Harley Davidson Japanese Motorcycles Import Import Motorcycles Motorcycles
Most motorcycle riders seem to fall into one of two groups. Harleys or Metrics (Japanese bikes). It is like the Cubs or Cardinals, Bears or Packers, pepperoni or sausage. It is almost impossible to change a person's loyalty. With that in mind, we can still look at some of the reasons you may want to buy a Japanese import (or metric) bike instead of a Harley Davidson.
The number one reason that a person would choose a metric bike over a Harley is simple economics. They cost less. You can get the same amount of bike for less money. It is as simple as that. It is a running joke that the iconic emblem for Harley's, which is H-D, stands for "hundred dollar". This is because almost any part that you need to get for a Harley is going to have that emblem and you are going to pay for it. Japanese bikes tend to be less expensive and the parts and accessories follow that pattern. You can modify most of a metric for the price of the front end of a Harley Davidson (that is not an exact number, it is rough estimate that is based on personal experiences).
One of the really big selling points for Harleys over the Japanese imports is the whole American made thing. As with most of the automotive industry, it is no longer as simple as American made or Japanese made. Just like the automotive counterparts, Japanese motorcycles are being built right here in the US. If the actual bike isn't manufactured, the parts are imported, then assembled by American workers. Sorry guys, that argument doesn't work the way that it use to. Now, to be fair, Harley Davidson is an American company. They have been producing bikes since 1903. They have history, but that is a problem as well. The bikes don't really change very much from year to year.
Most Harleys tend to be touring bikes that are big, customized choppers, or those bikes with a smaller engine (883cc). Of course you can put any kind of customized parts on these bikes to make them unique. The exact same can be said for the Japanese bikes. Japanese motorcycles come in every class, size, and design. You can get a 250cc off road bike or a 1800cc racing bike. You can get touring bikes that have all the power and even the sound of a Harley. It is a point of argument but some think that the Japanese touring bikes are more comfortable. I leave that up to the individual.
Other than the main choice, price, you have the question of reliability. In my experience, no matter the make or model of a bike, if you take care of it and preform routine maintenance you won't have any problems. OK, any is a strong word, very many would probably be a better way to describe it. If you do have mechanical problems on metric bike, two 10mm wrenches, an adjustable wrench, and a cross head screw driver will fix almost anything. While that is a slight exaggeration, you would be surprised how many problems those tools really will fix.
So, you can really boil down the choice into 3 main areas. How much do you want to spend? How big of a choice in models are you looking for? The last one, are you willing to pay the extra money for the status symbol that goes with owning a Harley?
In most categories (retention of value being a big exception), Japanese bikes are more cost efficient to buy and own. They offer you more of choice in kinds of bikes, and they tend be very reliable.
