We tour. When we do, we look for traditional Harley dealerships to swing by, maybe pick up a tee shirt. So many of the privately owned and destination ride dealerships are gone. Some are still dealerships for motorcycles, just cut off from Harley to promote the chain/mega stores. It’s not good or bad, just different.

I’ve always been a back road junkie, two lane aficionado and small between destination motel seeker. Mega stealerships hold no interest for us, even touring. Older, first generation cathedrals were okay. Most retained their savvy mechanics. The modern ones seem to have let them all go. I’ve not been impressed with the modern, by the book tech. I enjoyed the mechanic who knew Harley engines, took pride in their knowledge and skill. That’s mostly gone.

We just finished a trip. After stopping at one dealership, I chose not to stop at another one. I could have been in a car dealership. No difference. It’s sad to me, because I expect better. But it is absolutely clear, I am no longer their customer and even among my children and grandchildren, I don’t know who they are catering to as a buyer. I just don’t see it. As a rider, the traditional dealerships always took care of my riding needs and we rode away happy we stopped. Never felt like we wasted our time.

I no longer look for Harley dealerships to swing by when we are touring. That’s new for us. I have so many great memories of brief or critical stops at Harley dealerships. But no more. Have I changed or have they changed? Does matter to me, it no longer works.

 

I generally update the dealership closure list during winter but didn't get around to it this year because I'm working on a book of my riding experiences. On a recent tour of southwest Texas I stopped at Foreman Harley Davidson in Stillwater OK to avoid a thunderstorm. They are closing at the end of June after four decades. Sad. The owner died and the Motor Company had no interest in extending the franchise to his heirs or a new owner. They want all dealerships to be on primary interstates with glamorous and glitzy showrooms. Jochen Zeitz is running the company into the ground. Matt Levatich before him spent a hundred million dollars developing LiveWire - a mistake the company could hardly afford to make. Harley Davidson will become irrelevant as an American company in my lifetime.

 

Consider opening the list up so users can add to it. Many do not show up and more coming.

 

The thing that sucks about HD wanting Dealers on an Interstate is that so many of us either avoid the Interstates or just naturally look for the adventure of smaller backroads. It sucks even more if you live in a rural area with no Interstates near by. Add to that if you have break down and need help. I can imagine many dealers will say we can't come pickup you and your bike so you need to find a way to get your bike towed/trailered in on your own.

The American auto companies appear to be doing the same thing.

Paul

 

I tend to avoid the interstates and stick to old US highways and scenic byways unless the weather is bad or I need to get somewhere quickly.

As someone who knows something about business, what blows my mind is that Zeitz is deliberately shrinking his revenue base thinking that his problem is not selling motorcycles at high enough profit margins. The volume-price curve is a delicate balance. He's going to get to a point where he can't afford to keep the York factory open because there isn't enough demand for new HD's at any price point. Aside from the Rider Academy program HD hasn't done anything to grow new riders. That will be their ultimate downfall - they left it to other manufacturers to get young people engaged in motorcycles at ages 16-26.

 

Oh, they've got the bikes. They just won't sell them here.

This one's the X440 made and sold in India.


It's an air-cooled 440c single, and it costs an Indian buyer the equivalent of $2,870. If they could Americanize it (make it street legal for all our regulations) and sell it for $3995... well, you know.

This one is called the X350:


It's a liquid-cooled parallel twin in the 350cc class. Made in partnership with QJ and Benelli in China, you can actually see this bike in America; it's used in the Rider Academy. But of course you can't buy it here (not likely many Harley guys would want a Harley made in China). Which is too bad, because the bike it's based on is a solid, decent little bike; it's not some horrid ripoff slapped together out of pot metal, it's actually designed by Benelli engineers in Italy and has robust quality control. This retails in China for the equivalent of $4,795.

