[svorakang]

I must be doing something terribly wrong. I've had my bike for 7 years now, use it every second day, in all kinds of weather, and I lube it twice a year at best. It ought to be falling apart!

What's your basis for your claim of such frequent maintenance? Also, what do you mean by a modern bike?

[cowmoo728]

They will still function but a 12spd Ultegra / Force road bike will eat the chain and cassette and lose shifting precision if they're not maintained regularly. And high end road bike cassettes and chains are expensive to replace.

But when I had a basic hybrid bike I similarly just cleaned it every few months at most when it got dirty from wet rides. Worked fine for years.