10-12-2016, 09:38 AM
"BMW claims to be going after Harley market share in the states with the new K1600B"
Tink already said it with ..."Good luck with that one, BMW".
These excerpts from the article:
" It’s pretty much the Honda Goldwing experience with enough of a Harley-Davidson look and a brand name people will still feel justified paying a lot for"
" It will be sold in other countries as well, but BMW’s angling to double their U.S. market share by 2020 (from 4 percent to 8 percent, according to their presentation) and this baby is how they’re going to take a big bite out of Harley-Davidson’s lunch."
"That latter part wasn’t said explicitly, but come on. This bagger is exactly what BMW needed to build to drive a jackboot into the American cruiser market".
End of article excerpts.
Discount the whole Harley "Branded" lifestyle thing, the AMERICAN Icon image, national pride, the fact that Harley does indeed make a darn fine bike for the markets it targets and you're left with some undeniable truths.
1) Almost no Harley owner will jump ship based on the BMW's performance numbers or technological glitter because if they cared about that they wouldn't be on Harleys to begin with.
2. ) Direct converts from HD to BMW will be far and few between. I say this based on the following.
2.1) The BMW doesn't even look REMOTELY like any Harley out there on the road right now. In fact if anything the front half looks more like an FJ than anything else.
2.2) Harley riders like us (the ones that I know personally), mostly prefer air cooled motors, V twins in particular. I know the MoCo has some water cooled units out there now but I'm betting the HD rider would go H20 cooled with a V twin before they jumped brands to an H20 chilled BMW.
3) Harleys motors (the look of the motor itself) are a critical draw for purchasers due their aesthetic contributions to the overall appearance of the bike. Their power plants just look COOL...not so on the BMW, and certainly not hidden under 1.5 yards of Tupperware.
Here's what I see happening:
BMW sell SOME of these to Harley owners but not the "big bite out of Harleys lunch" that was predicted in the article.
BMW will face FIERCE competition for the demographic they're targeting from Moto Guzzi's MX21 "Flying Fortress", a new model to their lineup that has a massive, beautiful, air-cooled opposing V-Twin power plant and more appealing traditional bagger look that for those folks willing to defect from HD will find more appealing. Moto Guzzi had these at Sturgis this year and from everything I read they received A LOT of attention from the faithful. Time will tell.
Take both the Moto Guzzi and BMW and park them at a Harley joint and see which one draws the most attention. For that matter, take Nemo's California and the BMW and do the same. I'm pretty confident what the outcome will be.
Tink already said it with ..."Good luck with that one, BMW".
These excerpts from the article:
" It’s pretty much the Honda Goldwing experience with enough of a Harley-Davidson look and a brand name people will still feel justified paying a lot for"
" It will be sold in other countries as well, but BMW’s angling to double their U.S. market share by 2020 (from 4 percent to 8 percent, according to their presentation) and this baby is how they’re going to take a big bite out of Harley-Davidson’s lunch."
"That latter part wasn’t said explicitly, but come on. This bagger is exactly what BMW needed to build to drive a jackboot into the American cruiser market".
End of article excerpts.
Discount the whole Harley "Branded" lifestyle thing, the AMERICAN Icon image, national pride, the fact that Harley does indeed make a darn fine bike for the markets it targets and you're left with some undeniable truths.
1) Almost no Harley owner will jump ship based on the BMW's performance numbers or technological glitter because if they cared about that they wouldn't be on Harleys to begin with.
2. ) Direct converts from HD to BMW will be far and few between. I say this based on the following.
2.1) The BMW doesn't even look REMOTELY like any Harley out there on the road right now. In fact if anything the front half looks more like an FJ than anything else.
2.2) Harley riders like us (the ones that I know personally), mostly prefer air cooled motors, V twins in particular. I know the MoCo has some water cooled units out there now but I'm betting the HD rider would go H20 cooled with a V twin before they jumped brands to an H20 chilled BMW.
3) Harleys motors (the look of the motor itself) are a critical draw for purchasers due their aesthetic contributions to the overall appearance of the bike. Their power plants just look COOL...not so on the BMW, and certainly not hidden under 1.5 yards of Tupperware.
Here's what I see happening:
BMW sell SOME of these to Harley owners but not the "big bite out of Harleys lunch" that was predicted in the article.
BMW will face FIERCE competition for the demographic they're targeting from Moto Guzzi's MX21 "Flying Fortress", a new model to their lineup that has a massive, beautiful, air-cooled opposing V-Twin power plant and more appealing traditional bagger look that for those folks willing to defect from HD will find more appealing. Moto Guzzi had these at Sturgis this year and from everything I read they received A LOT of attention from the faithful. Time will tell.
Take both the Moto Guzzi and BMW and park them at a Harley joint and see which one draws the most attention. For that matter, take Nemo's California and the BMW and do the same. I'm pretty confident what the outcome will be.