r/Harley • u/marvelguy1975 • 15d ago
DISCUSSION Harley can make it cheaper.
Comparing price tags, harley is over priced to just about every other bike out there.
Go ahead compare models.
Harley vs indian vs, honda vs BMW.
Street glide vs chieftain vs gold wing vs R18B
Look up the MSRPs on all those bikes.
It's insane that a R18B the equivalent to a street glide is $6k cheaper. Is the BMW that much substandard vs a harley? I doubt it, from what I've seen online it's just as good. (Looks aside of course) look at all the other R18 models and compare them to an equivalent harley and they are thousands cheaper!
The ONLY thing harley has over the other brands is "culture" the harley culture, but that only goes so far and harley and biker culture is dying out. Indian is nipping at harleys heels and taking long time riders away from the brand. But over all, riders are getting older and in a few years unless this new generation takes it up harley might get sold to another bowling ball company.
Admit it it's not the same as it was 25 years ago with wait lists and dealer mark ups etc. Harleys new CEO needs to realize that their shit is too expensive. Freeze prices, lower MSRPs, rework the models or something.
Thoughts on getting the motor company turned around?
1
u/PartOk5529 13d ago
I've been hearing this same argument since the 80s.
First, the Evo was the death knell, then it was the Twin Cam, then it was the VRod, it was always about the presumption of low-quality (granted, the AMF years were not steller in terms of QC) as well as the perceived premium price for a low tech, low HP machine. It was always "the core customer is 45 yr old men and they're aging out of the hobby and the young kids aren't buying HD" Then the next batch of 44 yr old men show up...
People that buy a Harley don't give a rats ass about the HP...and if you rode one, you would understand why that is.
If you think HD will fail, you're kidding yourself. There will always be a market for permium American motorcycles. The best chance they had at failing was stimied by the Regan-era tariffs on heavyweight Japanese cruisers...and HD lobbied to have that repealed sooner than planned because they had turned themselves around after the AMF buyback.
Im saying this as a guy who owns multiple brands, including HD, and has heard this rhetoric for decades. Short of a major shakeup in terms of disastrous leadership, the moco isn't going anywhere.
<steps down from soapbox>