a u-haul and driving it home a 1000 miles. All in all though it seems that the consensus is that it’s a great bike, with a fair amount of known problems that are very fixable. None of the problems or the fixes has scared me away; they all seem well within my mechanical capabilities. As many of you have pointed out, I can spend half the money I would on a BMW and address the bikes issues and still save a ton of money left over. So far I'm still leaning Buell, anyone wanna let me test ride theirs? Rdkingryder: "One would think Suzuki should do something about the bike falling too much" My buddy rides a BMW 1200GS and is constantly falling over in parking lots, etc. Always good for a laugh! | ||
| Bike_pilot |
I just bought one, but am not bringing it home 'till Saturday. So I've not FHE but just got done doing the research you are doing now. I ride a lot, 9k+ mile trips are typical for me plus I use a bike as sole transportation every day. Based on my research I expect the Uly to be a lot less reliable than modern japanese bike and probably about the same as a BMW. A lot of stuff that has left folks sitting on the Buell can be taken care of preemptively -- mod the bike so the ECM doesn't touch, keep a real close eye on wheel bearings if you haven't got a 2010, replace the belt frequently and carry a spare, etc. Beyond those things the issues I've come across have mostly been either bad cranks in pre-08 models or wiring problems. I'm pretty handy with wiring and will stash some spare wire, wire cutters etc on the bike with hopes of being able to repair any wiring-issues on the road. In addition to the 'stroms, another dead-reliable bike that's sort of Uly-like is the Bandit 1250. It doesn't look like a uly, but it has a low-rpm, torque-oriented motor, is comfy, has a small fairing and is probably about the same on dirt roads as an XT. It is also durable (big steel frame under the engine so relatively hard to hurt it by high-centering). A couple summers ago I bought one sight-unseen a couple of thousand miles away, flew out there and then proceeded to put 9k miles on it in a month. It didn't miss a beat and got no mechanical attention other than oil changes every 3k miles, a spritz of chain lube ever 1k or so and a set of tires. It was a bit dull though, just not an exceptional machine any any respect other than being totally smooth and trouble free. I sold it at the end of the ride (as I'd planned to -- had to pay for school) and haven't missed it. If you are in the DC area you can test ride my XT once I bring it home next week. | ||
| Normanjf |
Thanks for the info and the offer Bike Pilot, I'm in western NY though. I know there are some dead reliable bikes out there like the bandit and the Vstrom, I just want something with a little more character, something I want to ride everyday. Like you said, the bandit is a bit dull. | ||
| Andymnelson |
So far I'm still leaning Buell, anyone wanna let me test ride theirs?" Sure, I live only about an hour north of Rochester.....MN.  | ||
| Rodclement |
Well I just bought a 2006 with 4K miles on it and have my laundry list ready for prevention: switch rear wheel bearings get recall work done (this bike has never been to the dealer) install comfort kit move ECM... All well documented and easy fixes that I can deal with ...considereing the ride quality and what this cost me, there is nothing out there that would give as much bang for the buck. Rod | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
Bike Pilot, Welcome aboard  | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
There were 10,000+ produced. A 1% failure rate is 1,000 bad bikes. We haven't seen anywhere close to 1,000 failed bikes here on BW. | ||
| Mnviking |
Ummm no... 1% failure would be 100. 1000 is a 10% of 10,000. | ||
| Motorcyclemike |
28,000+ miles on my 09' and have only replaced ECM (under warranty)/ My only problem is keeping tires and fuel in the tank. I'd buy another one, but will wait for the Erik Buell Racing Adventure bike. | ||
| Cyclonedon |
When are you going to start carrying spare Dunlops? if your riding on Dunlops, there isn't any need to carry a spare! I get great mileage of of mine. I wouldn't put any other brand of tire on my Uly! | ||
| Reepicheep |
Correct, but we haven't seen anywhere near that number either.  | ||
| Hooper |
Yo Bike Pilot... +1 on the welcome. I'm in Silver Spring, MD. See the DC/MD/VA section in Storm Fronts - most nice weekends there's a local group getting together somewhere for a ride.  | ||
| Johnboy777 |
""There were 10,000+ produced. A 1% failure rate is 1,000 bad bikes. We haven't seen anywhere close to 1,000 failed bikes here on BW."" Not all owners are on Bad Web - not all failures are reported. Let's just look at Bad Web members to get a more accurate number. There are approx. 2,000 Bad Web members with "XB12X" in their profile. Let's forget about 2010 (no real production that year), so that leaves 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 2006 had the highest production, but let's say that 2007 was 25%, just for some place to start here. 25% of 2,000 is 500. There are 7 crank related failures that we know of. 7 of 500 is 1.4% Say approx. 1.5% (rounded) The failure rate according to my WAG method is 1.5% ... or 1 in 66 That means, if you own a 2007 Uly, you have a 1-in-66 chance of having a catastrophic engine failure. ... |
