With the new plan one of the 'actions' was to 'reduce model complexity.' Since many models were already cut (CVO) will there be other cuts? One recent speculation I watched was the two bottom softail sellers, the SportGlide and the Deluxe.
At the end of the 1970's BMW Motorrad was facing extinction as all they had were facelifted boxers and nothing really new. They bet the farm and introduced a whole new line of K bikes in the early 1980's, with the inline engine. The press thought they were crazy for doing something so un-natural and crazy like that. Existing customers hated it. But a funny thing happened on the way to prosperity....new customers loved them! The new customers gravitated to the K-bikes and BMW kept the R-bikes for the traditionalists. What a stupid idea...
I've heard the same thing about the Sport Glide and Deluxe getting cut next year as well as the remaining Sportster line, at least in Europe. We've been told for years that the older air cooled engines like the Evo can't meet the Euro 5 emissions standards. Since 2018 the Revolution Max bikes have been the only apparent strategy for H-D in mid-sized motorcycles, so they need to make this work. It is kind of odd that nothing in the Revolution Max line of bikes was even vaguely like a Sportster until some drawings showed up recently.
My best guess is that somebody at H-D decided they weren't competent to release three very different new bikes addressing two new market segments at the same time. Currently being risk averse they cut it to two:
The Custom 1250 is basically a baby FXDR. H-D has done power cruisers before, so no new challenges other than the Revolution Max engine.
The Pan American is an attempt to break into an important new market segment for H-D. That introduces added risk to the product release. It uses the same 1250cc engine as the Custom, so if there are problems it will likely be the exact same fix.
The Bronx would have been a second new market segment for H-D to try to break into at the same time. Although the 975cc displacement engine isn't likely to have unique problems, Murphy's law ensures whatever flaw the Revolution Max engines turn out to have be amongst the non-common parts. I suspect the new market segment overload is the big obstacle since the simple solution to the different displacement engines would be making the "Bronx 1250" now and a 975cc version after sorting out the initial new engine issues.
Having said all that, I think the Bronx is coming eventually because it's a bike that H-D needs to make. The Pan America and Bronx are both types of bikes that many new riders want to buy but can't get from H-D. Introducing both at once may just be biting off more than H-D can chew, especially in the current climate.
I've heard the same thing about the Sport Glide and Deluxe getting cut next year as well as the remaining Sportster line, at least in Europe. We've been told for years that the older air cooled engines like the Evo can't meet the Euro 5 emissions standards. Since 2018 the Revolution Max bikes have been the only apparent strategy for H-D in mid-sized motorcycles, so they need to make this work. It is kind of odd that nothing in the Revolution Max line of bikes was even vaguely like a Sportster until some drawings showed up recently.
My best guess is that somebody at H-D decided they weren't competent to release three very different new bikes addressing two new market segments at the same time. Currently being risk averse they cut it to two:
The Custom 1250 is basically a baby FXDR. H-D has done power cruisers before, so no new challenges other than the Revolution Max engine.
The Pan American is an attempt to break into an important new market segment for H-D. That introduces added risk to the product release. It uses the same 1250cc engine as the Custom, so if there are problems it will likely be the exact same fix.
The Bronx would have been a second new market segment for H-D to try to break into at the same time. Although the 975cc displacement engine isn't likely to have unique problems, Murphy's law ensures whatever flaw the Revolution Max engines turn out to have be amongst the non-common parts. I suspect the new market segment overload is the big obstacle since the simple solution to the different displacement engines would be making the "Bronx 1250" now and a 975cc version after sorting out the initial new engine issues.
Having said all that, I think the Bronx is coming eventually because it's a bike that H-D needs to make. The Pan America and Bronx are both types of bikes that many new riders want to buy but can't get from H-D. Introducing both at once may just be biting off more than H-D can chew, especially in the current climate.
I see a lot of the Sportster in the "New Custom" I think it is much more Sporster than FXDR. And just my opinion, but I think the New Custom is the replacement for the Sportster.
I see a lot of the Sportster in the "New Custom" I think it is much more Sporster than FXDR. And just my opinion, but I think the New Custom is the replacement for the Sportster.
I suppose that depends upon your vision of the Sportster. My XL1200C wants to be a Heritage Classic or Road King when it grows up, but that's probably more of an exception than the rule. The "New Custom" isn't a replacement for a two up bagger. If somebody is riding one of the Irons or a Forty-Eight I guess the "New Custom" would be the replacement.
11-02-2020, 03:37 PM
Bronx Streetfighter Absent in Harley's Rewire Plan
