Harley shifts production of U.S.-bound Revolution Max models to Thailand

While Harley-Davidson has long produced motorcycles at factories outside the United States for international markets, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) President Brian Bryant said the move backtracks on a commitment by Harley-Davidson that motorcycles destined to be sold in the United States would be built domestically. 

“This decision undermines the hard work and dedication of IAM members in York, Pennsylvania, and Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, who have been the backbone of Harley-Davidson’s success,” said Bryant.

A Harley-Davidson spokesperson said the company plans "to temporarily transition the production of its non-core Revolution Max powertrain-equipped models" to Thailand for the 2025 model year. The spokesperson said the new strategy “optimizes production capacity for Grand American Touring and other core product segments such as Softail and Trike motorcycles" at the York facility.

The Harley-Davidson spokesperson also said the shift in production “does not have an impact on employment at U.S. facilities” and noted that the company plans to invest $9 million in its U.S. factories to "strengthen our U.S. manufacturing capabilities and capacity for our core products."

To understand the union's assertion, you have to look at the history of H-D’s manufacturing strategy in Thailand. In 2018, the European Union imposed a 25% tax on U.S.-imported motorcycles as retaliation for the Trump administration’s tariffs on aluminum (10%) and steel (25%) imported from Europe. To avoid that import duty, the brand began producing its European models at its Thailand plant in Rayong.

That move coincided with Harley-Davidson announcing the closure of its Kansas City factory in early 2018. According to IAM, 572 union members lost their jobs as a result. While IAM often asserted that the move shipped “jobs to Asia,” the Motor Company always maintained that the Thailand facility was “a separate and unrelated issue.” Nevertheless, those past interactions between H-D and IAM still influence the most recent developments.

“In 2019, nearly 600 IAM members at Harley-Davidson and Syncreon in Kansas City lost their jobs when the company shuttered its facility, claiming that its Thailand plant would only serve the Asian and European markets,” Bryan stated. “Harley-Davidson has backtracked on that promise, planning to manufacture these bikes abroad and send them back to the United States for American consumers.”

In recent years, under the leadership of CEO Jochen Zeitz, Harley-Davidson has put greater focus on selling the more expensive models in its Grand American Touring and Cruiser categories, which the spokesperson referred to as the company's "core product segments," while referring to the Sport and Adventure Touring category motorcycles to be built in Thailand as "non-core." That strategy has been largely successful so far as company profits have remained stable even as unit sales have fluctuated or declined slightly.