OK, bit of a rant I'm sure, but hoping it can stir some thought and maybe some intelligent discussion more than anything. Probably a bit jaded as I ran a powersports dealership for several years and also volunteered for several years to help a couple friends try and keep their independent shop afloat as well, so I've been on both sides of the counter.

Just get tired of the old 'dealers just want your money and only hope to screw you' mantra on all these boards, regardless of vehicle type being discussed. Maybe, just maybe, if someone really thinks they can do it better, they'd step up and put their life on the line to do it 'right' like they claim they can or would do.

I have always found it very telling when any self employed person would never dream of cutting into their own profit or wages when asked, but assume that a dealer should do it for them. It's a free market here in the good ole USofA, we all want the max we can get our hands on, correct? HD's selling at MSRP and even MSRP plus has been quite the norm for some time, sure production is way up, but until supply far exceeds demand, MSRP will be the norm for sure- like it or not. If you're in an area with few(er) dealers, that plays a big part in it, but no one is forcing you to plop down your hard earned bucks if you don't want to. Yamaha and Honda are just down the road I'm sure.

Several years ago when Harley corporate started mandating all dealers update to the new boutique style dealerships and start investing back into the HD marketing plan, most dealers whether they wanted to or not had to invest some tall ching into these new multi million dollar showrooms with inventory to match. Even though HD was the hot ticket, the monthly note on the property, building, clothing, and vehicles is no small weight hanging over your head.

Plus now with the increased competition with online parts sellers, keeping a healthy margin on parts and accessories is no easy task, especially when the customer wants you to stock everything in the catalog and sell it at cost of slightly above. Then the ever impossible task of keeping well trained and knowlegeable parts staff on hand, not to mention highly trained and skilled techs on hand [that want and should get a very fair wage- most would give their left arm for the $27 minimum the HD union workers went on strike with, not to mention benefits on top of that] all the while listening to customers bitch and moan about $75 shop labor rates....

Then factor in the 'negotiations' on new unit prices, plus the absolute top dollar trade in figures customers demand because their bike is by far the best used bike ever imagined....oh and keeping solid sales staff on hand and expecting them to live on a few hundred commission....all the while even the most 'loyal' of customers will for sure go elsewhere to save $50- been there and been burned by that long enough, there is no loyalty period.

I guess what I'm wondering is that if so many people have it all figured out, why not open up the dealership utopia we are all longing for? Sure I like a good deal as much as the next guy and I did shop around before I bought, but that doesn't give me the 'right' to bash every single dealer I did not buy from. Heck I spend enough money at all of them, regardless of where I bought. Fair deals, parts inventory, expert service, and personal attention don't come cheap. Give some credit when it is do and go easy on the guys that work the crappy hours in retail to let us enjoy a rolling and living piece of americana.....

 

Thanks.......

Very eloquent and well phrased.....

 

I agree 100% Bob......And rant well taken.

 

You know I have 4 dealers within driving range (30 - 40 miles) and none of them really had anything special to offer me. I asked one salesperson why I should go with his dealership versus joe blows down the street and the only response he had was that his dealership was the biggest and best... not really what I wanted him to say. I wanted someone to not bs me and help me out when I have questions and need advice. I couldn't really find a real reason to go to any one dealer so one day I just stopped at a dealer I don't usually go to. And they had a road king that I really liked so I bought it. The only real reason I bought it was that the owner came out and started talking with me and he seemed sincere and easy to get along with. I bought it and even purchased a founders club membership at that dealership just to get a 10% discount for the rest of the year. While I was there I decided that I didn't care for that dealers service department all that much and have found another closer dealer with a tuner that seems to know what he is doing. Will I ever be faithful to one dealer probably not... why should I. I dumped 20K at that one dealer so they should be happy as heck... I'll spend my cash at any of the dealers and probably take my bike in for service (if warranty work is needed) to that one shop with the descent wrench working.

Maybe I strayed from your original post.... Do I feel that it is right for the HD dealerships to charge full MSRP for everything.... Hell no. Will I pay it... I guess I have to. I find it pretty amazing that the dealer doesn't have to negotiate prices with the buyer. The HD salesperson has one of the easiest jobs in the world... the bikes sell on their own. I guess if you are a likeable salesperson you will sell more, but you don't have to work all that hard to sell these bikes because the people that want and can afford them will buy them.

Those are my 2 cents... Next!!!! [8D]

 

I understand your point and some may bash when there is no reason. But there are dealers, service techs, and others that are not on the up and up. As I am sure you know from your own dealing that not everyone is giving service to the customer the same way as you. There are countless storys of good deals and countless storys of bad deals. But more people will talk about the bad before the good. just my $.02[8D]

 

All I ask is some integrity. Don't lie to me, don't make promises you know you can't keep, and don't give me less than I paid for.
Buying the bike is probably not where the dealer makes their big bucks anyhow.

A place treats me like they want me to be a customer, I will return until they don't. Can they have a bad day, sure. I'm all for second chances. If 2x they treat me poorly, I'm gone.

My dealer tries hard. The owner is onsite quite often. He comes out to talk, he even knows me and my bike. I found a good dealer.

I found a stealer too. Tried to change paperwork on me in the middle of my purchase like I wouldn't notice. I wont go there anymore, no matter how big they are and how good of a rep they have.

I appreciate the pains anyone goes through to run a business. To me my name is more important than anything. I would do everything within reason to make things right to a client.

