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Today I found out Harley dabbled with the V4, water cooling, over head cams and fuel injection early on. Left a lot of innovation on the table there.

I remember Nova being shelved. I also remember the then president of Kawasaki USA operations speaking about the tariff. He said (paraphrased) 'I don't care about the 5% of the market that Harley wants protection for. I am interested in the 95% of the market for large displacement bikes that Harley isn't interested in.'

Off topic a bit, but I've been watching motorcycle related channels on KZfaq for a long...long...time. However in recent years I've grown bored with the same old, same old and haven't watched as much. Then, I found your channel. You are speaking my language. Love it. Keep doing what you're doing.

This is cool. It's the first video I've seen on the Nova engine project. A modular engine family of advanced, ohc engines of 2 to 6 cylinders in vee formation, it would've given H-D something they hadn't had for years: Relevance. They would've been right on the sharp end of motorcycle development. Sadly, they chose to be like the once brilliant and extremely influential Beach Boys and be a nostalgia act.

AMF-Harley-Davidson spent between $10M and $15M on the Nova project, it's modular powerplants were planned to be offered in three capacities, 500cc V-twins, 1000cc V-fours and 1500cc V-sixes. Only ten complete and running Nova powered machines were ever built. The Nova project is another case of "If only" for Harley-Davidson.

Porsche was never really just a car manufacturer, it started off as and continued to be an engineering design consultancy. Ferdinand Porsche designed the Volkswagen under Hitler's direction based on the Tatras that Der Fuhrer had seen when he had been shown around the factory in the mid-'30s. In the late-'50s the company was employed by Studebaker to design a car (which never came to fruition) at the urging of then-Studebaker chief engineer John DeLorean. Then in the 1970s Audi employed them to design a sports coupe. This project was rejected by Audi in the end because the company was a manufacturer of front-wheel drive cars by definition and Porsche had presented them with a rear-wheel drive coupe with the gearbox in unit with the rear axle. In fact, the engine was the only part of the car from the VW/Audi parts bin. Nonetheless, Porsche decided to produce it themselves as the 924 and Audi gave the 80 (Fox in the US) a two-door bodyshell and called it the Audi Coupe. At the time Harley was working with them, they were making more money from their consultancy work than from their cars.

When AMF sold HD the first thing that the new owners did was to get new CNC machines from Cincinnati Milacron. They had to prove to the bankers that they were serious about improving their quality. Only after they did that did they go to Washington for help. Story was that Reagan wanted nothing to do with a motorcycle company closely identified with outlaw bikers but after Vaughn Beals met with him the tariffs were imposed. HD scored more points by asking for the tariffs to be lifted ahead of schedule, since mainstream motorcycle magazines like Cycle had given positive reviews of the new Softail and Low Rider models.

You can see a Nova model in the Harley museum in Milwaukee Wisconsin. I took pictures and wondered why they didn’t go into production,this video explains why.

The business book "Well Made in America: Lessons from Harley-Davidson on Being the Best" talks about the turnaround. Vaughn Beals CEO was the brains behind the buy out and turnaround. HD was three days from closing when Beals negotiated bank loans and put all of HD's assets up as collateral. To quote the books summary, "Partly because AMF was unwilling to invest in the company, in 1981, Beals and 12 other investors, including Willie G. Davidson, initiated a highly leveraged $80 million buy out of Harley-Davidson that took the company private at the equivalent of 25 cents per share. After touring several Japanese motorcycle plants, Beals concluded that Harley-Davidson's problems were not foreign imports, but rather the company's own mismanagement. As a result, he initiated the use of just-in-time delivery, TQC - Total Quality Control, and automated MRP along with streamlining manufacturing operations, after seeing these practices in use at the Honda Marysville Motorcycle Plant in Ohio." So Honda may have played a part in saving Harley (from itself).

