I am a great lover and fan of the legendary Harley Davidson motorocycle. At the same time I am also a practical person who will acknowledge that a Harley is not the best engineered motorcycle. It has the aesthetic appeal, cult value and sounds great but when it comes to technology, I know that the motorcycle lacks on several counts. Despite these faults I continue to nurture the hope of owning a Harley, some day not too far away.
While browsing the internet I found this site by Clayton Koenig, who was so pissed off with the problems he had with his Harley-Davidson XL883 Sportster (1999) that he promoted a website to vent his frustrations. He bought his motorcycle new and owned it for 5 years and 20,000 miles, his trials and experiences with the bike is published in a neat, chatty story format on his website, “Does Harley Suck“.
There are other people too joining Clayton in contributing their stories to the “Harley Sucks” website. He makes it very clear to the contributors that they are solely responsibile for what they say and they have to stand by their words.
Some interesting quotes from Calyton’s website are appended below:
1. The truth is many Harley owners alter their bikes after purchase to make them much louder, and then universally wear earplugs.
2. A motorcycle rider who is seen and/or heard is a motorcycle rider who lives.
3. Unfortunately for Harley, I place much greater weight on engineering than aesthetics when it comes to bikes, and it is the disappointing reliability of this bike that makes me wish I had gone Japanese instead.
4. The myth that the new Harleys no longer leak oil is indeed just a myth.
5. Over $700 in Service at 10,000 Miles!!!
6. My opinion is that today’s Harley is a well built machine that will take you where you want to go without any problems. The machines are near perfect. (Bob, A harley owner)
7. This Road King will do 110 mph even with an intake leak and a barn door for a windshield!
8. The most important lesson I have learned about Harleys and I include new bikes in this; GET THE ENGINE BALANCED BY A COMPETENT MACHINIST. It will make a world of difference.
Visit the website for a lot more good and bad reviews about the Harley Davidson motorcycle.






