"Go home Harley, you're drunk"

[OldRider]

https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/motorcycles/future-vehicles/pan-america.html

 

[Sierra1]

WOW!! Not that I'd ever buy one, but it's huge for HD foray into this market. I wonder what the price tag will be though. ::022::

 

[Paul466]

Now Klim will have to come up with pirate leather ADV gear

 

[richarddacat]

Re: "Go home Harley, you're drunk"

Doesn’t look like Mr Buell had anything to do with this.

 

[Dogdaze]

Re: "Go home Harley, you're drunk"

Doesn’t look like Mr Buell had anything to do with this.

Looks like an uglier version of the Buell Ulysses................

 

[Sierra1]

Did y'all look at the other "future" HDs? An electric HD?! Has there been a coup' at HD? And the Street Fighter? Kinda looks like a modern XR, but with more bling. Of course talking about building them is different than actually building them.
::022::

 

[steve68steve]

If the ergos and handling are right, and they can prove some measure of reliability at a cost that makes sense, I'd buy one.


My guess is that they'll drop one the ball on one of those: it'll either be a 700lb. log, a high-maintenance POS, or cost more than a GS. I hope I'm wrong. I'd love it if HD evolved and could be competitive making products I'd be interested in.

 

[twodogs]

Very Interesting

 

[richarddacat]

All of them are prototypes.

When production hits, if it does, they won't look nothing like these pics. ::024::

They are teasing us, testing the waters, blowing smoke. ::007::

 

[cyclemike4]

I would like to see Harley step out of their box and try something new. I guess the new small bikes and the V-rod is kind of out of the box for them but they are basically the same type of bike. The V-rod has a very nice motor. I would love to see it in something that could be marketed to more than just the crowd they sell to. But if you look at Harleys history they have made all kinds of prototypes that were never marketed. Water cooled bikes, square four engines and a host of things that would not fit into the market they sell too. Hope this is not another one of those adventures. they seem to be afraid of losing the market share if they try to sell something else. they are still going to sell the big twins to those folks. I am not in marketing but making different kinds of bikes with a motor already in the closet makes sense to me.

 

[tallpaul]

Re: "Go home Harley, you're drunk"

It's a fugly looking thing. The Guzzi adventure prototype looked "right". This doesn't...

 

[WJBertrand]

I'll be surprised if they ever actually build these and astounded if they prove to be any good. Even if the bikes are good, Harley won't know how to market them.

 

[bnschroder]

Not sure if it would be a good bike, but it looks badass. I sort of like it.

 

[Cycledude]

Harley has very many very loyal customers so the chance to be profitable is definitely there.

 

[WJBertrand]

Harley has very many very loyal customers so the chance to be profitable is definitely there.

They certainly are loyal, but the majority of the ones I know don't even accept the Sportster as a true Harley, calling it a "bitches bike". They never warmed up to the V-Rod (now it's gone) and I don't think the Street 500 and 750 are doing very well. I've never seen either on the street. Harley knows they cannot appeal to their traditional customer with anything other than the traditional big twin but I don't think they understand any other kind of customer.

I thought selling a line of non-traditional bikes under a different name was their way out and they had a good start with Buell, then inexplicably trashed the whole thing. Now they're back to square 1.

 

[Xclimation]

Just prognosticating:
Indian (Polaris) has got something brewing in the way of a 2 wheel adventure bike. It's right up their alley. My guess is Harley is trying to get a start so they won't be as much behind.
But I have to wonder.....If I ride a Harley Adventure bike.....will I get the biker wave from other Harley riders? Do you think the BMW riders will give the wave to the Harley adventure bike? ::26::

 

[Don in Lodi]

There is supposed to be a video of that 'prototype' getting put through the paces out there somewhere, it jumps even.

 

[DevilAnce]

Erik Buell was HD's BEST real chance to remain innovative and relevant as a motorcycle company. If the current CEO and board of directors at H-D have any sense at all they would hire Erik Buell back immediately and give him carte blanche to run things as he sees fit. He was/is H-D's BEST hope! H-D is in the mist of completely restructuring the company as evidenced by the axing of the Dyna line....

All that being said if H-D is expecting to compete with BMW and KTM in the Top tier 20K+ Adventure bike segment with this new Pan America concept that they better have their shit together! There are some really, really well developed bikes in those classes as you all already know. Harley is going to have to win on merit not name in this game. Or they will end up making fools of themselves and be the laughing stock of the motorcycle world yet again.

And yes the bike sort of look like something Erik Buell would design because Buell motorcycles was a whole owned subsidiary of H-D. So when H-D closed Buell down and left Erik out in the cold. All Erik's patents and intellectual property belonged to HD. Watch the videos below...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MK7Xn8vFmpA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=hQirRe48S-E

 

[Sierra1]

....But I have to wonder.....If I ride a Harley Adventure bike.....will I get the biker wave from other Harley riders? Do you think the BMW riders will give the wave to the Harley adventure bike?....

Oddly enough, I get more waves from HD riders while I'm on the Tenere than I ever did on ANY other bike I've ridden. And no, the Beemer riders have NEVER waved back at me. Makes me laugh. ::001::

 

[Madhatter]

they forgot to put the chain on the bike pictured, going to be a heavy bike the way it looks...