EICMA: Go smaller? Harley Davidson launches the Street 500 and 750

It's been something like thirteen years since Harley last showed an all-new model and then two come along at once - The Street 500 and 750 are finally official Harley models.

The new bikes are based on a 60 degree liquid cooled V-Twin that Harley call the Revolution X. It's a modern design derived essentially from the V-Rod and was chosen to keep the overall height of the bike down. Weight is also kept low, with both models coming in at under 500lbs, which makes this the lightest Harley currently sold - An important design feature as Harley see this as a gateway bike for newer riders.

The price reflects that, too. While no firm price was given, the 750 was quoted by one HD executive as being about ‟$1000 less than the Sportster” when it launched in Q2 2014.In other words, about $7,500. That means the 500cc version will be less than $7,000.

The difference between the two models would seem to be in displacement alone. The engine is effectively the same, but with the 750 having a larger bore. As usual, power specs are not on hand, but the 500 was indicated as A2 compliant in Europe, which means about 42hp. As you'd expect with a Harley, final drive is belt.

The overall look of the bike is very urban. Almost completely blacked out, it's simple and will almost certainly lend itself to being heavily customized. The large radiator wasn't popular with many existing HD riders present, but it doesn't look too bad up close and personal and newer riders are far less likely to care.

The bike has been designed for worldwide sales, with all non North American bikes being built in India to reduce costs. It's also, like Project Rushmore bikes, been built with the feedback of their riders, both current and aspirational. As such, expect a lot of catalog parts and custom paint jobs so riders can ‟make it their own"

If they can meet that price point, I suspect Harley are going to sell a lot of these.

Want a closer look? Harley have some videos of the machines below

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