With the inevitable coming of electrification, something other than the engine is going to have to define the character of future bikes.
I doubt the electric motor in a Ducati, KTM, Triumph or Honda is going to feel or sound any different.
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That’s the equivalent of me as a kid putting cards in my bicycle spokes 
Seriously, for me what matters when choosing a bike is….
How does it perform
How is the ride/handling
Is it comfortable (depends on what I plan to use it for)
Do I like how it looks
Do I like the image
Is it reliable
I’ve never really considered “does it have character” and I never get emotionally attached to machines.
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I agree with your list @NealH when considering a new bike purchase.
But I think one of the key factors that also provides to the character of a bike is the media coverage and amount of people that purchase and post their experiences on social media about their bike, which creates a real feel good factor around the bike. 
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Is that a long winded way if saying you can’t make your own mind up and just buy what everyone else does? … Arr wait a moment, I have a GS, the best selling large capacity adv bike for the last zillion years…apart from 2012 when Trumpet released the first Exploder…
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In a way, the “Insta” appeal / influencer thing often serves to put me off purchasing something - there’s a real demarcation for me between enjoying reading about people’s experiences and looking at their photos / videos etc which I do a lot and just “influencers” being paid to be photographed looking cool with a product and to create content. I need to feel that the person posting is fully invested rather than just saying whatever they believe a company / their followers want to hear.
I don’t think I have articulated that very well. Long story short is I lack the “cool” gene 
.
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Peoples experiences on social media are ok for the likes of here. But, youtube reviews of new bikes should be taken with a pinch of salt!
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That’s the good thing about communities on forums - there’s a higher degree of trust when it comes to opinions because you often know, or get to know, the people reasonably well. It’s a reputational thing, as you point out.
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Well yes and no
Here’s someone who talks about character
Kickstarter or electric? Personally, I’d like both.
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I haven’t had a kickstart for many years, though I remember them with a glassy-eyed fondness…
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Is character a combination of both personality and reliability?
You often see properties for sale on Rightmove listed as a Character property I immediately guess it will be a grade 1/2 listed property, which 80% of the time rings true. This often means expensive to modify or maintain. Then you look at the property and may love the looks of it it has a personality.
A character property is generally very old not all motorbikes need to be so.
I would never have described my Yamaha R6 2003 as having character and it was probably my favourite bike I have ever owned. It was flawless in terms of reliability silky smooth simply too damn well engineered.
I would describe my current bike the Thruxton R as having a character because its simply a raw machine and has a personality both looks wise and feel when riding it. It’s far from perfect when riding around towns and roundabouts very clunky but that is what makes it fun. Of course there are modifications which can be done to it to reduce this but then the bike will lose it’s personality.
What I am trying to say is that character can mean many things and it has possibly been mis interpreted into a negative connotation over time with more focus being on reliability.
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I missed them so much I retrofitted one to my 1340 HD.
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After not having a four pot in many years I bought a Honda CB1300 in2008. It was to do a job of carting me and the wife which it did well. Unfortunately it went so smooth and faultless I could never remember the exitement of any ride I ever had on it. It reminded me why I hadn’t had one for years. It was soooooo boring! To me character is it’s soul, for example I wouldn’t want a perfect lady supermodel, my wife has a real sense of humour, she tells jokes, farts, burps and is very pretty, now that’s how I like my bikes. My R nineT shakes on the start up button, shouts when on full steam with a thunder and gives me a real bit of feedback from the riders cockpit as it has extremely wide bars and makes me feel like an invincible bank robber that’s just coined it in.
Phew! That felt good!
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I’ve had a few bikes that farted, burped and were very pretty, but never one that told jokes.
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I do like character (usually found in a twin) but reliability trumps it for me now.
No use saying “ah, its just the way it is” when on the M6 and waiting for AA for 6 hrs.
Punctures exempt of course!
Sure, its better now than the past but I have never thought that a japan made bike would go wrong for electronics or the engine tbh.
I dread the day when I start getting a can-bus/electric gremlins error or the display starts playing silly buggers on the speed triple.
Of course you are going to be getting them on Japanese bikes but far more unlikely imho.
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Had a bike that was a joke… wasn’t funny though.
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Yes Eric, it’s obvious your good wife has a real sense of humour, she married you. 
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Yeah patients of a saint too! But…… she did have to pass the fart test first!