Regrets?

[Injun Joe]

Hi folks,

New prospect here. I'm wanting some feedback on an unanswerable question before taking the plunge is such a thing is possible. So here's the backstory: In 40 years riding (off/on), I've never had a completely "new" bike. Closest was a few months old trade in of a M109R right after they came out. (I guess even the F6B wouldn't be totally "new" in that I'm looking at t 2013, but all the miles would be mine so I do still consider it new and ultimately, my CHOICE rather than someone else's hand-me-down.) At 58, I'm realistic that this could possibly be my last bike or perhaps my only new bike ever. (I'm not the guy that can afford to trade every riding season and this would be a 72 month loan anyways.) Final data point: My "dream bike" remains the new Indian Chieftain -- not so much for riding reasons as for style and image and yes, the "American" factor although that goes deeper for me being a Minnesota boy and Polaris being a Minnesota company in origin.

So all that factored in, am I going to regret this purchase? I absolutely love the look and ride of the F6B and I've been enamored of Gold Wings from their very inception. I guess bottom line is I don't see having the extra $8k+ that a Chieftain would set me back anytime soon and I very much do feel the biological clock ticking before it's time to consider a sidecar, trike, or Spyder. What say ye?

[Injun Joe]

Hi again folks,

Prospective newb F6Ber here. If I take the plunge, I get up to $1K in Honda branded accessories. BTW, I'm looking at the Standard and not the Deluxe which may be a mistake right off the bat.

All the shop guys seem to be pushing me towards the heated grips which weren't on my radar screen at all. I'm not at all a four season rider and just don't get the appeal. I've always been fine with thicker, gauntlet gloves. But I'm open to being convinced.

On the other end of the spectrum, the Honda shop folks are pretty dismissive of the center stand and I was coming into it considering it a near given. My rationale includes oil checking, cleaning, and parking on hot asphalt.

Both the above cause me to wonder whether I should be looking at the Deluxe. (Although my dealer doesn't have a 2013 Deluxe that I know of.)

Driving lights: I want some but see where the Honda one are ridiculously overpriced. I'm largely considering them as a way to use up the $1k. Otherwise, I'd get aftermarket for sure.

No brainers: Pannier insert bags, iPod pouch, 12 volt socket.

I ride solo and don't like back rests. So on long trips I'd either be strapping a duffle across the back seat or maybe getting that Corbin modular seat which looks kind of cool. Bottom line, I have no use for back rests, luggage racks, etc.

Intercom: No second rider on the bike and I imagine my earbuds to be a better option to the com speakers. Plus a dangling microphone immediately makes me think "old man" so no interest here though I'd love it if someone could steer me towards a 5-pin DIN to 3.5mm jack adapter to use earbuds for music and gps.

Bling: I'm looking at the black model and want to blacken it even more -- so no additional chrome gadgets.

Have I got it wrong or do you think I'm kind of looking in the right direction given my personal tastes?

[CheckpointChcky]

Buy mine....it is for sale and it already has all those extra accessories on it.

[SmallPasture]

Buy mine....it is for sale and it already has all those extra accessories on it.

HUH??? Say it aint so??? What's the scoop?

[VP8]

Big, don't rush into purchasing your next ride...it's a huge investment...not only the base cost, but the cost and time for all the upgrades/accessories you would add to the bike.

First off, getting the right bike depends on what type of style riding you do. Do you just like to put put/cruise around for short distances? Do you like to go on long haul 3-4 or 14 day trips? Do you like to drag knee in the canyons? And even sometimes, we based our ride on what our friends all ride. I owned two bikes prior to purchasing my F6B. I owned the Yamaha FJR (more sport and a bit touring) and the Victory Cross Country (Bagger for touring). Well, I won't go into the details of my Yamaha as that was a fine bike. I just couldn't take that bike on long 4 day trips, but man, that was a fun bike and very maneuverable. I'll explain more of why I got rid of the Victory since it too is manufactured by Polaris. I really liked the look of my Victory...I had added a ton of after market parts to make that bike look bad ass. The ride of my Victory was smooth and very roomy, I was able to stretch out with the super long floorboards. Within a year I rode that bike for approximately 25K miles. The problem with that bike was, I had numerous warranty problems with it throughout my ownership. Issues from a rear porous cylinder head (replaced twice), replaced cruise control module, belt pulley replaced due to squealing, primary gasket replaced, there were missing corner pieces in my saddlebags which created air gaps, hard start issues due to over heating, rear shock seepage (required replacement), and the last straw was the alternator died during a ride.

Now, I owned the Victory for a total of 17 months, and all these issued occurred during that short time period. Now, did Polaris take care of me as they should to any of their customer? Not really. Unless you think it's standard to wait two weeks for an in-stock part to arrive to your dealership. For my 1st rear cylinder head replacement, my bike was at the dealer for three weeks. The 2nd rear cylinder head replacement, my bike was at the dealer for 44 days....luckily I had my FJR to ride otherwise I would have been real bitchy. I don't think that's acceptable, but everyone has their own standards.

