Originally Posted By: hpb
Gotta say, I LOVE the patriotism of you US guys! If more Aussies had the same type of pride, our car manufacturing industry would probably still be thriving.
Harley's are hugely popular here. I've only ever owned Japanese bikes, and don't see that changing any time soon, but by the time I hit my 50's, I reckon I'll be ready to give one a place in the garage.
Yes, so true and thank you. Ignore some of the remarks from others in here, as you know, in all parts of the world, there are people who are never happy about anything and certainly not happy about the success of an American icon. But they truly are a tiny portion of our society, they just make a lot of noise and makes them seem bigger then they are.
)
Anyway, back to the Japan vs USA thing. When it comes to motorcycle cruisers over 600cc, lets face it, Harley Davidson beat the heck out of Japanese corporations, Japan is in FULL RETREAT.
The large Japanese made cruisers are dead in the water in the USA. Pulled from showroom floors and a huge line up of larger cruiser models cancelled in the USA showrooms from all the Japanese metric makers, if anyone doubts me, just go to their USA websites online and check for yourself. Good god its been a bloodbath in the 1700 cc cruiser range, floor models brand new sitting on showroom floors of metric dealers sometimes a few years old! Others marked down $5000 just to get rid of them.
The Japanese biggest problem WAS the unfair dollar value ratio they enjoyed for decades, is now gone and we have a level playing field.. They build reliable bikes, but the fit, finish, quality of materials do not come close to Harley or the new kid on the block, Indian.
This has also allowed BMW, Motoguzzi and Triumph to get a stronger foothold here as well. I love the products AND uniqueness of the bikes from those companies as well.
All good brands and companies that take pride in their product, each unique in its features, not a copy of someone else. Im sure and I almost look forward to the day the Japanese can produce a bike like one of the above, again, I like all bikes, I just think its REALLY COOL, that tiny little motorcycle company Harley Davidson is one of the most respected names in the world and one that did not get steamrolled over by the Japanese.
Back to the American worker, which I think is the best in the world. They prove it, everywhere a company treats its workers right, Harley is just one example.
Here is another interesting example of the American worker, one that I doubt anyone else reading this post knows.
TWENTY TWO YEARS ago a PRIVATELY OWNED foreign automobile maker came to our country. Proud to say, the state I now live in, South Carolina. More proud to say my son now works for them.
This company built an automotive plant at a cost of 2.5 BILLION dollars back in 1994, 22 years ago.
Fast forward to the year 2016, the plant, now IN ITS
FIFTH expansion, roughly 1 BILLION dollars or more in each expansion means about somewhere up to
10 BILLION dollars in construction in South Carolina, never mind the hundreds of suppliers and most likely 20,000 jobs and related jobs.
This automobile company AND ITS WORKERS have been so successful that it is now the LARGEST EXPORTER OF AUTOMOBILES IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND SOON THIS YEAR once its FIFTH expansion is finished, THIS FACTORY IN SOUTH CAROLINA USA WILL BE THE LARGEST FACTORY COMPLEX THIS FOREIGN AUTOMAKER HAS IN THE ENTIRE WORLD.
READY FOR THE NAME????
THE NAME IS ... BMW, FANTASTIC STORY, MUCH INFORMATION ONLINE.
