Thunder,
I'm not a HD hater by any means, however
1) Japanese companies offer a superior product at a lower price. The ONLY reason to buy a HD is for the name. Fit and finish on HD is not superior to that of any major manufacturer's high end bikes. Ever check out a Rune?
2) The parts are way overpriced, but that's because that's what the market will hold. Due entirely to excellent marketing. I've no idea about the quality, so I'll take your word for it.
3) there are many aftermarket outlets available for all sportbikes, please don't act like we're all riding around on stock bikes here! The techs should be knowledgeable, the technology hasn't changed since the 50's. the sales staff is considered great because it is easy to sell a drug to addicts. they have a captive audience, thanks yet again to the marketing guys.
4) The lifestyle you say? Buying a do-rag, tank top and boots all emblazoned with the logo does not constitute living a lifestyle as far as I am concerned, if 1/2 the people that owned some type of HD gear actually owned a bike, or even knew how to ride I would agree that they were buying into a lifestyle, but the reality is that they are buying into a perception. They want people to think that they are living the outlaw life, but the reality is far from that in most cases.
I don't hate HD riders, but I do think that a higher percentage of those guys/gals would qualify as posers than would sportbike owners. I also dislike the attitude that many of them seem to develop after purchasing one, almost as if they believe all the hype........
Mr. Brown, just a couple of dissagreements here....
Quality-ie; fit and finish? I also worked at a multi-line m/c store for a time. There is no comparison. Period. The Rune is a cool bike, no doubt. But park a SE Fatboy next to it, then tell me that the paint, chrome, controls....(on and on) are of equal quality.
You won't be able to. There is NO comparison.
Park a 12,000. VTX next to a 15,500. Wideglide...again, absolutely no comparison.
Don't get me wrong..the japenese bikes are largely more reliable....although not by much these days.
You are right, the available aftermarket accessories are a direct reflection of the bikes success...and lets be honest here, the performance of a stocker is....well, not too impressive, so those buyers that ARE performance minded must modify to make themselves happy.
But I can't count how many times a customer told me that they were'nt interested in going 150 mph...didn't really care how quick it was. Just wanted a comfortable cruiser...one that, in thier minds had more status. (Yes, marketing at work again
)
Yes, I agree that HD factory accessories are spendy...I also agree that it is partially due to popularity (marketing again!). It also, however, has to do with the quality. HD accessories are, without a doubt, the highest quality parts on the market for the HD product. No exceptions.
As far as the % of posers....yea, you could be right. There probably are more posers on HD product than sportbikes....but not nearly as many as most folks think.
I have seen perfectly normal people turn into "barney badass" after the purchase of a new HD.....but I've also seen the same thing happen on import cruisers....
"the technology hasn't changed since the 50's"..Not true. Although they have tried VERY hard to keep the "Look" the same...marketing again! By keeping the look similar and yes some of the parts nearly the same..it makes it VERY easy for companies to make accessories for it. The bars that fit on a '98 softail also fit on a '05 Roadking..
Believe me, I am not incinuating that there are not a fair amount of wannabe bad boys riding Harleys...there are. But make no mistake, there are a LOT of real, hardcore motorcyle riders that choose the brand because of the ease of maintinence, familiarity,.........and just because they like 'em!
Lets face it, Harley does some cool shiat. Latest Cycle World shows the new Screamin'Eagle V-Rod dragbike. Complete with slick and wheelie bar. 175 hp liquid cooled twin. Pretty dam cool if you ask me.
I guess the bottom line is, there is a lot of truth in what you say. The Quality issue is not one of them. Park 'em side by side and you will have to agree. Otherwise you are blind.
I still have tons of friends that ride harleys. None of them have a problem riding with me. They all shake thier head and wonder if I am sane........(am I?) but they respect other machines. I think the "other" type of HD riders is the minority.
Just my .02