Oil Drippings: News and Opinion

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com

It has often been said that you only have one chance to make a good impression. These days, for dealerships, that first impression is often via the Internet. An inadequate or hard-to-maneuver  website can make a bad first impression. So can outdated information and hyperbole.

A dealership that brags about a “huge selection” of pre-owned units, for instance, and then shows one bike makes me wonder what else they’re stretching the truth about. A dealership that doesn’t supply a price and instead routinely demands that I “request a quote” or “call” to find out what a bike is going for wastes my time and ticks me off.

Web pages that are “non-existent” or blank are also bothersome. An example of the non-existent web page is “current inventory.” Some dealers have them, some don’t. Yes, it takes time to snap pictures of what’s on the showroom floor and to post them, but I enjoy being able to see what’s in stock and whether it’s worth traveling 40 or 50 miles to see a model.

On the subject of websites, Burt Ives Honda in Columbia has just upgraded its website. Check it out here.

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Ever heard a funny noise while riding? I thought my bike was having major meltdown one day last fall while riding through Litchfield. What I failed to notice was a roofing crew putting shingles on a nearby house and using a nail gun to attach them. Scared the heck out of me. Here’s a funny video of a rider being driven buggy by an untraceable noise:

Nice prank!

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The revived Norton brand has yet to begin selling bikes in the U.S. but the company does already have apparel and other accessories available for purchase online. Besides the expected T-shirts, hats, coffee mugs, calendars and belt buckles bearing the Norton logo, the company has tapped premium footwear maker Jeffrey-West to come up with some branded riding boots. They aren’t cheap, selling for 395 pounds in the U.K., and they look too dressy to ever want to get scuffed while out riding.

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Finally, Mustang Seats is now out with a cafe seat for 2004-2012 Harley-Davidson Sportster models that have 2.25 and 3.3 gallon gas tanks. The seat is 11.5″ wide and costs $309.