my biggest dilemna on a saturday morning is what to drive or ride. my 3 rides consist of a 2000 magnetic red convertible with oak top and interior. 2002 ford f-150 harley truck with supercharger, dark gray in color 4dr producing 345 horsepower, and lastly my 2002 roadking, dark red with lots of customization. used to be into nissan 300zx and yamahas. no more lining the japanese pockets for me!

 

Never assumed you were comparing a Harley to a Vette. Two different animals built for two different purposes and markets. But let's be honest, if you take a spin on a 1940 H-D Knucklehead and then jump on a '04 H-D (any model!) - you are quickly going to say the bike has been refined. Same can be said for most any automobile. BUT, the underlying base technology is little changed in the past 50 years. The ZR was not innovative. Look what they were doing in the 1930's with motors.

My point is simply that, combustion engine technology has been a series of refinements (cars, bikes, locomotives) not a rush of new technology and processes.

I also think Looks when I think of a Harley. They build it for that purpose and they get a huge amount of cash for a new one. Put a screaming little rice burning engine in a Harley and see what sales do! Hell, even the Japanese manufacturers turned their bikes into Harley LOOK and SOUND alikes.

Maybe we should talk about BMW motorcyles. There is a technologically refined motorcycle. BMW = Best Motorcyle in the World.

 

I have never disputed the prowess of Harley Davidson at marketing what they have. Probably the best in the motorcycle world. Even the V-Rod, which is arguably a better bike in every way, is not selling that well. My hat is off to the Harley marketing department. When they run out of baby boomers, they will be in trouble like in the early 1980s when the company was on the verge of bankruptcy. That is why they designed the V-Rod.

 

I own a 2000 C5 and three motorcycles -- none of them a Harley-Davidson, but I ride one whenever I get a chance because it pushes my buttons like nothing else on the road. Like the Corvette, but for different reasons, it's an American classic that deserves respect (if not universal patronage).

Damning Harleys because they're not the fastest bikes on the road is akin to castigating Corvettes because they don't have cushy suspensions -- that is, suggesting that a high-revving Japanese motor would make a Harley somehow better is like improving a C5 by swapping its shocks for a set of wallow-dampers. It misses the point.

As for the superiority of BMW motorcycles' technology to other marques . . . maybe that was true fifteen years ago. I'd have to say that Honda deserves high marks these days. More true innovation, fewer parts-bin models.

By the way, Harleyphiles in the Columbus area have just a week left to check out the very cool "Heroes of Harley-Davidson" exhibit at the Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum in Pickerington (I-70 exit 112). Check out www.motorcyclemuseum.org.

 

I've got a vette and 2 bikes;I just bought this a 2004 V-rod B model and I have a '98 748 Ducati.Both bikes are modded!!! The Duc way more then the Harley!!!! Got about $28000 tied up in it. I can't leave any vehicle I own alone!!!! I'm a mod-o-holic!!!

 

have both

 

Pretty spirited post. Having worked with, or for Harley for 15 years and now been a Harley-Davidson dealer for 10 years plus I find this enjoyable. I have also owned numerous corvettes, currently a 98 'vert, and have several other performance/muscle cars I enjoy.

I take offense at nothing said in here by the Harley bashers. They just "Don't Understand". Harley's are not built for everybody, and corporate is fine with that. Could they do more to them technologically-wise, sure they could. ie: ABS is now available on police bikes, but not to the public - and they've had it on their drawing board since the 80's. Some models have a single front disc brake because Harley Styling feels the best look is no brakes and yes you can still lock the front tire, albeit it with more effort at the lever. They walk a fine line between appealing to their past customers and their new ones. Over 50% of our buyers never owned a Harley and they are doing it now because they finally can and have always wanted one. They no longer vibrate, leak oil, like they used to do on a daily basis, or breakdown (come with a 2 year unlimited mileage warranty).

Harley's used to be the only bike that looked like a Harley. Now the majority of motorcycles look like Harleys. Harley's main appeal is its looks and sound. Today's Harleys retain that, change the V-Twin, lose the sound. They also offer a ride that is nowhere near the ride of the bikes they produced not that many years ago. Unfortunately, Harley's most advanced bikes are usually their greatest failures - FXRT, early FXRS, FLTC TourGlide, etc.

Unfortunately, or fortunately, Harley-Davidson is not a great marketing company. They do very little in marketing, Harley-Davidson owners do all of our marketing.

Happy Holidays to All!

 

Who would have thought that post would have gone on for five pages!

Happy Holidays to Everyone and a Special Thank you to those serving our nation.

 

nah! i think i'll stick with my nitrous r1.

 

Always wanted a Vette....later in life wanted a Harley.
I now have the Vette......not really concerned with getting a Harley at this point of my life!!!!!!

