Originally Posted by
Scott
If done right, it would be an improved, race-winning EBR with more power, electronics, exhaust that didn't look like it was an afterthought etc.
Your 20K would be getting you one of the rarest, most unique superbikes on the planet. You still might be interested, but they don't need to sell to you or the vast majority of the motorcycling public. They need a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a percent of motorcycle buyers to get started, and they do that by selling the uniqueness. That's how the original Buell started and it worked up until Harley bought them and sucked the life out of them.
In the '70s, BMW's and Ducatis were quirky and couldn't compete with Japanese bikes which had better performance, better reliability, lower prices broader dealer networks etc. But both brands focused on their unique characteristics and marketed to people who paid more for those unique characteristics until both companies grew to the point that they could compete more directly with larger volume bikes.
When you're selling fewer than 1000 hand-built bikes a year, you need to market to people who want a rare, unique, hand-built bike. You don't sell them at a loss hoping demand will eventually increase. That's what killed EBR... twice.