Belts are also used because they sap the horsepower slightly less. They work better than chains and are much more reliable when speeds and loads are pretty constant. The biggest problem with any bike engine is the hugely variable speeds that they are subject to.
I honestly can't think why Harley went so heavily down the belt route with their bikes because although the V twin isn't that revvy, they are subject to a hell of a lot of torque and they don't cope with that too well. They seem to have overcome it with using a lot of carbon fibre in the laminate.
Papasmurf, I have a few mates who run Harleys and none have had
ANY trouble at all with them but they are less than 5 years old. So I would suggest your lady friend forgets a bike and gets back in the car. If she had any brains she would have either made sure that the service history was up to date and done properly or that the dealer did their job when she took it in.
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personally never liked the idea of driving on a glorified elastic band, preferring steel chains and cogs which dont slip when wet, but never having ridden a belt drive ........
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They have teeth Bill and don't slip. They stretch less than chains too as they are a lot stronger. The problems start when a foreign object gets between the teeth and sprocket as they run a lot tighter than a chain.