Harley – after having lost $75 million last year alone trying to sell electric “motorcycles” – is back to selling motorcycles again. A new bike called the Deadwood is apt to sell a lot better than the LiveWire, which hardly did at all. (In the first quarter of 2025, only 33 of Harley’s electric simulations of a motorcycle were sold.)
The Deadwood is what a Harley motorcycle ought to be – functionally. Frame, engine and attitude. There’s not much chrome. There aren’t even saddlebags. It’s almost Easy Rider elemental. It’s the kind of bike a guy under 60 might want to ride – and that matters (as far as Harley’s future) at least as much as the fact that there’s a an engine and a transmission rather than a battery and a motor. If Harley wants to be in the motorcycle-selling business ten years down the road, it has got to figure out how to sell bikes to people who won’t be collecting Social Security ten years down the road.
This, as the saying goes, is a start.
There’s a problem, though. The Deadwood’s base price is $1 shy of $18k and that’s probably going to keep most younger guys of this bike. Middle-aged guys too, probably. Because just shy of $20k is a lot of money to spend on a bike. For most people. Because most people primarily drive a car – because motorcycles (especially stripped won cruisers like this one) aren’t the right tool for carrying much more than just you and your wallet. They’re the wrong tool on snow days and – unless you live in Southern California or Arizona, you probably have to have a car for those days.
Most people can’t afford an expensive bike given how expensive cars have gotten.
The hard-to-understand thing is why this Harley is so expensive. There’s not much there, after all. A frame made of tube steel and a big V-twin engine, plus wheels and tires. It ought not to cost $1 shy of $18k. It looks like it ought to cost maybe $10-12k. So why does it cost $1 shy of $18k? It might be because Harley badly needs the money back it has lost trying to sell the LiveWire. If so, that’s a good way to lose even more money. The Deadwood’s a nice bike; an appealing bike. Neither of which are worth a dime if people don’t buy the bike.
It might not be Harley’s fault, though. While it ought not to cost so much to sell a bike like this, it probably costs a lot to make it – in the United States. Royal Enfield is able to make bikes for vastly less and so sells them – at a profit – for vastly less – because it doesn’t make its bikes in the United States. They are made in India where it costs much less to make bikes (and everything else) to a great extent because India’s regulatory costs are much lower. Harley could probably make the Deadwire for a lot less in India, too – and then it would be able to sell it for a lot less than $1 shy of $18k here and then it would probably be able to sell more bikes and make more money. It makes sense, doesn’t it?
Of course, there is the problem of America’s Motorcycle being made in India. But why should it be a problem? It hasn’t been a problem for Royal Enfield, which used to make bikes in Britain but went bankrupt trying to sell them for essentially the same reasons that now beset Harley Davidson. Would it not preferable to make Harleys in India than for Harley to stop making Harleys altogether?
Of course, the problem could and arguably should be addressed by addressing the problem of the costs of making bikes and other things in America, so that American companies like Harley don’t go out of business or end up having to move their manufacturing operations to India (or China). President Trump could do a lot more good by cutting regulatory costs than by imposing tariffs on stuff made elsewhere that he believes has an “unfair advantage” because it costs less to make stuff elsewhere. This is stupid and self-destructive, which amounts to the same thing. Tariffs are just a different kind of tax but we pay them just the same. Making imported stuff cost more by tariff-taxing it does not make domestically made stuff cost less. It just makes everything cost more.
You may have noticed, as a case in point, that the cost of cars is going up rather down, on account of Trump’s tariff/taxes.
Harley is on the right track at last – but it’s going to take more than just that to save Harley – and America. It will take leadership that understands you have to be able to make money selling things – and you can’t sell things if the regs make them so expensive to make that they have to be sold at a price most people aren’t willing (or able) to pay.
. . .
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I don’t think it’s available new anymore.
Least expensive think I see on their website is the Nightster.
They do offer smaller bikes not avail. in the US, and not made in the US.