I'm not sure where I'm going with this anymore, so I'll just shaddup!

 

Hahaha, if only every Harley dealer offered 1/2 of those things listed there wouldn't be any b*tching about them.

 

My wife and I took a 15 Harley cicle tour through Wisc. Although almost every dealer we stopped at knew shortly that we were not there to buy new bike, they all went out of their way to make us feel welcome, showed us their shops and chatted with us while we bought the normal t-***** etc. Almost all these shops were practically new. The shop we liked the best was the first one we stopped at. We bought our 07 ULTRA from them and it's 130 miles from our home. Sauk Prairie H-D. We have 5 H-D shops within 50 miles from our home, yet Sauk Prairie made us feel most at home and worked with us through our 07 initial problems. Did we dicker.? No. Their first offer was satifactory on our trade. And they will get my next chance. But I've bought 6 new bikes in the last 28 years and never from the same dealer cause we shop around and there are dealers we won't/can't deal with. I guess what I'm saying is there are many dealers, some have bad things about them, most are good, as in any product dealership. If they listed for $ 2000 more and gave you a $2000 discount would we feel better ? Maybe. It's always a buyers market and you can always say no and keep looking. Do I wish harleys were cheaper ? Yes. When I customize, I don't always buy H-D items. But my choice is not based on price, but what I consider to be the best addition, yet ussually cheaperthan H-D items. I don't like bashing a dealer unless they have it coming and I don't like bashing MOCO unless I feel they've done me wrong. I have that rite to complain and ask for satisfaction and if I'm wrong then so be it. One complaint lables you a complainer. Thousands of complaints register. Sometimes with service bullets, sometimes with recalls, and sometimes through the courts. I agree as long as bikes and botiques sell and profits soar our complaints may not mean as much to MOCO as if they were strugling to make a profit. Look for that dealer that satisfies you. And be loyal to them during that relationship. Move on when your not happy with them. If you can't find that dealer then drive used bikes and have your work done at an Indy. They toocan be a search to find one to make you happy. Bottom line is get happy-then ride. Sometimes it's a long drawn out process. But that love of Harley will get you through.

 

who WOULDNT go 'down the road' to save $50 on a part?

and- most people bitch about dealers doing slimy shlt- and being uber-cheap themselves.

kinda like when i took delivery of my 06 RKC at msrp. i told the salesman that i DID NOT want the bike inspected (no sticker)- he had to confer with the svc mgr who said they couldnt let a bike roll out without being inspected. i agreed and asked him to hand me the sticker instead of boogering my frame up. he refused. i asked him to put some masking tape on the frame and THEN put the inspection sticker on (making it easy to remove)- he refused.

then the salesman asked me if an inspection plate would be ok.... i said sure- i can remove that, no biggie.

his exact words were "ok- great. ill grab one for you.... theyre only about $25"

now- my wife and i spent close to $20G's on a bike........ and he wanted $25 for an inspection platewhich would have a sticker on it that i didnt want to begin with??!!

minor bullshlt- but its definitely something that ill always remember.









oh- and the salesman mysteriously 'convinced' the svc mgr to allow the bike to roll without being inspected when i simply refused to pay for the plate.

 

Interesting persective.
I grew up here where I live(So I have been here most of my life). Forever the Harley Shopwas a little hole in the wall in a small steel town that you parked across the street if you had aftermarket parts on a Harley, and around the block if it was not a Harley.

The folks in the shop treated you, just like you were thier next door neighbor. And the whole family was involved with the shop. The "Owner" didn't hide in an office, but pretty much knew every customer by name, and motorcycle. All over the walls were pictures of days gone by, hill climbs, gatherings, picnics.(And this was long before H.O.G. was even thought of)

Today, that shop has moved, and nowistwo, newer style dealerships. But it is still pretty much run the same way it was "back in the day".

We also got a few more Harley Dealerships around since then, and they all are the newer style dealerships.

30 minute drive from my house, I can now hit 5 dealerships, extend that to an hour, 13 dealerships. Needless to say, they all are in competition for my bussiness. The closest one, is also the oldest one, and the oneI have known forever to be Harley-Davidson (As a kid thats where I thought they built them, I didn't know about Milwaukee)

All the time I have been riding,I never owned a NEW motorcycle, they have all been used, or salvage/basket cases that I put together to ride.(riding season is short here andI was raising a family)

With my Ultra, I finally pulled the trigger on a New Motorcycle, and naturally I went to the shopI have always known as Harley-Davidson.(Loyality)
Well that didn't go so well, he had a Glacier White 06 Ultra on the floor that really caught my eye.
But the owner had took it for a HOG Ride to the Upper Michigan Pennisula. So it had some miles on it, and it also had XM, and bluetooth installed.

Got to talking with the owner of the shop about the bike, and the price he gave me was a bit high in my opinion. SoI told him I would think about it, picked up the other stuff I stopped for, and left.

Called monday and left an offer on the bike, and a message to give me a call. Waited all week, and no return call, soI started looking elsewhere. Ended up buying my Ultra that weekend at another dealer. Made a real good deal (my opinion) and got exactly what I wanted.

DidI forget about the first Dealer? No way, they are great people, just didn't have the dealI wanted at the timeI wanted it. Everybody on these forums rants about Zanottis HD,I can be on thier doorstep in an hour. But since I am local,I have to pay tax, and NO INTERNET DISCOUNT. (Do you thinkI buy there?)

All m