Yes, I think that what you say may be common. I bought my T140D new (in Virginia as well - in Arlington) and still have it with me here in Chile (with the odometer now reading about 15K miles). You may wish to consider beefing up the front suspension and replacing the rear tire with one slightly smaller. It seems that at that time Triumph was trying to compete with the top selling Yamaha XS650 and its fat rear tire.