How do you define 'character' in a bike?

[dirtiegirtie]

I was reading a thread about an FJR and saw a few folks mention that the bike lacks "character" because the I4 engine is so smooth/no vibration. I have seen a few comments here, and on the Triumph forum I used to frequent before selling my Triumph for my MG, and am wondering how each person defines this subjective "character". I know how I would define it, but I don't want to bias anyone's answers as I assume it means something different to everybody. I'm sure I'll get a mix of thoughtful and funny responses, so I'm officially asking the question...

How do YOU define "character" in a motorcycle?

[nick949]

I'm not sure any bike 'has' character off the factory floor, but they can certainly acquire it.

Nick

[Sye]

Imperfect = character. IMHO

[LowRyter]

I'd call "character" the thing that bonds the rider to the bike, a combination of performance, feel and styling. 

[Scud]

Unfortunate use of a term IMO - and it seems widely used to identify quirky things that a particular owner likes, or what resonates with their own personality. Another use of the term character is to gloss over problems. Doesn't start = character. Leaks oil = character. Hiccups at 3,000 RPM = character. I have no interest in that kind of "character."

Character is simply the set of features that define (or are characteristic of) the ownership and riding experience. By that definition, every bike has character. It's then a matter of defining what type character.

My V11 Scura has a different character type than my Husqvarna 701 Enduro, and both are different than the BMW K75s I had for a while.

It's a common criticism that the K75 BMWs lacked character. But I'd say that smooth, reliable, durable, well-engineered, and efficient were its character traits. Those are very attractive characteristics for some purposes - and if you want an affordable commuter and weekender, you'd be hard pressed to find a better bike.

Moto Guzzi and Husqvarna, both being smaller manufacturers than BMW, have a characteristic of being more rare, even though all three share similar heritages (about 100 years of manufacturing). For some reason I am attracted to the lesser-known brands with long histories, so that's an element of character. As for the riding experience, my Scura and Enduro both connect with my personality differently than the K75 did - they let me express my inner rebel or hooligan in a way the K75 did not. And the Enduro connects with my desire to go exploring and get way off the beaten path (into the dirty single track).

[fotoguzzi]

Hard too define but my Buell had gobs of it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFeuPWgDB9k

[lazlokovacs]

vibrations are vibrations

vibrations are not character

oil leaks are oil leaks

oil leaks are not character

the way that a particular engine makes power, transfers it to the drive train and transmits steering feel to the rider through hands, feet and butt are it's character.

A bike that gets you home through 8 hours in the driving rain when all the cagers were driving like maniacs while updating their instagram tictoc whatevers has just given you a bonding experience. Lots of bonding experiences create attachment.

As does the positive way (hopefully) that you respond to your particular bikes character.

There's a triangle or venn diagram to be drawn here, the arrows go in both directions....


                          bonding
                           /      \
                          /        \   
            attachment ------ character


When someone starts a post about vicious cycles of motorcycle dissatisfaction then I'll draw its evil twin triangle!!!

[Vagrant]

I think one of my friends who had to work in Atlanta and tolerate the commute summed it up best. "When I get home from a particulary bad day even if I can't go for a ride I walk over to my bike and fire it up. I instantly get a S... eatin grin and a woody! When it fails to do that to me it's getting sold." 

[willowstreetguzziguy]

Character is the conversation the bike has with you when you’re riding

With some bikes the communication is pronounced and with other bikes it’s hard to make out the conversation.

My 1200 Sport speaks volumes to me every time we ride.

[JJ]

Character in a motorcycle is all the imperfections and flaws you choose to live with...

[Motormike]

I think vibration can be character.  The classic "thud, thud, thud" of a Harley  V twin is felt as well as heard.  Definitely adds character.  My Ducati has  been trouble free for as long as I've owned it, but the sound and feel are unmatched.  Gobs of character. 

[Guzzistajohn]

To me it's like when someone says a bike has "soul" Both are 100% BS. Either you like it or you don't.

[ampm7]

Character only means something to the person that has the object of affection.

[SmithSwede]

I think one of my friends who had to work in Atlanta and tolerate the commute summed it up best. "When I get home from a particulary bad day even if I can't go for a ride I walk over to my bike and fire it up. I instantly get a S... eatin grin and a woody! When it fails to do that to me it's getting sold."

I think this nails it.   A bike has “character” when you very much enjoy riding it.  Day in. Day out.  Rain or shine.  Whatever features gives you that experience is character. 

Quarter mile times, top speed, horsepower, gee-whiz technology are irrelevant—-unless somehow the combination reliably gives you that grin that makes you so happy to ride. 