I need a dependable bike, and my Victory was far from it. I had just returned from a 4-day road trip three days prior to my alternator failed. If that had happened during my trip, I would have be screwed. So that was when I started looking at other alternative instead of waiting for my warranty to expire.

On another note, there are Honda dealerships just about everywhere...I have one four miles away from my house. As for a Victory dealership, I have to ride 45 miles to one to have it serviced. As for Indian dealerships...those are even fewer and far between.

Big, I'm not pushing you to pushing you either way...I just wanted you to be informed on what I went through. It doesn't mean every Victory or Indian is going to have all those issues. I have friends who have Victories and they don't have any problems. And I have one friend that is frustrated like I was with his warranty issues as Polaris gave him a two week date for his rear shock to arrive, but extended it to four weeks.

Good luck Big!!

[Injun Joe]

Big, don't rush into purchasing your next ride...it's a huge investment...not only the base cost, but the cost and time for all the upgrades/accessories you would add to the bike.

First off, getting the right bike depends on what type of style riding you do. Do you just like to put put/cruise around for short distances? Do you like to go on long haul 3-4 or 14 day trips? Do you like to drag knee in the canyons? And even sometimes, we based our ride on what our friends all ride. I owned two bikes prior to purchasing my F6B. I owned the Yamaha FJR (more sport and a bit touring) and the Victory Cross Country (Bagger for touring). Well, I won't go into the details of my Yamaha as that was a fine bike. I just couldn't take that bike on long 4 day trips, but man, that was a fun bike and very maneuverable. I'll explain more of why I got rid of the Victory since it too is manufactured by Polaris. I really liked the look of my Victory...I had added a ton of after market parts to make that bike look bad ass. The ride of my Victory was smooth and very roomy, I was able to stretch out with the super long floorboards. Within a year I rode that bike for approximately 25K miles. The problem with that bike was, I had numerous warranty problems with it throughout my ownership. Issues from a rear porous cylinder head (replaced twice), replaced cruise control module, belt pulley replaced due to squealing, primary gasket replaced, there were missing corner pieces in my saddlebags which created air gaps, hard start issues due to over heating, rear shock seepage (required replacement), and the last straw was the alternator died during a ride.

Now, I owned the Victory for a total of 17 months, and all these issued occurred during that short time period. Now, did Polaris take care of me as they should to any of their customer? Not really. Unless you think it's standard to wait two weeks for an in-stock part to arrive to your dealership. For my 1st rear cylinder head replacement, my bike was at the dealer for three weeks. The 2nd rear cylinder head replacement, my bike was at the dealer for 44 days....luckily I had my FJR to ride otherwise I would have been real bitchy. I don't think that's acceptable, but everyone has their own standards.

I need a dependable bike, and my Victory was far from it. I had just returned from a 4-day road trip three days prior to my alternator failed. If that had happened during my trip, I would have be screwed. So that was when I started looking at other alternative instead of waiting for my warranty to expire.

On another note, there are Honda dealerships just about everywhere...I have one four miles away from my house. As for a Victory dealership, I have to ride 45 miles to one to have it serviced. As for Indian dealerships...those are even fewer and far between.

Big, I'm not pushing you to pushing you either way...I just wanted you to be informed on what I went through. It doesn't mean every Victory or Indian is going to have all those issues. I have friends who have Victories and they don't have any problems. And I have one friend that is frustrated like I was with his warranty issues as Polaris gave him a two week date for his rear shock to arrive, but extended it to four weeks.

Good luck Big!!

That is all VERY concerning VP and that sort of information is what I'm here for. That being said, I'd not heard the like from other Polaris product owners. Dealer network concern is a very real factor -- but not so much that I'm pursuing HD where I could find somebody to work on my bike on every corner not to mention dealerships.

Riding wise, sounds like I fall somewhere in between your categories. I'm a ~400 mile a day rider comfortably. I've thought about challenging myself with an iron butt ride but it would be just that -- a MAJOR challenge. If I buy in Chattanooga or Little Rock, I'd be looking at ~600 mile days I figure and even that would be a challenge on my present bike at least. As far as knee dragging, the couple times I've scraped pegs scared the hell out of me. I had a slammed M109R a few years ago and would drag my boot heel now and then on it but that's about all. My wife has to be very patient to follow me in the twisties around here because she likes to take them faster than I do. Stylistically, I can swing both ways, but to be honest with myself, I probably fit the Gold Wing category more than the cruiser. I don't have tattoos or biceps even and I believe in full face helmets and proper riding gear. But if I had that M109R again or something like the Triumph Rocket which also visually appeals to me, I'd want something like a Honda Helix to putt around town on. As you see, I'm a bit of a chameleon when it comes to style. That too frustrates my wife who is even more all in with Indian than I am.

[Scotrod]

VP, I wish I could say your experiences with Polaris products were 'unheard of' but they are far more common than they should be.
I was in the market last summer, waiting for the triple digit heat to subside before I bought,,, I had all the time in the world to consider all makes/models, and I was leaning heavily towards Victory,

A couple months on the Vic boards was enough to see several folks with problems like yours,,, Too many for the number of bikes Vic has on the road,,,

On the other hand, the flat-six based platform of the F6B is darn near bullet-proof, with millions upon millions of miles covered.

You could say it's got Honda Goldwing 'Heritage',,,, if you're the type of person who needs to hear/see 'Heritage'

Indian? Made by Polaris? If they can't get the Vic's right,,,,,,,,,,,,, well,,,,,, maybe a different nameplate on the tank and a good dose of "Indian [made by Polaris] ~Heritage~" commercials will help with that!

[Pap]

My decision was going with the standard.
I got the driving lights and passenger backrest. I don't need heated grips as I have heated jacket/gloves.
A center stand I think is about 175.00?
I would suggest a taller wind screen if you want more wind protection.
You should be able to get these with the bonus bucks.
Good luck

[Jimmytee]

Hi again folks,

Prospective newb F6Ber here. If I take the plunge, I get up to $1K in Honda branded accessories. BTW, I'm looking at the Standard and not the Deluxe which may be a mistake right off the bat.

All the shop guys seem to be pushing me towards the heated grips which weren't on my radar screen at all. I'm not at all a four season rider and just don't get the appeal. I've always been fine with thicker, gauntlet gloves. But I'm open to being convinced.

On the other end of the spectrum, the Honda shop folks are pretty dismissive of the center stand and I was coming into it considering it a near given. My rationale includes oil checking, cleaning, and parking on hot asphalt.

Both the above cause me to wonder whether I should be looking at the Deluxe. (Although my dealer doesn't have a 2013 Deluxe that I know of.)

Driving lights: I want some but see where the Honda one are ridiculously overpriced. I'm largely considering them as a way to use up the $1k. Otherwise, I'd get aftermarket for sure.

No brainers: Pannier insert bags, iPod pouch, 12 volt socket.

I ride solo and don't like back rests. So on long trips I'd either be strapping a duffle across the back seat or maybe getting that Corbin modular seat which looks kind of cool. Bottom line, I have no use for back rests, luggage racks, etc.

Intercom: No second rider on the bike and I imagine my earbuds to be a better option to the com speakers. Plus a dangling microphone immediately makes me think "old man" so no interest here though I'd love it if someone could steer me towards a 5-pin DIN to 3.5mm jack adapter to use earbuds for music and gps.

Bling: I'm looking at the black model and want to blacken it even more -- so no additional chrome gadgets.

Have I got it wrong or do you think I'm kind of looking in the right direction given my personal tastes?

I just bought a red 2013 standard three weeks ago. It is my first "new "bike. All my others have been used with the exception of a new 1982 ATC 185S Three wheeler I bought with paper route money . I have owned two Valkyries and still have one of them. For me, I was looking at Victories , new Valkyrie, Triumph Rocket III or the F6B. I believe I made the right choice. I'm hooked on the flat six power plant.

As far as a Deluxe model, for me, it wasn't worth the extra grand. The center stand can be had pretty cheap online.( Lot's of Wings out there that have been triked) The back rest didn't look sufficient and I bought the bike knowing I'd be looking to change the seat for an Ultimate and both driver and passenger backrest. Never had heated grips, and they can be added if one desires.

As far as the fog lights from Honda. They are over priced, IMHO,but you have to spend the $1000 on the Honda accessories and they are good quality. I am not a "No Chrome" guy, so I got the Rotor covers which weren't cheap either. I also got the 12 volt accessory outlet, again over priced, I got the bag liners and one of the license plate frames.

Since buying it, I've also added the Kury Ergo IIIs highway pegs, the Kury riser kit, twisted throttle throttle assist and a Baggershield windshield. Love the Baggershield.

[motozeke]

Hi friend, welcome to the board!

All the things you're looking for can be found on wingstuff.com. Of course there are other retailers as well, but I usually end up buying from WingStuff.

If you've been riding as long as you have and don't see the need for heated grips, and you don't need a backrest, and you don't mind installing a center stand yourself, then the Deluxe is probably not for you. I wanted everything that was on the list (except for the self-cancelling turn signals, which I never had before and wouldn't have missed). Especially heated grips--I wouldn't have a bike that didn't have heated grips, since I bought a bike with them in 2011. What a revelation! I never realized what I was missing. I use them regularly, even when temps are in the 70s, because they help with hand fatigue and circulation. Love, love, love 'em.