Does anyone else this phrase should be classed as a violation?

Question

"Harley Davidson is a great bike."
I've read it so many times on Yahoo Answers and its just not true!

I don't mind people saying "in my opinion the Harley is a great bike", its just when they state it as fact!

Answer 1

It is a statement. Just like someone could say Honda is a great bike, Yamaha is a great bike, pizza is a great food, ??? was a great president, ????? is a great actor. It does not say by all the ratings that a Harley is known to be a better bike than any other bike.
Honda cars are great, and Toyota cars are great also. That does not state one is better than the other. You stated that "Harley Davidson is a great bike " IS JUST NOT TRUE. That is just YOUR opinion. Should your statement be classed as a violation. Everyone has there own opinion.

Answer 2

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. As a Harley rider, I will tell you that in some ways they are a "great" bike," and in other ways they are not. I own one that is 20 years old, and yes, I have to work on it. With care and maintenance, the engines will last for a long time due to their low RPM nature. Overall, the bikes are easy to work on and simple, with the exception of a few areas. I don't care what anyone thinks about it. I bought a Harley because I have always wanted one. I have had Hondas and Kawasakis, and they were "great" bikes, too. Just in a different way. Harleys are in many ways still using 1936 technology, which if you are a technology buff, will not create enthusiasm. However, if you like the classic 1936 American technology, and history then you will be ensthusiastic about a Harley. A Harley is like an old Mustang or a '69 Camaro. It is old school American pushrod, carbureted (mostly) class and power. It's all in what you like. I love the sound and look, but I also like the sound of a really healthy Japanese Inline 4, or a nice Japanese V-twin with a healthy exhaust note, such as an SV1000. They are all motorcycles, and as motorcyclists, we all need to stick together, regardless of what we ride, because there are too many people already against us. I don't care what you ride, Live to Ride, Ride to Live!!!

Answer 3

The Harley Davidson motorcycle IS a great bike, when you keep in mind it does exactly what its designers intend it to do, and nothing else. You want to go fast? Buy a Japanese or European sports bike. You want to cruise in comfort, and attract attention then buy a HD. To each their own, I say. Personally I ride a Bandit 1200, which does what I want it to, but I see why people buy Harleys. They are actually a lot of fun when ridden in the manner for which they are designed.

Quasar? You're an idiot. Yes, the Vincent was a great bike for its day. Harley Davidson didn't copy it, nor did Vincent copy HD. Both manufacturers made their own designs, based around the same engine format, a V-twin. HD were building bikes a long time before Vincents were made.

Answer 4

I would have more respect for Harley owners if they said they bought a Harley because;

They want to support their domestic motorcycle industry

or

They believe that "made in America" stands for something & is a mark of quality.

or

They accept that Harleys are flawed but buy them for emotional reasons such as history, pedigree etc.

To claim that they buy a Harley because it is superior to other manufacturers machines is quite frankly delusional. If looked at objectively Japanese / German / Italian bikes are far superior to Harleys.

Harley to my mind has become lazy & does not innovate because they believe that they are producing what the public want, so they just keep producing the same machines year after year.

The same mentality was what ultimatley led to the demise of the British bike industry, consumers wanted the best for their money & that's what the Japanese gave them.

The same fate could easily befall Harley in the forseeable future unless it move with the times & puts real effort into R & D.

I don't like Harleys, never have & never will but I wouldn't like to see them go the same way as the British makers.


edit; Be careful with this question, the thought police are watching! I have had my question about Harley Davison riders sense of dress deleted for "Reason of Violation:Epithets & Slurs"

Okay it was taking the p1SS but really? I thought with this being an American site that the participants would be in favour of FREE SPEECH? Obviously that is only the case when it suits them.

Mocking an American institution such as HD is obviously beyond the pale. Shame really as there were some really good answers that people had taken the time to put together.

Answer 5

I admit it sometimes rubs me the wrong way when people say things like that - not just about harleys, but about anything. Cars, bikes, moisturizers....you name it.

It sometimes comes off as snotty. I know that's not really how it's meant in most cases though.

I've done it myself - for example when answering a question about the hottest avatar (different category obviously!) I would answer "Me! Because the Rune is the most beautiful bike ever made!" Even as I wrote it I considered adding "I think" but then just said the hell with it.

Anyway, I it's not so much harleys people object to as the people who own them. After all, why should a simple object stir up so much antipathy? The bikes themselves, although they are not for me and never will be, have never bothered me and I could care less about them.

But I do despise the attitudes of some owners. I've encountered some truly obnoxious people and have been dissed on the road by some harley riders. (By dissed I mean cut off, endangered, whatever).

Unfortunately, those asses have managed to taint the whole company for many people.

Answer 6

No, I don't. It's an opinion and you are entitled to yours.
True or not. What I don't care for is all the derogatory, insulting comments that crop up whenever that opinion is expressed. If you "have read it so many times", you also have seen the others.
If someone asks how to fix a Honda, they get answered, If it's about a Harley, they get told what a piece of crap they bought, etc. B.S. plus.

I've found a few people I agree with on most things here, unfortuately some have a strong anti-Harley bias.
The bias doesn't bother me, the personal insults do.

You have your opinion. I have mine, which wasn't expressed.
Ride you own, leave mine alone. (both of them)

Answer 7

I think it's OK to say a Harley is great. It's OK to say Triumphs are great. They've been around a long long time and have a cult following so they're not poor, mediocre, or average. They are great. I like the ease of jumping on a jap bike a thrashing it around but I love to cruise round on my Harley. But to own one of these you have to put up with poor finish, expense and a hard time from others on occasions. But if despite all this you still enjoy them that's all that matters.

Answer 8

I heard that 90% of Harleys ever built are still on the road. The rest have been pushed home by now... Seriously though, lovely bikes, but not if you want to tear around British roads as if you were on a Jap Tupperware Torpedo!

Answer 9

Harley is a great Bike for those that prefer Harley's ,what I cant understand is why they only can go as far as the pub down the street

Answer 10

guys with hogs think that is written in the bible !

incidentally can I please ask EVERYONE to complain about Violations when they are not warranted.?
A lot of people have been deleted recently after working very hard to get up to a level where they can ask and answer unlimited.

If you get violated for something that is NOT even close to being offensive, please report it with the email header "harassment by another user" and state that you do not deserve this violation. Say that it is harassment and you want the matter investigated and the REPORTERS account suspended.

I will be reporting EVERY one from now on

Lets stop the mindless yobs destroying our work

Just one point though. If you deserve the Violation - take it on the chin !