At the dealership - 2018 Rocket to get 2500 ccs

[rocketjohn]

I don't think the new Rocket will be anywhere close to a kind that will be amenable to a touring bike though the blury images indicate it will be a swell Diavel fighter. Diavel for it's part barely qualifies as a cruiser though it's a heck of a speedster.

 

[sonny]

Cootertwo on my way home tonight stopped to light up a smoke in in Okmulgee Oklahoma and had a guy asking about the bike. First thing said "is that one of those six cylinders?" Starting explaining to him all the details and you could see the disbelieve. The poor guy was amazed. So advertisement does exist in a way. Will it sell t-shirts and such? Probably not. Two of my friends that ride a lot have sold their Harley's and now ride Rockets. They love it. Some bikes are sold to the masses others look and discover that what pleases the masses did not please them. Hello Truimph.

 

[Tal]

I was out in my driveway this morning with a bucket of warm, soapy water giving the bike a good wash...two guys came walking in saying 'Good morning...wash day is it?' I looked up and they were carrying bibles and some booklets.
"Wow!...that's a big bike...how big is that motor?"....'2300cc' i said ..."HELL!.." one said (i didnt think they said that??)...'Thats bigger than my car!!'....
and away we go...talking about the Rocket. I reckon if i had taken him for a ride, he would now have a whole new outlook on life!!
His eyes were wide open and boggling!
He offered me an 'Awake' magazine and suggested it would help me in my hour of need. I politely declined and said i have dogs...they listen to EVERYTHING i say. And they left.

 

[DodahMan]

For all of you asking for more power, realize and know that Yamaha did just that with there latest Vmax...that bike has ALL the electronic nonsense, is 200HP, runs 9 second 1/4 miles and simply DID NOT SELL in the states. I still see dealers with brand new 2012/2013 models heavily discounted.

Honda redid the Valkryie and it DID NOT SELL. Yes, it was simply a rebadged Goldwing but it was pretty good looking and had 120lb weight loss compared to the Goldwing...Cool looking dash etc...I almost bought one this winter brand new out the door for 8999 USD!!! New they were 16K!!!! One of the dealers I called told me he had every color, to come pick whatever one I wanted!

The big cruiser market is a very tough one indeed. For the life of me I cannot understand how ANYONE can go out and buy a slow fat pig like a HD Fatboy for 20K and not select the rocket for around 13K (after haggling on the price of course). The rocket destroys all other big cruisers in speed (except for the vmax) and handling and braking and reliability. It really is a great bargain compared to the competition but yet it is a very slow seller.

With companies like victory going away and slow MC sales in general I can't imagine triumph putting any money into the rocket. I can see them discontinuing it actually, not improving it. Most bike companies (like BMW) have focused there attention on the 700/800CC class bikes and scooters. That seems to be where the money is for some reason.

The other problem I see with the bike market is the INSANE high prices of new bikes. BMW, Hardley, Ducati, KTM and even the *** bikes are all getting the prices well into the 20K range...I was at the Hardley dealer the other day and there big dreaming eagle cruiser is 42K!!!!

Seriously???? Motorcycling for most of us is a hobby or past time. This is not my primary mode of transport, especially considering how brutal the winter is where I live. These companies need to realize that most of us are not willing to drop that kind of money into something we rarely use!

Man I hear you bigtime. This is what Yamaha did after 18 years of refining their Roadstar and improving on many things. They listened to their market and IMHO dikked up the transmission with the roadliner turning it into someting akin to a "bar hopper" than a highway cruiser. In essence, they dikked up their brand and have now quit making the Roadstar or Roadliner. They are betting on their 1300 cc as the future.

I live in the Myrtle Beach area and here it is HARLEY harley harley . . . everybody has one and there are 50 of them for sale on any given day. Indian is starting to steal their customers though because they are making a SUPERIOR product. They do not have a "lifestyle" to sell, only a motorcycle. I believe that dealership may pick up Triumph. I am going to talk with the owner again next week. I think that there is room here for a midsize bike market. A lot of these old fat basstards around here just barhop anyway.

I bought my R3T because it is NOT a Harley and looks better than any harley out there BUT there are room for improvements, top one is the transmission. The rockets are just geared way too low. I have ridden the 4 state tour (AZ, NM, UT, CO) several times and out there, the 6th speed makes a huge difference. There are long streches of road where you can cruise 90mph for hours. I have ridden sometimes for as long as three hours and not seen a single passing vehicle. Sadly, the rocket COULD be a highway monster but the gearing is just all wrong. Hopefully they will change that.

 

[DodahMan]

When I was in Texas where the speed limit can be 85 mph, my mirrors will blur some, they clear up if I pull in the clutch so it's not wind. Not a big problem, but it didn't have to be a problem at all.

nope not with the torque the Rockets make. They need a real overdrive gear for the highway.

