The future of Harley-Davidson

[the Ferret]

Yea the only part of that video I found disingenuous was claiming they won the Baja 500...well, they did with an Italian Aermacchi motorcycle with Harley Davidson decals on the gas tank (Harley owned a 50% shared of Aermacchi at the time...it was not a motorcycle built by the American Company Harley Davidson). Other than that good video.

[GoldOxide_imp]

Yea the only part of that video I found disingenuous was claiming they won the Baja 500...well, they did with an Italian Aermacchi motorcycle with Harley Davidson decals on the gas tank (Harley owned a 50% shared of Aermacchi at the time...it was not a motorcycle built by the American Company Harley Davidson). Other than that good video.

Good eye Ferret. That was indeed a desperate deep dig on HD's part.

[Inhouse Bob]

"Individiality"??

[Tev62]

Some things don't travel well. That front headlight has been universally ridiculed in Europe since the first sneak previews (not sure about elsewhere). Virtually everyone comments on the ugly front end and I didn't think it would make it into production. The rest of the bike doesn't look half bad though and the motor looks solid too. I remember those Italian Harley's well, my friend had the a 250 or 350cc one, it was plain enough but it went OK and did earn them some cache amongst 16 year olds who knew no better!

[Frulk_imp]

My buddy told me base price is around $19K. Didn’t stipulate if that was with panniers. Probably not. Truthfully I expected the price (if accurate) to be somewhat higher).

Of course Harley will have a full spectrum of options ready for the consumer to choose from up to and including in-house branded adventure clothing. Not sure how it would play out pulling up at a Starbucks next to the GS crowd comparing their GPS coordinates in $3K of spotless, unsoiled BMW branded riding gear dressed as an HD Adventure Pirate. Of course they would probably look down on you for not going with a double decaf soy latte and ordering just a plain house coffee with nothing else added. Motorcycle Tribal instincts being what they are.


The MoCo will also capitalize on their in-house financing.

I don’t expect to see a lot of bikes leaving the showrooms with the buyer spending even close to my assumed 19$K price.

[apex1_imp]

I have owned one Harley or another uninterrupted for 41 years, and have also owned other bikes for most of that time. I have been skeptical about Harley building an ADV bike. Why would anyone buy one if they can buy a KTM, or a BMW GS, or a new 4 cylinder Ducati Multistrada. or even a Triumph Tiger? Then I watched this Harley video and I am impressed with the potential, especially the higher spec version with the suspension that drops nearly 2 inches at a stop. Being 5'8' tall with a 30" inseam, this could be a game changer. The bike will hit the market with a wide range of accessory options--3 different luggage options out of the gate sounds great. We have to see what testers who are not the Harley CEO have to say about it, but I look forward to learning more. One caveat, I would never buy another first year Harley. My Road King is a first year for the TwinCam motor and it had issues. Some poor buyers of the early Milwaukee 8 engine bikes suffered serious fluid sumping issues, and early "TwinCooled" motors had problems. This new motor has really upped the technology, including but not limited to complex variable valve timing that does more than Honda's VVT system. Do all new motorcycles have serious issues initially? I don't think it is anywhere near as prevalent as with Harleys, though I could be wrong.

[Tev62]

No valve service! BRAVO

[GoldOxide_imp]

No valve service! BRAVO

This is great Forum feedback.

HD or not, it will be fun to watch them roll the Pan America out. I'd like to see it be successful, and that implies more attractive pricing. We'll see.

She is a bigger gurl, however (and other ADV bikes are pretty big).

[bioman_imp]

I have never owned a Harley, and unless the association that Harley has with its pirate/outlaw clientele changes dramatically, you will never see me on a Harley. Having said that: this Pan America starts to grow on me and I can see it opening up a new market for HD with Americans who want to buy an American motorcycle but are not into cruisers.

Then again, I can also see why this bike will not do very well, especially outside the USA: why would one buy a Harley when s/he can buy a very similar bike (but tested over many years) from BMW, Ducati, or KTM for the same money? Especially when you will do some touring in areas where HD-mechanics are not so common (i.e. everywhere outside of North America) and especially because this bike is loaded with very fancy and probably finicky electronics.

This engine is very promising and a potential game changer for HD, but it remains to be seen how it will perform in its first generation in the real world.

And lastly: the market for ADV bikes is turning away from 1200cc bikes towards 500-800cc bikes. The Pan America is 10 years late.

[Frulk_imp]

If the price difference was enough to justify it I could see myself trailering one to Happy Trails in Boise Idaho, dropping it off and having them spec a couple of their panniers on the Harley mounts.

That would give me time to shop the local vineyards on the Snake River for vino while HP does their thing.

Having owned their top box for several years now I’m impressed with their rugged, simplistic build quality.