Yeah, but we can't fix stupid.

Sure, the sky is falling,, but it's a whole lot bigger then just a few bikes being bought an sold.

 

I first heard about the upcoming hyper-inflation about 25 years ago.... About the same time as I heard about the upcoming doomsday asteroid, the apocalypse, and the next ice age.

 

Crap, I derailed my own thread
I really wanted to focus on the issue of buying a new Harley at a reasonable price and not getting gouged in the process. I would prefer that we discuss that issue rather than macro economics which I generally know very little about and really don't care. Sorry I brought that up
Now, back to the real story of purchasing a new Harley and running the gauntlet between salespeople and getting out the front door with a price that is fair to all concerned and being able to ward off the F&I baloney that comes with every sale.

 

The only Harley's at "reasonable prices" are ten years old.

Everyone has their own priorities, and everyone is responsible for managing their own finances. For me, I think the idea of buying a motorcycle on credit is madness. I think the idea of buying a new motorcycle from a dealer is madness. You can get an amazing amount of motorcycle for pennies on the dollar if you know how to look around and aren't afraid of turning a wrench or two.

Just MHO and all that.

If someone goes in to a dealership, pushes their credit to the breaking point, and rides out on a brand new $30k bike, that's their business. That's their choice. If someone is not financially savvy enough to know that the dealership is putting them into a hole they will never get out of, that's the price they pay for being stupid. Their problem, not mine.

The only thing in all of this I (emphatically) disagree with is the idea that something is being "done to" those people. Bullchit. They just gotta have that bike, and woe betide anyone who tells them they can't afford it. They know full well that financing a $30k bike for seven years at 15% interest is stupid, but they don't care. They are making the decision. Not the dealer. Not the banker. Not the politician. The consequences of that decision are entirely on them.

As for the MoCo manipulating their distribution channel to get maximum revenue out of their new models, that's Business 101 stuff. When you have the new model, you know there are a certain number of people who just gotta have it. You get the most out of them that you can. After you've soaked all those customers, you drop the price (or ease up on your channel) a smidge and soak the next wave, and so on. Nothing wrong with that. If you're the kind of enthusiast who simply must have the newest model right away, that's gonna cost you. Nothing wrong with extracting maximum revenue from you on that.

 

Simple. Don't finance with them. If you have to, you should ask yourself if your desire is overpowering your credit score.
Personally, I see any initial success of this new engine as a double-edged sword. Trade-in value of the previous generation of engine could drop to a level not seen since AMF. There are so many used H-D's sitting in dealerships already, it's ridiculous.

 

Another post by someone who is obviously clueless. You obviously don't know lenders 'cap' the interest rate dealers charge. Believe the water cooler bullshit and be about your business.

Edit: Before anyone takes issue I was a dealer for 30 years. Ask me any question you'd like about dealer operations and I will give the straight answer, not the one the public thinks is correct.

 

I don't think the sky is falling like somebody pointed out about my own post but the 2008 through about 2012 time period found something like over 40% of financed Harleys in default. That in part lead to the current reduced prices we are seeing on what used to be "traditional" Harley depreciation schedules. I just bought a derelict 2005 RK for a song but was willing to go out and buy $500 worth of parts and do a lot of wrenching to get it roadworthy. If what you are saying has some merit which I think it does, then we may get back to a higher default rate with some of the sub-prime loans that have been floating around in this relatively anemic recovery. If that happens, then the depreciation schedules that lenders and consumers rely on may get turned on its head.


So, back to the reason that I started this thread. I know that there is no cure for stupid. However, if people read this thread and realize the threats to their financial well being that are being posed by F&I folks who's prime motive is to maximize profits, then my task and all of the bantering will not have been in vain. What really triggered this thread was the perceptions I was seeing that just because some dumb-assed finance guy/gal says that the world is such and such, then we have to accept that and take it in the shorts. I think that our brothers and sisters who love Harleys and are just naïve enough to put themselves into situations that are not good for them and not really good for their fellow Harley riders, should consider what the fallout will be if a bunch of new 2017 iron that is financed for stupid terms goes sour.

 

Always been a fan of dealing in facts. You have a link to any lending institution to back up your claim?

 

my previous bike i financed through harley (eaglemark) 0.99% interest.
best interest rate i could find at the time

 

From an article that is referring to ONLY SUBPRIME LOANS...


... Harley spokesman Bob Klein says the subprime portion of the HDFS loan portfolio has remained between 25% and 30% since 2004. "Overall, the portfolio is very high quality," he says...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articl...rime-consumers

40%...Perhaps we'd best find out from someone inside the Harley Finance group

The first sign of danger came early last year, when RBC's Aaron warned investors that loan delinquency rates were rising faster than normal, to more than 4%.