Both great machines...........

 

Tomorrow I pick up my first Harley. I've been riding for years, though never on a Harley. I picked up the Vette in 2000, and I guess I finally got a glimpse of what all the Harley guys were talking about for all those years.

Having a Harley is like having a vette in that you can mod to your hearts content, making your machine YOUR machine. Both have their own followings, both are true blue fun American machines.

Lots of fun to be had...



Mac

 

I am sure I will get flamed for this but Harley is just an embarrassment to me. Harley is nothing more than a bunch of hype and pretty chrome - all show and no go. The Vette, on the other hand, makes me proud - fantastic performance and value for the $ - Germany, Italy and Japan can kiss my blue bowtie backside when it comes to performance cars. Personally, I find it embarrassing that we had to send a bunch of engineers to Germany to figure out how to get a twin to put out more than 100 horsepower for the V-Rod. As a businessman I respect the Company because they have made their shareholders wealthy but I do not respect their product. I buy American as much as possible but I am not willing to shell out big hard-earned $ for an over-priced, inferior product. The unwillingness to move forward will be their demise. Come to think of it, I really need to take a long-term short position in their stock. I will be the first in line for a true American sport bike (sorry, but the Buell does not even come close) that runs with the best of the rest of the world but I am not holding my breath.

 

You will either get flamed or be told that you "don't get it". Apparently Harleys are to be evaluated by different criteria than any other bike. These critieria are intangible and cannot be discerned through direct observation or experience. It seems that one has to have an advanced existential mind capable of pondering these cosmic intangibles to "get it". I would suggest a careful reading of "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance" in order to qualify yourself to comment on this subject. If your state of enlightenment has not been sufficiently elevated after digesting this tome, then I can also recommend several introductory philosophy texts to further bolster your mind in preparation for the weighty discourse in question here. Many also find helpful assuming the lotus position as they absorb the collective wisdom of the ages. Periodically, repeat an appropriate mantra. You may consult the Harley brethren for a list of appropriate mantras. May I suggest "There is no bike but Harley, there is no bike but Harley, there is no bike but Harley,...". Please do not bother to read road tests or any other objective evaluations of Harleys. These will only confuse you and distract you away from your path to true enlightenment. Now, my little grasshopper, after having prepared yourself and are now able to say "I get it" you are now ready to address that ultimate of conundrums: why does a motorcycle with the lowest performance in any category cost more than any other motorcycle? We, the un-enlightened, await your learned wisdom. (Hint: Short answer is: people will pay it.)

You are now near the end of your long journey. Now that you "get it" and have mentally prepared yourself you now have the right, or dare I say the privilege, to stand in line at the Harley dealer and hand them your $25,000 to obtain the precious icon. Do not forget to have the dealer's service department replace the stock exhaust system with obnoxious and illegal straight pipes so that you anger the vast majority of people your new bike comes near. After all, since it sounds cool to you it must sound cool to everyone else, right (does anyone know why all these anti-motorcycle laws are being passed?)? Besides, the obnoxiously loud sound makes the bike appear to have power when it actually does not (poser?). Please do not be so crass as to try and negotiate with the dealer. Gentlemen never discuss something so base as money when obtaining a Harley. After all, you are not buying a mere motorcycle, think of it as purchasing a passport into the Harley brotherhood. Isn't that worth $25,000? I am sure that you did not look for the best deal on your Corvette and paid thousands over list just to join the Corvette fraternity. And finally, please do not forget to tell the nice man at the Harley store at the conclusion of your purchase "Thank you sir, may I have another?"

Welcome to the cult of the Harley!

 

[QUOTE=PaPaChoc]I’ve only got one thing to say about this!
“I wouldn’t have something that when you get off you have to take a stick and prop it up”

 

Corvettes and Harleys. One is very high tech, the other is about as low tech as you can get.

Can't even begin to see any simularites.

Jay

 

I had a Harley before my Roadstar Warrior, guess it should have came with some of those texts you are talking about as standard equipment, cause I don't get it.

 

Corvettes and Harley-Davidsons are different beasts, for sure, but Corvette owners and Harley owners are social and cultural soulmates.

More than any other American marques, both are aspirational, and both stimulate enthusiasm to the point that people will make strange buying decisions, often ignoring practicality and fiscal responsibility, to own one or the other (or both).

I mean, I was on my way to the grocery (really) and came home with my C5.

This aphorism, usually applied to religion, works for either Corvettes or Harleys:

"For those who understand, no explanation is necessary. For those who don't, none is possible."

 

C5 and CBR here, I'm in it for the speed.

 

I'm certain, as they are now in their 102nd year, that the the demise of Harley-Davidson is right around the corner.

 

Where is DTD