One word: MARKETING. They have that brand locked down... The American badass rides a Harley!

 

Because about $20,000 is what the average middle age man can afford for a mid-life crisis.

 

Sad, but probably quite true. More insightful comment than you probably intended...

 

I've never understood why SV650's cost so much. It's not like they're cutting edge technology or anything. They use bottom of the shelf components that have been around for years. They haven't made any significant changes to the bike in 7+ years- they put all their R&D money into what color they want to paint the bike next year.

 

I've never understood why SV650's cost so much. It's not like they're cutting edge technology or anything. They use bottom of the shelf components that have been around for years. They haven't made any significant changes to the bike in 7+ years- they put all their R&D money into what color they want to paint the bike next year.

I agree. People buy them, and then spend thousands trying to make them into something that they should have bought in the first place.

Buncha posers.

 

Supply v. Demand - 101

It's basic economics.

 

Supply v. Demand - 101

It's basic economics.

+1. Don't they teach this stuff in high school?

 

Harley Davidson: Yesterday's technology at Tomorrow's prices.

Your just paying for the Name

 

Bottom edge of the factory tanks don't have a spot-welded lip.... but didn't they have cast steering heads a few short years ago.

 

they're that expensive because people will pay for it.

 

Not to mention that not all Harley Davidson models cost $20,000. That's like saying every Ducati costs $20,000, or every BMW costs $20,000.

Threads like this breed ignorance and dumbsh-ttery to people who have no idea what the f-ck they're talking about.

 

Threads like this breed ignorance and dumbsh-ttery to people who have no idea what the f-ck they're talking about.

I'm surprised nobody mentioned part of the reason is the point of manufacture. From a manufacturing point of view, the United States is about the most expensive place you could build anything.

+1

But I really don't like H-D. The company not the machine. I would pimp slap my dear mother for a CR1000 or XR1200.

 

I'm surprised nobody mentioned part of the reason is the point of manufacture. From a manufacturing point of view, the United States is about the most expensive place you could build anything.

 

Really? Compared to German bikes or Italian bikes? Yeah, no.

 

Yes, they're expensive in comparison to bikes in general, but compare them to cruisers of different brands. In my 5 minutes of research, it seems similar Japanese bikes are only 1-2 grand less. Maybe the question should be: Why are cruisers so expensive? Is it just the large amount of metal? Chroming isn't an inexpensive process either.

 

Yes, they're expensive in comparison to bikes in general

No, they're not.

goldwing $23k
consours 14 $15k
royal star $20k

there are expensive bikes of all brands. Harleys get a bad rap from people who expect a bike to be able to do more than just be a motorcycle.

Many riders are not just ok with throwing their leg over a bike and going for a ride. There has to be some sort of challenge to these people. They have to have the fastest, or the most capable on the track, or the most reliable, or the rarest bike around.

MOST harley people aren't like that. They're just people that enjoy being out on the road. Yes, they've got a cliche' style and don't wear enough gear usually. Yes, there are outlaws that align themselves to this lifestyle too.

How different are they from us, really?

They pic a bike that suits their intended riding style.
The bike isn't perfect from the outset, but that's ok.
Then they dump large amounts of money into it to personalize it and make it right for them.

 

I think we sport type riders critique them because of the ostentation...but how much different are we if money is spent on magnesium wheels, carbon fiber etc. etc? IMO 99.9% of MC riders throw money away on performance parts that aren't needed or some type of bling...be it leather streamers and chrome bits or performance parts.

The defenition of a hobby is something that you enjoy spending money on.


*The above does not apply to any type of professional racer where spending $1000 to shave off one more ounce might make the difference between wining a purse or going home empty handed

 

I think we sport type riders critique them because of the ostentation...but how much different are we if money is spent on magnesium wheels, carbon fiber etc. etc? IMO 99.9% of MC riders throw money away on performance parts that aren't needed or some type of bling...be it leather streamers and chrome bits or performance parts.

