Rode a Victory Cross Country this afternoon...

[RKTNMYPKT]

YES the Victorys are faster than the Indians and are better looking also but neither is a match for the ROCKET I love beating the guys on their new INDIANS they all say the salesman told them they could beat ROCKETS with those SLUGS LOL

 

[Rick Morris]

I was really disappointed to see that the new Yamaha will not be built on a derivative of the V-Max 1700 motor. THAT would have been a great touring rig, carrying on the tradition of the old Venture Royale. Instead they choose to play in the air-cooled V-twin game. It's going to be interesting to see what the 2018 (ish) Rocket has to offer. At the moment I'm considering a new set of hard bags, MC cruise control and a new seat for my R3R to make it more touring friendly, instead of a dedicated touring bike. From what my dealer is saying the new R3 will have throttle by wire, with CC, TC and rider modes. Hopefully they offer nice factory hard bags.

Agreed. The other 4cyl bikes were awesome. Even if they were 1300cc. I rode a 2003 a few months ago and it was so friggin nice. Smooth, powerful and a confident ride. If triumph would get their heads out of their butts and make a full on Rocket touring bike they would sell here in the states I am sure. I would be the first one to buy one.

 

[HansO]

THE INDIANS A DONKEY that your beating LOL

Art are you really that thick????
I'll put it in simple terms, what jim is saying is that YOU are beating a dead horse, or in other words are repeating yourself bashing his Indian and I have to ask why ?? Jim puts more useful and entertaining input into the Forum than you ever have all you can do is belittle other peoples bike choices, so you'll probably bagg pout my choice of getting the Explorer. Jim has already stated that he will be keeping an eye out for another Rocket to compliment his Indian as I will also to compliment my Explorer, we are both STILL here because WE Love the Rockets and Love 99% of the peps on here, so do us all a favour and P1SS off

 

[Chris Kelley]

No advertising to speak of still a lot of people never heard of victory

Also kinda burned themselves by not having an entry or middle tier option. Most motorcyclists (especially cruiser folk) tend to stick to a brand.

 

[warp9.9]

THE INDIANS A DONKEY that your beating LOL

 

[mexican]

I saw this gem at the Vegas Eurocycle. I would have liked to have ridden it.

I want it!!

 

[mexican]

I traded my R3t for a victory crossroad bout 5 years ago
Of course miss the power that the rocket had but the crossroad is a good bike I have over 97000 miles on it and the only problem I have had with it is my clutch cable broke last Friday but like Jim when I get a couple more bills paid off I may start looking for another rocket or may wait and see what the 18 model looks like

I went to check the Guzzis last weekend to the Triumph dealer, the owner knows me and he said, for his experience everybody that buys a rocket stays a rocketeer for life, even if they buy other bikes eventually they end up with another rocket

 

[mexican]

I'll sure be glad when the strike gets resolved at the paint factory so we can get some color on these primered monstrosities

What??? that is a beauty!!!

 

[IdahoRenegade]

Agreed. The other 4cyl bikes were awesome. Even if they were 1300cc. I rode a 2003 a few months ago and it was so friggin nice. Smooth, powerful and a confident ride. If triumph would get their heads out of their butts and make a full on Rocket touring bike they would sell here in the states I am sure. I would be the first one to buy one.

Right there with you. With the R3 platform, they have the best foundation in the industry. Slap on a nice fairing, luggage, cruise, heated seats and be done with it! Maybe electric locking bags like Indian and a "infotainment system". None of that old-school, underpowered, air-cooled V-twin stuff.

 

[barbagris]

If triumph would get their heads out of their butts and make a full on Rocket touring bike they would sell here in the states I am sure. I would be the first one to buy one.

The question is not whether they'd sell. There is a market for pretty much everything. So far my experience of R3 owners is that they are rather individualistic. i.e Nothing factory would ever be quite right as it would be the same as everybody else's.

But the major question is - is there enough sales latency to cover R+D costs and make a decent profit plus commercial margin to support dealers. Very early on there were speculations of a fully faired R3 with all the gubbins. A guy in Italy even made a kit - he had to close his doors.

Also bear this in mind.

Vehicle prices in the US are cheaper than most of the world. Especially compared to income. Most see this as the ROW subsidizing US sales. Anything that will not sell ROW will be quite a bit more expensive in the US. Not quite Confederate pricing - but certainly Harley CVO type prices. In Europe (especially post brexit - which has most certainly influenced the future of R+D plus sales for EU mfrs) the market to go for is Germany. There is a BIG reason why the adventure type bikes appeared: Germans. BMW gave them what they wanted and the rest followed.

Having had the R3 - I would not have another bike like it. tbh My old Buell S3T was MUCH better for our roads. But rear seat was too small for my missus peace of mind. She now has little or no interest in riding. I don't regret buying the R3. I do regret selling the S3 and tbh if I had kept it - I think I would have sold the R3 by now.