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H-Ds new ad campaign?

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scar04

scar04

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http://www.harley-davidson.com/wcm/Content/Pages/Dark_Custom/Dark_Custom.jsp?locale=en_US

okay so I know there are some H-D haters (more like the silly marketing campaign they put on haters) so heres some cannon fodder for yall. The Bar&Shield boys have come up with the "Dark Custom" line of bikes aimed at a more youthful market. This includes the nightster, night train, street bob, and new "Crossbones" to name a few. The bones one is a chopped springer with the spring mounted seat. Looks kinda neat. Imnot sure how I feel about the ad campaign they have embarked on. butIthink they have realized that they are gonna have to start targeting people my age more aggressively to get our money, so they have targeted the new style billy -bad-butt wannabes out there. I had a hard time not laughing at the kid wearing the checkered slip on vans while riding in the video. Any thoughts?
 
I was a harley hater till I rode one :)

the marketing campaign is kinda cheesey, but many of today's jesse james wann-bes will totally love it.

I have thought the nightster was cool since I first saw it, and the cross bones would be much cooler with a smaller rear fender
 
Okay, thoughts. This angle is not really new. Since about 1923, BMW's been doing the black look. Back in the early '80s, Yamaha was marketing the night thing with their Specials. It seemed to work for them, so it'll prolly work for the Harley boys.

If it weren't for the springer front end, I'd like the 'bones model, too. I do like the looks of the Sporty, though. It would look even better with a fat bob tank, methinks.
 
That last silloette looked right out of the 50's. Springer with short ape hangers , tractor seat. :lol2:
They were all wearing helmets, they looked like the novety helmets. One looked like the WWII German helmet style :doh:
Wonder how their numbers are? As in production numbers!
 
H-D owes Russell Mitchell money for that Crossbones design:

s-riding-hot-rod.jpg
 
I've never been one to really care about ads one way or the other. For me the bike has to sell itself. This ad was a mixed bag....I think they tried a little too hard to project the tough guy image....I wasn't really fond of the bar bit followed immediately by riding either.

As for the bikes....I really dig the Fat Bob, the Night Train and the Night Rod as they are. Get rid of the apes in favor of a drag bar on the Street Bob and I'm down. I would particularly like the Cross Bones with flat bars and bobbed rear fender that ends no more than 3 inches past the back of the seat and ending in the upward arc....tail light mounted on the fender with the plate above and forward of it(just behind the seat).
 
I like the looks of the bikes quite a lot. They really don't fit my style of riding, but if I got the chance to purchase one for a really, really, deep discount, I wouldn't kick it out of my garage ;)

The ad made me laugh some, though. Hard to imagine riders in checkered slippers and riding their bikes up to a ski place with snowboards strapped on. I, too, am not crazy about showing folks in a bar, then riding. We've got enough trouble with that as it is.

Pretty bikes, though, and not a bad marketing angle.
 
Skateboards and Harleys? Okay... I saw a Night Rod Special on the road a few weekends ago. It seemed like a nice alternative to chrome.
 
For a large portion of motorcycle buyers, owning and riding a m/c is more about image than anything else. H-D and their marketing gurus know how to exploit that. In most of their ads, there is little technical information about the machine other than testosterone boosting characteristics like big 96 inch engine, fat 240 rear tire, etc.
To this end, H-D does a great job of advertising. I am surprised at the very obvious redirection away from 'boomers and now towards bad-boyz and wannabes. But bottom line is it's still mostly about image.

btw, nice bikes. H-D product development has embraced the custom genre and will likely take it to the bank.
 
Cant really say I've given H-D much attention, but the Night Rod Special is something that I'd ride in a heartbeat! Just need to find me some of those checkered Vans to go along with it.

Looks like an interesting line. Image does have a lot to do with it... HD target their crowd, just as BMW theirs. If image had nothing to do with it, and I wanted a great bike I'd prolly be ridin a Bandit or something equiv.
 
I'm not gonna lie I want some of those checkered vans. I had a pair when I was a kd

heck I still have some black Converse chuck taylors I wear from time to time.
though I was wearing them before it was cool to wear them again
 
Does this mean I am too old to ride one now? :doh: Nice looking bikes but just not for me. I wonder just how they will sell?
 
I've Had It......

