Pricing: BMW v. Harley

ridgebackpilot

ridgebackpilot

New member
Visit site
Friends: In the process of making a deal for my 2021 R18 Classic First Edition, I had the opportunity to compare the pricing and incentives offered here in northern California on the 2021 BMW R18 Classic and Harley's 2021 Heritage Classic.

BMW Motorrad is offering $3,000 customer cash, 0.9% financing, and the first six months payments free. By contrast, Harley is offering no customer cash and 2.49% financing at best.

The upshot is that your "out-the-door" (OTD) price including taxes and fees is about $8,000-$10,000 more for the Harley than for the R18 Classic. As you can imagine, the Harley dealer's explanation is, "Well, it's not a Harley!" Indeed, the demand for Harleys of all types seems far higher than for the R18, perhaps in part because the latter is a brand new design. But those numbers and incentives are difficult to ignore!
 
See if you can test ride both - that’ll give you an indication that the Harley is worth the price. Some folks won’t buy anything but HD, so there’s that. And then there’s the forward controls that most cruisers have, and some won’t have anything else.
But those who aren’t invested in the HD or Indian brand just might surprised by BMW.

I never thought I’d own a cruiser after having dirt, sport and touring bikes. But something about the R18 Transcontinental just drew me to it, and I don’t regret the decision.
 
ridgebackpilot said:
Friends: In the process of making a deal for my 2021 R18 Classic First Edition, I had the opportunity to compare the pricing and incentives offered here in northern California on the 2021 BMW R18 Classic and Harley's 2021 Heritage Classic.

BMW Motorrad is offering $3,000 customer cash, 0.9% financing, and the first six months payments free. By contrast, Harley is offering no customer cash and 2.49% financing at best.

The upshot is that your "out-the-door" (OTD) price including taxes and fees is about $8,000-$10,000 more for the Harley than for the R18 Classic. As you can imagine, the Harley dealer's explanation is, "Well, it's not a Harley!" Indeed, the demand for Harleys of all types seems far higher than for the R18, perhaps in part because the latter is a brand new design. But those numbers and incentives are difficult to ignore!
Click to expand...

Your experience is all too common. I've been riding bikes since the 1970s..and have owned and rode plenty. I have never owned a Harley, but I have ridden a few. The few I have ridden were nothing special, especially compared to the Japanese motorcycles I have owned in which utterly outperformed them in every category. I did try buying one in 2003, but it was their centennial year, and as such, had very little choice as to the color of the bike, and I would have to wait and pay full retail price. I absolutely refuse to buy into a seller's market. I ended up buying a beautiful, new 1100 Honda Sabre Shadow with a custom flame paint job with tons of chrome...and a brand new Ford F-150 pickup truck ( which I still own). . Today HD is a fan club... something seemingly naive people are just lured into buying and thinking they're the best bike out there, or that they are more then just a motorcycle... Rubbish. I do think they make beautiful bikes, one cannot argue with their visual allure, and they also come with a great deal of creature comfort, but they STILL have their problems with reliability...and still build the majority of their bikes around a dated platform.. Lastly, they're are overtly expensive, and far too common.
 
Adrian R said:
I absolutely refuse to buy into a seller's market. . . Today HD is a fan club... something seemingly naive people are just lured into buying and thinking they're the best bike out there, or that they are more then just a motorcycle... Rubbish. I do think they make beautiful bikes, one cannot argue with their visual allure, and they also come with a great deal of creature comfort, but they STILL have their problems with reliability...and still build the majority of their bikes around a dated platform.. Lastly, they're are overtly expensive, and far too common.
Click to expand...
My experience mirrors yours. Here in northern California, Harleys are evidently in such demand that dealers don't need to discount their bikes below MSRP. Sometimes they even add a dealer markup over MSRP. No, thanks!

Turning our attention back to BMW, I suppose the only question is whether year Motorrad will eventually offer the same incentives for the Bagger and Transcontinental models that they're currently offering on the Pure and Classic models? Any bets on that score? I'm inclined to think we'll see that later this year...
 
Last year was the first full year of the R18’s first two models and still in a pandemic and with the special First Edition packages which were pricy.

From what I’ve seen, many went for the newer touring models over the original ones likely as they had more practicality for the price. While BMW always has winter sales, I think the confluence of factors on the earlier models lead to larger discounts than will be on the fairing bikes.

I rode each R18 model before buying. While the fairing bikes had lots of tech and creature comforts, I preferred the look of the original models and bought a Classic. Buy the bike that resonates with you.
 
Harley and Indian prices are silly right now. Here are some examples from one of my local Harley dealers.
2022 Road King. MSRP = 19,929, plus $825 for two tone grey/black paint. On the tag, add to that:
Freight: $650
Surcharge: $800
Dealer Setup: $1159
Total Price: $24,388

After fees it's 15% over MSRP. Meanwhile down the road I can get a R18 for well under MSRP.

Another example:
2021 Street Bob. MSRP $14,999. Base paint color so no add on.
Freight: $500
Surcharge: $600
Dealer Setup: $1159
Total Price: $18,058
This time, 20% over MSRP.

When I got my R18, I was shopping against Harley and Indian and they just were not price competitive. Both of those brands really struggled to get models manufactured last year, which created a scarcity. Meanwhile, BMW was able to manufacture bikes and sold the most they ever have. It's funny that the companies that were worse at manufacturing are the ones are demanding higher prices due to scarcity. It is an interesting moment in time!

And I'm not a Harley or Indian hater. I've owned more Harleys than any other brand, as well as an Indian. I'd certainly own either brand again, but I'm not willing to pay a 50% premium over BMW. The last new Harley I bought was in 2012 and it was not a premium product- 3 warranty claims in the first year and I only put 7k miles on it during that time. It ran hot as balls, to the point where I would pick another bike to ride if it was over 80. Harleys have nice paint, but the overall quality of the components is less than BMW in my experience.