Yes, and thanks to Erik Buell as well👍

The REAL REASON PROJECT NOVA WAS KILLED was not to focus on tariff protection but poor timing. If the Nova project had proceeded as planned, the first bikes would have hit the showroom around 1983 to 1985. But since Honda released the Magna & Sabre (with liquid cooled V4 engines) in 1982, Harley couldn't take the chance that the Nova would be seen as a "me too" product. And since the Honda V4 engines were excellent (If you've ever ridden a V65, you know what I mean.), the Nova would have looked even worse if it wasn't even better than the Hondas. This video does deserve credit, it has a lot of good information that isn't widely known outside of Milwaukee.

Top shelf Bart. I didn't know about Nova.....Was always into Honda Fours ..had a brand new 79 dohc CB 750 SS at the time.

My thought was WHY didn’t HD continue to build their Heritage bikes but also build sport bikes to compete against the Japanese bikes. I wasn’t aware that Porsche was involved in the Nova project, but have always felt HD missed the mark in not building the V-Rod as a V4 rather than a V twin. Vehicle manufacturers survive and prosper by building what the public wants or they go out of business.

Suuuuuuper interesting video! I had no idea these existed. The fairing is the only thing that dates those concept bikes as its shape was carried on. Hagerty revelations has a great video on the Porsche 924/944 which goes over how much co-engineering the company does for other manufacturers. Very cool to hear about it here!

I figured you would have mentioned the Harley VRod. Porsche had there hands in that project too.

They should build this model today😎

The problem with HD is that the styling department has the final say in everything. Harley has engineers that are as good as anybody's, but the styling department vetoes everything they design if it doesn't look like, sound like and feel exactly like something from the 1930s. Other motorcycle companies put the engineering department in charge, which makes sense if you think of your products as machines designed to do something as well as possible, as opposed to being something to look at.

What a real shame Nova never happened

I knew nothing of this. Thanks so much!

I love how the exhaust is routed, it kind of gives you the dual-cradle frame shape

When talking about prices of motorcycles you have to remember that since the 1970s prices have gone up 10 times and wages have gone up four. When I was a kid and I made $2 an hour gasoline was $0.33 a gallon. When I was in high school to minimum wage was 235 an hour and a gallon of gas was a dollar 65. He phony energy crisis cost inflation that totally destroyed the buying power of the money that you made.

Imagine the Buells with a real motor like this

This is so cool I didn't know anything about this secret bike wow with Porsche Made engines and transmissions that's so cool

Another better vid by Bart. Thanks Bart that was great and very educational. Cheers

Terrific project. I knew about the Nova project from the presentation of the sportster size model, but never have I heard it all put together so well. Thanks.

In the 80s, the Japanese companies were dumping motorcycles in the U.S. market, selling them below cost in many instances, in order to break Harley and put their own bikes into the market, after which point, with the market secured, prices would be raised. Harley made a fair argument against it, won in court, and the Reagan admin started levying tariffs on the Japanese bikes. This didn't stop H-D from shooting themselves in the foot and continuing the heritage theme, which faded in popularity as their core clientele aged and younger buyers started sizing up their bikes. The one thing Harley did have, was riding ergonomics; the seats are low to the ground and make the bikes easier to handle at low speed, and the riding position's really comfortable on the road. And they looked good. But it wasn't enough.

For the most part, it can be said "If there is a way to mess up an advance design, put Harley on the Team and they will absolutely screw it up". This bike would have been an outstanding product but digressed back to their only thought process, Cruiser Only Design. They tried to fix their move later when they designed the V-rod, but again they placed an outstanding sports bike engine on a cruiser bike. It didn't handle at all, it could stop, eventually, and was about as comfortable as a bed of nails. It was also hobbled by it's stratospheric price and try to put up against the King, Yamaha V-Max. Sorry the V-Max would blow it away in performance, plus it had acceptable handling, top it off it actually was much more comfortable, all at practically half the cost. Then again about a decade after that, they released their 500-750 line, again a good engine hobbled with dismal cruiser set-up. That also was a dismal failure. The only way HD will survive is after their current leadership retires, or take that long dirt nap and someone takes charge that grasps that motorcycles are more than just based off of a cruiser layout. Their Adventure bike and their e-bike will sell a handful and that is about it, neither has any real qualities that will match their stratospheric price tag.

