ABS, or The ABSence Thereof – Question of the Day
Are anti-lock brakes expectation yet?
“People that still use ABS.”
That was one of many replies left in a previous Question of the Day about motorcyclist pet peeves, but somehow it stuck in my head a lot longer than the others (and yes, we do read them all).
The succinctness of the reply is part of it, but also the question of how one actively “uses” anti-lock brakes. For the most part, it either kicks in when needed, or it doesn’t. Semantics aside, the real core of the reply was about ABS in general, and, I’m assuming, the commenter’s staunch opposition to the technology. That’s what has signed a rent-free lease for a small part of my brain.
Writing about motorcycles for a living, I’m so used to seeing the phrase “ABS is standard” with new model announcements that it catches me by surprise when I come across a new motorcycle that either doesn’t have ABS, or has it optional or only a separate variant model. ABS is more ubiquitous than it used to be, but in markets like the U.S. where it’s not mandated, I have to remind myself it’s still not completely “standard.”
This reminds me of a time, not that long ago (but probably long enough to make me feel old if I try to think about it) that we saw the same with electronic fuel injection. Carburetors were the norm for so long that when a new motorcycle offered fuel injection, manufacturers made a big deal about it, going so far as to add an “i” to the model name. Fuel injection is now common enough you don’t really see that anymore, but we’re still in that stage with ABS, with bikes like the new 2024 Kawasaki Ninja 500, where even the KRT Edition models may, or may not, have “ABS” tacked onto its name.
So, that leads us to our Question of the Day. When you’re shopping for a new bike, is ABS something that you now expect to be standard equipment, or do you still prefer it to be optional?
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Dennis has been a part of the Motorcycle.com team since 2008, and through his tenure, has developed a firm grasp of industry trends, and a solid sense of what's to come. A bloodhound when it comes to tracking information on new motorcycles, if there's a new model on the horizon, you'll probably hear about it from him first.
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Last year, at a Kawasaki dealership, I looked for and was told the there were no Kawasaki Vulcan S bikes available with ABS. It was a case where the components being in short supply, the manufacturers only used them for the more costly models and not bother to produce many with ABS. I shrugged it off but would have gladly paid the extra money.
Business decisions way to often come off as screw the customer. This is a case in point.
Every once in a while I’ll see a classic old motorcycle and think ‘ that’d be cool to have’ then I’d remember it doesn’t have ABS and I discard the fancy.