They've priced themselves out of the market. Better to buy used.
If anyone you know has been seriously injured in a car crash do you not ride in cars either?What, again? A bud who rides said current gen whatever dont ride and foreign bikes are thousands less. I dont ride and one of the reasons is every person, acquaintance, friend, etc I know who rides has been seriously injured doing so. One bud's never been hurt riding but his effing bike fell on him. I used to love to ride my childhood friends bikes, go karts and dune buggys but never got the bug to own one.
I think the difference is that in a car something that would be a mild fender bender can be a completely life changing accident on a motorcycle. And the percentage of people I know who have died in a car accident v the amount of people I know actually drive in cars is minute...though the amount of people I know who have died/maimed on a motorcycle v the amount of people i know who ride is by magnitudes higher.If anyone you know has been seriously injured in a car crash do you not ride in cars either?
I think you hit the nail on the head. Harley has history and a sound that sells. Going retro may not keep a mass of stockholders happy but there is enough demand for a downsized company to have a successful future selling exact copies of years past.I wish someone made repro kits for the old V twin classics. There used to be one for a ’47 knuckelhead, but I don’t know that it was any good.
I think you hit the nail on the head. Harley has history and a sound that sells. Going retro may not keep a mass of stockholders happy but there is enough demand for a downsized company to have a successful future selling exact copies of years past.
I think the difference is that in a car something that would be a mild fender bender can be a completely life changing accident on a motorcycle. And the percentage of people I know who have died in a car accident v the amount of people I know actually drive in cars is minute...though the amount of people I know who have died/maimed on a motorcycle v the amount of people i know who ride is by magnitudes higher.
I always hear the, "you're going to get killed", "everyone I know gets hurt on those things". I must be hanging around with the wrong motorcycle crowd because the guys that I associate with in the motorcycle world have put hundreds of thousands of miles over many, many years and are still alive and riding. Real experienced riders are a bit different than the weekend warriors that have 10 year old bikes with 5k miles on them. It's like shooting. If you don't do it very often your skills suffer.
I was thinking more of an aftermarket third party company. Just like Factory Five (and others) build repro Cobra kits. I wish someone did that for old HD’s and Indians, but it’s one thing to fab and paint a frame, another to build a reliable reproduction of an engine that was engineered 80 years ago. It would likely be wildly expensive if it was any good.
14% of traffic fatalities are motorcycles. I still like them and support riders. Not trying to argue that experienced riders go decades without an incident. Looking into those fatality stats even show the accident is usually caused by someone else.
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And a dwindling market to sell it to.
Rant. alert:
Man, after hundreds of thousands of miles of this passion I have for motorcycles dating back to the early 70's, it never ceases to amaze me how some dipshit that doesn't even ride feels compelled to educate us riders on riding motorcycles. How their "brother friends uncles son" KILLED HIMSELF on a motorcycle. "Lost his leg" etc. Why do they feel obligated to do this? It's idiotic.
That is why we like it. Because it is dangerous and hard to do well. The consequences of lack of skill and knowledge can be fatal. Like skydiving. We know, we've all lost close friends, etc. We've watched people better than us eat dirt. Die. Get effed up. Many times. We've heard all the stories. We know all the stats. We know more than you EVER WILL.
SO, STFU, LOL.
There is a possible niche market that no major maker has ventured into, even a copy of single cylinder pedal bike might sell like hotcakes. Plenty of city dwellers looking for a bike with a cool look and the name to go with it. The possibilities are endless with number of models Harley made through the years. High tech only goes so far in the image concious world of motor bikes. Build it cheap enough for the everyday rider and watch Harley's image defeat the best the world has to offer; that and a generous account with all of the bike magazines.I don't think so. The average age of motorcycle riders keeps going up. Most that want something as old as a Knucklehead are too old to even hold up a bike anymore. HD has shot themselves in the foot with their once genius marketing strategy.
I was thinking more of an aftermarket third party company. Just like Factory Five (and others) build repro Cobra kits. I wish someone did that for old HD’s and Indians, but it’s one thing to fab and paint a frame, another to build a reliable reproduction of an engine that was engineered 80 years ago. It would likely be wildly expensive if it was any good.
Like the price of a Ford crate engine for a hotrod, or kit car.close to $10K for the Knuck.
I am due for a ride to clear my head. You sound like a sensitive Harley guy. I'm sorry if I hurt your feels.@SPST Let it go man. We get it. You have a huge distaste for Harley Davidson. You make it clear quite often. As I've said before, since you know everything they're doing wrong maybe you should go to work for them and turn it around.
Maybe you're due for an Iron Butt ride to clear your head?
#Honyamasukirules!
He has a point. They have priced themselves out of the market. When you price things to where only older guys can buy something then the young guys will end up with other brand bikes that typically outperform Harleys. Once they get a taste of that they most likely won't come back to a harley. As others have said, the age of riders is going up across the world. I believe that is due to the image as well as parents telling kids it's dangerous.@SPST Let it go man. We get it. You have a huge distaste for Harley Davidson. You make it clear quite often. As I've said before, since you know everything they're doing wrong maybe you should go to work for them and turn it around.
Maybe you're due for an Iron Butt ride to clear your head?
#Honyamasukirules!
I believe that is due to the image as well as parents telling kids it's dangerous.
two words
people texting
Of course you can voice text with some of the new comm systems. And I believe the nav screens on the Harleys and GoldWings show your texts as they come in too.
wind, internal combustion, and gears clunking when I shift are all I want to hear.Seriously? Im riding to gth away from people
Amen. I rode for over 40 years before I stopped. I never did understand the stereo system on a bike thing.............To each his own, though.wind, internal combustion, and gears clunking when I shift are all I want to hear.