7:09 Are we looking at a front perimeter brake years before Buell?.......or maybe that's just a Nova bike that Erik Buell worked on while he was a Harley engineer? The fairings don't look painted, but overall the bike seems to be of the era.....

“Could have changed history forever” - a bit over dramatic there I think as they did eventually release a Porsche engineered bike in the V-Rod and it’s had limited global success because they could not help themselves and made it a feet forward cruiser. Triumph, Royal Enfield and BMW have shown how to compete and grow on the world stage by making motorcycles that don’t just pander to their traditional customers but have a global presence with a diversified range of bikes to truly compete with the Japanese. The Chinese are making inroads and will be a force going forward yet Harley still carries on churning out the same basic (and expensive) bike dressed up ten different ways year after year. It’s so sad and so frustrating.

In '79 the Motor Company hired a man from England, he designed the Norton Commando motor and he saved Harley by designing the Evolution motor, it's bulletproof.

How many did they build you showed a bunch of different ones they don’t need em all in a museum I need one of these

Great info. Did not know about Nova. But that is how Hardly Desirable is run.

Thank you 👍 didn't know it!!

The Nova touring bike looks cool. I owned a Buell XB 9r, it was a great bike……..what could have been.

One thing riders have demanded, and loved about Harley, is the low seating position. Around the time of the Nova project, putting the fuel tank under the seat whereby raising the seat height was something that many riders just wouldn't accept. Motorcycle historians often overlook this point, not giving credit to how important this was/is in the marketing of a new design.

Let's say Harley did make the Nova, and it was released in 81. By 83, Yamaha had the Venture touring bike with 115 HP V4, that later would go into the V-max. And Honda had the V65 Sabre and Magna V4s. I think Suzuki had a V4 cruiser also. I'm not sure if it would have been so easy for Harley to compete.

I have had 6, and I went backwards this time. I went from an 07 Softail to an 81 FLT. Love it. Wish I had got this old AMF bike first.

If only these bikes could have been made as production models.

Is it just me or is the design way ahead of its time? That looks nothing like a late 70s bike. the lack of chrome (apart from the engine), the dark silver body colour, the smooth lines, those 3 spoke wheels, almost looks like something from the early 2000s to me

I remember that era well as 1978 was when I bought the Lowrider model, which I still have. Would have love to see the Nova happen.

Most are not aware that Harley was contracted by Honda to teach them how to mass produce motorcycles early on.

It reminds me of the Ducati Appollo

Thumb's up! I was completely unaware of that "path not taken" by Harley.

Still love the look of the FXRT fairing.

First, if AMF hadn't bought HD in '69, there would be no HD. AMF dumped loads of money into the company and did all they could to keep their civil contracts going and keeping bikes in production, sadly the 70's were well known for labor strife, and harley was no different, their own workers were damaging the brand at times. Now if the nova had been released by 1982 they may have gained a market and also gotten a jump on the Japanese but under new management the company decided to push heritage rather than innovation. At least they saved the EVO and put it into production, as well as the rubber mounted isolated engine chassis. The Evo luckily ended up being the best engine they ever produced, the twin cam was a step backward in longevity, but at least gave the aftermarket a big push developing all the cam drive fixes. Redesigning the Sportster was also a very good move, and the old iron engine was awful. I've also seen pictures of an inline four mockup they were considering, but I never heard it going anywhere beyond a model.

The V-Rod IS project Nova. It's an HD/Porsche collaboration.

Everyone bangs AMF, but the best designs came out of those years. Some designs still in use today.