 

[DodahMan]

The ROCKET as it is could be retuned and lightened up to make another 50 HP and offer after sale exhaust and intake systems to pump up the HP output BUT they try to sell them to the geezers that now ride slow sluggush air cooled Vtwins with 60 yearold styling like the boat anchor INDIANS The VMAX is not a cruiser and its not confy and its UGLY and expensive it is not a nine second bike and top speed is only 137 stock so that makes it a victim to a ZX 14 A lot of the older riders are like sheep and are intimidated by the Rocket with its huge 2300cc powerplant so its not going to sell to the sheeple who want to be like the HD crowd and hang at the bar all day or bar hop and drink and drive like a lot of the cruiser boozer crowd that I know they drive to the bar drink all day and drive home DRUNK SO who are the Rocket fans ?

I studied the rockets for three years and jumped on a R3T because I had to try it. The only thing it needs is a regearing or a 6th speed overdrive. The indians are indeed making headway in my local market over the Harleys. They are simply better bikes and people are seeing it. The greater market though is the midsize where most new riders start. Royal Enfield is up to 90 dealerships now in NA from only one a few years ago. People are buying their bikes because of the price and styling. I bout my R3T mainly for the styling, I just love the looks.

 

[DodahMan]

MOST of the cruiser guys I talk to are intimidated by the Rocket and a lot of them are not really mechanical and have the HD dealer do everything for them they are now upset because some of the HDs are watercooled thats a no no in the HD world of cavemen I have a friend that just bought a $30000 road glide and hes always working on the thing hes spent another $10 000 on this thing and its in the shop half the time he very up set with the lack of power compared to my stock classic the Harley shop has assured him they can get his bike to out perform the Rocket so hes going to spend about $15000 more on the thing I told him to just buy a Rocket for his second bike and have 2 bikes hes thinking about it he asked me to look for a nice used Rocket for him but he only wants to spend $3000 wow what a fruit cake anyway he has all the HD clothing the complete holloween outfit just bought a jacket for $700 today BUT the Harleys are not selling well at all sales are way off in this area

A buddy of mine just bought a new road King with only 25 miles for $17,5. There is some desperation out there. One thing about Harleys, you will NEVER be without anybody being able to work on them. Tranny? Easy, just unbolt it and bolt on a newer six speed. Main thing that kept me from getting a Harley was that they are just too small. Only one that fits me is the Road Glide. I need to make some mode to the R3T to lower and lengthen the floorboards.

 

[HxNutMike]

Absolutely! My dealer doesn't have the space for it, and they dropped Ducati for the same reason--unreasonable demands for space and the amount of all the "lifestyle" merchandise they are expected to carry. I just wish Triumph was better at getting parts we order to the dealer faster.

I had to laugh at the comment about H-D. One hot day this past summer, I took the wife around to bike shops (just to get out of the house). Leaving the local H-D dealer, she said it was just a tacky H-D merch store--they had about five times the floor space devoted to every item with the Harley logo that one could possibly want, than was devoted to the bikes for sale. She frequently brings up an ad she saw in my old garage; it was from a local New York bike rag, and said "Why ride a classic British motorcycle? Three words: Harley-Davidson Cafe." So she's already biased against H-D.

Supposed to hit a sunny 43 today, so it's time for a ride.

 

[DodahMan]

Absolutely! My dealer doesn't have the space for it, and they dropped Ducati for the same reason--unreasonable demands for space and the amount of all the "lifestyle" merchandise they are expected to carry. I just wish Triumph was better at getting parts we order to the dealer faster.

I had to laugh at the comment about H-D. One hot day this past summer, I took the wife around to bike shops (just to get out of the house). Leaving the local H-D dealer, she said it was just a tacky H-D merch store--they had about five times the floor space devoted to every item with the Harley logo that one could possibly want, than was devoted to the bikes for sale. She frequently brings up an ad she saw in my old garage; it was from a local New York bike rag, and said "Why ride a classic British motorcycle? Three words: Harley-Davidson Cafe." So she's already biased against H-D.

Supposed to hit a sunny 43 today, so it's time for a ride.

Condoms . . . they need to sell condoms at their "stealerships". Lol.

I love all kinds of motorcycles but Harley has build their brand back by selling a lifestyle.

Britt bikes have always had a unique style and panache in their bikes. They were what I call "scooter bikes". I lusted for a 70s era Bonnie after college but they were like Harleys, too expensive. Because of duties back then, actually more expensive than Harleys so I bought a new Yamaha 650 special (Bonnie clone) and it was a great bike at 1/4 of the cost of a used Bonnie.

Triumph has an opportunity here to refine the Rocket. A huge market awaits but they must understand it.

 

[canecorso]

I was at my Triumph dealership and the manger said he went to England and had a virtual walk around the bike so that no videos or pictures can be taken of the new 2019 Triumph Rocket, he said it looks a lot like the Ducati Diavel a lot more slimmer he was told some changes can still happen and was told there that there not saying if displacement will be bigger or smaller.
But he took a picture of the bill board so I snapped a picture off his phone