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who put the D in harDley motorcycles?

6K views 22 replies 9 participants last post by  Poncho Villa 
#1 · (Edited)
I am still searching for the article. I read this way back in 03 when harDley was having their 100 yr anniversary blowout party in Milwaukee. It seems that everybody was invited, xcept mr. Harley.. or what was left of his family.. when I find the article, I will post it.

Since Davidson is the only left over remains of the original team, its not Rite nor fair to continue to call them Harleys.. of which they are not, nor have been for quite some time.
Nobody is offering to rename the brand "Davidson mc's" inasmuch as there is sizeable money to be lost when folks realized they'd been duped into buying a bait and switch product.. so the only right thing to do is to include and imbed the D, like a finger, in the middle of this moniker.. much like they did to Harley family at that celebration.

not the article but some interesting reading. http://www.biography.com/people/william-s-harley-20903181
 
#4 · (Edited)
Come to think of it, I believe there are some Fords still over there.

In HD's heyday, they were damn fine machines. A little 165 "hummer" was primary transportation from 1960 to 63. Always got wherever & back, so the name always brings on good vibes. Glad I didn't have a bad experience like some have. That's all I know and all I care to know. I ride a Vulcan and I'll end up riding one.
 
#7 · (Edited)
Not sure how many knew this...
Check it out ...Circa 1983 ...U.S. RAISES TARIFF FOR MOTORCYCLES - NYTimes.com
yeah was quite acutely aware of this, and also the "loan" the feds gave hardley (insiders) to buy themselves away from amf..

Japs had to reduce their big bikes to 700cc machines to stay under the tariff, cuz poor old hardley was on hard times trying to sell their amf junk to the public and no one was having any of it.. hardley would have, should have closed shop.. if it weren't for the feds bailing them out..
Willie G.. 60's wild child son of Davidson took over design and started the custom faze. they dumped the panhead because it was still 50s design motor and intro the Evo motor which later was canned for the current TwinCam motor..
what saved Hardleys azz was not that they produced a better product, is that their new marketing department capitalized on the whole "bilt in America" theme and was able to shame buyers into buying substandard products at thrice the price of current technology competitors..

now hardley is faced with several American made mfgs producing better product at competitive pricing and its the writing on the wall, change or diminish.. when all the old dinosaurs are finally dead, then these historical machines will fade into history. were they belong.
 
#10 ·
Man, I didn't know my motorcycle was so crappy. I'm trading mine in for another Vulcan. No, I'm not. LOL!
zzz,, you shuld hold onto that museum piece.. never kno wen Smith an Wesson,, er mean 'Sonian mite call and wanna display show how folks hobbled around a hunerd years ago. b4 they invented technology..
 
#11 ·
Was setting at the "Table of Knowledge" a couple of days ago at a local café with the local think-tank leaders when I started catching crap about having to "winterize" my liquid cooled metro bike. It was all in good fun, I was the youngest one at the table and everyone is friends. But the subject changed real quick when I told them I always stop to see if they need to borrow my cell phone to call a friend when I see them broke down on the side of the road. I think Davidson makes beautiful bikes. I like my bike, though. I don't have anything against any other bikes except the ones who think the interstate is a skate-board park for doing tricks.
 
#12 ·
Was setting at the "Table of Knowledge" a couple of days ago at a local café with the local think-tank leaders when I started catching crap about having to "winterize" my liquid cooled metro bike. It was all in good fun, I was the youngest one at the table and everyone is friends. But the subject changed real quick when I told them I always stop to see if they need to borrow my cell phone to call a friend when I see them broke down on the side of the road. I think Davidson makes beautiful bikes.
man, ther mus be some really ol geezers in yor nek of woods?
an you are rite that daveyson makes ther bikes beautiful. if only they put as much 'tention IN their motors as they do krome ON their bikes..
 
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#15 ·
I don't understand ...
no you don't. understand.. facts vs bashing. you think there the same thing.

the article is why do they still call them Harleys when they haven't been since the 40's. original stock owners were 1 harley and 3 Davidsons. mr harley died in 43 as well as his families interest in the company. they should be called davidsons, but that would negate all the work mr harley put into the company when it was still advancing its products with improvements in technology and racing against it last domestic competitor. with harley gone, they pretty much got stuck. only the absence of competition kept them alive till the 70s. the britts gave them a run for their money in the 50s and they had to respond with that sporturd which has changed little in 60 yrs. Japps durn near put the nail in their coffin, other than protectionism, this brand would have gone belly up long ago.

as for buying or experience.. have had plenty nuff to kno better. they wont miss me, I don't miss them. poncho
 
#16 ·
I understand perfectly, you don't like Harleys, its not "fact" to say all Harleys are junk, that's just bashing. I hope you don't seriously think they should drop the Harley because no Harley is on the board, if that's the case just about every company needs to update their name. I've owned a couple dozen of bikes the last 50 years, including several Harleys so I can speak from experience, mine were solid reliable machines.
 
#17 ·
You said, you don't understand. I agree. You don't. The article referenced stated Harley is long time non affiliated or invited.
I wrote why then continue to call them harleys? which they are not, in name or spirit. but rather davidsons in marketing geniuses not bike builders.
As for being longtime hd owner etc, but yet yor here. on a kaw, a v9 is it? Why?
Could it be that kaw makes a better bike?at a much more reasonable price? so if hd is all that great a product, why are you here?
I can understand having hd and kaw, and a few other brands as well. been ther dun that mutiple times. No matter how wonderful we like to think hd is quality product, it lags significantly behind most all brands in state of art engineering, assembly, performance, cost of maintenance and life. stats, yor gonna cite stats. BS.
I've bought owned ridden maintained repaired enuff hardleys to not drink the koolaid. they are old skool machines stuck in old skool ways. they never change, never improve. the only thing they bring to the table is they are best looking paint n krome on old steel.
 
#18 ·
why did Polaris buy the indian name? The indian 111 motor isn't as advanced(pushrods?) or powerful (75hp) as the victory 106 (87hp) yet they're selling better than the victory, why? probably because most don"t buy a cruiser looking for the latest technology, if they did they'd buy a liquid cooled, 4 valve head, overhead cam euro or jap bike.
I think brand bashing is lame, buy what you want.
 
#19 ·
the article is why do they still call them Harleys?

why did Polaris buy the indian name? The indian 111 motor isn't as advanced(pushrods?) or powerful (75hp) as the victory 106 (87hp) yet they're selling better than the victory, why? .
why do they still call them Harleys? switch the conversation? that's watt poly tic' shans do..

119ft/lbs. all gear driven. leftside primary, rightside drive, modular alum frame, race bred suspension, subassemblies component design, state of art engineering, old skool styling. you mistake the window covering for the bones, looking at too many hardleys blinded by paint n krome?

Indian Motorcycles Thunder Stroke 111 V-Twin Engine: Indian Motorcycles is back with an all-new V-Twin to take on Harley-Davidson.

this is just the tip of the iceberg, Polaris, victory, indian all are state of art engineered and continue improving and bringing out new better product just like kaw and the rest of the field.
 
#21 ·
I love your "indian" sales brochure quotes, especially the "race bred suspension" part. I say "indian" because they quit making real Indians in 1953 I think.
yes, you are rite. they quit making Real ****** last year 54. now they make mor better ******.. its called moving forward, moving on. you should try it.
suspension on the new mor better *****.. dang hardley photo bomb
 

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