Man, what an interesting year. I bet the premiums on American brands gets even higher this year. I remember back to the turn of the century where $3k - $5k was a common upcharge on a full size Harley, so it wouldn't be unprecedented.
 
PistolPeteSTL said:
Harley and Indian prices are silly right now. Here are some examples from one of my local Harley dealers.
2022 Road King. MSRP = 19,929, plus $825 for two tone grey/black paint. On the tag, add to that:
Freight: $650
Surcharge: $800
Dealer Setup: $1159
Total Price: $24,388

After fees it's 15% over MSRP. Meanwhile down the road I can get a R18 for well under MSRP.

Another example:
2021 Street Bob. MSRP $14,999. Base paint color so no add on.
Freight: $500
Surcharge: $600
Dealer Setup: $1159
Total Price: $18,058
This time, 20% over MSRP.
Click to expand...
Not apples to apples but the dealer charges are ridiculous.
I priced a Cordovan Red/Silver Triumph T120 Gold Line Edition
Sticker $12,400 discounted from $12,800
Prep $220
Assembly $312
Dest Charge $838
Tax $860.63
VIT $82.62
Doc Fee $125
Insp $14.50
Franchise Recovery Fee 98.73
Registration $118.80
WFCDF Fee (?) $75.00
$15,145.48

My Classic $16735.81
6 BMW payments $14764.00
Easy decision - A 2021 BMW for less than a 2022 Triumph T120 - crazy.
 
On a pure finance deal it get's even crazier.

I was looking at a base fat boy in the UK, cost to me would have been £3k deposit & £350 a month over 3 years (then hand back / trade in / whatever).

r18 classic fully loaded with all options was £0 deposit & £150 a month over 3 years (same deal as above).

Cost of ownership over 3 years for r18 comes in at £5400, whilst over £15k for the hardley.

No brainer.

I'm in the new generation & just look at vehicles as a cost per year type deal - change it out after 3 years regardless. On these £20k+ bikes, and knowing I like to chop & change, it makes more sense to consider it more like a lease.

The r18 was so cheap, I found out about the deal one morning, looked into a bit & did the deal on my lunchbreak the same day.
 
Last edited:
Harley prices its bike and BMW prices theirs. The R18 is seeing some low sales numbers so there are incentives. Pricing is not out of line between an R18 and a Softtail low. I just buy what I like; Im not going to lie on my deathbed worrying about it. I love my Harley and I love my BMW and I love my KTM and I love my Honda... Overall, the Harley has its advantages and the BMW has handling and good safety features.
 
UK_r18_Classic said:
On a pure finance deal it get's even crazier.

I was looking at a base fat boy in the UK, cost to me would have been £3k deposit & £350 a month over 3 years (then hand back / trade in / whatever).

r18 classic fully loaded with all options was £0 deposit & £150 a month over 3 years (same deal as above).

Cost of ownership over 3 years for r18 comes in at £5400, whilst over £15k for the hardley.

No brainer.

I'm in the new generation & just look at vehicles as a cost per year type deal - change it out after 3 years regardless. On these £20k+ bikes, and knowing I like to chop & change, it makes more sense to consider it more like a lease.

The r18 was so cheap, I found out about the deal one morning, looked into a bit & did the deal on my lunchbreak the same day.
Click to expand...
I fell in love with the new Fat Boy but a test ride damaged that relationship and I also ended up with the R18 Classic. So far, no regrets
 
Adrian R said:
Your experience is all too common. I've been riding bikes since the 1970s..and have owned and rode plenty. I have never owned a Harley, but I have ridden a few. The few I have ridden were nothing special, especially compared to the Japanese motorcycles I have owned in which utterly outperformed them in every category. I did try buying one in 2003, but it was their centennial year, and as such, had very little choice as to the color of the bike, and I would have to wait and pay full retail price. I absolutely refuse to buy into a seller's market. I ended up buying a beautiful, new 1100 Honda Sabre Shadow with a custom flame paint job with tons of chrome...and a brand new Ford F-150 pickup truck ( which I still own). . Today HD is a fan club... something seemingly naive people are just lured into buying and thinking they're the best bike out there, or that they are more then just a motorcycle... Rubbish. I do think they make beautiful bikes, one cannot argue with their visual allure, and they also come with a great deal of creature comfort, but they STILL have their problems with reliability...and still build the majority of their bikes around a dated platform.. Lastly, they're are overtly expensive, and far too common.
Click to expand...
I test ride both the Heritage Classic and Sportglide. Harley's brand new frame is excellent with great handling at all speeds, the huge increase in suspension travel over our R18 makes for a cushier ride and the parts and accessories backup is 2nd to none. Germany's MOTORRAD magazine did a 60000miles test and full engine teardown on the Heritage Classic and had to rate it as their current most reliable bike ever.
Just like we think our R18s are better than the equivalent Harley's, it would be jaded to think that their current lineup isn't the best they have ever done.
I still picked up the R18 classic with all the options for $8000 AUD less than a 2022 Heritage classic, so there's that too
 
‘This bike is better than that bike’ tends to be too simplistic.
I envy the Harley depreciation figures and availability of aftermarket accessories plus the sound of the V twin but on the other hand, I love the uniqueness and style of the BMW plus it’s slick gearbox and comfort (once suspension is properly calibrated).
I don’t expect my R18 to hold its value in quite the same way as my FatBob did however the upfront discount should soften that blow somewhat.
In choosing the BMW I have not decided all other brands are inferior. I will enjoy this bike for as long as I wish before sticking with the brand or moving to another as my needs dictate.
In the meantime, really enjoying this ride.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top