Harley gets in gear with electric bikes
Having muffled some of the famous roar, the legendary manufacturer of road hogs is now drawing up plans for a quiet electric bike — to appeal to younger, plugged-in affluent consumers who want a clean way to get around in style without dropping €100,000 or more on a Tesla Model S on BMW i8.
Harley is showcasing the bikes on a 30-city tour of the US and Europe to seek feedback and drum up support among those who care about the environment and can spread the word about his likes on social media like Twitter and Instagram.
It maybe is a move that has the late gonzo journalist Hunster S Thompson turning in his grave, but Harley says it makes good business sense as it eyes up a greater share of the multi-billion euro bike market.
The tour is part of a push by CEO Keith Wandell to make the once-insular company more open. “We don’t want to come to market with something that falls short of somebody’s expectation,” Mr Wandell said.
Social media has been a big part of Harley’s marketing effort. Project Livewire, as the bike is called, garnered 340 million media impressions as of mid-July. To help fuel that, test riders are encouraged to work their networks.
“E-mail and social media gave HOGs a louder voice and more access,” Erik Gordon, a professor at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan. “To Harley’s credit, they see that as an asset, not a threat.”
After a 10-minute test ride on surface streets, riders park the bikes. Before they get off, a Harley photographer takes a picture and hands them an access code so they can download the picture and post it on Facebook or Twitter or Instagram. Next, they’re shuttled to a video camera to record instant impressions and then are asked to fill out a 10-minute survey on an iPad.
Sample questions include “What words come to mind when you first rolled the throttle?” and “How would you describe the bike’s look, sound and feel?”
The survey also asks how much a buyer would expect to pay, starting from “below €12,000” to as high as “€30,000 and above.”
For all the “awesomes” and “wows” collected on the commentaries, there also are criticisms: a desire for more battery range, or on-board charging ports and storage. Several riders said the price would need to be near or below €12,000.
While motorcycles are already quite efficient — most Harleys go 30 to 60 miles on a gallon of petrol. The electric bike’s battery range is about 53 miles and the engine can be operated in three modes: sport, power and range. There are no gears to shift through, so the prototype rides as easily as a moped, albeit one that’s frighteningly quick. Acceleration goes from 0 to 60 in under four seconds. It has foot and hand brakes and also slows quickly when the throttle is released.
For much of its 111-year history, Harley sold choppers as fast as it could to riders it knew well: wealthy, middle-aged white men. The recession shook that.
Wandell cut costs and pushed Harley to try to expand its customer base to women, younger drivers, non-whites and non-Americans.
The company is projected to increase sales 7% to $5.6 billion this year, based on analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg. After receiving 25% of its revenue from outside the US in 2006, the company forecasts 40% of sales this year will be in foreign markets.
