HARLEY-DAVIDSON’S plans to drag itself back from the brink have been well known for some time now. Ever since the first patent drawings surfaced in February last year, and then the pre-production prototypes were officially announced by the factory – further technical details around how and where the bikes will be made have been scarce. Until now.
Indian motorcycle website – and fairly reliable source of Asian market automotive news – has reported that one of the new machines from the Milwaukee brand will be a small capacity – 250cc to 500cc air-cooled cruiser that could sell in Asian markets for as little as $4,000.
Obviously, a bike priced that competitively in Asia is sure to pile on some pounds (sterling) by the time it hits our shores, but it does mean new riders, A2 licence particularly, could find a Harley’ sitting in their garage for somewhere around the £5,500 mark.
Another piece of interesting information the website claim is that the bike, powerplant and all, is likely to be built in India. This move makes sense and considering that H-D’s current Street 750 models have their frames assembled in the country, you'd have to assume the relationships and infrastructure to get the project off the ground are also ready to go. You also only have to look at the success that brands like KTM have had with the DUKE range of bikes (some of which are built in partnership with Bajaj in India) and BMW’s G310 range (built and assembled by TVS Motor Company) to see why Harley may choose this as the way to go.
The site also mentions that the new model is likely to be starring at the EICMA show this November - although it also mentions that Harley has declined to comment on the matter as yet.