...... with HD (I own 4 of them)

They are outta their collective minds. They are way behind the curve on this one (Crossbones). This bike is a joke. It is a softail with sprung seat....***? Thats like having an entire hamburger...bun and all.....and putting it on another bun...(admittedly not a great analogy but I'm not a very witty guy). The riding position looks like the kid riding the fake motorcycle on the merry-go-round at the county fair. Dont believe me? Check out the pic on this link. http://www.motorcycledaily.com/21january08_hd2008xbones.htm


How could the motor company be so far off the mark? The only bike they have come out with that remotely connects with their heritage is the Nightster (the blacked out Sportster). The V-Rod has performance advantages for Harley riders but not compared to the Jap bikes. Harley show rooms across the country are full of V-Rods, Fat Bobs, Street Bobs, Deluxe, Rocker and Rocker-Cs. These are some of the examples of the creativity coming out of Milwaukee? And the shareholders are wondering when the MoCo is gong to turn it around. The industry as a whole is taking a downturn, the “Custom” cycle shops are dying on the vine and “my” MoCo puts out this garbage. In comparison, the new Honda CB1100 seems that it will squarely hit the mark.

It makes me want to sell my Harleys and buy BMWs and Hondas. Then again maybe thats why I have old Harleys (77, 79, 81, I also have a 2000). Who would have guessed the AMF years would have more character and better represent the essence of motorcycling than the new era Harleys?

I am embarrassed to be both a Harley Davidson shareholder and an owner.

Rant is over….I feel better.
 
honestly the two Newer styles Ive liked most are the Fat Bob and the Softtail Deluxe. I still love my FXD. I think thats what a motorcycle should be, but thats why I bought it.
 
I like the Nightster. I would like the V-rod with a standars seating position.

Isn't it funny that they only show bikes riding stright. The only time you see the bikes turning is inside the garage.

I want to see that snow board across the wind while making 65 mph on those straight higways. :flip:
 
Squidward said:
Here you go:
VRSCD Night Rod.
Or you could get a used VRSCR Street Rod(this would be my choice):
Click to expand...

Yes, I like them better. I remember seeing them last year. I do not think I've seen any on the street. I could use less rake also. I guess I am not their target customer.
 
None of the above.

XL1200R, please, with a little wind protection and bags, maybe a solo seat and backrest, in Vivid Red, if you please.
 
houstonredrider said:
Yes, I like them better. I remember seeing them last year. I do not think I've seen any on the street. I could use less rake also. I guess I am not their target customer.
Click to expand...

Friend of mine has the Street Rod and an RC-51. He rides the Street Rod more due to its comfort and has turned the RC into an ever evolving street fighter project. He said the most fun thing about the Street Rod is riding with sport bikes and actually coming close to the bike's potential while keeping up with the R1's, etc. on the back roads vs. never getting anywhere near the RC's potential at the same pace.
 
Harley has to do something to address their aging demographic, hence the slant. Their outreach towards women has paid off in a big way, and if they can do the same for 20 somethings they'll be huge. Course the Nightster is probably the only thing affordable to most of them.

Off course keep in mind that if HD becomes cool to the iPod set, that will still help it sell to the 40-somethings shopping for a trophy wife...
 
houstonredrider said:
I like the Nightster. I would like the V-rod with a standars seating position.

Isn't it funny that they only show bikes riding stright. The only time you see the bikes turning is inside the garage.

I want to see that snow board across the wind while making 65 mph on those straight higways. :flip:
Click to expand...

They did make the FXDX for a few years (the original blacked out Harley), but they were discontinued...
I have no problem doing 38% lean angles at 65 on my '99 FXDX, just fwiw.. Sometimes it's really frustrating since I actually bought a HD to ride it, instead of trying to be somebody I'm not.

I love my bike, but I don't like the MOCO's marketing any more than I honestly believe just because someone has a certain type of bike, their skill level is determined by that purchase.

I can only be who I am, I'm still the same person who rode a GSXR1000 for years, and buying a HD somehow didn't make me any more a tough guy, than I am:rofl: I've put many miles on many different bikes, i rode 13,824 miles last year, and never once did I think about how much better I would be if I only had "Brand X" bike.... Although my back's a little happier on a cruiser. :giveup:
 
I actually like the looks of the nightster, fatbob (fav of the group), streetbob, and nightrain. The "spirit of H-D" is reflected better in the AMF years? I know AMF sure built the reputation that HD still can't seem to shake (no pun intended) but I am not sure that is where you were heading with your statement. LOL!

I think the darkened, minimilast H-Ds will be a hit with the younger crowd because they have an edge the other models don't. Most look at the tired old dyna, softail, and touring models as "grandpa's motorcycle". The problem H-D is going to have is finding the younger demographic that can afford these bikes (exception going to the nightster).


kevin...
 
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