Harley Is Doomed (article)

[Grumbler]

According to this article, Harley-Davidson Incorporated,
the iconic American motorcycle manufacturer is doomed.
FYI. FWIW. YMMV. WTF.

http://www.agingrebel.com/?p=2740

[falconati]

I severely doubt that.

[atadaskew]

Ummm, rrright.

For a second I thought that this would be an article from a legit source, like Wall St Journal, Business Week, The Economist.  

But it's from an internet site called Agingrebel.

Well, I guess because it's on the internet it must be true.

[chornbe]

More of the same rhetoric.

I'm getting tired of hearing from the leather and chrome "faithful" crowd about how Harley has turned their back on the "people who made them who they are" and have pandered to the yuppies. Maybe Harley has, maybe they haven't. But what they *have* done is something that darned few companies (not just motorcycle companies) have been able to do; build a brand that is, quite literally, an American Icon and that speaks to many people. If you owned a company that sold a premium-priced product that stands out (for better or worse) in a sea of ubiquity and "me too" products, would you really want to build your brand loyalty on guys living in rabbit hutches and making $20K^[1] a year and skipping rent payments to pay for a motorcycle that is largely considered a toy? Yeah, maybe Harley - the business entity selling products to people who want to buy them - did embrace and focus on doctors and lawyers and enable the good boys to foster bad-boy images. They're the guys with money.

I left a comment. Whatever.





_{[1] - and that's not meant to offend. Peoples' salaries are all over the place and there are competitive products at every price point. Toyota and Chevy sell lots of lower-priced products to people who can't, or don't wish to afford a Benz or BMW. Harley couldn't produce a sub-$10k touring or sport bike if they tried really hard. Other companies who do so can't seem to build a decent cruiser or tourer. Every maker has their good and bad points.}

[mugwump58]

 

[atadaskew]

 

You missed a spot.

[scottzilla]

Nope, it's true.  This time, they are doomed.

[Geoff]

If Harley goes away, who will the Japs clone?  

[Fourstring]

Quoted from the article:

Don’t let people kid you. The first two decades after the Second World War were a great time. At least compared to now.

I think that depends on who you ask.

[desert_rider]

From one of the replies to the article:

"I’m not a fucking sheep with a million dollars to spend on a fantasy I ride from bar to bar on weekends or trailer to Sturgis."

 

[atadaskew]

Quoted from the article:



I think that depends on who you ask.

Whitey.
Straight whitey....
 

[bomber]

Just out of curiosity, I checked the site -- as is my custom, I clicked on "About." If I'm going to spend more than 30 seconds reading some pundit, I like to get an idea of why the writing (blog, poscast, video) is worth my time.

And I quote

"About
The Aging Rebel has lived what cynics call an “interesting” life that has included writing for two newspapers.

He was hired by a daily in Massachusetts by mistake when he applied for a job on the loading dock. And, he was fired from another paper in Indiana when, as his Editor put it, that fine journal decided “to project an image of professionalism and respectability.”

He has also been fired from jobs at magazines and has unsuccessfully pursued careers as an autoworker, laborer, ditch digger, warehouseman, window maker, house framer, art forger, novelist and telephone salesman.

Because he loves children, he has always done his best to keep the world from running out of a babies. And, because he loves women he is usually married. Generally unemployed, he likes motorcycles and lifting weights and his ambitions include winning the lottery. Some people say he now lives, more or less, in El Lay.

You may berate, threaten, mock or even compliment him at rebel@agingrebel.com"


First rule, for me, referring to yourself in anything but the first person, unless you are a 13 year old girl writing about vampires in your diary, is a tip off you've got issues.

Perhaps a subscription.

Second, listing what some would call failures as the entirety of your credibility doesn't make me want to learn more.

Third -- for someone who seems to write about motorcycles often -- they don't really seem to come up much, in a first person sorta way.

Fail.

I'm sure others will hang on his every word.

[chornbe]

The comments on that site are... uhm... well, some of them are flat out dumb.

[atadaskew]

Fail.

I'm sure others will hang on his every word.

And will point to his prattling as some kind of gospel proof fueling their sad hope that Harley will disappear.

[st ryder]

From one of the replies to the article:

"I’m not a fucking sheep with a million dollars to spend on a fantasy I ride from bar to bar on weekends or trailer to Sturgis."

 

Oh, a comment from "the other half." How droll.

[Gsam]

They're not doomed ,the goverment will bail them out with our tax dollars. ( gm & chrysler )

[Connierider]

They're not doomed ,the goverment will bail them out with our tax dollars. ( gm & chrysler )

They have already recieved bailout money.
And to the cloning, hasn't been done yet. HD lost that suit when they got the trade tariff on the 80's.

[chornbe]

This thread is spiraling from stupid to fucking idiotic.

[falconati]

Location: South Carolina.

[atadaskew]

Well, Motorcyclist magazine  (Catterson) is in on the act too.  Mentioning Harley is screwed unless they offer something to appeal to the kids.  Uses the Honda Fury's disastrous sales as evidence that the 'chopper' market is gone.. (ignoring the fact that it is crap).  
Conveniently NOT mentioning that those mfgs that are producing bikes that appeal to the kids, are doing much much worse. (Honda's NA sales off by 48%).