Motorcycles Suzuki Ends Production Of The Legendary Hayabusa After 20 Years Of High Speed Dominance

[Mr Brown]

Harleys are pretty technical now...fuel injection, built in alarm systems, bigger glides have lots of bits and bobbles of tech. The V Rod was built and designed in Germany with the engine being built by Porsche.

It's the HD riders who don't want all the tech and HD actually listens and delivers, I say good on them.

Their business model is unsurpassed. Their tech? Not so much...

 

[Bumblebee]

Their business model is unsurpassed. Their tech? Not so much...

….and that is because their customers want it that way.

Could HD build a serious tech heavy bike? I think with all the capabilities they have at their disposal they could absolutely build a bike to compete in every segment.

I think with the strong decline of new motorcyclists (thanks to big insurance companies) they are struggling to hold onto the customers they have like all the other bike companies.

 

[Mr Brown]

….and that is because their customers want it that way.

Could HD build a serious tech heavy bike? I think with all the capabilities they have at their disposal they could absolutely build a bike to compete in every segment.

I think with the strong decline of new motorcyclists (thanks to big insurance companies) they are struggling to hold onto the customers they have like all the other bike companies.

They'd have to let go of the archaic technology first, and with that will go their customer base. We all saw how well the V-Rod experiment went. H-D can't evolve and survive, try as they might. They're relevant only in terms of refining what they do better than anyone else: selling overpriced old tech to an aging consumer base who are buying into an image.

 

[Bumblebee]

They'd have to let go of the archaic technology first, and with that will go their customer base. We all saw how well the V-Rod experiment went. H-D can't evolve and survive, try as they might. They're relevant only in terms of refining what they do better than anyone else: selling overpriced old tech to an aging consumer base who are buying into an image.

Something they do extremely well. HD has a specific image their customers expect and they are true to that image. The V-Rod did OK buy it was expensive for the younger crowd and not the style the older crowd wanted.

I personally respect HD for staying true to what they are.

 

[busabobh]

All I know is they screwed up the Buell.

 

[mabupa]

This is a honest question, has there ever been another motorcycle to have a 12 year production run and have no changes other than color? (And brand of brakes)
And a sport bike at that. Thats gotts be a record right?

Suzuki dr650....... unchanged since 1996.

 

[Bumblebee]

All I know is they screwed up the Buell.

That they did, why, hard to say...I've read it was to focus on their brand...maybe a falling out happened....??

 

[Bumblebee]

Suzuki dr650....... unchanged since 1996.

Kawi Concours 1000 is another.

 

[busabobh]

Buell was an independent company which used their engines...we will never know how that relationship went south, there is always 2 sides to every story.

The V rod engine was a Buell project for a new Super bike , HD had money in Buell and started making changes to the point that Eric Buell said to hell with it and went to a Rotex.

 

[Bumblebee]

The V rod engine was a Buell project for a new Super bike , HD had money in Buell and started making changes to the point that Eric Buell said to hell with it and went to a Rotex.

I edited my post as I recalled that I read about HD purchasing the Buell brand then getting rid of it...

I then looked it up in Google and what I read wasn't a happy tale of a decent bike.

Eric stuck HD with the purchase of the Rotax engines though.

https://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiylNDTj-PjAhVsUd8KHd33AVwQFjAAegQIABAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FBuell_Motorcycle_Company&usg=AOvVaw3_cB7DfhVRi2Zl54PidAEK

 

[Mr Brown]

Suzuki dr650....... unchanged since 1996.

Kawi Concours 1000 is another.

KLR ran from 1987-2018 with only one redesign...

 

[Bumblebee]

KLR ran from 1987-2018 with only one redesign...

Right...

Air head BMW RTs were around forever and didn't change too much either. They even had Brembos back in '78

 

[busabobh]

The Buell had a chance to be a great American sport bike , HD screwed it up. There was a big write up on the subject at Buell’s demise, sorry can’t remember the magazine.

 

[Bumblebee]

The Buell had a chance to be a great American sport bike , HD screwed it up. There was a big write up on the subject at Buell’s demise, sorry can’t remember the magazine.

See my post above, Wikipedia has a good write about it.