[gerrygrande]

The ones that are inflating HD are the theives that have been ripping them

off from the mostly hard working riders that buy them. The insurance companies reimburse them and probably most of them buy new ones.

There were 7 stolen in my general area alone last month. Sound fishy?

Well it smells fishy to me! I won't be replacing the I had.

First post maybe, MoMo!

 

[B1200S]

Dude, are you a conspiracy theorist? That one is a little far fetched



B1200S

 

[dbr]

what a revelation...the company AND their bikes

have been overvalued and inflated for YEARS...now that

the market is in a slump the analist are wondering whos

gonna have the cash to buy the over priced HD junk...what

a bunch of smart morons!...freekin' idiots !



gotta love the HD owners 1st post...hard working owners...

man id love to see that...mostly over paid yuppies w/ undeserving

attitudes from what i see on the road.



too bad im not lookin' for a harley...cause there are gonna be

a million on the street CHEAP when this bottom falls out from

under 'em...now what will they say if they cant justify the cost

by claiming its an 'investment'...

 

[LimeSqueezr]

Doesn't sound fishy to me just a common garden-variety theft ring. They're a dime a dozen because they don't stay in jail long when they do get nailed. How long it'll keep happening in your "general area" depends on how good the pickings are and/or how good the cops are.



FWIW the insurance payout on a Harley is usually less than what a legit owner can simply sell it for in the classifieds, which would discourage fraudulent theft claims if that's what you're suggesting.

 

[tony]

I thought the bottom would fall out years ago. It

hasn't yet. It seems so many folks want them just to say they own one. I believe it makes them feel they belong to something bigger then life, like a religion. Talk about false idials but the way some people talk about their bikes, what does it leave for one to believe.

 

[Chester]

Who cares, Harleys suck. Why doesnt Polaris make a sport bike? I would ride around on that being a true American badass.

 

[donzi]

Oh man I'm pissed. My FXDX might actually lose as much resale value as every other bike out there. I guess there is a first for eveything.

 

[Neal]

Not only did they make Rv's(Holiday Rambler)but a;so g0lf carts and inert bomb bodies for the military.The reason was simple....diversificationsince the motorcycle business was faltering(in 1985 they sold only 36000 bikes)

Many of you that bash HD and HD riders as fat rich guys forget(or

are too young to know)that less than 20 years ago HD was a struggling company and many of us "fat rich old guys"were struggling 30 year olds trying to keep the old scoot(usually an old TRiumph,panhead,shovelhead etc)

together and dreaming of the day we ould get a new off the showroom one.

Now that we finally raised our kids and put em through school

so we have enough scratch to buy a Harley(who cares they aint state of the art--its what weve dreamed about)the ungrateful wretches bash us for being old fat HD riders.SIIIIIIIGGGGGHHHHH!!!I dont doubt the HD market may drop

in 01 and 02 but dont count on the bottom falling out.....YET!!

2003 is the 100 anniversary...EVERY HD guy you talk to wants one

HD will sell every bike they can make..as well as every 100 year T shirt

THEN....comes 04.Thats when we find out if the efforts in the

area of racing,Buell and the new Porsche engine will bear fruit

Many of us old guys will have bought our last scoot and younger wannabees will have plenty cheap used ones to buy....thats when Hd will have to attract a younger hipper sport oriented rider(like us old guys were in

in 1968.Sorry to interrupt the mindless HD bashing with some thought

but I couldnt help it.

Neal

 

[fwalters]

Forest Gump say's; "I may not be a smart man but I do know two Hondas are better than one Harley.........

 

[LimeSqueezr]

undeserving attitudes?

I believe somebody who puts down what others choose to ride and shows their jealousy of what somebody else gets paid may be the one with the attitude problem.

I'm one of those "overpaid" people who could afford any bike in HD's lineup quite easily but choose to ride a Triumph instead. Now maybe that's as dumb a choice as a Harley in your book but it's the ride I happen to like (long as I make smart decisions at work I get the luxury of making dumb ones buying a motorcycle --and I deserve that luxury. Sorry if you don't think so.)

However, the last thing I'd ever do is pass judgement on someone else's decision to buy a Harley if they like it and they can afford it.

 

[hamatsu]

Re: Fat maybe, but rich ?

Neal, sorry to burst your bubble but some of us are old enough to remember what HD represented 20 years ago. Back in 71' I was riding an RD350 and had an uncle that had a 1200 Sportster. Man, that bike was the biggest piece of monkey-dump I've ever ridden !! I still ride sportbikes (93 GSXR, 00 TLS) and still think that HD's are farm implements. They may serve a purpose for many of the posers you see on them now but they certainly haven't done much on the technology front to improve the breed. People bash HD cause, face it, they still make an inferior product that is WAY overpriced. There is no way that HD will ever try to cater to the sportbike crowd. They've been whipping that dead horse VR1000 for seven years now and when they homogilated it (in Poland, no less) it was well into the $30K range then. 30 large for an under-performing sportbike is crazy !

You are dreaming if you think that when the used bike market becomes flooded with HD's that people will be picking them up and the "younger hipper sport oriented crowd" will be looking at Harley's. Pigs will never fly Neal.

 

[Choptop]

Uhh, the bottom falling out of the Harley market? huh, been waiting since 1942 for the value of my Harley to drop, hasnt happened yet. Not likely to either.

 

[NickdaBrick]

Here's the deal:

Harely is and likely shall remain the dominant force in the American bike market for some time to come for one reason: it's the only motorcycle that people who don't know much about motorcycles know anything about. And it's not just because of the rebel image, but because of the bikes. They look tough, but apart from being on the heavy side, are not too intimidating to ride. A dentist with a bunch of cash burning a hole in his pocket can get on one, ride it around the block, and feel like a hero, and it will still be fun when he gains a bit more confidence and takes it out on the road. Put the same novice rider on, say, a Gixxer 1000, and if he doesn't kill himself in the first hundred yards, he'll come back white as a sheet and shaking uncontrollably.

 

[Seance]

Where have you been? Polaris does make Cruisers. Ever hear of Victory?

 

[Seance]

Right said!

 

[Seance]

Right said on Neal's point, There are reasons why H-D's are so popular, not nessecarily based on technological surpremacy,this is different from sport bikes. Ride what gives you grins! I think there are some surprises coming from H-D in the near future and I think they will become more competitive on the racing circuit. Ducati is still running their "farm machine" technology, they just found thier groove. Relax and enjoy the ride.

 

[Neal]

Re: Fat maybe, but rich ?

First of all thanks for the tone of your post.Its nice to know folks can disagree completely and still be civil.But i think you missed my point

I didnt mean that the younger hipper crowd will want Harleys as we now know them.My point is if Harley is to survive,they must develope product to attract the younger hipper crowd.This would entail ,in my opinion:replacing the VR with a competitive bike,bringing the porsche project to fruition and developing a viable line of sportbikes,sport tourers and muscle cruisers.

I too have my doubts whether they can pull it off but rather than denigrate their efforts I will root for their success.I think my 19 year, old ZX600R riding son hit it when he said that if the Buell X1 had a water cooled reliable modern engine he'd buy one...when he got a little older.His generation is HD's hope for surviving into the future not our generation 0r the 20/30 something close minded harley bashers and DEFINITELY NOT the Yuppie posers who give us old hard headed guys a bad name.

 

[Neal]

Thanks Seance,hamatsu may be right i may be dreaming but i still think there is a chance HD can pull it off.....nobody thought tyey would survive the Horror of the 70's either.By the way how much grief you think id get if I mentioned how cool I thought Guzzis are?!

Neal

 

[stevegrab]

Re: Here

That's a great point about them being "the only motorcycle that people who don't know much about motorcycles know anything about."

When I first got a bike (Suzuki Bandit 600) in 98, and were telling people I started riding a motorcycle, what do you think was the first thing they said? "Is it a Hog/H-D/Harley?" Or "Oh, so you're one of those Harley bikers?" And if you said no, then the only other thing they might know was, "Oh, so you're one of those crazies on a crotch-rocket."

Yep. Either way, Harley will not fall that quickly. Too much pent up demand, and too many yuppies (not just in their 40s & 50s, but also 20s and 30s) with disposable income, and a desire to be bad, or at least have their friends think they look bad.

I'm sure there are a lot of true motorcycle enthusiasts that buy and ride Harleys, but quite a lot of people buying them mainly for image.

 

[Seance]

Actually, Guzzis are cool! Before I bought my Buell I was thinking about a Guzzi, that new sport-standard one, but there are no dealers in my area.