Saying it's "better" is a matter of opinion. To me, opinions are like buttholes, everyone has one and they all stink. What do you want us to say? I like Harley's. Put a Harley next to a Honda/Yahama/Triumph/whatever and I will go for the Harley every time. It's just my opinion though.

 

+1 on both the first two posts above. Especially the first one. I've owned other bikes before, but this time it had to be a Harley for me - a Fat Boy, in fact. I don't think H-Ds are better than any other bike out there, but it's not about that for H-D owners. It's more about the H-D legacy. It's about the brotherhood. I mean, look at this place! If you are considering other brands, and it's about saving bucks for you, then you ought to be shopping at someplace other than an H-D dealer. You'd probably be happier with the Honda, Triumph, etc, etc. For H-D owners, there usually are no other options.

 

If you have to ask " why should I get a Harley" then you don't get it. When you buy a Harley, its not just a bike, its a membership to a historic and friendly brotherhood/sisterhood that only few can say they are members of. If you wanna buy some ricer or tea bag bike, go ahead and put the rest of your money away because you will need it on your trade it when you do decide to buy a Harley.

 

You are the one that wants the better, I didn't hear anyone say the Harley was better. We don't care which is better, get it, we wanted HD's so we bought them. You will never have the best, there is always something better around the corner, and most HD riders know this, so they bought what they wanted, end of story.

 

A Harley is better because they are assembled by American workers that look to us to help put food on their table. All bikes are made of a mix of foreign parts at this time, but HD is built here.

 

First my hubby, then I too were always asking the same exact question. I kept saying "can you tell me that my money is better spent on a Harley because the Harley is the best built, best running motorcycle for what I am paying for it", and no one could say yes. No one could really answer "WHY should we buy a Harley as opposed to a different brand".

My hubby was one of the people who for YEARS kept saying "I'll never get a Harley, grrr grr grr" and always had reasons - unreliable, overpriced, etc. Well, we both own Harley's now and neither one of us can say we have an answer to the questions we kept asking - but we both just know we really did, for some unexplained reason, deep down want Harleys. We love ALL kinds of bikes and respect people's choices, and can appreciate the beauty of some of them, and now nice they ride.

Abrasive didn't necessarily answer your question, but I think he had the best answer. (his first reply, about buying what speaks to you, etc).

 

Ok I'll tell you the best way I know how. When I throw my leg over my Lowrider and hit the starter the engine almost explodes to life. It is loud, harsh and mostly unrefined horsepower and YOU ARE SITTING ON IT!

Then I get off and let it warm up and can feel the vibration of the engine spitting out of the exhaust and hitting me in the chest as I put on my helmet & earplugs (yes, lost 1/2 my hearing in construction). After a few minutes when she is warm I get back on....I crack the throttle to let the ECM know it is time to ride and also let the neighbors know I am alive and well. Left toe down ( CLACK! ) She is now in first gear...little gas & feather the clutch and down the drive I go...lean right, right again now I am at the main road. Turn left out of the boulevard and throttle up to 3500 rpm. I can feel this heavy high torque beast start eating up the road and hear the exhaust begin to roar as I take off. Second gear (clack!) roarrrrrrrrrrrr (clack!) roaaaaar! and yadda yadda yadda.

Now for the Honda.....I start it up....put in 2 pieces of bread push down the lever. In 3 minutes the bread pops up and I put butter & jelly on it...

 

Thanks everyone but I guess what I need are technical answers, not astethic or opinionated reasons. Sure the bikes look nice and they sound great. But any bike can look nice and sound great. Why buy a Ford Expedition over a Chevy Tahoe? I drove both for a job I once had. They are basically the same truck minus minor diferences. Of course Ford people are gonna **** a brick just like Chevy people are gonna have a cow. I'm not a "fill in corporate logo here" kind of person. I could care less about brand loyalty. I want facts, I need to know that what I buy is the right choice not based on looks or sound or because everybody else has one, hell not even because no one has one (Triumph R3 in this area is rare). Is what I'm buying the superior brand and if so then why?

 

That's a man with a passion for his bike