Harley-Davidson’s Kansas City plant. Photo courtesy of FOX4.
The Kansas City plant was built in 1998 and produces the Sportster, Dyna and Street lines. The Dyna line was killed off and rolled into the new Softail family, while Street line sales have been soft. Closing the plant will cost an estimated $170 to $200 million over the next two years, but is expected to save the Motor Company $65 to $75 million per year after 2020.
Read our First Ride Review of the new 2018 Softails.
In an official statement, Harley CEO Matt Levatich said, “This decision was extremely difficult but necessary under the circumstances. The Kansas City operation–and our employees there–have an impressive tradition of safety, quality, collaboration, and manufacturing leadership. I have profound respect for the men and women in that facility and I thank them and the Kansas City community for their years of support and contribution to serving Harley-Davidson–our dealers–and most importantly, our riders.” According to its Q4 earning report, which was released this morning, Harley’s net income fell 82 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017, compared with a year earlier. Revenue, however, was up, from $1.11 billion to $1.23 billion. The drop in net income was attributed in part to a charge associated with the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and a $29.4 million charge due to its voluntary recall of 57,000 motorcycles earlier in 2017, due to a faulty oil line clamp.
...