Very interesting

I would definitely have considered the Nova bike. That was right after I bought my first BMW. Obviously, I dodged a bullet. The Nova would have become a bastard child with the "new" HD management. As you pointed out, HD had an ethos that was not going to go away, but would grow and metastasize into the gigantic chrome fat dude haulers they were already known for. Five BMWs and over 500K miles later, your video confirms that it was never going to be otherwise. Terrific channel, and I ordered the Raycon's. Hope you're right there, too :)

I think the main issue with Harley Davidson is that they ended up creating such a niche style of bike and then convinced a whole nation that real Americans ride HD,and this is what HD look like, that now they're stuck in a massive hole that they can't dig their way out of.

Your video explains perfectly why I have owned 3 Porsches and have never owned a Harley Davidson.

It's interesting how a few decades later Porsche returned to H-D to help develop the V rod.

I have never been interested in owning a Harley (have owned Honda, Suzuki, Kaw bikes) but I think I would have seriously looked at the Nova. HD should have built it along with their traditional platforms.

I say again, the biggest problem with Harley. Is the Harley customers that want 1940s tech. Harley has chased that same customer as they get older and older, and soon they will die. At some point they are actually going to have to find some new customers. This bike sounds cutting edge (even though it's still hiding things like the radiator, and making fake fins.) and it's a shame it never came out.

Having owned a V4 Honda Magna (my first bike), i researched the big V4's prior to buying (1988) and the myth, the legend, Project Nova came to my attention. I understand Harley had a decision to make, and Nova was shelved. Honda Came out w the V-65 Magna, Yamaha, the V-Max, and Royal Star , and Suzuki the Madura. So they (HD) blew it, depending on who you talk to, but they did finally wise up and collab w Porsche fir the VRod, a bike I love. I would still love to see a Nova up close and personal. They made the right choice. HD riders are a strange lot, and probably would have ignored the bike, just like so many did w the VRod.

Under the development name “Revolution Engine”, in 2002 development partner Porsche Engineering developed a new V2 engine for the “V-Rod” model of the American motorcycle manufacturer Harley-Davidson.Against the backdrop of a collaboration stretching back to the 1970s, the Porsche engineers constructed a water-cooled 1,131 cc motor based on a racing engine that delighted Harley-Davidson's demanding clientele both for its performance as well as its imposing sound. With a DOHC valvetrain and electronically controlled fuel injection, the VRSC-series Harley with its four-valve engine put out up to 120 hp.

Yet again you sell Erik Buell short, he had a part in the design of this bike along with the fxr. I suggest you take a deep look at how he tried to innovate HD and later his own company and was constantly strangled by them at every turn.

You're forgetting the Kawasaki KZ-1300, which put out 120 hp in 1979, and the Z1-R TC, which was good for 130 hp in 1978-79.

Very interesting stuff Bart.

Excellent video brother, your knowledge is highly appreciated. God bless.

Another excellent video Bart.🔥💯

Kinda expected you to end up the video by talking about the V-Rod bikes which basically were the final stage of Project Nova. Porsche-built 1000cc watercooled V-twin under Harley license, made from 2002 till around 2018 (when they were selling out remaining stock) and a fairly successful bike with it’s own niche customer base.

Fast forward to building the VROD: Harley: hey Porsche, can you help us? Porsche: well, well, well... Look who comes crawling back 😎

Bart This project was not so secret in the 70’s, i recall it very well, the proposals brought out the usual partisans who thought any change to a Harley was a sacrilege and the world as we knew it would end. Others, like me thought that the collaboration with Porsche would probably produce a fantastic engine. I can remember, I think, Cycle World, even test riding a prototype. The weird styling we didn’t worry about much because we trusted that the market would force a rethink. What was secret was what happened next. It all seemed to disappear without trace around the time of the ‘coup’ when armed executives marched on headquarters and lynched AMF’s Ceo., No, not really, but we then heard nothing more until years later when the ‘rod’ series arrived and we all assumed it was the Porsche connection that finally happened. Good story.

