Harley-Davidson has announced that it will move production of its Revolution Max engine platform from Thailand back to its factories in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, reversing a 2024 decision that had angered the machinists’ union.

The move covers the three models currently built around the Revolution Max 1250 and 975T powerplants: the Pan America adventure bike, plus the Sportster S and Nightster sport cruisers. Machining, powertrain assembly, painting, and final assembly will return to Harley-Davidson’s York, Pennsylvania, and Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, facilities. The transition is expected to wrap up before 2027 production begins, so the first American-built Revolution Max bikes should reach dealers as 2028 models. H-D expects to build more than 100,000 motorcycles at York in 2027.

The Revolution Max is a liquid-cooled, 60-degree V-twin engine that The Motor Company first showed publicly at EICMA in November 2019. It was brought to market in the 2021 Pan America, the brand’s first adventure-touring motorcycle. At the introduction, all machining and powertrain assembly took place in Menomonee Falls, with final vehicle assembly in York. The engine was Harley-Davidson’s first liquid-cooled engine since the demise of the Revolution in 2017. The engine was designed to appeal to younger, more performance-oriented buyers.

Harley-Davidson opened its factory in Rayong, Thailand, in 2018, promising at the time that bikes built there would serve only Asian and European markets. In 2024, Harley-Davidson announced it would temporarily shift production of the Revolution Max models to its Thailand plant for the 2025 model year, calling the move a short-term step to free capacity at York for its core Grand American Touring, Softail, and Trike lines.

The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers responded harshly. IAM President Brian Bryant called the move “a kick in the teeth to American workers and a betrayal of the company’s legacy as an American icon.”

The reversal is part of new Harley-Davidson CEO Artie Starrs’ “Back to the Bricks” strategy. Harley-Davidson cited changes to U.S. trade policy under the Trump administration, including new tariff structures that created conditions favoring domestic manufacturing investment. The company said the decision had been in the works for months.

“For more than a century, Harley-Davidson has invested in American manufacturing, skilled workers, and the communities that build our motorcycles,” Harley-Davidson said in a statement. “This move returns machining, powertrain assembly, painting, and final vehicle assembly work to our facilities in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, supporting dozens of additional American manufacturing and union jobs.”

Harley-Davidson Vice President, Special Advisor to the CEO, and Global Brand Ambassador Bill Davidson welcomed the news. Davidson is the great-grandson of co-founder William A. Davidson. “My family has spent generations working in this company, and I’ve seen firsthand the pride, craftsmanship, and hard work that go into building Harley-Davidson motorcycles in America,” Davidson said. “Bringing this work back home is another important step in getting back to the bricks.”

2026 Harley-Davidson models using the Revolution Max engine are the three Pan America 1250s (Special, ST, and Limited), two Nightsters (standard and Special), and the Sportster S.