These 3 Harley-Davidson Bikes Have Terrible Resale Value

Resale value is non-negotiable if you're looking to sell or upgrade your motorcycle in the future — after all, you'll want your investment to remain valuable as possible to prospective buyers. Of course, depreciation is ultimately unavoidable even for the best and most popular motorcycles, so what matters is really the extent to which it loses value. While some of that outcome depends on you and your maintenance, it is also largely dependent on the brand and model.

Harley-Davidson's popularity may be declining, but this brand still performs fairly well in the secondhand market thanks to its loyal following. This means that its bikes tend to retain their value longer than some other brands. However, if you look within the Harley-Davidson lineup, you'll find that certain models dwindle in value much faster than others. If you have any of the three bikes discussed here, even the brand name may not save your investment when the time comes to sell it off.

Starting us off is the Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250. First introduced in 2021, the Pan America was a departure from the traditional Harley bike. It was the first adventure bike in the company's lineup, so the model stood out and got a lot of hype, which it was able to live up to in its early years. The Pan America started off successful, but it wasn't able to sustain its momentum.

JD Power notes that in 2022 a new Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250 would have cost you about $19,519. If you were to sell the same bike now, it would only be worth around $9,995 — an approximate 48% decrease in just four years. 

This drop in demand could be the result of a few factors. Besides people getting over the initial hype and ultimately returning to the more conventional options, there were also some quality complaints that arose with the first set of models. Thousands of units suffered defects and were recalled, which likely discouraged buyers from investing in this model down the line.

Electric motorcycles might be gaining some traction, but the demand still doesn't measure up to that of traditional gas-powered bikes and models like the LiveWire have suffered for it. This challenge aside, the 2020 LiveWire also arrived with a hefty price tag that effectively set it on a downward spiral in value. While it initially retailed for $30,149, JD Powers now lists the value of this bike at around $11,410 on average, indicating an incredible 62% loss in value.

That's not to say the LiveWire isn't a good bike. In fact, reviews say it comes with a solid build and competitive performance. However, for most buyers, this isn't enough to justify the cost. Even now that the LiveWire is a separate brand, sales have been notably low. The brand sold just 660 of these bikes in 2023 and 612 in 2024. 

Even worse for anyone trying to recoup some value on an older model, the costliest LiveWire bike now sits at $16,499, nearly half the price of the 2020 model. The company has also offered promotions and discounts on its new models to buyers, making the used LiveWire an even less appealing option.

The Street 750 was a short-lived model. Not because it wasn't affordable or easy to ride, but because of how different it was from the traditional Harley. While it did make a pretty big impact in India, it was ultimately never fully embraced by the U.S. market. In fact, some enthusiasts have even speculated that it was never designed for American riders in the first place.

The Street 750 featured the Revolution X engine, which churned out a top speed of 105 mph. That's not too exciting, although it's worth pointing out that — for a Harley — the Street 750 was quite affordable, with the 2020 model bearing a modest $8,099 price tag. 

While this might have made it a desirable option for those who simply want the Harley-Davidson brand name without investing in an intimidating behemoth, it meant that the bike suffered poor sales in the U.S. and didn't retain value very much down the line. Today, data from JD Power shows that a used 2020 model costs about $4,305 on average, which is nearly 50% less than its original value.