"Demand already outstrips supply," said Britt Beemer, chairman of America's Research Group, which tracks shopping patterns. "Demand could fall 10 percent to 12 percent and they'd never notice."
The entry-level 883cc XLH Sportster starts at US$6,000; an Ultra Classic Electra Glide 1450cc motorcycle costs US$20,000. Limited supplies mean dealers can charge premiums of US$1,000 or more for popular models, analysts say.
"A Harley is one of the few things that people save up for to treat themselves, sometimes for years," said Tim Conder, an analyst for A.G. Edwards & Sons who rates Harley shares "buy" and does not own them. "Unless a family's finances dramatically fall off, they're still going to make that purchase."
The V-Rod, which arrives at dealers next month, has a silver chassis and fluid acceleration that distinguishes it from the look and feel of Harley's Road King and Fat Boy cruisers. The US$17,000 bike has a 115-horsepower 1130cc liquid-cooled engine developed with Porsche AG.
"It's going to do what it's intended to do -- expand our market," said Willie G. Davidson, Harley's vice president of design and grandson of a founding Davidson brother. Davidson and his son Bill Davidson, Harley's director of product development, were key designers of the V-Rod. The V-Rod appeals to riders who have shown less interest in traditional Harleys, said Art Spinella, an analyst at CNW Marketing Research in Bandon, Oregon.
Limited output
"The V-Rod played best with the 29-year-old to 45-year-old age group -- exactly the market they need," he said.
V-Rod production starts this month. To help ensure quality, McCaslin said Harley will make just 11,000 bikes for the 2002 model year. Some dealers aren't happy about that.
"Our allotment for the first year is just 13," said Jim Halbman, sales manager for Milwaukee's House of Harley-Davidson, which sells about 700 new and used bikes annually and is among the Harley's 10 biggest dealers. "If I had 100 right now, I could sell them all." Even devotees of traditional hogs, such as "Dirty" Goffe, a Racine, Wisconsin, Harley enthusiast in his 50s who tested a V-Rod at the company's Labor Day rally in Milwaukee, said they are impressed with the V-Rod.
"If I had the extra cash," Goffe said, "I'd buy one."
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