The Harley Davidson Motor Company has announced a new line of motorcycles that will be manufactured in India. Not Milwaukee, but Inn-dee-ahh.
*Sounds of Harley loyalists screaming*
The new motorcycles, named Street 500 and Street 750, have liquid-cooled, overhead cam engines. They don't shake or leak oil like air-cooled, unbalanced Harley engines. They are small. They are not possessed of bad ass-edness.
*Sounds of Harley loyalists slamming their beer bottles onto the bar and screaming "NO FUCKING WAY!!!*
Harley's American-based suppliers were taken by surprise. Blog comments on motorcycle forums include stories of HD suppliers seeing the photos of the new motorcycles for the first time and being shocked that they had never heard of them, and weren't asked to supply parts.
The design, engineering, testing and parts sourcing and manufacturing were all done in India. The motorcycles will be manufactured in India for sale primarily in Asia. The Street 500 and 750 motorcycles sold in the US will be assembled in Kansas City from kits imported from India.
Fans have suggested alternate names. "Gupta Glide" is the current favorite. Other names aren't as pleasant.
The big question is: Will they sell? Overseas, absolutely they will. The Asian market for motorcycles is ten million per year. Wrap your head around that number. Smart move, Harley.
But in the US, the jury is out. Mid-size, well-made bikes are a good thing, especially for smaller riders, first-time owners and people who do most of their riding in cities. And the price point (ca. $6,500) is decent for a well-made bike. Maybe they will sell well, or maybe they won't. It's a big gamble. There is a lot of competition, and HD buyers are big on the "made in America" image.
My opinion: More choice is always better. I hope Harley sells a lot of these smaller bikes in the US. Then in two years I'll be able to pick up a nice low-mileage used model at half the MSRP. And with a little tinkering I'll turn it into something like this: A nice mid-size bike for ripping around country roads.
Website here.