“Specific markets (such as India and select Asian countries) also receive uniquely designed smaller-displacement models like the X350, X500, and X440”
Sorry, slide-to-verify error (on my part), this was meant for Eric wanted to go sit on a Harley 750.
I have a carberator 1996 flhr I bought new. List was 14,500 back then . I think I have 100,000 miles on it now . My digital odometer is glazed over and unreadable due to the sun. It’s my 3/4 year daily driver to work.
If it shits the bed, I will buy a used Old one for cheap money to replace it. F…. the new ones!
Our gov 3 and 4 letter agencies have gotten to our bikes. Notice that it’s almost universal now to have EFI. They all have to have catalytic converters too which are hard to find a spot on said bikes and still function. ABS,TC, etc….
While the current Fed Admin is talking about reducing regs, correctly so, our law makers are then bombarded with lobbyist telling them “my manuf in X state will lose X M’s”.
It a tangled web of economic realities that have no easy answer without someone feeling the pain to fix it right.
I do wonder though how an Indian made (Bajaj) Triumph 400 can be sold for $6K and meet all our crap. And I bought one and it has surprised me how decent it is, as I wasn’t expecting much. BTW, Bajaj now owns the controlling stake in KTM. We’ll see. First thing they are going to do is remove any bike, engines, parts, that were made in China (some were) and bring them to India. A little battle is going to ensue around India vs china bike manufacturing. Happening right now.
One manuf. CF Moto has gotten through their painful introduction to the US, and is now responding with better and better machines.
I wish Harley all the best, but wouldn’t want to be near their boardroom right now. Hoping good people do what’s best for Harley. And I own a late model unit that is excellent (Pan American)
Motos are in a weird spot. Sure, they have the EPA and states pressuring them but the market does too.
For example my DRZ I mentioned still had it’s carb up to 2024. Basically the same bike as 2000.
They could even sell them in California with a carb in 2024. Notice, too, that motorcycles don’t have to do emissions testing like cars.
The reason for this is they are certified by the air board and as long as nothing changes they can keep selling the bike forever.
But when you read the forums Suzuki was constantly skewered for selling a carb bike still. The market was saying this, not EPA or California’s CARB. I have to admit I don’t hate EFI. I live at 4600′ in CO and routinely do trips to 12,000′ and sometimes find myself on a trip to AZ or NM where I’ll be at 2,000′. You can’t pick a jet for this and will only bother changing them mid-trip if it’s a week or more long. EFI solves some actual problems.
Suzuki sends owners an annual survey and that was a question on it, do you think EFI would make you want to buy a new DRZ?
I think they farmed it as long as they could and sales had flat lined. So when they changed it they had to meet the current rules.
-Anon
That makes sense anon. That a bike, once certified is ok forever until they change something. Explains Suzuki’s reluctance to change it.
I sold my rainbow addition harley when the Harley Pride department started provided ‘reading hours for children’. Then HD wanted to color code their dealership. I’ll buy a bike from China before I ever buy a Harley, the Chinese just want my money for their product, harming children is NOT part of their business.
In this day and age most nameplates simply no longer matter because these big classic brands we grew up with have long sold out to banks/investment firms.. run by people only interested in towing the woke line and simply motivated by greed.
So today I own and buy things that please me and mine period, the name brand be damned.
Been riding full time 45 years and have owned many many motorcycles.
I’ve never owned a Harley.. and I certainly would not consider one now.
When asked why sometimes I reply “because I’m just not cool enough”.
But the truth is I am a nice guy, and I plan to stay that way. 😉
“because I’m just not cool enough”
Ha. That reminds me of when in September, 1985 a country music DJ asked Boxcar Willie why wasn’t he at Farm Aid?
“Because I wasn’t invited.”
The DJ was a little taken aback, hesitated for a moment, then asked “Well, why do you think you weren’t invited, Box?”
“Because I don’t smoke enough grass.”
Either in 91 or 92 I was looking at a Superglide (the cheapest big twin in those days) at American HD in Ann Arbor. I recall it having a price of 10.5 K. So based on inflation (I hate saying that btw) the price of the bike mentioned here seems good?