Exactly. Have you seen the entire line of STICK ON carbon fibre products on the market? Not to mention a plethora of other "performance" products that

I see people swooning over, when only a small fraction of them are using their bike to the point where they could benefit from such "upgrades". Thread after thread going on about sticky tires, better oil, suspension upgrades, etc., etc., etc.

And none of it matters, because they don't even begin to get the full potential out of what they have now. Yet the first time someone drops $150 on a new Memphis Shades windscreen for their Goldwing, they get all up in arms over what a "waste" of money it is.

The "sportbike" world is full of hypocrites.

 

I agree with Zach, my father-in-law got an HD because that was what he wanted. It's a nice bike, just not for me.

By the way, MSRP for an HD sportster 883 is only $100 more than a Gladius.

 

By the way, MSRP for an HD sportster 883 is only $100 more than a Gladius.

i guess thats a good point. i'm looking through the harley website and they say starting msrp on an 883 is $6999. maybe we can't accurately generically compare suzukis to harleys, at least not suzi sportbikes to harleys.

a fat bob starts at $15k, same as an 1198. that specifically seems out of whack. lots of similar comparisons do.

 

... And t-shirts (expensive ones!), and jackets and underwear, and blankets, and picnic baskets, and...

You've encountered the clothing company that also happens to make motorcycles.

 

... And t-shirts (expensive ones!), and jackets and underwear, and blankets, and picnic baskets, and...

You've encountered the clothing company that also happens to make motorcycles.

http://www.alljet.com/suzuki_motorcycle_apparel.html
I'm sorry, what? ???

 

WTF??!?? I rode my desmosedicci to bike week and none of the broads would **** me!!

 

So you were posing as an XB owner?

 

About 20 years ago when I worked at a computer sales/service company, one of the clients I went to was Madison Kipp Casting. One of the things they made there was brake/clutch levers for Harley.

One day I was working at the office of the QA/QC guy and he had on the floor a large box full of reject Harley brake/clutch levers. I pulled a few out and looked at them trying to figure out why they'd been rejected.

He told me that *every* lever of *every* batch that came out was inspected by a guy from Harley whose sole job was to reject as many as possible, in his mind anyway. He showed me a few that had tiny TINY pinholes in spots that you could not see without taking a lever off the bike and inspecting it with a magnifying glass.

He then told me that regardless of whether a lever was rejected or not Harley still paid for every lever.... prolly a deal they'd setup with Harley to make sure Kippcast got paid for all their extra effort.

 

wow, if they do that with all thier parts, that would be expensive.

 

I don't see how production numbers are really that much lower. By FAR the most common bike I see when riding is Harleys... I might see a sportbike 1 in 20 times, all the rest are either Harleys, or on the rare occasion, a BMW or metric cruiser.

 

Has anyone yet commented that motorcycling doesn't always have to be about advancing technology?

 

Course it doesn't. But tech and R&D -- or the perceived lack thereof -- would figure into the price. I don't keep track of what improvements to the engine HD makes and how frequently. But the Japanese and Italians do. Just look at Ducati which just doubled service intervals. Something like that isn't achieved in a week's time of fiddling with parts.

I'd guess a lower production number has a lot to do with it. Though I don't know any of the numbers, I'd guess the big three, that sell to the whole world, have better economies of scale.

 

For the record, I sold my motorcycle to pay for bicycling stuff. It doesn't even have an internal combustion engine.

 

let the record show i fixed my spelling before you pointed it out.

i was just pointing out why your F550 vs. corvette example isn't parallel.

 

i was just pointing out why your F550 vs. corvette example isn't parallel.

Yes it is. When you compare two vehicles that serve completely different purposes and try to order them based on technology alone, you fail.

 

Supply and demand...

 

Supply and demand created by marketing image and "lifestyle"...

fixed ^

Don't get me wrong. I like riding Harley's. Many friends have them. Not my kind of bike for the money, but I can see the appeal to many.