I've got a feeling that, somehow, Motus were the kind of motorcycles that could evolve in America from what we may call the "Nova mentality", if that project wasn't shelved. Now Nova Project is dead and so is the interesting Motus and I guess the Power Plus liquid platform from Indian is the most modern thing one can expect from a American motorcycle manufacturer without too much increase of RPM to reach big torque. By doing so, that Indian motor perhaps keeps 'some' traditional American feeling on a contemporary technological context. On the other hand, at least on the paper, Harley's Revolution Max is too sporty (revving too high to deliver power and torque) to have legit and traditional cruiser or bagger feeling (and credits) to their machines. Anyway... Just some thoughts... Peace from Brazil. ✌

You forgot to mention the V Rod… which was a reboot of project nova. Porsche designed liquid cooled engine with the gas tank under the seat. Also, the nova bikes were V4s… not V twins. Hence the 4 exhaust pipes.

At the time of the managment buyback from AMF in June of 1981, the Nova V4 was still around a year away from production. At that same time they saw the testing and introduction of the Honda V45 Sabre and Magna, making 82 HP from a 748cc 16 valve V4 engine to be introduced for the 1982 model year. The sleek V45 put the nail in the coffin for the Nova, and the decision to move forward with the traditional style Harley EVO V-twin instead. It was a good and much less risky move on Vaughn Beals/Willie G Davidson's parts.

The V-Rod motor screamed to be in a sport bike AND a sport touring bike but we are dealing with HD. If it does not fit the image they won't touch it no matter how good the idea is.

Wow, I want one of these bikes!! Even if they made it a air-cooled version of this engine, or oil/air cooled, heck they should have at least started another division, still sell this bike, the sporty looking bike was awesome looking, they could have called it Nova Cycles a Harley Davidson division, I believe it would been a timeless bike, age very well,. I have a old Yamaha, it looks dorky to some extent, some things just do not age well, looks out of place with time, the nova looked like it would been a awesome bike, I love building things, and it would be awesome to build a bike that looked like that, the false tank with the scoops just look great with the smoothe curves!

Amazing ! Pity they couldn't have followed through on those designs

Always interesting content. Thanks.

Road cruisers. Need it for them long straight US roads.

LOL at the spoiled Great Dane. Great video as always. Thanks.

You forgot in 1979 Kawasaki built the kz1300. Inline 6. That was 120 horsepower, and 88 ft lb of torque. The Honda cbx was a great bike of but it was 1000 cc it wasn't as fast as the kz1100, or the Suzuki 1100 katana or the Yamaha SX 1100.

The XR1200 was definitely ahead at the time and the definitely should have kept Buell.

Your videos are excellent and your voice and personality are terrific.

It seems like every time Harley comes up with some new engine, it never catches on. I wonder how long the new engine will last.

Leather and tassels... LMAO! 🥸👍🏻🤣

Instead of looking at this lost opportunity as Harley myopia, an important facet to this decision was mentioned but not explored. Harley didn't have the capital to take this chance, period; Vaughn Beals had just leveraged any and all available funding sources to buy the company from AMF. Comparing Harley with Honda in this regard overlooks that Harley was pretty much insolvent; Honda most certainly was not.

1978 My friend had a Kawasaki 1100 LTD and spent a ton on it with after market parts and that thing was a Monster! He got the bug and Bought a new 78 Wideglide and that was nothing but a POS! The factory replaced the Motor twice and It still had issues. he finally sold it and bought another one in 1989 and rode it for a long time! But man that 78 was a Lemon!

Bought a new Yamaha 750 special, in 78, my first new vehicle ever. It was ok, a couple yrs in, 2nd gear went out. Just rode and skipped over it, it ran fine.

Awesome video. Thanks!

There's a scene in a Simpsons episode where the old folks take control of Springfield. The final scene has them standing at the door of the retirement home , able to do what ever they like, and one says: "I'm scared ,let's watch TV" and they all go back inside. That's HD and all the modern engines they paid money to companies like Porsche to design. When it came to putting them in bikes , someone said: "I'm scared ,let's continue chasing the Pirate Cosplay market , with 1930's designs."

