Harley Davidson - Whats gone wrong?
It was a tough year for Harley-Davidson in the UK. 2024 saw Harley dealerships in Southampton, Portsmouth, Manchester, Norwich and Chester all going into administration following a global pattern in decline for Harley-Davidson sales.
In 2023 global sales dropped by 7.2% to 137,000 units and according to MotorcycleData.com Harley-Davidson was the worst performing bike manufacturer with the projections for 2024 heading on a similar trajectory.
None of this can be helped by the number of safety recalls that affected the manufacturer over the last few years.
2024 Recalls
- In April 24 CVO Street Glide (Production dates May23-Oct23) were recalled following the discovery of a defect that saw the bike become unstable at high speeds over uneven ground.
- Later that year the Livewire was recalled (Production dates 28 April 23- June 24) after it was uncovered that a high voltage fuse would open causing unexpected loss of power while under repeated acceleration.
- Next up was the CVO Street Glide, CVO Road Glide, CVO Road Glide ST, Street Glide, Road Glide which were all recalled in week 45 (Production Dates 27/10/23 – 18/7/24) after it was discovered that the regulator output wire could potentially rub against the crank case cover, causing a short that took out the 60 Amp main fuse and caused a sudden loss of power.
- Then most recently MY22 FXRST (Low Rider El Diablo), MY22-24 FXLRST (Low Rider ST) (Production Dates 17/11/21 – 8/7/24) were recalled when an issue was discovered from assembly where improper bending of brake lines could potentially cause them to rub and give way.
Combine this with the 4 recalls in 2023 and 2 recalls in 2022, you can begin to understand that Harley-Davidson are spending a lot of money firefighting issues that could have been discovered during product testing.
A little perspective
To add some perspective, it isn’t uncommon for Manufacturers to recall their vehicles, Triumph, Honda and BMW each had 4 safety recalls in 2024 but when the brand is already struggling, the huge financial toll taken with a recall, bites all the more.
The real issue with recalls is when the bike has changed ownership, the chance of it “slipping through the net” increases exponentially meaning that, potentially bikers are riding around on unsafe vehicles.
My heart sinks when I hear an owner say “I service my own bike” or “my mate services my bike” when speaking about a modern motorcycle.
Firstly, it is highly unlikely that a DIY mechanic (or your mate) will have the necessary software to recalibrate and service the Soft Systems on a modern motorcycle. Secondly, they are unlikely to pay for access to Manufacturer Service Bulletins, technical data and Recall data which are an absolute must, to do the job correctly.
It is staggering in this day and age, some people still think a ‘Service’ is an oil and filter change… No folks, that is an oil change, not a service!
So what does the future hold for HD?
As an independent HD specialist, we desperately need HD to become successful. Without new bikes, it wont be long before the supply of good used models dries up and the need for servicing and maintenance disappears, so it is absolutely in our interest for HD to become successful. However the facts are, there is very little we can do to influence the misguided trajectory HD Corporation are on.Our best hope is, they reconcile with their true customer base and stop chasing market sectors that have been long since sewn up and might I add, incredibly well service.
All we can do is to continue looking after our own Harley customers. Providing our customers with the necessary backup and taking care of their bikes. We continue to focus on ensuring our customers bikes are correctly, properly and fully serviced and we make no apologies for being extremely selective over the used bikes we sell. We cannot do anything for the big man at the top, but we can certainly be here for the wee man, on the road.