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Edited Date/Time
9/10/2018 10:43am
Harley allegedly pulling out of Alta..?
Harley gets involved with alta.
Learns their craft of electric motorcycles
Develops their own line of electric motorcycles to come out in a few years
Pulls out of alta to maximize profit margin
The Shop
HD paid to partner with Alta, they got a good look at the current and future technology, developed a few concept bikes, and then likely pulled out when they realized technology and/or market demand isn't where it needs to be yet.
I don't see the application for an electric HD bike right now. HD owners are much different than Alta offroad owners. a few hours on a charge isn't good enough for most HD owners who want a bike that they can take for medium to long road trips. Their just isn't enough battery capacity yet and I think HD saw that quickly.
1) I'm certain that HD did massive amounts of due diligence on eBikes, batteries and the extent of the current state of the technology available before entering this partnership.
2) I highly doubt Harley would pull out of a partnership like this because of "right now" market conditions. This strategic partnership is all about the future, not the present. I don't think there could be a larger change to a motorcycle than how it is powered (internal combustion vs electric). If Harley is ever going to offer a eBike, they need to entrench themselves in the R&D process immediately. These things take years to come to fruition..
Also, the collective HD owner demographic is changing, as traditional "core" Harley fans are aging out; thus the brand has now embraced a "we build riders" mentality instead of a "we build bikes" mentality
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/03/harley-davidson-tries-to-regain-its-coo…
Well, that is some of what I got also.
But, it was kinda insightful on what orange and black might be up to. That they mentioned pedal type mopeds
as becoming a large mode of transportation here in the US, forget it. They're wrong on that.
As far as Alta, one can see Harley might have had its glimpse of what and how they do things, and figured
they're not all that, we can do just as well by ourselves. It's not like HD didn't have anything going on electric,
I'm sure they have a treasure trove of data on the juicer bike scene. Hopefully, they did take away a few pointers on how to get stuff to market a bit quicker, maybe market the stuff better. In that regard, Alta imo has done a great job.
I dunno. The ADV thing, that might be good for them. But, seems to me, a lot of those guys are on in their years also.
How much of a future is there? Unless the young guns start thinking differently as they age, as many do, that could be a waste of time also. Look at this place. Mention Adventure Bikes here, and the majority of the Vitards crucify them.
The fact they are looking at ways to change things up, to not only stay current, but to lead a way into the future, hell, it's easy to think that's a good thing.
But, when one reads that article, it's easy to think that maybe they are getting a bit scatter brained. I mean, they are talking about going in a lot of different directions. Which is what they did back in the AMF days. When they almost went under.
Hopefully, they haven't missed the success, and how it was done, with the likes of Alta, and let's say Indian.
And use those qualities in their business.
Maybe, just maybe, they can keep a bit of focus on what has made them a profitable company for so many years.
Rebels, cokeacola cowboys, outlaw wanna bees and bonifide long haul cruiser guys, will always exist.
Eh, as long as they don't start talking about golf carts, I have a feeling, they will be just fine.
They are opening a production facility in Europe to sell bikes in Europe.
They are opening a production facility in Thailand to sell bikes in Asia.
The motorcycles sold in the US are and will be built in the US. Although the timelines seen on the news are accurate, the connection between exclusive events is incorrect.
True, Kansas City closed. And they spent a ton on increasing and improving York Pa.
Thing is, most, if not all global companies do it.
Heck, I'm in HVAC. Carrier just moved a big part of their show to Mexico. Carrier, the American company that invented air-conditioning as we know it, here since the 1900s, poof, gone.
Would be lovely to be able to keep all those jobs here. But, when labor here in the US is like 65hr, vs 5hr there, what would anyone do? Especially when the thing you make is gonna be shipped half way around the world?
Let's get real. Who here wears any gear, or rides any bike, in their weekend warrior pursuits, that's made in America?
Regarding Harley pulling out of Alta- this is great news. I suspect Alta and Harley did not mesh well together. One company is a fast moving upstart with advanced technology and the other is a 100+ yr old slow, management heavy dinosaur.
Pit Row
I've had lengthy debates, on other sites, on what makes an American bike.
Or a German bike.
Or a Japanese bike.
Or an Austrian bike.
They all, for years now, use stuff from different vendors.
Henry Ford did not make the carburetor for his model t.
What makes a bikes nationality, in this day and age?
Where they are designed, and where the corporate profits end up, is the closest thing to determining that.
Most customers in Europe do not care if the products they buy are "Made in the USA" and likely prefer more locally made products. So why make their products in the USA at their detriment for that market?
Most customers in Asia do not care if the products they buy are "Made in the USA" and likely prefer more locally made products. So why make their products in the USA at their detriment for that market?
The only customers who care about the products they are buying being "Made in the USA" are in the USA, and the products those customers are buying are "Made in the USA", so what's the problem here?
I thought people liked capitalism.
It is a marketing tool above all else and in my experience, where it is made is a concern for a substantially small number of customers. There is a "prestige" or a perceived quality aspect to "Made in the USA" in some areas of the world, not doubt. But to convince me that a majority of customers worldwide are concerned with it is highly doubtful.
I think the same thing about oil.
Oil is oil, it's all the same.
The "Made in the USA" is a concern for a small number of oil customers. They certainly exist and it does matter to some, but a large majority will not make their purchasing decision based on it.
There is more than enough capacity for the folks who trailer to Sturgis and/or Daytona, and only ride on main street...
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