I’ve had many faster bikes that were “better” on paper.  And they bored me to death.    I would not ride very much if I only had access to “better” bikes. 

Find what trips your trigger and then you won’t care much if it leaks oil or can’t break 12 seconds in the quarter mile.   Why?  Because you will be riding all around and being happy.

If I wasn’t stupid I would have figured this out in less than 25 years. 

[Gliderjohn]

In a way IMHO character is acquired like the aging of fine whisky. My first bike was a Suzuki GS400. It aged me from being a novice street rider to at least one that survived that first critical year of street riding and acquired higher skill levels from there. After some mods it slayed stock 1200 sporty H-Ds so I consider that character.
The T-3 then delivered it in spades from the way it rides to the comments it gets to the reminders it can sometime give me if I am not doing my riding part or saving my ass because I didn't do my part.
GliderJohn

[Shorty]

Maybe if we put it into musical terms, it will help. They say Guzzi  and other "visceral" bikes (Ducati, Bonneville, HD, Norton, et al.) sing to you. Ok. To me, David Allen Coe, Lucinda Williams, Muddy Waters, John Kay, John Fogerty, have character.   Wayne Newton, Nat King Cole, Beyonce, Charlotte Church, not so much. Opinion.

[Kane]

My red frame V11 Sport has her rough and rowdy ways, her “character”. Lots of physical feedback and speaks with authority, but I have to ride her like I mean it to really bring it out and make her happy. Sort of like if you could ride a Telecaster.

[kingoffleece]

For me, it's a bike that requires the rider to cooperate with it.  Both my V7 and Jackal have speed/gear range where the machine feels positively correct.  Contrast that with several big motorbikes I've had or ridden.  They demand nothing from the rider.  Any speed-any gear-no fuss-no muss-just get on with it.  I always felt like I was just riding the machine and that's it.  Every Guzzi I've ever ridden has "sweet" spots.  For instance, long rides to New England on my V7.  74 indicated is perfect-77 in not.  Motor likes 74 and tells me-so, I listen.  Every Triumph I've had did the trip at any speed with zero compromise.  Some like that-I prefer my motorcycles to require that I partner with them to our mutual benefit.

[aklawok]

 For me, character in a machine is when just standing still a keen motorist can read its story..see where it may have been or how it was treated: knee rubs on a tank, weather checking on a seat, "bush pinstripes", the subtle customizations and botched repairs of a PO, uneven rust patterns on the bottom of a pipe...etc. this is where true character is found, as opposed to "personality" that may be found as common traits inherent of a  manufacture's model or line of product.
 For many manufactures the goal is to stamp out these traits or "cookie cutter" everything the same. a Japanese saying goes: "the nail that sticks out gets hammered flat.." and now we have bunches of bug-eyed gundam-wing bikes! the Germans well....they don't like anything much out of goose-step engineering wise( not a bad thing). and HD..well....'mericans want what all m'mericans want n' yu best not tell em otherwise lol!

[dirtiegirtie]

For me, it's a bike that requires the rider to cooperate with it.  Both my V7 and Jackal have speed/gear range where the machine feels positively correct.  Contrast that with several big motorbikes I've had or ridden.  They demand nothing from the rider.  Any speed-any gear-no fuss-no muss-just get on with it.  I always felt like I was just riding the machine and that's it.  Every Guzzi I've ever ridden has "sweet" spots.  For instance, long rides to New England on my V7.  74 indicated is perfect-77 in not.  Motor likes 74 and tells me-so, I listen.  Every Triumph I've had did the trip at any speed with zero compromise.  Some like that-I prefer my motorcycles to require that I partner with them to our mutual benefit.

Thanks, King. I think that is the closest to my personal definition of character. As an owner of a specific bike I know/understand it's limitations, its 'qwerks', and now have no issue with said qwerks. But if a friend swapped bikes with me for a few miles they would not be familiar with those qwerks and would not find the bike as enjoyable. Maybe they don't know to keep the RPMs up over 4k or that the bike twists a bit to the right with every twist of the right hand. To me, that's the character of a given bike - the small nuances that prevent another rider from jumping on your bike and immediately getting the same level of enjoyment that you get.

As others have indicated, IMHO, a poor design, faulty parts/assembly, leaking oil, or anything else negatively impacting reliability is not character to me.

[twowheeladdict]

Well, sometimes we have to consult the dictionary:

"the group of qualities that make a person, group, or thing different from others"

"a distinguishing feature"

that pretty much sums it up for me. 

[Kev m]

I would say the popular or colloquial use of the term is simple - it is used to describe a bike that "speaks" to an individual, that "appeals" generally on an emotional level.

