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Letter of the issue

Novel idea

I recently re-read Robert M. Pirsig’s 1974 book Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. It may be familiar to some of the fellow baby boomer AMCN readers, as well as columnists John Rooth and Michael Scott.

The main character enjoys working on his bike and his friend has no interest in how his bike functions. On their epic ride, this creates some familiar issues. It reminded me of the contrast from 1970s motorcycles and owners to the post-2000 era. Do manufacturers design their bikes to be returned to the dealer for routine maintenance?

Case in point: my 2018 Suzuki DL1000 XT. The genuine heated hand grips I bought had plug-in access to the wiring loom. Great, until after three hours I still had not reached the connector, buried below the airbox! This task is also needed for air filter access.

Now the blinker relay is faulty and, while my older DL1000’s relay was easily accessible near the fuses, the XT’s is buried below the battery box.

Peter Longobardivia email