harley says screw fuel economy

[Woodsy]

harley has just proposed a new print ad (for real!) stating that "MPG describes riding like biology describes sex" and ending with "screw it, lets ride"
they might actually have something here if their bikes were worth a shit and riding one didn't make you look like a complete poser.

Harley Davidson: Harley-Davidson Says MPG Doesn't Matter To The True Rider

[bigred875]

you can say screw mpg's when your product gets 50mpg's

[brewmaster]

Sounds like a reverse psychology advertising campaign to me. Great idea! Harleys do get good mpg compared to many bikes. Then again they make something like 70 HP brand new out of a very large V-twin, not exactly performance oriented.

[Woodsy]

you can say screw mpg's when your product gets 50mpg's

there is no way they are averaging 50MPG. i am 996cc and i barley get 40 on a good day. what do they actually get?

[Pittenger5]

Everyone always asks me what my bike gets for mpg. When I tell them 45-50 they're amazed.
Just a shame that 9/10s of my riding is for fun and I'm not doing anything. So yeah, with my bike fuel economy doesnt really matter since I waste a lot of fuel not doing anything productive.

[markbvt]

there is no way they are averaging 50MPG. i am 996cc and i barley get 40 on a good day. what do they actually get?

Harleys actually do get very good gas mileage. 50-60mpg on the open road, from what I've read/heard. Remember, displacement isn't the only factor -- they're also low-revving (except when their riders blip the throttle at traffic lights) and relatively low compression.

(For what it's worth, the 955cc and 1050cc triples in the Triumph Tiger/Sprint ST also manage upwards of 50mpg on the open road, and those are much more modern engines.)

--mark

[bigred875]

there is no way they are averaging 50MPG. i am 996cc and i barley get 40 on a good day. what do they actually get?

yes they do...my z1000 gets just over 30

[QuarterGig]

my s2r1000 gets 45-55 depending on back roads or highway, i got 60 on a run from maine to RI on the highway at 90 or so.. the harlys i have ridden with don't get neirly as good milage as i do though.. they have bigger tanks and need fuel as often as i do.

[obsolete]

It's actually a pretty good targeted advertisement. Harley's marketing department knows what they are doing. They are not selling motorcycles.

[OreoGaborio]

big v-twin cruisers are designed to do 65mph at like... 50rpm. Thus, good fuel economy.

[kamikaze]

The motivation behind the advertisement is summarised at the end of the article:
"This message works great for Harley as its sales are image- rather than product-led."

This is what happens when your R&D Budget is a small fraction of your marketing budget.

[Woodsy]

yes they do...my z1000 gets just over 30

wow i never would have guessed

[obsolete]

My only change to the add would be instead of "Screw it, let's ride". It would say "Screw it, let's sit at Dunkin' Donuts".

[Woodsy]

My only change to the add would be instead of "Screw it, let's ride". It would say "Screw it, let's sit at Dunkin' Donuts".

it is the honey dew in wakefield! come on alex you know this!

[bigred875]

wow i never would have guessed

i hear ya....i thought they would be pigs. I bet once they start with the performance stuff the mpg's go out the window...but for stock...the street glide's loooking like a good commuter

[Sheppo]

I do average 48mpg with my softail. Yes it's not a sportbike by anymeans so the performance isn't equal to even a 600cc class bike.

[bigred875]

I do average 48mpg with my softail. Yes it's not a sportbike by anymeans so the performance isn't equal to even a 600cc class bike.

2 of my friends father's have stock hertiages with a windsheild and soft bags and get 55+ mpgs but they ride like pussys...i bet you ride yours harder then they do

[catch2otwo]

I do average 48mpg with my softail. Yes it's not a sportbike by anymeans so the performance isn't equal to even a 600cc class bike.

but then again its not supposed to. when was the last time you could hop on a modern day 600 and ride for 500 miles and not feel tired? ya, thats where a harley shines. comparing apples to oranges once again.

ps softails are sweet!

[McBiggity]

Just missed ya on Saturday, Catch. I teach the rider's edge courses at Sheldon's and saw u pulling away w/ the shiver.
I rode a 2009 Heritage Softail on Sunday all day. Very comfortable, absolutley no vibration at idle or while riding. Only complaint was cornering clearance. I was scraping the crap out of the flooboards.

[catch2otwo]

Just missed ya on Saturday, Catch. I teach the rider's edge courses at Sheldon's and saw u pulling away w/ the shiver.
I rode a 2009 Heritage Softail on Sunday all day. Very comfortable, absolutley no vibration at idle or while riding. Only complaint was cornering clearance. I was scraping the crap out of the flooboards.

oh cool. needless to say i didnt end up with harley.

[Sheppo]

2 of my friends father's have stock hertiages with a windsheild and soft bags and get 55+ mpgs but they ride like pussys...i bet you ride yours harder then they do

I have a 210 back tire and no chicken strips what does that tell you !

[Sheppo]

but then again its not supposed to. when was the last time you could hop on a modern day 600 and ride for 500 miles and not feel tired? ya, thats where a harley shines. comparing apples to oranges once again.

ps softails are sweet!

exactly

[kamikaze]

I get 42 mpg on my '99 ZX-7R with weekend hard riding.....city commutes are even worse with a lot of stop go traffic in Portsmouth and around. So I guess its pretty good for so much fun! Plus its better than my car so if I hav to slab it out to Boston for some work or to meet friends, it still saves money and I get on the back roads where I know the routes!

[Slyder]

Harleys are extremely efficient. They very efficiently convert gasoline to noise without the by-product of horse power.

No really, they are great on gas. You look at a sportster 1200 with the "peanut" tank and laugh thinking it'll need gas half a mile down the road...not so.

Last I checked I was getting 32 mpg

[Kurlon]

my s2r1000 gets 45-55 depending on back roads or highway, i got 60 on a run from maine to RI on the highway at 90 or so.. the harlys i have ridden with don't get neirly as good milage as i do though.. they have bigger tanks and need fuel as often as i do.

Have they been de-restricted? If so, there's your answer. For the record, I can get on my ST3 pretty hard (992cc twin) and still pull 55mpg, and thats after putting a PC3 to it to richen it up.