You ride a lot and it makes sense that you don't want to "ride a mile, wrench a mile", huh! While we're on the topic of bikes and bikers, IMO it must suck that if you own and ride a HD you have to dress up in a costume everytime you go out. Bikes are very popular here in Chicagoland and it seems that 9 oout of 10 HD'ers always have HD gear on, color coordinated, do rags, MIA-POW flags, etc (I have nothing against supporting freedom and our troops) You mentioned the "your not cool unless you've got an HD" and I think that thinking spills over into the "I'm more patrotic than you because of my flags" group as well. I'd love to hear a Corvette and Porsche guy have a convo about their cars. Speaking of that, lots of love for the C7 in this monthes MT, finished behind the Porsche 911 Carrera 4s but ahead of the F12 Ferarri!
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Well Harley does have one very reliable bike out there. Only problem is, it's the only one without a Harley-Davidson 'Twin-Cam' or 'Evolution' engine. They call it the 'Revolution' engine but it's actually made by none other than Porsche! It's everything other Harley engines aren't, overhead cam, liquid cooled, advanced fuel injection.
Nothing against H-D. They are cool bikes, and like DetailKitty said, it's not always just about reliability. BUT, they aren't the bikes for me.
The costume thing, well we see that in the automotive world too. Porsche banner on the wall, Porsche toolbox, Porsche windbreaker, Porsche mechanics gloves, replace 'Porsche' with Corvette, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Mustang, or any other 'car guy' car at any price point, and you're gonna see it.
For the record there's some functionality in a lot of that 'stuff' they wear. I wear different boots when I ride, that are oil-resistant and have lots of traction (never know what you're stepping in at a stop), I tend to wear comfortable but functional clothes that keep the fatigue level down and offer some protection in the event of a crash, etc. Though, I don't think I own a single piece of clothing labeled 'Kawasaki Vulcan' (which is what I ride). Guess if someone gave it to me for free or it was the same price as an unlabeled item I was already gonna buy it'd be one thing.. but yeah.
I recently got some new boots when my old ones wore out. Went into a Harley dealer since a friend told me they had some. Basically, it's 4 or 5 styles of work boot, black, with a Harley-Davidson logo, for around $200+. Forget it! I still spent almost $200 on my boots, but I got much thicker leather, zip-up sides (nice when you are commuting and will be changing shoes when you get where you are going!), armor plating, oil resistant, thick soles that are BOLTED on and thus can be replaced with hand tools (no glue). A lot more boot for the money without a logo on them. Go figure.
I don't begrudge guys who own and love Harley's. But, they aren't for me. And, I do think H-D is an example of what happens when your fanbase is loyal and doesn't demand innovation. 30 or 40 years ago, those bikes would be great. But now we are in an age where guys are putting 100k+ on a motorcycle, and an engine known for needing a complete tear-down and rebuild between 30~50k, with major common component failures (cam chain oilers and tensioners, top ends failing prematurely), just should not cut it. Harley loyal should not accept sub-par reliability. BUT, I also read where the average Harley selling price is ABOVE MSRP. Compared to Japenese bikes which are generally pretty easy to wheel-and-deal with (My wifes was a model year leftover but brand new, MSRP $9,699, listed for $8,299, took it out the door for $6,000 even). So, why innovate? Which, back to our original point, is EXACTLY why American cars became crap for so many years. No need to waste money on engineers and innovation when you have so little competition; only other domestic autos who are doing just as poor of a job as you are. But when people started buying the Japenese cars? Things changed!
Harley-Davidson is finally changing, too. Introducing the first liquid cooled touring bikes they've ever had, and now three engines on the Porsche-designed 'Revolution' platform. And for the first time in more than 30 years, they've majorly redesigned the styling of their Electra-Glide touring model (can you imagine if cars went almost 50 years without a styling update?). So, evidently the same thing is happening to HD. Which is great! Maybe my tone will change in a few years when they really start innovating in response to a huge jump in Japanese motorcycle sales! For the record, the '08 recession was great on the motorcycle industry, not immediately,but shortly after people started buying motorcycles. Not for cheap transportation; because they aren't, I get 48mpg in my bike, 40mpg in my car. But my bike needs two tires that cost over $200 a piece every 10,000 miles! BUT, because middle class workers who were down a notch, but not to the point of starving, were no longer taking vacations, buying sportscars, and were downsizing their homes. They took some of that extra money, and bought a motorcycle! Truly the cheapest way to have a sportscar is to put it on two wheels! (Even one of those 'slow' cruisers like mine will out perform the family car by a lot!). But, they weren't buying Harley's as much as they were Kawasaki, Honda, Suzuki and Yamaha!
By the way, here's a 1976 FLHR;
Here's a 2012;
Motorcycle styling doesn't move very fast! LOL.
. Though mine and my wifes motorcycles are imports. (That's a funny one, by the way, a guy with a Nissan pickup but a Harley-Davidson motorcycle, scoffing at import bikes because they aren't American made. Happens all the time!)
