Upgrades - The slippery slope

Some people buy a new bike and the first thing they do is "upgrade" it.

First thing to go is the exhaust. Louder, less restriction, less weight. It seems so rudimentary that no one asks why or who buys all the original exhausts.

Within days of the upgrade you will inevitably see running issues because the carefully engineered fuel maps are out the window. Time to spend money on fixing the tune with engine motronics, maps, free flowing airfilters.

The perceived notion of improved performance due to a lighter wallet is rampant. The "It's loud and I'm using alot more gas so it must be faster" syndrome.

"I can't ride without earplugs because my head gets numb from the noise."

Then the imperceptible loss of the enjoyment of the ride because of the loud popping, the poor gas mileage, the friends who won't ride with you because of the noise.

The bike winds up for sale with low miles and a poor running engine.

Keep it stock for a year before you upgrade so you have a better chance of knowing the difference of loud and slow vs smooth and fast.

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Old Car and Bike rambling

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