Those who value the utility and precision of a refrigerator (and that's possibly a bad analogy in a world with bluetooth connected fridges with multiple electronic control panels that seem to break with a higher frequency than they should), I think are less likely to use the term since they probably judge things more on a practical and less on an emotional level. But they aren't wrong, because it's a personal thing.

OK, to answer the original question, FOR ME.

It is about personification. It's about feeling connected to the bike.

It's not about faults per se, but a lack of boring level perfection which would make it feel inhuman, bland, vanilla.

Yes too smooth, too good a suspension, etc. would come across as too much "perfection" and as such BE FAULTS to ME.

I want something that gives me feedback.

What are the closing lines from Serenity? Captain Mal is saying to his little albatross (River):

"You know what the first rule of flying is? ...Love. You can learn all the math in the 'verse, but you take a boat in the air you don't love, she'll shake you off just as sure as the turning of the worlds. Love keeps her in the air when she oughta' fall down, tells you she's hurtin' 'fore she keens. Makes her a home."

https://youtu.be/ZU26EseuDoI

If you don't love the bike on some level, there's no personification, no character.

And I can't love a bike without character.

[LarryinKC]

It's pretty much what Kate Walsh says in the Cadillac CTS ad.

When you turn your bike on does it return the favor?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkEw1rsBUak

[SIR REAL ED]

Excellent responses, one and all.  "Character," like "beauty," or one of my favorite internet topics "offense," is in the eye of the beholder.  One size does not fit all.  We all get to decide on the definitions that apply/appeal to us personally.  Like it or not, it's our choice to make.

We all know people who have lots of "character," who other people consider to be "a**holes!"

As one responder noted above (paraphrased), "when I don't get the reaction I want I sell the bike."  Well, the bike did not change, the perceptions/priorities/desires of the owner/rider changed.

[Alfetta]

....... I instantly get a S... eatin grin and a woody! When it fails to do that to me it's getting sold."

Sounds like a bloke destined to end up with a garage full of expensive hookers !

[aklawok]

Sounds like a bloke destined to end up with a garage full of expensive hookers !

A f****n-men!

[blu guzz]

what a great conversation. Justice Potter Stewart of the Supreme Court famously said in regard to pornography, "I know if when I see it."  Maybe character is similar to pornography, difficult to define but you know it when you experience it.  My example is this:  I rode Japanese 4 cylinder bikes before I got my first Beemer.  The year was 1997 and the bike was a 1984 R100RS.  If your definition of character is a machine you have to work with to understand and appreciate, this bike was it for me.  First, I had wanted one since they first came out in 1977, but the price was unreachable then for me.  Second, it looked so gorgeous and fast with its' Hans Muth fairing but in reality was only about 50 hp. and good for about 110 mph.  The shaft drive jacked up and down on accel and decel, the brakes were a joke, the shifting was deliberate, throttle heavy, tires skinny, on and on and on.  But, I fancied myself a hotshoe rider in those days and it took about 10,000 miles to really understand the bike and how to get the most out of it, on the right road, it could really surprise some guys on high horsepower machines.  At an indicated 68 mph, it was turning 4,000 rpm, the absolute sweetest spot for it and in the helmet with earplugs in, the engine sounded somewhat like the little Cessna airplanes I have flown in as a boy.  That fairing was like the cone of silence from Get Smart at that speed, you could ride it for hours and hours. Finally, it was totally reliable from the 59,000 miles it had when bought to the 90,000 when sold.

So, if character is having to earn the right to be one with the bike, for me, that 84 R100 was the epitome of character.   

[SIR REAL ED]

Sounds like a bloke destined to end up with a garage full of expensive hookers !

or a bloke with a couple cheap bikes and a healthy monthly Viagra budget.......

[kingoffleece]

Further to the point.  Several years ago I worked at the Guzzi demo tent at Americade.  It was ASTOUNDING how many test riders came off the bikes and mentioned how much they did NOT like them.  The idiot (yes, correct term) "big" shots NEVER asked why-they were way too busy looking at their phones and quite content to let us "pleebs" deal with the masses.  Finally, it bugged me to the point that I started to chat with returning riders.  Low and behold, simply by asking a few questions I discovered that the vast majority of test riders were keeping the bikes MUCH too low in the rev range.  Most were riding them like H-D big twins.  Ever the cleaver one, I started letting test riders know to keep the revs up a bit.  Don't ya know the feedback got much better after that.  The HQ guys could not have cared less.  I learned a LOT that weekend.

[LowRyter]

I think Nat King Cole has a lot of character.