Comments on: Harley-Davidson and the 25 – 40 Year Old Buyer

By: James

James — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 23:29:16 +0000

P.S fireninja I very much enjoyed you commet

By: James

James — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 23:27:07 +0000

well,m here is my two cents, the average age of the Harley buyer is about 47 (as of 2008 from H-D), the average age in the U.S. 36.7 with 24.5% under the age of 18 (2008 again from U.S. census), now I don’t see many teenagers buying a new motorcycle in general.. and that 10 year difference in between the average H-D customer and U.S. age does not seem that big to me, honestly I think they are doing just fine the way they are. Times are tough and the news is just tiring to scare some ratings, not to say I wouldn’t want to see something radical from H-D but the numbers seem pretty well rounded as to the way H-D is running. that an I love the look of the new “48″ Sportster

By: Tommy

Tommy — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 05:40:43 +0000

What do you think HD could do to make the HOG experience more attractive to younger HD riders?

By: Doug S

Doug S — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 16:44:29 +0000

fireninja – well written. I agree with everything, right down to the flip flops. The models you proposed would expand the demographic I was considering in this post from (25 – 40) to 19+

previous HD management built the Aermacchi. Why does it seem so far out of the current HD management to consider these types of bikes? Cafe-style little bikes have been a great trend over the decades, but now they are getting to be mainstream on both shores.

A single cylinder and Sportster-based twin (Thunderbolt engine) fit well into developing additional markets with relatively little investment. The accessory catalogue could be successful too.

By: fireninja

fireninja — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 11:17:14 +0000

The above discussion has been quite interesting. As as a 32 year old rider who has owned 30 odd bikes and primarily oscillated between standard bikes and cruisers, here is my 2cents:

If Harley wants to edge into the younger market they should start making something new which is actually targeted at the younger market. The cheapest, ‘entry level’ Harley (the 2010 Sportster 883 Low) has a MSRP of $6,999 — a hard sell for a late teen or early 20 something. It also weighs 583 pounds, which is pretty heavy for an inexperienced rider. Moreover, even in the Harley crowd, an 883 isn’t cool — it is mocked as a girl’s bike or a poor man’s bike.

If Harley want’s younger riders they need a $3k, 400lb bike which looks cool. A Blast-style 1/2 Sportster thumper engine in a classic or cafe styled vintage-standard style frame could be that bike. If it had a low center of gravity, and a nice low power band with classic looks and a good ad campaign you’d start seeing them in high school parking lots and on college campuses instead of Harley being exclusive to suburbs and 55+ “retirement communities.” If they made a “racer version” with a dunstall style fairing (ala the Ducati Paul Smart), low bars and rearsets for $4k they wouldn’t be able to keep them in stock.

Buying a motorcycle is, for most of us, an aesthetic decision — more so than most other purchases. I read the specs and ponder the practical implications of the various tech, but if I think the bike is ugly, I’m probably not going to buy it. Let’s face it: Buell’s styling isn’t for everyone (I personally think that the Blast is horrifically ugly). But if you take the basic specs and price of a Blast, and make it look and feel more like a an XR1200 with Harley badging and targeted advertising putsch you will have a winner, and a new generation of Brand converts.

p.s. For the purists who worry about Harley diluting their “Premium Brand” with a cheap entry level product, I remind them that the Premium Brand’s logo is slapped on every type of crap imaginable from teddybears to flip flops.