Harley-Davidson of NYC Retakes Manhattan

By Bud Wilkinson of RIDE-CT.com

After an absence of nearly 27 years, Harley-Davidson of New York City is retaking Manhattan. Originally located there, the dealership moved to Long Island City, Queens in 1986, while maintaining a retail outlet for clothing on Lexington Ave.  Now, it’s adding a second complete store at 374-378 Broadway in Tribeca.

A grand opening party dubbed “Black Tie/Black Leather” for what will now be its flagship store is planned for next Thursday night from 7 to 11 p.m. Click here to get tickets.

The new two-level store will feature an 11,500-square foot showroom, a coffee bar (pictured below), a 16-monitor display wall, and a “dynamic glass bike lift” suspended from the ceiling.

The dealership will also have the first “Harley-Davidson Powerwall,” which has two multi-touch kiosks that “allow customers to design, view and save their custom bikes on a movie-sized display, instantly,” according to a press release.

Another distinguishing feature of Harley-Davidson of NYC is dealer-specific models. It plans to introduce its own line of Harleys that will bear the dealership’s logo (at left), which recalls subway tokens of the past and pays homage “to the spirit of New York itself: glamorous, tough and urban.”

The logo is not only displayed on six different models of Harley-Davidson motorcycles, but is available on apparel as well.

 

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The co-host of HGTV’s “Curb Appeal,” Bill Beckwith, was struck and killed while riding his motorcycle in San Francisco’s Lower Haight neighborhood on Monday night.

The 38-year-old contractor and carpenter was a native of Maine and graduate of the University of Montana. He founded the San Francisco company BB design Build, which specialized in cabinetry and finish work, in 2001. The “San Francisco Chronicle” has more info here.

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BMW is recalling nearly 2,500 of its 2012 K1600 GT and K1600 GTL models for a defective engine control unit that can cause the bikes to unexpectedly stall. Owners will be notified and dealers will modify throttle control software free of charge to fix the glitch.

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Harley-Davidson has opened its first dealership in Vietnam. A showroom in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) opened Saturday, one day before the government lifted a ban on riding motorcycles of more than 175cc. The price of an 883cc Sportster is VND336 million, or $16,000 U.S. Another showroom is expected to open in Hanoi next year. Thanh Nien News has more info here.