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Dealerships or boutiques?

Good post Don and I understand about the taxable inventory But I think some dealers carry that thought a little to far. I'll share a quick story, about 4 years ago Jack rode his Streetbob up to Minnesota to meet me for our trip to Sturgis. As luck would have it the day before we we're to leave Jacks throttle cable broke so we took it to the local and larges dealer in the state, guess what? no cable in stock for a Streetbob. Now I can see not having a left handed monkey wrench in stock But a throttle cable for a Streetbob! I would think having common parts like a throttle cable would be a no brainer. JMHO.
 
For the most part -- I agree with the OP's letter. HD shops seem to always have hundreds of t-shirts and leather jackets and helmets etc.

One short story here tho - I noticed on my Road King that on one of my hard bags, the little metal -- ahmmmm - metal stiffener/protector located on the lid where the lid slips under the hook(2plcs) on the bike side - little peel n stick shinny metal flat part - was missing. I went to the dealer here and said " I know this is a long shot but do you have this part - he looked up the schematic of bags on the computer and I said there that part -- he took the number umpidysquat -- and left and went to the back and came out with a little sandwich baggy with two in it!!!!!!! WOW I was actually grinning like a possum he had them! -- Great. and that was a $4 part (for two) and they were IN STOCK - not a very common part at all I'd think. And maybe a rare thing they were in stock. But, sometimes the HD shops do provide a good place to spend time as well as money.

Bill
 
I agree with the OP. What he posted is very true in too many cases. I absolutely HATE when I am in a store, and the sales person says. "I can order that for you and we will call you when it comes in." My response is always the same now... " I can ORDER it and have it shipped to my door. I am giving you the honor to serve me as a customer and you have failed. " The response is usually 'Yeah, good point'.

I hate to hear brick & mortar stores whine and cry about lost revenue because of the internet. If they would take care of the customer, and have a good stock in store, customer's would not be FORCED to turn to the internet.

There are still a few of us who like to deal with actual people.

This goes for ALL stores, not just HD. :s
 
I don't understand the whining. H-D, in spite of what many would like, is a corporation with bottom line responsibility to their shareholders, much like the aforementioned Macy's or Sack's. In that capacity the MoCo and dealers are going to make decisions that will maximize profitability.

My view is that I am well aware of that and for that reason, I order all my parts from an online discount dealer. Dealers are what they are, operate the way they need to and, as a consumer, I understand and interact with the local dealers under that understanding.

I will say that on the rare occasion that I find myself in a bind for part that I forgot to order and need to procure the part locally, I call ahead to the four dealers in my area and always find the part at one of those four dealers.

Come on guys, comparing the Harley dealer "experience" of today with that of yester year is a waste of time. I dare say that there is no experience from the '50s or '60s that is the same today, so roll with it; life is too short to fret over things beyond one's control.:coffee
 
Unfortunately for them to stop stocking what makes them the most profit, the customers have to stop buying those goods. I think those of us on this forum are the minority who want to actually do the work on our scoots and if we decide we have to have the HD brand part, we need to get it from a dealer.
 
Hi,i really get the sentiment that has been echoed here over the last couple of days.I recently went down to my local dealer for a throttle cable to suit a FLSTN fitted with a 42mm mikuni[ a performance option promoted in their bling book]-as soon as i said it was for a mikuni carb,the parts man shut the book in my face! His only comment was ,'yeah,theyre really hard to get" but didnt say he would even try! Gobsmacked,i left and travelled 100 miles to my next closest dealer only to have the same scenario unfold again.Suitably cheesed off, i headed home and not being computer savvy i spent several hours online to JP cycles who were extremely helpful,found the cables i needed,ordered and paid in what i can only describe was a painless and easy transaction and the parts arrived[along with sons of arthritis T for the little lady!] i 4 days to my side of the world[new zealand!] Incidentally,they didnt even have a standard throttle cable in stock either.The first shop i went to has just RELINQUISHED its HD franchise what ever that means and will open up nearby selling second hand bikes of all types.....mmmm So where does this leave me-feeling positive!! now i'm not scared by my computer,i order everything online from the USA ,do all my own wrenching and love my ride now that am getting to know it better all the time and lets not forget the good people here on this forum that make that possible for me to sort out any issues on my ride-thanks folk,nick.
 
dolt said:
I don't understand the whining. H-D, in spite of what many would like, is a corporation with bottom line responsibility to their shareholders, much like the aforementioned Macy's or Sack's. In that capacity the MoCo and dealers are going to make decisions that will maximize profitability.

My view is that I am well aware of that and for that reason, I order all my parts from an online discount dealer. Dealers are what they are, operate the way they need to and, as a consumer, I understand and interact with the local dealers under that understanding.

I will say that on the rare occasion that I find myself in a bind for part that I forgot to order and need to procure the part locally, I call ahead to the four dealers in my area and always find the part at one of those four dealers.

Come on guys, comparing the Harley dealer "experience" of today with that of yester year is a waste of time. I dare say that there is no experience from the '50s or '60s that is the same today, so roll with it; life is too short to fret over things beyond one's control.:coffee
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dolt,
You sound like you're either on the board of directors or a major stock holder in Harley. :newsmile100::newsmile100:
 
Jeff Klarich said:
dolt,
You sound like you're either on the board of directors or a major stock holder in Harley. :newsmile100::newsmile100:
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Nope, neither; I just live in the real world. I understand the sentiment of the OP but just can't go there since it is a total waste of time and I don't have that time to waste.:s
 
dolt said:
I don't understand the whining. H-D, in spite of what many would like, is a corporation with bottom line responsibility to their shareholders, much like the aforementioned Macy's or Sack's. In that capacity the MoCo and dealers are going to make decisions that will maximize profitability.

My view is that I am well aware of that and for that reason, I order all my parts from an online discount dealer. Dealers are what they are, operate the way they need to and, as a consumer, I understand and interact with the local dealers under that understanding.

I will say that on the rare occasion that I find myself in a bind for part that I forgot to order and need to procure the part locally, I call ahead to the four dealers in my area and always find the part at one of those four dealers.

Come on guys, comparing the Harley dealer "experience" of today with that of yester year is a waste of time. I dare say that there is no experience from the '50s or '60s that is the same today, so roll with it; life is too short to fret over things beyond one's control.:coffee
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Bingo. You nailed it. I hope they sell tons of T-shirts and trinkets because my Harley stock is in the toilet right now...
 
dolt,
I agree with you in part but were we part company is I equate Harley and their parts department the same as a auto dealership. When I buy a new car and need parts I should be able to go to said dealership and get what I need.

I also like the option to order parts online if I choose to do so but I shouldn't have to rely on the internet to do so. I think what others might be trying to convey is it's sad the merchandise area of the dealership is bigger then the actual parts/shop. In my mind it's not very comforting to know that I can't get a throttle cable (not in stock) but Hey ya need a T-shirt. JMHO.
 
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