It is no secret that American motorcycling giant Harley-Davidson has been readying a new offering for India in partnership with leading two-wheeler maker Hero MotoCorp, and now, the first pictures of this new motorcycle have emerged ahead of its debut in 2023. Grainy shots shed light on the design of the new Harley-Davidson motorcycle, which bears the ‘HD 4xx’ name tag, hinting at the presence of a 400-odd cc single-cylinder engine. This motorcycle is understood to have been designed by Harley-Davidson, with Hero taking the lead on the development, testing, and eventually, production. A number of interesting details are visible in the pictures that have surfaced of the bike being tested at the Hero Centre of Innovation and Technology (CIT), in Jaipur.
Given the level of finishing visible in the pictures, the launch of Harley's made-in-India motorcycle seems imminent.
What’s clear straight away is the new motorcycle is not a dyed-in-the-wool cruiser, but is instead in the roadster mould, with its design harking back to that of the XR1200. The bike in the pictures appears to be equipped with all-LED lights, with a circular headlight and turn indicators. There’s a muscular fuel tank, with the bike’s tubular frame partially exposed; the blacked-out exhaust is chunky and the pillion grab rail is seamlessly integrated into the bike’s tail panels. The bike appears to be sizeable in the pictures, and the lack of any kind of camouflage as well as the presence of a saree guard makes it clear that the bike’s debut is imminent.
Circular LED headlight features a horizontal daytime running light incorporating the 'Harley-Davidson' name.
A closer look at some of the details confirms the new Harley motorcycle will have an air-/oil-cooled engine. However, what isn’t clear is if this new engine – expected to be a sub-450 cc mill – is a derivative of the Harley-Davidson Iron 883’s V-twin, or an all-new engine developed by Hero MotoCorp, which is expected to roll out a bigger Xpulse with a 400+ cc engine in the time to come.
The 400-odd cc single-cylinder engine is expected to be tuned for beefy low- and mid-range performance.
On the suspension front, the made-in-India Harley is equipped with an upside down fork at the front (instead of a telescopic fork), and twin piggyback reservoir shock absorbers at the rear. The bike is fitted with Bybre disc brakes front and back (dual-channel ABS will be standard), and features alloy wheels (18-inch at the front and 17-inch at the rear) and Ceat Zoom Cruz tyres, with the rear wheel shod in 140-section rubber.
Digital instrument pod is expected to feature Bluetooth connectivity.
Also seen in the images is an all-digital instrument pod, with the redline marked at 8,000 rpm. This cluster is also expected to pack Bluetooth connectivity for riders to be able to sync their smartphones with the motorcycle.
With its new, made-in-India offering, Harley-Davidson appears to be gunning for Royal Enfield’s Classic 350, which commands the lion’s share of India’s midsize motorcycle market. Given Hero’s involvement, it is likely that this new Harley-Davidson will sport a competitive price tag, and could cost anywhere between Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 3 lakh (ex-showroom), when it reaches showrooms some time in the second half of calendar year 2023.
