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-   -   RE Classic Desert Storm 500 or Used Harley Iron 883? (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motorbikes/135257-re-classic-desert-storm-500-used-harley-iron-883-a.html)

After nearly a year since my booking of the RE Desert Storm 500, I'm still being made to wait for the delivery of the bike which was due in March this year.Even after a numerous calls and visits to the showroom there is still no hope of the bike being delivered to me anytime soon,since I am "9th on the waiting list".After reading so many threads on this site by people facing the same problems and how the showroom guys are taking RE customers for a ride,I have lost any hope I had. I was recently offered a used Harley Davidson Iron 883 for a decent price.Since then I have been considering the options whether to stick to RE DS500 or go for the Harley.Obviously Harley Iron 883 is a much better bike all round but the RE's irreplaceable charm is still holding me back.Most importantly there's a huge price difference between them but a Harley is an eventual upgrade from a RE 500.My dilemma is I don't want to lose out on a RE 500 experience,if it ever comes home that is but I am running out of patience.Need your help with this guys.Kindly put in your advice.

I'm really not familiar with all that goes on with buying a motorcycle in India but forcing people to wait for over a year for delivery is totally ridiculous in any country.

It sounds like your "dealer" takes peoples money and does not even order the motorcycle from the factory.

Perhaps you should contact Royal Enfields customer service to see if your order even exists? If it does, they would be the people to ask why it's taking so long to deliver.

Hey,

Last NovemberI made up my mind on upgrading my Yamaha R15 and was looking all ove the showrooms to find a ride that satisfies me.

My dad is a bike lover and that made my taste blend into his. We were at the Harley Davidson showroom, Ahmedabad on fine morning and my dad was observing the Iron 883. With a big smile and the brocheure in his hand we left the showroom and headed home where we could sit and decide with my mom (the convincing part). On our way came the Royal Enfield showroom which made my dad start talking about my grandfather's Machismo.

Listening to all that I took the immediate U-turn and there we were at the RE showroom. I must say the Ahmedabad RE showroom is a must visit.

At the last corner there was a DS standing all meaty and matt. We inquired about it and the sales person cranked in the bike and the vibrations it had were truly heart felt unlike the Harley for sure. That very instant the "bull-t" thing got into me and my dad's college passion woke up. We took a TD each and trust me a RE is every Indian's love at some point or the other.

Immediate actions were take to the stimulus generated by the thump and I booked my CL DS500 in Dehradun on 9th November 2012 followed by frequent visits and calls. But as promised a waiting period of 3-4 months my DS500 was delivered on 27th Feb 2013.

This was my experience i couldnt resist sharing reading your post.

Trust me, if you have a thing for the "bull-t", WAIT!

Rest the gurus would be able to tell better about the technical stuff. I'm talking about the passion, if it exists!! ;)

If you have the moolah why not? Its would be a different beast. I guess even f you have Bullet you will always think of upgrading to the real cruiser.

Now, confirm if the RE dude is taking you for a ride. Check with another RE dealer, 1 year is just too much or escalate the issue.

And, why is the Harley being sold? Is it paper etc clear?

I won't own an RE ever, and I don't have the moolah to buy HD. But I've got to agree with the above.

Even when you have the chance of buying a much better and powerful machine in the HD, your heart still desires a bullet. You may not be happy even after spending extra money for the 'upgrade'.

As they say- love is blind. :D

Royal Enfield motorcycles are handmade. The entire demand of the market (Both domestic and export) are catered by just one manufacturing hub located in the southern part of India. That should pretty much explain the delay.

I booked a Thunderbird 350. Had to wait for almost a year long to get my hands on it. And I had to endure this grueling wait despite residing very close to the production facility.

I don't understand why would a dealer ever wanna make you wait unnecessarily! As a trader, he would be keen on closing the sale and booking his profits at the earliest.

Hey monster patrol. I don't know if this is the case with your showroom or not, but most of the times what these guys do is that they demand money from impatient customers who are ready to pay a bit "extra" to get instant delivery and make normal - going by the book - sort of people wait even longer than our turn. I'm sure many other "influential" customers too have got instant delivery of the DS. I would suggest go and talk to the showroom manager / owner directly or try to find out if you have any "pehchan" somewhere.

