After riding the Valkyrie for about a month now it just doesn't feel like a big bike any more. Then, today at a cafe, a 2018 Harley Fatboy parked alongside me. It was an interesting comparison seeing them side by side. And yes folks, the Valkyrie is a BIG bike. What a credit to the designers that it doesn't handle like one. I can only assume the reason for the poor sales was that people didn't actually test-ride them.
The Valkyrie IS big
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I think what hurt this bike was the price... and the decline in popularity of cruiser bikes in general back in 2014 Fatboys... which I have vivid recollections of people almost getting in fist fights for the right to purchase one to them sitting there gathering dust on the salesroom floor, because if you remember Street Glide-mania was at its peak in about 2014 and the Victory and yes Honda (F6B) clones were selling like hotcakes... the fact they had these Valks at just $2000 less MSRP than a loaded F6B seems like a poor decision... $14-15K and I think these would have been Americas sweetheart... kinda sad
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185 Posts
The pricing certainly didn't help the Valk's popularity, but the overall looks were a bit polarizing, too. I didn't care for it much myself at first, between not really being an update to the previous gen model and just looking, well, different. Took me two years from its introduction to finally come around.
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133 Posts
I was just too angry at Honda for teasing me with the EVO 6 and then build this.
my love is with this engine and i tolerate the body . don't get me wrong i love riding this bike and it rides the best of any bike in 54 years of riding but it took a price of $7999 for me to buy
my love is with this engine and i tolerate the body . don't get me wrong i love riding this bike and it rides the best of any bike in 54 years of riding but it took a price of $7999 for me to buy
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165 Posts
HA HA HA .... Even in that cool concept picture you still find those same mirrors they've put on cruisers the last 20 years or so .......
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The handling of this bike is amazing. My V-Star 1100 feels like such a heavy, bulky bike compared to the Valkyrie, even though the Star weighs less.
That said, I'm not crazy about the riding position, but I know the Goldwing engine is pretty much bulletproof and I needed a more reliable bike.
I think what hurt sales the most is that they were asking $18k! I would never consider purchasing this bike at that price, I would pay a little more the features of the F6B. If they were selling these for $10k I think they'd be a lot more popular.
That said, I'm not crazy about the riding position, but I know the Goldwing engine is pretty much bulletproof and I needed a more reliable bike.
I think what hurt sales the most is that they were asking $18k! I would never consider purchasing this bike at that price, I would pay a little more the features of the F6B. If they were selling these for $10k I think they'd be a lot more popular.
A car manufacturer where I live is currently running a campaign: "We're so confident you'll love our car, if you test drive it and end up buying another (new car), we'll give you $500". I reckon something like this might have worked for Honda. Once you've ridden the Valkyrie everything else seems like a mule. You even overlook the styling issues as noted by others above. The key to sales was surely getting bums on seats and they didn't do it. And yes, the price point was possibly a bit high. But even that might have been overcome to some extent once people actually rode the thing. Amazing how much we can stretch our budgets when we really love something! Hey, I should get a job at Honda
Geepers Honda makes it even more difficult for itself by having dedicated 'Goldwing' dealerships which are few and far between - at least here in Oz.
That fact alone makes it harder to stumble into one when just kicking tyres at your local dealer.
Thankfully Frasers (my local dealer) has become Goldwing accredited. I'm a local and regularly wander through the half a dozen dealerships of all varieties in my town, but there was no mention of it, nor promotion.
That fact alone makes it harder to stumble into one when just kicking tyres at your local dealer.
Thankfully Frasers (my local dealer) has become Goldwing accredited. I'm a local and regularly wander through the half a dozen dealerships of all varieties in my town, but there was no mention of it, nor promotion.
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450 Posts
I recently took a new DCT Wing for a test ride, WOW what a bike, the power the DCT, the suspension I like every thing but the price.
I drove my F6B there and driving home I still love my B and also the Valkyrie. If I wanted a new Wing I would have to sell both bikes plus a few thousand dollers. No thanks.
I will keep the BIG Valkyrie and F6B.
I drove my F6B there and driving home I still love my B and also the Valkyrie. If I wanted a new Wing I would have to sell both bikes plus a few thousand dollers. No thanks.
I will keep the BIG Valkyrie and F6B.
That is how I ended up with a Valkyrie. I sold my FJR and went to trade my F6B for a 2018 Wing but couldn't do it. I ended up keeping the B and buying a C. Someday I'll swap the B for an '18+ Wing but not until the prices are reasonable.
I'm pretty content with the B and the C in the garage.
Exactly! I had a 1969 BMW 1600 two-door (think 2002tii that didn't have as much oomph) that didn't weigh but around a 1200 or so pounds more than my 2014 Valkyrie. Power-to-weight ratio is a very important performance statistic! (That little Bimmer was a great car. I lowered it, put on better, wider wheels and tires (Radials!! Big deal back in the early '70s when I had it. As were these new halogen light thingies. Remember the first Marchals?) I put many fun miles on it as a newlywed. When I first bought my Valk I Googled the HP vs. weight of the BMW 1600 (cc) vs. the 1832 cc bike. Interesting, and confirmed with every twist of the wrist!Nothing like riding a bike with an engine can be fitted into a small car. >
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I think the FJR is a very close comparison to the Valk. Comfortable, powerful and agile. I rode an FJ 1200 years ago and loved it. Fell in love with the original F6B because of the looks and just can't believe the performance. I am a Wing Nut for life.
