Harley Exits India And Discontinues Sportster In Europe
Double whammy.
A few weeks ago, rumors surfaced that Harley-Davidson might close up shop in India after the company announced it was making personal cuts and potentially even shutting a plant. We now have the confirmation that the Motor Company is stopping all operations in India and exiting the market. On top of this announcement, reports out of France suggest that a dozen Harley models are going to be discontinued in Europe after this year.
As reported by the French media, Harley confirmed that its Sportster lineup won’t be updated to Euro 5 standards and will therefore stop selling in Europe in 2021. Nearly a dozen models are built on the platform, including the Street 750, the Iron 883, and the Forty Eight, which means a significant portion of the American lineup will leave the European showrooms after 2020.
The intention behind the decision is simple: saving money. Moto Station reached out to a Harley-Davidson France representative who explained that the Sportsters weren’t selling as well as they used to. There simply wasn’t any advantage in putting money toward updating the engines to meet the Euro 5 regulations. According to H-D France, the company is working on a replacement—possibly using the new water-cooled Revolution Max engines—but we’ll have to wait.
The move only applies to the European market. The Sportsters will remain available in North America.
Pieces Of The Puzzle:
In Asia, Harley confirmed that it intends to stop all production and sales operations in India. According to Bloomberg, the maker stated that the move will “boost restructuring expenses this year to about $169 million.”
Man, Harley wasn’t messing around when it announced that part of its new corporate strategy would include cutting back on development expenses and pulling from underperforming markets. Its Rewire restructuring plan is no joke. In addition to dropping out of select markets, the brand also cut back on the development of new models, a move that notably put the almost-ready-for-production Bronx on the ice.
Sources: Moto Station, InSella.it, Financial Express, Times of India, Bloomberg
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