As far as the DS - HD dilema is concerned, follow your heart. I own a Thunderbird and I know how passionate I am for it when just 3 years back I used to hate REs!!!! If you have never owned one and really want to own one, I would say, just go through the "Bullet" experience before you upgrade to a HD or others. Even now whenever I see another RE thump by I drool over it till its out of sight!

The thing is it won't be difficult finding a used HD at all because so many people have bought it and with prices going down for the bigger bikes many are and will upgrade to the flagship models and you will always be able to find a used HD. But if you havn't ridden big cruisers before, I would suggest use the DS for as long as possible, get used to its feel, understand your own riding requirements, your style of riding and what you are comfortable with and then take the plunge into a big, expensive and heavy beast like the HD.

Cheers!! And best of luck!

That is a no brainer really. Harley any day. And believe me, this comes from a previous RE 500 owner...

PS- If you are not interested in that Iron, do PM me the the price and details...

Well MonsterPatrol being a RE owner I can tell you that nothing comes closer to the experience of riding a Bull. But if you ave the resources to own an HD Iron than I would suggest you to go for it. The niggling issues of an RE is a big turn off. I don't know if the HD would have similar issues or not. But IMHO go for the HD any-day.

The seller is upgrading to a fatboy probably.

Its definitely the Bull-T passion that's holding me back.The feeling you might get when you see it parked in your garage all meaty n matte like you said.

That's exactly has been my dilemma. what if the desire of owning RE is never fulfilled by a HD.

I wonder how they compare against each other on cruising terms.

Believe me you will not miss anything about what RE has to offer, I have been an RE owner and that too of the 'original' as they say (it was 30 years old when I bought), when it was overhauled my mechanic showed me the crank case of both my bike and the 500cc RE which was a year old, and they were the same size, and then he showed me a 80s RE 350cc crankcase and it was half the size, the bigger and heavy one was the one which gave the old REs the characteristic slow deep thumps and I could cruse in 4th gear at 30kms/hr, which is simply not possible in the REs that you get today. If you want the real RE experience buy what was manufactured before 1978, but they are a big pain to maintain as well. I was very passionate about my bike, in fact bought the bike which was manufactured in the year matching my year of birth, spent a fortune, more than double the amount for what I had bought it for. I did enjoy it while it was there, but then I had not seen any thing better either, moreover even before I could discover anything better it had turned to be a pain. The love had simply gone. Frankly it is something like a white British who would come to India and ride it for a while and boast of it back home of reliving the colonial history, and nothing more. Ride both the bikes (RE & HD) back to back and you will know what I mean.

I know only one thing, that is with Harley will come peace of mind although at a higher price.

It looks more like a choice between getting a Harley now and not having any bike at all for a few months!

Why don't you get the Harley and try it out while you're waiting for your promised RE... you can always sell the Harley as and when the RE becomes available-- if that's what you end up wanting at the time. If you do that, you'll have owned a Harley-Davidson, you'll get the RE virtually for free (with the Harley sale proceeds), and you'll get a bunch of cash along with your new RE (excess of sale proceeds over RE cost).

If you decide to keep the Harley, then... you'll ride a Harley-Davidson!

Thanks Perakath..I think that really solves the problem. The thought of selling the Harley later never crossed my mind. stupid:

Hi MonsterPatrol,

sorry, had not logged in for a few days so just saw your post.

To put it succinctly, go in for the Harley with your eyes closed! :thumbs up

If you never get to ride the RE you would have missed nothing much, compared to what you will get from riding the Harley. The RE is vastly overrated. The Harley on the other hand is a Dream machine and has real mystique, style and charishma. Ownership is an ego boost and a permanent feel good factor.

I wouldn't worry too much about the price difference, since you are going in for a used bike. The pricing has already equalised in the resale market, compared to the new buy. So now, even if you wanted to resell the bike after some time, you would not lose much money.

The only caveat is that you must check the vehicle thoroughly for any problems, defects or malafide reasons for selling.

Go for it!