Choppers and bulky bikes with a chrome overdose. If those are the first associations people make when they hear your brand name, it might be time to take action. Especially if you want to target a larger, younger audience.

That’s why Harley-Davidson introduced the Street 750 in 2015. Less heavy, less expensive and less of a Harley cliché. This new approach apparently gained traction, because in 2017 Harley presented the Street Rod. Based on the Street 750, but with a more lively, sportier attitude. I rode the Street Rod for a week.

Baby Harley?

The Harley-Davidson Street Rod has the smallest lung capacity of the entire Harley stable. After the Street 750, it’s also the cheapest Harley out there (starting at $8,699 in the US and € 8.225 in Germany).

Nevertheless, you can’t say the Street Rod is a Baby Harley. Absolutely not. This is a genuine Harley which can pull up next to its bigger brothers without a blush. The built quality leaves little to be desired (the tie-wraps look a bit cheap, and the cabling could be done a bit more decent here and there), there are plenty of Harley logos (up to the Michelin Scorcher tires), and I can’t imagine non-Harley fans loathing things like the beautiful, wide tank and red rear shock absorbers.

So it’s an all-classic Harley? Well no, not entirely. The Street Rod wants to be sportier than the average Milwaukee creation. So the Street 750 got some seriously slogging. Starting with the V-Twin. The 749 cc engine got pumped up considerably, making it climb from 59 Nm and 57 hp to 65 Nm and 68 hp. Harley even dares to put a High Output label on it.

Compared to the 750, the Rod also gets more ground clearance (from 145 mm / 5.7 in. to 205 mm / 8.1 in.), a higher saddle (from 720 mm / 28.3 in. to 765 mm / 30.1 in.), a bigger lean angle (from 28.5 to 37.3 degrees before the left footpeg touches the asphalt) and a sharper rake (from 32 to 27 degrees). Sounds promising? Start your engines!

And then you find yourself not being thrown back to your childhood, when you loudly raced your bike through the streets, a bunch of playing cards in the spokes. Nope, in contrast to earlier Harleys that I tested, the Street Rod sounds rather tame. So be it. Open the throttle and … try to find a good spot to put your feet.

Ergonomics

As Harley tradition dictates, it’s almost impossible to Continue reading →