Ok just to let you know for me to get to a Harley dealership I either got to travel 1 and half hours North or two hours South so today I went down South I wanted to buy some more bling for my Sportster.

When I went to the dealer I bought a genuine Harley chrome insert cover that fits on my air cleaner plus I also bought a Harley tool bag as well so I spent over $100 in the dealership.

Well when I got home late today from my trip I went to fit the chrome insert on the air cleaner well you can't imagine my shock and horror when I opened the packaging to find that this genuine Harley accessory was nothing more than chrome plated plastic it felt like I had been punched in the guts.

I paid $61 for a peice of chrome plated plastic and to add more insult this genuine Harley accessory is made in Taiwan printed on the back of the packaging so from a company that prides itself telling the world that there bikes are made from real steel what's the deal of selling there customers chrome plastic shit !

Now I have owned Jap bikes with chrome plated plastic parts fitted on them but I knew and accpected that but this coming from Harley well it shocked me and I don't know if the dealer knew about this part and how it was made but if they did they did not inform me if they had there was no way I would of bought this part.

So thats done it for me I will not ever buy another genuine Harley accessory from any dealership I rather keep my money in the bank or buy a aftermarket part I have been riding and supporting Harley Davidson for many years now but today was a dark day for me with there products and if Harley are going to rip off there customers this way I might have to rethink what badge name may be on my next bike.

Signed one very pissed off Harley rider who hates been ripped off.

 

Sorry to disapoint you Choco but its only pre 1984 that were "real steel" lmao

After travelling 2 hours to get there didn't you open the box and check it out before you left the store,if only to make sure the right part was in there....???

Turns out that the high-horse is made out of shitty asian plywood afterall.

you went to the dealer.... thats where you went wrong, my opinion only of course

I busted a taillight lens on my BT50 ute. Quoted $316 from a dealer, $105 landed from Thailand on ebay. Pays to shop around these days. Getting screwed on everything is now an art form.....

Thanks for the replies so far I cooled down a bit now after a nights sleep and I learned a few lesson's even though I am over 50 years old, one is you get wiser as you get older not true, two always check what you buying before you leave the shop it may not be what you expected, three shop around and if you can't find what your looking for do you really need it, four genuine or aftermarket part ?, five trusting a Harley dealership still thinking about that one.

So the part is fitted on my bike it does look good but being made of hard plastic will always be in the back of my mind but I learn to live with it and Harley's do make great bikes thats why I owned a few of them I love my Sportster hopefuly it will be a keeper for many years but without anymore plastic bits added on it cheers.

.... keep in mind next time that most after market chrome nowadays ( metal or plastic ) is unlikely to meet ur expectations for quality

Try E-Bay, you can get some good deals off them, and it will save you the 2 hours travel time....

Make EBay your friend mate!!

id feel the same, but what can u do
? they have you by the nuts, you want it you have to pay for it (no matter how its made), when i got my new night rod special it had a chip on the back mud guard on the black paint and half in the orange strip which some one along the line touched it up with touch up paint in black so it crosses over in the orange strip, but you know how it is you cant check every thing, only found it during the first wash , but what do you do ? how do you know where it happend along the line, production, transportation, sales? it just leaves a little sour taste with the Harley brand

Just proves again that the "Harley Marketing Machine" is working just fine.

They packaged a product that you can see and looks all nice and shiny but you can't feel until you unpack it and realise you have been done.

Making mass produced products in cheap asian countries is one thing, but when they charge you excessive prices for something that has cost them a grain of rice to make, well that really pisses me off

RULE 1: Let the buyer beware

RULE 2: If it feels like you have been ripped off, chances are you have been

RULE 3: See rule 1.

It's not just HD!! The Holden stealer quoted me $458 each for headlights for my young blokes Astra. There's a bloke in Wetherill Park who sold me a pair for $60 each.. Made in Taiwan, but good quality nonetheless..Gotta shop around man!!

For me it was not so much where the accessory was made it did come as a bit of a shock but it was how much I paid for a peice of chrome plated plastic when I thought it was metal but to quote groover " let the buyer beware " is so true and yes it was my bad for not checking the accessory before I handed over my cash but how many of us here are guilty of that anyway as I said before peice is fitted to my bike and I will live with it cheers.

we cant do much about where stuff is made but i wouldnt waste my money at local dealers for parts unless the bike wasnt working and I was desperate,

best to buy all parts online direct from US often less than half price delivery in around 2 weeks or less, local HD dealer takes around 6 weeks for parts not stock.

Choco sorry to hear of your experience.
I bought a chrome insert for a crossbones air filter cover and was amazed to find it was all metal.
and it was like 39 bucks from a dealer which also surprised me.

M and M cycles can get parts about 15 % off of US prices which are good at the moment due to exchange rate.
I agree with others posted here about after market.
Having said that i have noticed that some of the parts like fenders and and my solo seat have been really quite good quality cant fault them.

It seems like most brands there is some areas of the catalogue that are really good well made and some that are done cheaply to make money from impulse buyers.

I always try and get the dealer to let me see the bit before i buy it out of the package then take a while to make my mind up.

I also hate being ripped off.

 

hey choco, wouldnt worry about having a bit bling made in taiwan---at least you know your front forks are genuine Jappenese showa's--cheers Grim