Why are people selling their Rockets?

[greenbaron]

Ok, I get it: We buy toys, own them for a while and sell them again. I used to do that with the bikes I owned: Bought a shiny new ride, rode it for a year or two and then sold it again. Because a new, more shiny toy came along. The Rocket, I thought, is a different thing altogether. Certainly nor a toy. For me, it represents the pinnacle of my 35 year motorcylcle career and - approaching the age of 60 - probably is the last bike I bought. Afer all: What could possibly surpass a Rocket?

I was surprised to learn that quite a few owners of the new Rocket 3 are selling their bikes after a short while. Some just after a few weeks of ownership. Why is that?

When you buy a Rocket, you know what your are about to get yourself into, don't you? It should be a well-known fact that the bike is very heavy, very powerful and very demanding as far as the rider and his/her skills are concerned. It is not that this bike pretends to be a docile Honda CB500.

When I was waiting for my rocket 3R to arrive, I watched every single YT video from early owners. One could feel the prospective owners anticipation for the machine and the impatience in the waiting time. But after taking delivery, some owners seemed to be disappointed quickly. The reasons seemed to be excuses: The design did not appeal, the fuel consumption seemed too high. Not very credible, if you ask me. Even my T dealer tells me that he sees a pattern. He is guessing the bike is just too much for some.

I have ridden my R3r a lot this fall, a couple of longer trips of 250 to 400+ kms, mostly mountain roads and a few alpine passes. The whole time I am either (a) super chilled, (b) giggling like a lunatic or (c) going "****, yeah!" I have yet to discover a flaw. What did I miss?

I don’t know, I’ve had mine since 2004…

 

[theBarzeen]

I had an 05 that I loved. I put 40k miles on that thing but after having a TPS fail out of state I realized the problem with touring on these bikes. I put 60k miles on a couple of Harleys and they had their problems too, but I never spent more than a half day down, even on the road, because they have dealers everywhere and they all stock parts.
I tried to convince myself that I was getting older and it was time to get a toy car instead. I built a ridiculous car that is legitimately cooler than the R3, but it never brought me the same joy as motorcycles. After 3 years off of bikes a local racer offered me a lot of cash for my car and within 24 hours I had found the perfect R3 gt about 4 hours away and had made plans to go get it.
Why I sold and a bonus why I am back. lol

 

[Bunny Burrell]

I had 2004 R111 in 08 and owned it for 10 years, even had the motor upgraded to black engine spec. In 2018 I decided it was getting a bit weighty for my knackered knees and went for a 1700 Thunderbird Storm.
Fabulous machine, really chuckable, comfy, quite quick. But….
There was something missing, so sold that and brought a Yamaha Royal Star 1300 Venture. Unbelievably comfortable, for a bike its size handled extremely well.
And there’s that But again!
Once you’ve experienced the pure brute power of a Rocket 111…….
Last December, bit the bullet and brought a 2010 registered Classic, trading the Yamaha in on it. Oh God that powered addictive, enhanced by sticking it on a rolling road and getting rid of all of Triumphs restrictions. LOVE IT!!