Trump Trade War Hits Harley Davidson, Wisconsin

This week marks the first in which American motorcycle icon Harley-Davidson has to face stiff trade tariffs in EU markets. It’s a move that’s being called a retaliation to Trump administration tariffs on European aluminum and steel that sees a 25% import tariff on large motorcycles coming from the US.

“Large”, in this case, references motorcycles whose engines displace 500cc or more. That means the new 25% tax will hit both Harley-Davidson and Indian Motorcycles, but won’t impact electric brands like Zero. To quote Asphalt and Rubber, “the (EU) is adding the 25% tariff to the goods that fall under HS code 87114000 & 87115000 on the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System,” which state:

• 87114000: Motorcycles, incl. mopeds, with reciprocating internal combustion piston engine of a cylinder capacity > 500 cm3 but <= 800 cm3
• 87115000: Motorcycles, incl. mopeds, with reciprocating internal combustion piston engine of a cylinder capacity > 800 cm3

There is speculation that this move is intended to specifically target Harley-Davidson, rather than Indian.Harley has received some Trump flavored love recently, and just so happens to be based in Wisconsin. Wisconsin is the home of Paul Ryan, the Speaker of the House of US Representatives and Republican Party big shot. Harley sold roughly 40,000 motorcycles in Europe last year compared to a handful of Indian bikes as that company still seems focused on building out its US-based business.

What do you guys think? Is the EU specifically targeting a GOP stronghold and a largely conservative base of Harley customers with this move, or is Harley just getting caught in the crossfire of a bigger issue? Is “Trump Flavored Love” the worst thing Stormy Daniels you’ve had to think of today, or do you kind of like the sound of it? Let us know your thoughts on these and other pressing matters of national importance in the comments section at the bottom of the page.

Trump Flavored Love

Sources | Images: the EU, via Asphalt and Rubber.

Polaris Buys Brammo To Focus On Powertrain Development

After five years of slow sales and just one new model, electric motorcycle maker Brammo has been bought out by Michigan-based Polaris. So what’s that mean for the Brammo brand, and the nascessent electric motorcycle industry as a whole?

It depends entirely on your outlook, because as Jalopnik notes Polaris has been funding one successful venture after the next, including a revived Indian brand and the much-talked-about Polaris Slingshot three-wheeled mad machine. Polaris initially invested about $28 million into Brammo, which has seen comparatively little sales success of their aging Enertia and Empulse motorcycles. A few municipalities have signed on to use Brammo’s bikes as police patrol vehicles, but competitor Zero seems to have had a lot more success penetrating the consumer market.

Brammo had been planning a stock offering and IPO, and just this summer it slashed the prices of older electric motorcylce models. But neither move has given the company enough cash to carry on alone, and so Polaris has decided to step in and buy it up, gaining access to its proprietary electric motor and battery technology. But what about the Brammo brand itself? In the announcement of the Brammo acquisition, Polaris said this;

Polaris is acting as a leading investor in a recapitalization of Brammo that enables the company to focus exclusively on the design, development and integration of electric vehicle powertrains.

Sounds to me like Brammo as an electric motorcycle cycle company may be kaput, and its operations in Oregon may be moved to Iowa where Polaris can be begin building electric motorcycles again. But will those electric motorcycles be branded as Brammo, or something else? Has the once-ambitious motorcycle maker gone out not with a bang, but a whimper? It sure looks that way.

Source: Gas2