Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  
Pages: 1 2 [3]  All

Author Topic: Indian VS Harley  (Read 3968 times)

0 Members and 2 Guests are viewing this topic.

dayne66

  • 2.5K CVO Member
  • **
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 4037
    • BC


    • CVO1: '12 Ruby/Typhoon SG
    • CVO2: '15 Superior Blue FLD Switchback
Re: Indian VS Harley
« Reply #30 on: December 29, 2019, 10:39:35 AM »

Not too sure about HD doing anything in a hurry to keep up with a new model of a competitor. I'm thinking they will see what kind of sales the Challenger produces for a few years before they get to work on anything. If Polaris starts to change more touring bikes over to the new power plant without losing sales, then HD might get a sense or urgency. JMHO.

Sent from my boring Droid phone.


A sense of urgency will have Harley rushing new things to market with even less in-house testing....as we have seen, not really conducive putting out a reliable product.
Logged
"The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing." Socrates

J.D.

  • Guest
Re: Indian VS Harley
« Reply #31 on: December 29, 2019, 11:05:00 AM »

I'm fine with Harley not having the power of a water cooled 4 or 6 cylinder.  I prefer the simplicity and look of 2 cylinders.  I also don't like the introduction of "partially water cooled" - either go water cooled or don't.

Where Harley really lost me as a customer is with the quality issues, really moreso how they are handling the quality issues.  Until they can make a very reliable drivetrain with no excuses I won't buy another one.  Indian is my first choice for "classic v-twin" and either the new BMW or Goldwing for "high tech".
Logged

scottt

  • Elite CVO Member
  • *****
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 761
Re: Indian VS Harley
« Reply #32 on: December 29, 2019, 11:55:08 AM »

Really, Harley can thank the one percent M/C's for much of there success. They have stayed with Harley through thick and thin. The "bad boy" image has been a major part of how Harley has marketed themselves vs being a competitive product.

The question is; will that be enough moving forward? In my opinion that answer is no.

If M/C members ever start moving to bikes like the new Challenger, Harley will really suffer.

Harley has visual quality down, i prefer the looks and style of a Road Glide over the Challenger. They just need to invest in drivetrain quality. Stop sourcing engine components like the crankshaft to China. I agree with other posters, if Harley was known for class leading quality, durability you could look past some of the other shortfalls. The CEO needs to tell stockholders that they are going to make this there focus to secure there future. Take the long term view.

Harley's problems are not the fault of American workers or there wages. BMW as one example pays it's workers in Germany more than Harley workers. Wages in Japan are high as well. The problem is management and priorities. We all miss Willie!

Sent from my SM-J327T using Tapatalk

Logged

mark

  • Guest
Re: Indian VS Harley
« Reply #33 on: December 29, 2019, 04:04:55 PM »

JM2C...The average Fortune 500 CEO tenure is about five years.  A CEO’s personal compensation and longevity lives and dies by stock performance.  If a CEO knows he/she is only there for five yrs. or less, he/she’s looking for max profitability in a short time.  Since we’re not making anymore Baby Boomers and efforts to expand the brand to Gen X and Y produced tepid results, the surest way to achieve profit is to cut costs.  The long-term result of this negatively impacts the company down the road, but by then, the CEO has received his/her performance bonuses and moved on.  In order for senior mgmt to survive, I expect to see more quiet outsourcing and a reduction in labor costs. 

If mgmt. hadn’t been asleep at the wheel 20 yrs. ago, HD could have positioned itself to better deal with their current situation.   Maybe hiring a soup and protein bar executive would help?  No wait, they already tried that... 
Logged

J.D.

  • Guest
Re: Indian VS Harley
« Reply #34 on: December 29, 2019, 04:52:07 PM »

That's a chronic problem for many large, publicly held companies.  Decisions are influenced by investors looking for instant gratification and senior management looking out for their own best interests.  Unfortunately when HD went back public this was inevitable.
Logged
Pages: 1 2 [3]  All
 

Page created in 0.135 seconds with 24 queries.