 

It's obvious that "phantom" is of the "sporbikes iz da sh-t yo!" mindset, and no amount of common sense, list of facts, reciting of economics 101, or dumbing down of explainations will get through to him.

He hates HD bikes, but really can't justify it outside of what lame reasons he's already given.

 

I'm giving up, Zach. I would suggest you do too. It's obvious that junior is of the "sporbikes iz da sh-t yo!" mindset, and no amount of common sense, list of facts, reciting of economics 101, or dumbing down of explainations will get through to him.

He hates HD bikes, but really can't justify it outside of what lame reasons he's already given.

Don't you remember his 'convince me my bald tire is ok to ride on' thread?

I thought you were coming in here prepared.

I guess I'm thinking the MS stands for something different? :dontknow:

yes, the manufacturer uses data such as sales volume, market research, etc. to determine the price that the market will bear for their vehicle. Hell, pricing is an advertising gimmick in itself. Look at the new sportster clone that Honda just came out with- it looks almost identical and is priced a couple hundred dollars less than the HD. Helps a potential buyer tilt their preference toward the cheaper model.

 

My bicycle cost more than most people spent on their SV's... come to think of it, I've spent more on my bike than I did the SV I sold.

Why such a high price?

 

I thought the same about harleys but after riding a few different cruisers lately I can definately say that the harley "road" series is the absolute smoothest bike I've ever put arse on.

Compared to most other cruisers with similar stats and features they are now average on cost despite the fact that they are produced in the US, limited in production and use higher grade materials and hardware.

The only place they have'nt changed the tech in the engines would be the crank design and pushrod lifters that work well enough and has been their trademark, most of the rest of the engines are parts that buell designed.


Basically the stuff works for what it's designed to do and better than most any other company out there right now and does it for a competitive price "unlike before". And what most are meant to do is drag your a$$ across the country or anywhere else comfortably so it's not comparable to a truck or sports car, it's a cadilac with two wheels.

 

Didn't you read? Harleys are antiquated pieces of sh!t and are overpriced and suck at everything.

 

NUH-UH!!!

 

They are fine for what they are. Are they overpriced? Sure. Are they inferior to competitors in a lot of ways, yeah. Is it dumb to buy the wrong bike and try to make it what you want, rather than just buying what you really want? Is it silly to buy a 600 pound bike that makes 50 horsepower and then spend hundreds of dollars to make it 'faster'? Sure. So what? It's (whomever)'s money.

There are a lot of dullards out there who would only ever ride a Harley, and would not be on two wheels otherwise. The more riders on the road the better it is for all of us.

 

They are fine for what they are. Are they overpriced? Sure. Are they inferior to competitors in a lot of ways, yeah. Is it dumb to buy the wrong bike and try to make it what you want, rather than just buying what you really want? So what? It's (whomever)'s money.

They'd be overpriced if they weren't selling

Inferior is very subjective. The whole cruiser market is subjective. It's about the experience of a simple ride.

 

Kum bay ya, my Lord, kum bay ya;
Kum bay ya, the Lord, kum bay ya;
Kum bay ya, my Lord, kum bay ya,
O Lord, kum bay ya.

Someone's laughing, Lord, kum bay ya;
Someone's laughing, Lord, kum bay ya;
Someone's laughing, Lord, kum bay ya,
O Lord, kum bay ya.

Someone's crying, Lord, kum bay ya;
Someone's crying, Lord, kum bay ya;
Someone's crying, Lord, kum bay ya,
O Lord, kum bay ya.

Someone's praying, Lord, kum bay ya;
Someone's praying, Lord, kum bay ya;
Someone's praying, Lord, kum bay ya,
O Lord, kum bay ya.

Someone's singing, Lord, kum bay ya;
Someone's singing, Lord, kum bay ya;
Someone's singing, Lord, kum bay ya,
O Lord, kum bay ya.

:hug: