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Tourer
Posts: 599
New Mexico | From Victory Riders Magazine, quoting CNN's Oct Fortune and Money magazine:
"Is this crunch time for Harley? Polaris, based in Medina, Minn., 20 miles from Minneapolis, is known for snowmobiles, jet skis, and all-terrain vehicles. A newcomer to motorcycles, it entered the field with Victory just 14 years ago. Yet with aggressive pricing, it has passed Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, and Suzuki to become the No. 2 seller of the biggest heavyweights (engines 1400 cc. and up) behind Harley."
http://money.cnn.com/2012/10/03/autos/harley-davidson-polaris.fortu...
Meaning Victory's entire lineup (which are ALL over 1400cc) is outselling Honda's lineup in the >1400cc category. But from what I can tell they only have two bikes over 1400cc - Goldwing & Goldwing F6B.
Another factor may be the fact that in 2011 the Goldwing wasn't even being produced, nudging people to give Victory a second look. From Wikipedia:
"The 2010 model year was the last to be produced in the United States. The 2011 model year was not produced. The 2012 model year motorcycles are being manufactured in Japan."
Still, in my opinion that is quite an accomplishment! I would have never thought in just 15 short years Victory would come anywhere near Goldwing sales.
Edited by Boots 2013-01-24 10:19 AM
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Visionary
Posts: 1632
Jasper, MO | When Victory started, Honda had other motorcycles over 1400cc, such as the Valkyrie and the VTX 1800, in addition to the Goldwing.
The 2001 Goldwing was the class standard bearer (reclaiming the title from rival BMW) when it first came out, and is still a very nice bike, but the design has been getting stale for a few years now. The "new" Goldwing is the same old Goldwing wearing slightly different plastic bodywork. BMW has moved on to newer designs since then. Honda is getting really stale in the heavyweight market, and it's starting to impact their sales. The Honda riders have been asking for a new Goldwing for a few years now, and many have moved on to other brands, including Victory.
Ronnie |
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Cruiser
Posts: 255
New Brunswick , Canada | rdbudd - 2013-01-24 2:17 PM
When Victory started, Honda had other motorcycles over 1400cc, such as the Valkyrie and the VTX 1800, in addition to the Goldwing.
The 2001 Goldwing was the class standard bearer (reclaiming the title from rival BMW) when it first came out, and is still a very nice bike, but the design has been getting stale for a few years now. The "new" Goldwing is the same old Goldwing wearing slightly different plastic bodywork. BMW has moved on to newer designs since then. Honda is getting really stale in the heavyweight market, and it's starting to impact their sales. The Honda riders have been asking for a new Goldwing for a few years now, and many have moved on to other brands, including Victory.
Ronnie
YUP ..... I'm one of them.. ;o) |
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Iron Butt
Posts: 1109
| Having owned a wing, I looked at another one before I bought my Vision. No contest in my opinion. |
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Puddle Jumper
Posts: 39
Fostoria Ohio USA | Another factor in this was Honda's moving the Goldwing production from Marysville Ohio USA to Japan. The fact the Goldwing was made in USA was a major selling point to many people. Pulling out of the USA disappointed and pissed-off a lot of Wingers, many switched to Victory Visions & Cross Countries to get American made bikes. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 281
| Being Number 2 in the heavyweight category in 15 years of production is pretty darn impressive.
We rented a GW last year. Nice bike, but we're still taking the Vision over the Wing all day long. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 244
Lindale, TX | Victory just keeps getting better. After owning four motorcycles I always said I wouldn't 1. Buy new, and 2. Buy the first year model. Well after reading all the glowing reviews I bought a brand new 2008 Victory Vision Tour Premium. Have not looked back. No problems and always starts.
That's the formula Polaris should be proud of: quality and low maintenance. I hope to eventually replace my bike with the Twenty Fifth Anniversary Edition of the Vision. |
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Visionary
Posts: 2300
Georgia, west of Atlanta | Number 2 now huh?? I think it's been that way for a couple of years. But crunch time for Harley ?? Give us a break. Victory is about 230,000 units a year behind Harley.........I'd be more impressed if Polaris would release actual numbers of motorcycle sales..........
Edited by XRsteve 2013-01-27 6:01 AM
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Iron Butt
Posts: 721
| densred12xc - 2013-01-25 4:35 AM Another factor in this was Honda's moving the Goldwing production from Marysville Ohio USA to Japan. The fact the Goldwing was made in USA was a major selling point to many people. Pulling out of the USA disappointed and pissed-off a lot of Wingers, many switched to Victory Visions & Cross Countries to get American made bikes. Besides the comfort and amenities such as the power windshield and integrated iPod control, Honda moving all motorcycle production back to Japan was a big factor when I made the decision to purchase my '08 Vision (yes, they had made the decision in January of '08 but didn't announce it to the public until September of '09). |
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Iron Butt
Posts: 1109
| I agree with Steve, at this point I don't think Harley is too concerned with Victory. I believe Victory builds a better bike but the Harley culture is still going strong. I know many people that will admit Victory is a nicer bike but it's always the same "but it's not a Harley". |
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Visionary
Posts: 1632
Jasper, MO | kris1956 - 2013-01-28 4:40 AM
I agree with Steve, at this point I don't think Harley is too concerned with Victory. I believe Victory builds a better bike but the Harley culture is still going strong. I know many people that will admit Victory is a nicer bike but it's always the same "but it's not a Harley".
Agreed. I sometimes ride with, but am not "part of" a group of Harley riders. These guys aren't posers. They ride, and ride hard. Their bikes have lots of miles on them. They know full well what a Victory and a Vision is, but only one of them has made the switch. He still rides primarily with his Harley buds. The rest of his group say "but it's not a Harley", even though they know it is a better machine. The "Harley Culture" is strong and keeps most of the Harley owners riding the Harley brand. Victory would do well to develop such a culture.
Ronnie |
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Ahead of Honda