ShawnKing,
My bad choice of linking cause/effect. I want more R & D to go into sport-touring rides. It is less likely to be done when manufacturers spend the bulk of their time on the big sellers, a logical move on their part.
Cruisers remain big sellers and are getting bigger--especially in 2008. The Japanese manufacturers have been increasing their touring sales even last year, sometimes by large margins. In addition, I've read accounts that Honda had large focus groups who wanted an out-of-the-box custom cruiser or chopper.
At the same time, touring and sport-touring, like many other platforms, are shrinking. BMW has already said the sport-touring segment is declining, as many of you know who picked up leftover FJRs. As for Honda, they completely ignore us sport-touring on the ST. [You guys in Yamaha have an advantage in that they are at least responsive in some areas: ticking, heat issue, repositioning pegs after 06, etc.]
I still think the Fury will sell better than we sport-touring types think. Time will tell if Honda has labored and brought forth another Rune-joke, or if they will pick up another few thousand cruiser or custom-chopper customers who might otherwise consider H-D.
SilverHound,
You're right, I did mix up the terms: I gotta watch firing off a post too quickly. [i spent too much time getting my sales numbers]. Two points however:
1--I still think a custom or a chopper is much more likely to be of interest to cruiser riders than tourers, sport-tourers, etc.
2--Which brings in negative comments from VTX riders: In a way I would expect that. After all, if one wants to hear critiques --valid and otherwise--about a particular brand of sport-tourer, where else to go but to a sport tourers' website of a competing brand?
