Jerry, I agree with you 100% with your post. I have never paid a lot of attention to these production problems because I have not experienced any engine problems with my bikes. Since joining the forums and asking around at runs, I am amazed that this is allowed to continue. I have heard about some owners doing builds on their motors and I always assumed that it was because the owners wanted more power, now I have found that it was for repairs and the upgrades were incorporated because the engine was apart.
The engine is not where the moco should be cutting corners on costs and forcing customers to be by the road side with huge engine repair bills. This needs to stop!!!
It will stop only when people stop buying new Harley bikes. If people are truly so dissatisfied with Harley quality, then they need to vote with their pocketbooks and go buy a Victory or an Indian or a BMW or even a Honda as their next motorcycle. That will get the MoCo's attention. But as long as people keep paying Harley prices for an inferior quality product, it's unreasonable to expect the MoCo to really change anything... because they simply don't have to.
The MoCo makes a lot more in profits from the licensing of the H-D logo, and from clothing and P&A, than they make on motorcycle manufacturing operations... and they have for quite awhile now. They are selling the whole Harley lifestyle... not the best crankshafts in the business. To them, crank replacements are nothing more than a cost of doing business.
Let's face it... people don't buy Harley for the quality of the crankshafts... They buy it because it's a HARLEY, and all that that means in perception. It's all marketing. I know... I'm in software sales. It's all about branding. 95% percent of people don't even know one brand of motorcycle from another... unless it's a HARLEY. People know what Harley-Davidson is... even if they can't even name any other motorcycle manufacturer.
I'd bet the majority of new Harley buyers couldn't tell you where the crankshaft even IS... much less why it's so important. They look at the beautiful paint, the infotainment system, the comfort of the seat, and the chrome... and frankly, how their significant other likes it. Because that matters to them... they can see it. How many new bike buyers these days ever actually work on their bikes... or even know or care HOW they work? I'll bet it's 5%, maybe 10% max. Most new CVO buyers probably don't even know about this forum - the best one on the 'net.
The MoCo is a brand-driven marketing company... period. If you want the best engine quality, look elsewhere. Most buyers these days will take their bike back to the dealer and let them deal with any problems... Just as if it were a Mercedes, a BMW, or a Cadillac. That's the way the world seems to work these days, for better or worse.
Those of us of on these forums are really not the MoCo's key demographic... at least not anymore. They, like all companies, don't cater to informed customers. They cater to technically ignorant customers who buy based on paint color and "coolness" factor. And the people who buy these bikes are increasingly white-collar professionals - because frankly most people can't, or won't, go out and drop upwards of $30K on what is essentially a very expensive toy.
Ken
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Topic: Have the crankshafts been upgraded between 07 and 14? (Read 6374 times)