The other day at work i saw another bike parked next to my valkyrie. Seeing it sitting there all tiny next to my Valk, I thought it was going to be some tiny 250 or something. Turns out it was a Suzuki Boulevard 650.
When I got closer and looked at the Suzuki by itself, it was a prefectly decent sized bike, but looking at it next to my Valk made it look like a toy.
This isn't why I bought my valkyrie, but I will admit it did make me smile.
When I got closer and looked at the Suzuki by itself, it was a prefectly decent sized bike, but looking at it next to my Valk made it look like a toy.
This isn't why I bought my valkyrie, but I will admit it did make me smile.
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61 Posts
Radical styling doesn't sell
I think it was the totally radical styling of the 2014/2015 Valkyries that hurt their sales volume.
$18,000 is rather expensive, yes. Yet, there were other "power cruisers" out there that were similarly priced, but sold better than the Valkyrie because they looked like a cruiser. Of course, to the more discerning consumer...which is...US...the Valkyrie is very beautiful. Radical is beautiful to OUR eyes. Plus, the exceptional engineering and overall quality of the Honda Valkyrie is going to make impossible a much lower MSRP.
Fact is...your average cruiser aficionado wants something that looks more traditional...is much more recognizable...like a Harley Davidson Road Glide or Fat Boy.
I think this same factor is what hurt the sales of Victory motorcycles.
Take the Victory Cross Country, and Victory Vision cruisers, for example.
They were futuristic looking.
A bit odd.
To my eye they were very beautiful motorcycles, incorporating the engineering genius of the great Arlen Ness (who, BTW, passed away this week; God rest his soul).
The quality of the engineering of Victory engines was superb.
But they just looked a bit strange.
Consumers don't want strange.
They want conventional.
I think it was the totally radical styling of the 2014/2015 Valkyries that hurt their sales volume.
$18,000 is rather expensive, yes. Yet, there were other "power cruisers" out there that were similarly priced, but sold better than the Valkyrie because they looked like a cruiser. Of course, to the more discerning consumer...which is...US...the Valkyrie is very beautiful. Radical is beautiful to OUR eyes. Plus, the exceptional engineering and overall quality of the Honda Valkyrie is going to make impossible a much lower MSRP.
Fact is...your average cruiser aficionado wants something that looks more traditional...is much more recognizable...like a Harley Davidson Road Glide or Fat Boy.
I think this same factor is what hurt the sales of Victory motorcycles.
Take the Victory Cross Country, and Victory Vision cruisers, for example.
They were futuristic looking.
A bit odd.
To my eye they were very beautiful motorcycles, incorporating the engineering genius of the great Arlen Ness (who, BTW, passed away this week; God rest his soul).
The quality of the engineering of Victory engines was superb.
But they just looked a bit strange.
Consumers don't want strange.
They want conventional.
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61 Posts
I'm with you, Man.
Got me two bikes right now...an F6B and a Valk...an unbeatable combination.
B is for long rides and overnights, such as when I travel up to Bangor, Maine, 5 hours north, to visit my daughter.
Valk is for screaming out to the Atlantic coast in the evening, 1 hour east, to watch the sun set into the ocean.
When I return to NH from Maine after visiting my daughter, I get to motor on I-95 through Portland at rush hour, when the traffic moves in the passing lane at 85 mph. No problem for the B, cruising at 85.
When I am on my way home from watching the sunset, I'm heading west, on Route 101, toward Manchester. The police are pretty lenient, I guess, accepting that folks are just trying to get home, and generally will give you 80, so long as you behave yourself.
I guess a lot of us enjoy riding fast, huh?
That's why we own big Hondas.
THE motor company.
A racing tradition.
Got me two bikes right now...an F6B and a Valk...an unbeatable combination.
B is for long rides and overnights, such as when I travel up to Bangor, Maine, 5 hours north, to visit my daughter.
Valk is for screaming out to the Atlantic coast in the evening, 1 hour east, to watch the sun set into the ocean.
When I return to NH from Maine after visiting my daughter, I get to motor on I-95 through Portland at rush hour, when the traffic moves in the passing lane at 85 mph. No problem for the B, cruising at 85.
When I am on my way home from watching the sunset, I'm heading west, on Route 101, toward Manchester. The police are pretty lenient, I guess, accepting that folks are just trying to get home, and generally will give you 80, so long as you behave yourself.
I guess a lot of us enjoy riding fast, huh?
That's why we own big Hondas.
THE motor company.
A racing tradition.
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137 Posts
I agree with you.
But for the reasons that hurt the sales of this thing is exactly why I bought it. It was a little overpriced too upon release too. $19-20k is Harley country and the eccentric buggers like the Rocket 3 where these were direct competition was $14k. There was the V-Max and Diavel that were competition but they're more niche...
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