Kawasaki Z900RS

[the Ferret]

I sit on the Jap bike, but...

And, it's a "Jap bike." There goes half the potential U.S. customer base.

HD-riding buddy of mine a few years ago wouldn't even sit on my Kawasaki Concours, let alone ride it. "I don't sit on Jap bikes!" And she was educated, successful, articulate, open-minded and reasonably intelligent.

She sure sounds open-minded.

She sure sounds open-minded.
I was thinking the same thing.

She sure sounds open-minded.
I was thinking the same thing.
Oddly enough, I understand better those that buy Harleys because they "wouldn't sit on Jap bikes!..." then those that believe there is some technical merit to the big bore V twins in this 21st century.

Nothing wrong with the air cooled Harley V twin.Been around a long time and they still sell a boat load of them. Sure it's heavy and slow, and not as technically advanced as some others, but I think I've heard the same complaints about the CB1100.

We all have preferences and opinions. Some are rather stubborn in theirs...on both sides.

That, in a way, is exactly what's wrong (other than my personal objection to the stupid noise they make .

According to some, motorcycling in north America is on the decline, according to the others, it is in a tailspin. I have not heard anyone who, with any authority, claims the state of the industry is healthy.

HD is, for reasons that are not worth going into here, such a dominant force in that industry, that what it does - or does not do - is the principal factor that determines not only the future of the company, but the future of the domestic motorcycle industry. That future is not in noisy, overpriced and overweight toys completely unfit for modern urban traffic, targeting a bunch of old man that have no need for real-world transportation and will be in no position to keep buying any kind of motorised vehicle for much longer; it is in the transportation and recreation needs of our grand-kids (well, of most of us around here, if I get the demographics of this forum correct

Or, in pictures, motorcycling around the world:






And then, the only kind of motorcycling we know in north America:


I know it looks quaint, but trust me, it's not healthy...

That, in a way, is exactly what's wrong (other than my personal objection to the stupid noise they make .

According to some, motorcycling in north America is on the decline, according to the others, it is in a tailspin. I have not heard anyone who, with any authority, claims the state of the industry is healthy.

HD is, for reasons that are not worth going into here, such a dominant force in that industry, that what it does - or does not do - is the principal factor that determines not only the future of the company, but the future of the domestic motorcycle industry. That future is not in noisy, overpriced and overweight toys completely unfit for modern urban traffic, targeting a bunch of old man that have no need for real-world transportation and will be in no position to keep buying any kind of motorised vehicle for much longer; it is in the transportation and recreation needs of our grand-kids (well, of most of us around here, if I get the demographics of this forum correct
I would argue that America is such a large place with so few cities in which motorcycles are actually needed as transportation (like in the pictures above), that large motorcycles, even though nothing but toys here in America (like boats) are the perfect 2 wheeled transportation for this country. You'd be hard pressed to ride those scooters from say New York to San Francisco. We don't NEED motorcycles here, we just want them. For transportation we use cars. If indeed America becomes a conglomeration of cities touching each other with billions and billions of people needing transportation, I still don't see Americans abandoning their personal cars for scooters and mopeds. Not going to happen here. They may take a train, a bus, or an uber, but they are not going to expose themselves to the elements on a daily basis by riding a scooter/small motorcycle. There are only parts of a handful of our lower 48 states that it would even be possible weather wise... So Cal, so Texas, so Fla, so Arizona, maybe so Louisiana. For a majority of the rest of the country we have several months of winter with snow and ice. We have hurricanes, and horrible rain occurrences like the flooding rains we are experiencing in much of the country right now. In some states it gets unbearably hot in the summertime, in excess of 100 degrees F daily for months on end. As such small motorcycles/mopeds/scooters are just not an alternative method of transportation for the masses here, and I don't see them ever becoming so.

As such Harley's (all large motorcycles from all manufacturers in fact), including CB1100's are simply toys, and Americans earn enough to buy toys and keep them in their suburban garages and ride them around in huge expanses of un-populated country when they feel like it.

Further, some would argue that any ICE powered vehicle is not the future (of the world) and Europe is leading the way to that end by banning the mfg of new ICE vehicles (both motorcycle and car) in their countries starting as early as 2025 or 2030 in Denmark and Norway, and 2040 in Britain and most other Euro countries.
The whole future of motorcycling as we know it is under attack.

To that end Harley is wisely investing in electric motorcycle technology with their Live Wire project.

[VLJ_imp]

mickey Wrote:Europe is leading the way to that end by banning the mfg of new ICE vehicles (both motorcycle and car) in their countries starting as early as 2025 or 2030 in Denmark and Norway, and 2040 in Britain and most other Euro countries.
Do Denmark and Norway even manufacture ICE vehicles?

[Cormanus]

Apparently Denmark manufactured the Zenvo, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zenvo_ST1

[hb9400_imp]

Saw this yesterday. Someone bought it already.

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