What’s Harley Davidson doing?

Toddco327

Toddco327

PR Addict
Was reading today Harley has stopped shipment of their electric bikes because of charging issues. I know Harley is struggling but it seems to me that they are trying to many different things to make a buck.

Harley,
You’ve lost market share because your bikes are to expensive. You’ve lost market share because of the image you present. You’ve lost market share because you now have to spend 500 dollars to have your mapping set for your new exhaust. You lost market share because your bikes are unable to be worked on by an average rider. And finally you’ve lost an entire customer base because they weren’t brought up riding Harley dirt bikes/ mini bikes.

Maybe Harley needs to get back to basics and quit trying to chase the unicorn. Take the bikes and platform you currently have and make it better. Make bikes that have the ability to perform better. Suspension upgrades anything. Customers don’t care about fringe on their saddlebags. Customers want to make their bike their own and make it fit their riding style. Honda has a bike for any level of rider and they are all reliable. From age 4-90, male or female, big or little there is a bike that will fit you. Harley.... age 40-65

I could just be the MX rider in me but Harley needs to get back to basics.
 
They’re going to have to give up on this air cooled s**t eventually. I owned a nice 2018 road glide for a bit. A deer bought it off me, after living through the accident un scathed and insurance paying nicely for my bike I realized that deer did me a huge favor. The bike had some positives but some serious negatives for the coin it cost. Braking and suspension were terrible. Engine was as expected for a v-twin cruiser.
 
I know a guy named Steve who works for Harley and just was in China on business.....

Pretty sure Harley knows what they’re doing. Some of their new stuff is appealing to younger guys. They got some nice meaty baggers
 
Harley is an iconic brand. Imagine riding your Honda shadow down the road and pulling up next to a Harley at a red light. How are you going to feel? Enough said.
 
Buell....was a step, now a step away.
The Biggest Marketing Blunder is turning every dealer into clothing outlet, sometimes a restaurant destination location. Money spent to solidify the Brand...not the bikes.
Line a GoldWing up to a Bagger
yeah I can’t see where you’d feel defeated.
 
Let's face it, Harley's bike had outlasted their time based on the branding behind the biker image that Harley always had. The bikes were never the strong point for many years. Now that the younger generation doesn't have the same number of people that want to be Bad Ass Bikers (that's not really politically correct in today's world), Harley isn't selling older technology at a premium like they have for years. They see the writing on the wall and are trying to figure out how to cash in on the next thing before they are in too big of a hole financially to get out. They have to keep their aging core customers happy, while at the same time attracting new customers to new things - not an easy task.
 
Jarrod458 said:
Harley is an iconic brand. Imagine riding your Honda shadow down the road and pulling up next to a Harley at a red light. How are you going to feel? Enough said.
Click to expand...

That's the mindset of those hung up on status. And Harley's are a status symbol for many, if not most.
Happy is the guy, or gal, that's riding something other than a $25,000+ Harley, on a bike that fit's them, and their individual personality preferences.

And I actually like certain Harley Davidson bikes.
 
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The issue with the super loud exhaust is getting old as well. And again, it's all an ego thing. They think it's fun blasting out everyone's eardrums in heavy traffic.

I feel for those that get exposed to it when there might be a baby in the car, or a person with hearing aides in.
The police departments need to return to enforcing vehicle noise ordinances as they used to back in the 70's and 80's with load car exhausts.
 
There are always going to be people who care about what they are riding and the image it portrays, and some of those people want an old fashion Harley Davidson bike that portrays that they are part of the "biker" club since they own one. Other people are going to go after the newest stuff with technology in it like the Japanese brands with all the latest and greatest bells and whistles you can get on a motorcycle. Some people want a bike that fits them and is comfortable for them to be on, and they'll buy what bike fits their stature, some people want crotch rockets and will buy that style of bike to look speedy on their motorcycle, but more and more, people are getting into electric bikes, scooters, and other easy forms of get around transportation. Harley is trying to get into another market as theirs seems to be slowly dwindling away......
 
Toddco327 said:
Was reading today Harley has stopped shipment of their electric bikes because of charging issues. I know Harley is struggling but it seems to me that they are trying to many different things to make a buck.

Harley,
You’ve lost market share because your bikes are to expensive. You’ve lost market share because of the image you present. You’ve lost market share because you now have to spend 500 dollars to have your mapping set for your new exhaust. You lost market share because your bikes are unable to be worked on by an average rider. And finally you’ve lost an entire customer base because they weren’t brought up riding Harley dirt bikes/ mini bikes.

Maybe Harley needs to get back to basics and quit trying to chase the unicorn. Take the bikes and platform you currently have and make it better. Make bikes that have the ability to perform better. Suspension upgrades anything. Customers don’t care about fringe on their saddlebags. Customers want to make their bike their own and make it fit their riding style. Honda has a bike for any level of rider and they are all reliable. From age 4-90, male or female, big or little there is a bike that will fit you. Harley.... age 40-65

I could just be the MX rider in me but Harley needs to get back to basics.
Click to expand...

I could not disagree with you more, and I've owned Harleys for over 20 years. The last Jap bike I owned was a 2001 Yamaha R1 that I sold in 2005.

You’ve lost market share because your bikes are to expensive.
I will agree with this point. Since the M8 motor has come out, they have taken about a $3000 jump on any touring models.

You’ve lost market share because of the image you present.
What image is that? That is a bullshit statement if I've ever heard one. Everyone from hard core bikers to joe lunch box, doctors and lawyers ride Harleys.

You’ve lost market share because you now have to spend 500 dollars to have your mapping set for your new exhaust.
You've always had to remap to when you put pipes on to do it right with a stage one kit. No different than rejetting a carbureted bike when you buy a pipe for a motocross bike. Performance cost money no matter what the brand.

You lost market share because your bikes are unable to be worked on by an average rider.
My YZ 450 has so many electronics on it, I am sure there are things I can not do in my garage.

And finally you’ve lost an entire customer base because they weren’t brought up riding Harley dirt bikes/ mini bikes.
Harley has not made a dirt bike since the early 70s

Maybe Harley needs to get back to basics and quit trying to chase the unicorn. Take the bikes and platform you currently have and make it better. Make bikes that have the ability to perform better. Suspension upgrades anything. Customers don’t care about fringe on their saddlebags. Customers want to make their bike their own and make it fit their riding style. Honda has a bike for any level of rider and they are all reliable. From age 4-90, male or female, big or little there is a bike that will fit you. Harley.... age 40-65

I ride a 2015 Street Glide. The bike handles great for a bagger. You would be amazed how fast I can take a corner and it sticks. The breaks are Harley brakes, and you have a lot of weight. But they perform well considering, and have ABS. You obviously know nothing about Harleys. Have you looked at the new models? They have some bad ass sporty models out right now. Was just looking at one in Daytona.

If anything I would say Harley has kept on doing what they do, and doing it fairly well. But the price of the bikes is getting much more expensive, but so are cars and trucks, so that argument is short lived.
 
$1300 for a headlight now a days.....a headlight. Gadgets and electronics are driving prices of vehicles way up. And making more and more total losses when something happens.
 
Dude :
You dint watch the vid ....
It's all about Fat tire e-scooters bro -

This from PowerSports Finance mag:
"Harley’s stock price has been steadily declining for years and has lost 50% of its value since 2014"

...and I'm pretty sure Harley's use Italian Brembo's to "stop" and Showa components to "stick"

But then again .....I obviously don't know anything about Harleys ..... Doh!!!! LOL!!!
 
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I do like the look of the Softail Slim.

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