Hitchcocks Forum

Picked up my Continental GT yesterday, and I have to say I am a bit surprised at a couple "Quality" issues, very badly applied Silver Paint round all of the Welded Joints on the Front Pipe and Silencer, and some plastic tape wrapped round the wiring at joints that looks like a 5 year old had done it.

The other thing I noticed as I rode the bike home was the Speedo/Milometer in metric, I had not spotted any of these things on the Showroom Bike when I placed my order a month ago.

The Silencer has already been changed to the Motad that was waiting in the Garage ready, I will now get the matching stainless front pipe, I just could not stand the embarrassment of any of my Jap Bike owning friends pointing out the Silver Paint.

The response from my friendly dealer, "You should have seen the Quality a couple of years ago" but all in all I do like the ride and I am a lot more likely to retain my licence with the "modest" performance on offer.

Can I assume that I am not the only one who has spotted these issues ?.

Hi matey--------- no, you're not alone with those observations-----alas !!..How is your Warranty effected by fitting those different exhaust/silencer parts I wonder ??

Is it one of the (arguably) better looking yellow ones?

Thanks for the response guys, it's a Red one, I did fancy one in 1965 and decided on CB160 Honda for the same money, so it had to be Red, mind you had one been on offer in Black it might have been a harder decision .

With regards to warranty issues, I will probably change that much I won't have leg to stand on, mind you, after several brand new Ducatis etc. I don't think the RE is going to be much of a problem.

SNAP !!----------- I also had a CB160 in 1967 and rode it from Edinburgh to Reading complete with RN kit bag (Took it back on the train though !!)

I've had a good look at these bikes both at the local dealers, Unit 3 Classics, and at the Watsonian weekend. My own observations were pretty much the same: silencer with paint ;( and the wiring Fortunately these were not things that would put me off. I enjoy tidying wiring anyway and the exhaust, as you say, can be solved by getting another or by waiting till it gets a bit old and then exchanging it. I have emailed Hitchcocks to see if they will be able to come up with an MPH main dial speedo. I replaced the km/h ones on both my Clasic Enfields some time ago, so they both have MPH now. Anyway my overall feeling that these issues are things we can have a bit of relative fun playing with, rather than, say, an awful frame which you'd be stuck with. And I enjoyed the test ride in the Cotswolds a lot. Personally I like the red colour; very rich/deep looking and nice to my way of thinking. Regards, Chris

It always amuses me they way you Brits have miles for the road and metres for building and most other things. Credit or blame depending on the colour of your rosette I believe is due to Maggie Thatcher who capitulated half way through the change over to metric. I had the misfortune to work on a 1972 Morris Marina once in Blighty on my OE which had metric, AF and Whitworth nut sizes. Yuk!

Simon, GM did the same here in 1978 on the Toranas, from the windscreen forward Metric from the windscreen back AF

The Torana was a classic though (at least the 186 motored one was not the re badge Viva)whereas I've seldom had a more depressing automotive experience than the Marina. the mixture was also random unlike the Torana. the wheel nuts were Whit as was the iron cased gearbox which weighed a ton and blew up first gear in about ten thousand miles. The Marina was to Morris what the Camira was to GM. Sorry I'll stop hijacking this thread now.

Simon: reading your comments I thought I'd try it out on my 26-year old daughter. Asked her to remind me how tall she was. Immediate reply with no thinking was 5-foot-4. She's got two daughters, both weighed in LBS by the hospital at birth. Short road distances, Yards. Plywood: Sheets of 8ft x 4ft, 18mm thick. Ha ha