Harley moving some of its manufacturing to overseas (China-India-Vietnam) would bring the cost down. Even with tariffs. India would be the better place being somewhat outside the communist influence. However, would you trust your life to Chinese steel especially on a heavy bike like a Harley?
One problem (besides overcoming the non-American manufacturing stigma) especially in China would be Mill Certification of the steel. The Mill Cert in construction industry provides some assurance the source metal meets the specification it was milled for and does not contain impurities or lacks structural integrity. This is done by an independent inspector at the mill with the power to shut down or cull out an entire heat-number of materials as non-compliant. For China this is not possible in a communist country which is controlled by force and coercion. You think there would be an independent inspector telling a communist mill manager that he has to throw away product? That inspector would be working next to the Uyghurs in the slave gulag the next day.
This is why we still have a metals industry or mostly/somewhat left in the USA with exceptions such as in South Korea and elsewhere. Otherwise, do you think Trump would have partnered with Chinese steel mills for his high-rises in NY? Boeing for Chinese aluminum? GM/Ford et el buying steel for their cars? Elon Musk? Every big swing d’ck general contractor in the USA would be partnering with a Chinese mill if they could get away with it.
Buying cheap T-shirts from Walmart from China is one thing, buying something you put your life on the line is another.
China has 50,000 km of high speed rail featuring trains moving at 350 km/h. They produce and sell more autos than anyone else, and ship them all over the world. They OWN the world ship-building industry, and send spaceships to the moon. But simple steel is beyond them? I don’t think so.
Well, they do also have a disturbing recent history of high-profile steel failures. Two of them are the Jianzha Yellow River Bridge (Qinghai Province, August 2025), and the Hongqi Bridge (Sichuan Province, November 2025). So there’s that.
Well, I could point to similar disasters in a lot of places, including UK and USA. Neither of which have any high-speed rail at all. Point being that humans are kind of alike – corruption, greed, incompetence, stupidity, etc. knows no single nationality and will always rear its head here and there, everywhere, including in China.
H-D actually DID move production of its Revolution Max engine-based bikes overseas a few years ago and were thoroughly lambasted for doing that by the only customers it could count on — boomers who already own H-Ds. So this year it said it’s bringing those bikes back to the US. Where something is made may not matter to boardroom members but it certainly does to customers. I wouldn’t own a H-D made overseas — I’ve had two in the last six years — even though the three bikes I currently have in the garage were all made in Japan. Just like I won’t buy a Japanese bike that isn’t made in Japan or a BMW that isn’t made in Germany, or a Moto-Guzzi that isn’t made in Italy.
Building products in the United States isn’t impossible. It’s just that there are better uses for extremely skilled workers like us than building basic motorcycles at Harley Davidson scale.
That could change as we get more “wretched refuse” who not only cannot perform at the high level of ability required to build in a modern facility, but apparently are more than willing to perform dull, dangerous and dirty jobs, at least according to those saintly Democrats…
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
—Emma Lazarus, The New Colossus (1883)
Hi RK,
I do not understand why it has to cost a fortune to put together a tube steel frame. A competent welder can easily do this. Harley’s big V-twin is not an elaborate/exotic engine. Bring back air-cooled versions making 60-70 hp and eliminate the radiator and the related peripherals. What else is there? A set of wheels, a tank and some basic wiring. Why does this have to cost $18k? Or even $10k?
It’s not even the design. Up until just a couple years ago a brand new Suzuki DRZ400S made in Japan was $6500 MSRP. That was a steel frame, carb’d liquid cooled engine, electronic ignition. Not a fancy Harley but solid bike that Suzuki milked for profit more than 2 decades.
The price went up when Suzuki finally had to bring EFI to the bike with the 2025 DRZ4S but it’s still only a $9000 bike MSRP. Still made in Japan, too, so it’s not completely a labor cost problem.
