Restructuring Expense (Narrative) (Detail) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended							1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended	1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013	Mar. 30, 2014 Motorcycles [Member]	Mar. 31, 2013 Motorcycles [Member]	Mar. 30, 2014 2011 Restructuring Plan [Member] employee	Mar. 30, 2014 Original 2011 Restructuring Plan [Member] employee	Mar. 30, 2014 Two Thousand And Eleven New Castalloy Restructuring Plan [Member] employee	Feb. 28, 2011 Two Thousand And Eleven Kansas City Restructuring Plan [Member]	Mar. 30, 2014 Two Thousand And Eleven Kansas City Restructuring Plan [Member] employee	Sep. 30, 2010 2010 Restructuring Plan [Member] agreement	Mar. 30, 2014 2010 Restructuring Plan [Member]	Mar. 30, 2014 2009 Restructuring Plan [Member]	Mar. 30, 2014 2009 Restructuring Plan [Member] Production [Member] employee	Mar. 31, 2013 2009 Restructuring Plan [Member] Motorcycles [Member]	Mar. 30, 2014 2009 Restructuring Plan [Member] Motorcycles [Member] Non-Production [Member] employee	Mar. 30, 2014 2009 Restructuring Plan [Member] Financial Services [Member] Salaried [Member] employee	Mar. 30, 2014 Tomahawk Facilities [Member] 2010 Restructuring Plan [Member] employee	Mar. 30, 2014 Milwaukee Facilities [Member] 2010 Restructuring Plan [Member] employee
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2014
Estimated reduction in workforce					100	200			145				2,900		800	100	75	250
Restructuring expense	$ 0	$ 2,938	$ 0	$ 2,938			$ 22,100		$ 6,000		$ 59,200	$ 393,800		$ 638
Restructuring and Related Cost, Expected Number Of Workforce Positions Retained							100
Non-cash charges							35.00%					30.00%
Labor agreement period (in years)								7 years		7 years
Cost incurred to date, non-cash									10.00%		45.00%
Number of labor agreements										3