What many people don't realize is, that HD was an inovative brand for a long time. When the knucklehead came out in 1936 it was considered a superbike. Overhead valve technology, 4 speed transmission, a full circulating oil system, the thing was hitting speeds above 100mph (if you were brave enough). It was so future-tech, that many people were afraid to get one, because they did not know if it even was reliable, because nothing like that has ever existed. It would have been in Will Harleys spirit to release a bike like that, he always pushed the limits of what was possible, and his engine designe was so good that the moco basically used it until 69. I don't know why they didn't used those bikes personally. My best bet is, that they wanted to preserve the culture their bikes built, which is nice, because I myself embrace classic harleys. I own several and I don't want to ride anything else ever. I just love my obscure old machinery and if I can't ride my classic pre 1984 HDs I just might not ride anything at all. That beeing said they kinda dug their own grave. People buy a harley, because the want to ride the platonic harley. Everybody who wants, a performance bike just doesn't buy a harley and whenever harley wants to reach out and try something new people are like ''thats no harley'' and shit on the moco. So nobody wants them because they generate no power and those who want them, want no power because somehow its no harley then. I honestly hope HD reinvent themselves soon, because thats the way Harley intended them to be in the first place. For all those who still want a ''real harley'' guess what, there was no single ''real harley'' built since 1984, so I would suggest if you want a real harley you buy a shovelhead and you start becoming a real biker, that means you learn about you bike an start fixing it yourself. Real harleys need real bikers, and you most certainly don't become one by buying a $800 jacket, some bike thats an empty shell of what tries to mimic and going to the dealer whenever the oillight switches on.

I love the exhaust😎

Somewhere in a cardboard box in storage, I have a smuggled picture of a Nova prototype. Harley was right to end the Nova project - no matter how good it was, it would not sell to the Harley faithful, and it wouldn’t sell to anybody else because it was a Harley. The V Rod was disappointing too, in part, because the 60° V-twin didn’t sound right.

Wow that was some bike! I remember in the early seventies when us teenagers rode mini bikes a small motorcycles, On vacated lots, one kid had like a HD 125 2 stroke scrambler type bike. Probably a AMF Harley one, that sound just like a vacuum cleaner.

It’d be very difficult for harley to compete head to head with the competition when the competition can design and build their own cutting edge engines and harley has to outsource that aspect to another company.

Thanks - My opinion of AMF went up a notch

AMF saved Harley. Later on Willie G. added styling which boosted sales. However to say that AMF was just a bowling equipment manufacturer is a ridiculous statement. Get it together! By the way I bought a,79 Harley. GREAT BIKE. BOUGHT NEW.

Nova didn't disappear completely. The cosmetics like fairing and saddlebags went to FXR line, and as of the engine.... Does VRod look familiar ( though it's 2 cyl)?

“It turns out Harley was actually ahead of its time with … FAKE FINS.“😂 I had to stop the video and comment. This is killing me .

Harley could revisit this idea.

Well, you get an engine design from the 1940's that just plain works. Figure the speed limits on nearly 100% of our freeways being 75 miles per hour, with traffic going 85 typically. A Harley 883 can easily maintain that with ease, and even go 90 for passing. It rides smooth, has the perfect feel, and is considered among one of the best beginner-safe motorcycles. What is there left to fix? Nothing, really.

I guess you could say that Harley made the right choice going with the Evo? I guess? I wish they had went the other route and pushed innovation with technology and performance. Maybe they wouldn’t be struggling to build a reliable modern motorcycle that actually starts and runs and struggling to get 90hp from a liter bike?

The Super Cruiser that should have been...

Ducati had a v4 in the early 1960s!

A huge mistake. This could have been such a cool bike

Harley teamed up with Porsche to develop the V Rod range