July 23, 2012 3:18 PM PDT
The Police BMWs are without a doubt excellent machines, especially in the environment that the police forces use them in. I don't have any insight to the decision making process that was behind the decision, but I really don't see how it ties back to the discontinuation of the Buell line of even Wendal for that matter.
The Road King was certainly the best bike for the job years back. At the time the Road King was the best choice for a reliable machine that would run forever, but there are a lot more choices out there today that meet that criteria and MORE. Don't get me wrong, I love Road Kings - on my second now with over 200,000 miles between the two and my next bike will be my third Road King. But really if you were choosing a bike that's primary use is stop and go, lots of idling, jumping up to top speed in a short distance, handling and light weight... would you really choose a Road King, or any air-cooled V-Twin for that matter.
I know many police departments are still running Harleys because they always have, but I think more and more you will see them switching over to bikes that are more practical for the job. I would love just as much as anyone to see the police forces continue riding American made motorcycles, but I really can't think of one that would be really practical. If Hartley really wants to stay in that market, which I am not sure how much of a priority that is, they would need to design a touring style air-cooled lightweight motorcycle.
Sorry but we can't blame EVERYTHING on Harley discontinuing Buell.