Finally, there's this, the X500:



This is a 500cc liquid-cooled parallel twin, and it's based off a really rather well-reviewed existing bike, the Benelli Leoncino 500. Basically it's identical to the Leoncino 500, except for some styling cues (tank, rear fender, headlight). In China it sells for the equivalent of about $5,995.00. And all the parts and certifications have already been done to bring it into America, since the identical same bike (minus the different styling cues) has already been sold in America as the Benelli Leoncino 500 and, even more interesting perhaps, is that they have a "scrambler" version of it called the Leoncino Trail. Harley could have a small, ultra-affordable, 100mph-capable cheap scrambler in their stores to tempt new buyers, new riders, and guys who want something lighter than a 950lb bagger, but (for many reasons) Harley just won't do it.

For whatever reason, they've decided that their cheapest entry-level bike is a $12,000 Nightster, which has an engine as powerful as the old Kawasaki KZ1000 superbike. Not exactly new-rider-friendly. Seems like Harley's strategy is for new riders to just buy an old used bike, and somehow they don't "get it" that new riders don't want to be treated like second-class citizens. HD doesn't see the optics of how a new rider says "what can I get from Harley" and Harley says "oh, no, you don't belong here, go outside and dig through the leftovers and see if there's something out there that you can afford." Not exactly encouraging someone to want to buy into the brand, especially when Honda's making Monkeys and Super Cubs and a Navi that has a retail price of $1,871 (RETAIL! For a new motorcycle!) or Kawasaki will put them in a new Ninja 400 for less than the Harley dealer is asking for a rusty old XL883...

 

Time changes many things.
The two dealerships where I bought my first three H-D's went out of business any years ago and I just discovered on Friday the dealership where I bought my '13 CVO is no longer as H-D dealership.

The two closest dealerships to my home have closed, leaving the closest about 30 miles away but I prefer the one where I've bought several bikes (the two that I still own) and that one is about a 60+/- mile ride away but I'm willing to keep that as my dealership for parts and service.
Additionally. the dealership owners (family) has a great "biker' theme tavern next door and it's a great place to kill time while the bike is being serviced!

I (like most of us) can see the business decision to close a dealership(s) that are too close together in an urban area but there's also a business justification for having a dealership in remote areas (near Interstates or larger state routes) in order to preserve the "dealership network" even if it's a "scaled down" shop with merchandise with some repair capability, i.e. batteries, tires and oil changes, possibly as a "sister store" of one of the closest, larger dealerships.
Overhead is a business "killer" and having a technician "on duty" can be expensive but having one (by volunteer or rotation) to man a remote location might prove to be a good business decision even if it's done only on weekends or around heavily traveled holidays.

 

Since I've decided to speak to "HD" with my pocketbook, and will only buy older bikes going forward, the dealer network is a moot point to me. They wouldn't work on my older bikes if I were to break down anyway. Which is another point as to why I won't buy new again. I can do all the work on my "less sophisticated" bikes myself. I get everything I need to maintain and/or upgrade my bikes from an independent.

 

There is a HUGE difference between the dealer today as opposed to the dealer in my younger years ... Many representatives of the new dealer may have never been on a scooter and are lost when it comes to relating to the customer ... All they know is sell, sell, sell ... Years back you were greeted and appreciated walking in the door and your local probably knew you by name ... The turnover rate in the new "Mega Dealer" is extremely high ... Years back the parts man behind the counter probably did double duty as a mechanic also ... They knew the product ... Highly unlikely ( rare ) today ... Times changes. not always for the better ... Dealers like Gildner's in West Branch, MI and Brandt's in Wabash, IN are examples of how to do business and stay in business ... How much longer will / can they last ??

 

Lot of great points here for sure. I agree, it's sad to see the Moco taking the road they are. No readily available intro level bikes like the X series overseas. Corporate mentality which does nothing but distance themselves from the customer. As a "luxury" brand they are falling behind the technology quickly, yet demanding more for what they do offer. While I do love my bike, there are issues and I'm not sure I'd do another HD. I also don't wear apparel other than 2 t-shirts and my leather jacket (a gift) and rain suot (bought for $50 bucks) because it's premium prices and cheap quality.