They also put a bunch of fancy “aids” on the bike, traction control, ABS, etc. Yeah, I know. They also improved the suspension and dashboard. Point being Suzuki isn’t skimping on features and can still get under the $10k price point for a bike that can do just about anything including interstate speeds in 2026.
It doesn’t have the uniqueness of a Royal Enfield but it’s this sort of very high quality, very functional Japanese bike that destroyed Enfield back in the 1990s.
-Anon
Maybe go find out.
Any idea how many welds are on a frame? Are the frames robotically welded? Why?
Ever been to HD for a plant tour? Ask some questions. Get some answers.
Just a thought.
Yes, “Barney,” I do –
I’ve taken several bikes down to the frame for rebuilding, most recently my ’75 Kaw S1 250C. Have you ever done anything like this? Inquiring minds want to know.
Yes restored 64 Honda Dream, and have a 74 Norton Commando Cafe in progress. Why change the subject?
We aren’t talking about restoring old bikes.
The discussion is if you want to understand Harley’s cost structure then it would make some sense to go to the plant. Get a journalist’s tour. Ask some questions about what drives their cost.
I have worked in manufacturing plants. Have you? I understand the capital expenditure necessary to buy welding robots, fuxtures, etc., to produce a couple hundred thousand bikes in America while complying with OSHA and union rules.
Honestly I’m not trying to be argumentative or provocative. You said you don’t understand. I simply suggested a way to go get those answers.
Hi Barney,
That’s cool re the Dream. A good friend of mine (professional mechanic and regular poster here) is a freak about those Dreams. He has at least a dozen, plus parts bikes. If you ever need something hard to find, email me and I will put you in touch. Don’t worry, I won’t disclose your true Bat-Identity!
A competent welder can find work in the oil fields, aerospace, building construction, military contractors, farm machinery manufacturing, even data center buildout. I’d include shipbuilding but apparently we don’t do that for anyone but the Pentagon. Or build their own custom bikes with a crate V-twin. Do custom work for HVAC. Repair cars too expensive to total after a wreck. Aftermarket bolt-on parts like high performance drivetrains for rock climbers and lifted trucks. Build RVs and travel trailers. make expensive art.
There’s lots of work to be done and thanks to “learn to code” too few tradespeople. And as soon as someone gets experienced they can either go out on their own or shop themselves around.
“The Deadwire’s a nice bike; an appealing bike.”
“Deadwire,” I love it.
Another thing to consider is that the Royal Enfield has a smaller engine so is better for commuting and such. Sure the Deadwood may well be great for cruising longer distances but that doesn’t help much if you’re using it to commute.
The larger engine of the Deadwood will surely cost more to insure than the smaller Royal Enfield also.
Deadwood engine 117 CI or 1917 cc. Royal Enfield’s are either 350 cc or 650 cc.
Hi Landru,
True. Harley could also make a smaller-engined iteration and sell it as a knocking-around bike. A 650-750 cc engine is plenty for that role, with enough gumption to also be used for long-distance riding if you need/want to.
They have one. It’s called the Street 750. I’ve had my eye on them because they run 8-9K. I saw a video on youtube that said they aren’t wanted, so you can score one used for like $4500. That’s about what I’d pay for a second bike.
I’d have to look at it physically though. Thing is I can pick up a used Royal Enfield 650 for about that price or less. My thing with Harley is that I don’t care for the feet forward stance.
Don’t know, but I think before I bought a Harley new, I think I’d look and see if there were a garage queen someone wanted to unload.
Hi Himself,
I need to go to a Harley store and sit on one of these; I wonder whether it’s a full-size bike or a starter bike (for a Harley) that’s really not for grown men. Have you sat on one?
Agreed I’d rather have the RE 650. You could tour on it Back in the 50’s and 60’s Triumph 650’s were considered full size motorcycles.
I’d test ride one but have no interest in owning another HD.I’ve owned two sporties over the years and loved riding. But they were cheap and I could work on them. The price tag alone is a turn off even tho an old fart like me can afford it.