Bid to buy Ducati... from Harley?

[El_Beardo]

Does anyone else see this as a big slap in the face to Erik Buell? The EBR has a proven track record of being a dominate machine in AMA Superbike whereas Ducati has stumbled quit a bit in MotoGP. Obviously I am comparing two different things but it feels like HD let a golden opportunity slip by. Sure, Buell/EBR likely causes jitters in the market but change the name and bring back an amazing American sportbike!

 

[Disturbed1]

Harley out of the running to make bid on Ducati.

But Polaris is still in the game...

http://www.motorcycledaily.com/2017/07/reuters-reports-harley-not-among-bidders-for-ducati-but-polaris-is/

 

[midway]

That works for me, dosent that work better than if Harley started messing with Ducati... yes it does.

 

[Cooter]

Ya. that guy is funny

Got this off Revzilla:

https://www.revzilla.com/common-tre...22/2017 - CT&utm_term=Common Tread | Combined

 

[GregoXB]

Don't worry, Harley fell on hard times in 2009 and they know exactly how to get out of this funk.

1) Take another 2.3 billion in bailout money, maybe a little more this time $$$... common Uncie Sam.... pwetty pwease... *batts eyes*
2) Destroy Buell....again.... somehow.... It's still def their fault again..... somehow....:mad-new:

 

[jl551c]

Ok, looks like Harley is out of the running and I'm glad for that. Ducati makes fantastic bikes and that proposed fit to me was just bizarre. Watch out for Ducati as their new V4 rolls out. End of an era with the end of 2 cylinder Desmo motors fading out.
In defense of Harley I will say this: For two-up riding I haven't found a better, more enjoyable ride for the wife and I. She's comfortable and loves it. That's important to me. I just rode coast to coast on my Ultra Classic without a hiccup. It's big, it's heavy. Underpowered? Yes. Handling? Not so great, but sufficient for cruising. Music? Hell yea. When I want to ride solo I take one of my Buells and have a blast. Theyre my favorite. Goldwing? Tried it. Sounds like I'm riding a sew machine? BMW? Ok, might be nice if I had a dealer under 100 miles away. So, to me it's about mind set. I look at it like I'm out cruising in an old V8 convertible, not a Corvette. Just my opinion.

 

[Cooter]

I totally concur. Ever job needs a specific tool

 

[HazardousWaste]

Hum, interesting thing is the perception of the motorcycle public.
HD tore apart our beloved Buell's
In the 70's HD used its power with the AMA to get all the Yamaha and Kawasaki 2 strokes banned from dirt track because they were getting their ass kicked by them.
I blame the AMA for this
Welcome to the new World HD, Kawasaki and Indian (yes Indian) are kicking your ASS. Hopefully these two can help revive American dirt track. Indian has won every race but one, and that was won by Kawasaki
So a 2015 consumer report on motorcycle brand reliability. %'s are rate of unreliability across the brand line. #1 being the worst. Top 5 worst
#1 - Can-Am 44% is this really a bike, no it's a trike
#2 - BMW 40%
#3 - Ducati 33%
#4 - Triumph 29%
#5 - Harley Davidson 26%

Well this confirms my experience, biggest POS I've ever owned was a BMW
I bought a new Superglide in 1976, ported the heads, high compression pistons and a Andrews cam along with a big S&S, I beat the living crap out that bike for 7 years, 2nd gear WOT dumps all the time. Never failed me once.
So according to this report HD is almost twice as reliable as a BMW
HD is also the only manufacture to make it on both lists
Top 5 most reliable
#1 Yamaha 11%
#2 Honda-Suzuki 12% tie
#3 Kawasaki 15%
#4 Victory 17%
#5 Harley Davidson 26%

So by these stats maybe HD and Ducati are a lot closer than we think.

Ferrari did the same thing to Ford back in the early 60's
They were losing the championchip to Ford. So at the Monza race Ferrari had the Italian port authority hold up the Cobras and Daytona coupes at the docks and they couldn't get the cars to the track.