The Michigan State Police’s Precision Driving Unit tests cars, trucks and motorcycles for U. S. law inforcement agencies since 1974. Last month they performed their annual independent performance testing on four potential Police bikes: the BMW R1200RTP, Kawasaki Concours 14 Police, Harley-Davidson Road King and Electra Glide. The test included acceleration, braking times and lap speeds around a course. Curious about the results? Read the full article »

Harley-Davidson has reported a net income of $88.83 million for the third quarter ended September 26, 2010, compared to $26.48 million for 2009. For this period, net revenue from motorcycles and related products were $1,09 billion, compared to $1,11 billion for the third quarter of 2009. The manufacturer reported 7,7% decrease in motorcycle sales worldwide, including a 9,4% decrease in the U.S. The company posted a net profit of 40 cents per share from continuing operations. Read the full article »

Wisconsin union workers at Harley yesterday approved a seven-year labor contract that keeps work at the Tomahawk and Menomonee Falls plants, although at a price. The new contract will establish a two-tier workforce similar to what the company has at its plants in the York, Penn. The deal preserves some full-time, union jobs, but transitions some part-time, „casual” positions. “It doesn’t feel good now, but we’re happy we kept jobs in Milwaukee,” told Mike Masik, president of United Steelworkers of America Local 2-209, the Milwaukee Small Business Times. Read the full article »

Union employees at Harley-Davidson Inc. will vote today on labor contracts that could determine the fate of their jobs and Harley’s production facilities in Wisconsin. The seven-year contract could cut hundreds of full-time employees. Harley says it needs to cut over $50 million dollars in labor costs at its plants in Menomonee Falls and Tomahawk. If the Steelworkers union does ot approve the new contract, Harley says it will close the two Wisconsin plants and move the production out-of-state where it is cheaper. Read the full article »

Bartels Harley-Davidson (Harley-Davidson dealer to the stars) is going to unveil artist Jack Armstrong’s $1 million „Cosmic Starship” Harley on October 21, 2010. The artist is renowned for his inimitable painting style called Cosmic Extensionalism. His exceptional art combines extreme colors and textures, and you can see the words appearing magically throughout his paintings when seen from different angles. Read the full article »

Harley produced the original WLA model for the U.S. Army during and around World War II. It was based on a civilian model, the WL, but the paint scheme, the accessories and the solo seat gave the WLA model a unique look. A French motorcycle fan restaured now a vintage military Harley – but there’s a catch. This isn’t a restaured bike, it’s actually a modern 883 wrapped in WL bodywork. Read the full article »

Harley-Davidson has a long history of adding a third outrigger wheel to its line of heavyweight models, starting back in 1914. That's over now, Harley has just announced that 2011 will be the final year it offers sidecars as a factory option, and it will no longer accept new orders for them. Hit the jump for the good news. Read the full article »

Harley-Davidson announced last october that Buell motorcycles will be discontinued. But the fans of Buell never loose hope, and there are new pictures and a video of a Buell street bike. What we can see on the images, is a Buell 1190RR race bike with turn signals and radiator fans, just the sort of thing you might see on a street bike. Legally, Erik Buell should soon be free of the contractual shackles preventing him from talking about or competing with Harley-Davidson. So, stay tuned. Read the full article »

It's not news that the V-Rod, designed with Porsche engineering input, is one of the best motorcycle engines ever made. The V-Rod has not broken any sales record, though, and rumours suggest that it will be axed shortly. Travis Clark designer thought, this engine would deserve a more sportier chassis and frame, and appearently he did his homework. Travis designed two concepts, a base model with a 88 cubic inch air-cooled V-Twin, and the V-Rod powered Sportster. What do you think, do Harley need a high-performance sport bike? Read the full article »

Harley-Davidson already introduced its 2011 lineup, but most of the models only got minor changes. But among the big CVO's and touring machines there's a whole new motorcycle, the Road Glide Ultra, which is based on the Road Glide. The new model shares some of the features with the standard model, like the front fairing with halogen headlamps. But don't let the nose fool you, it's a whole new bike. Hit the jump for specific details. Read the full article »