World Autumn 2018 Soft Sell

SOFT SELL

HARLEY-DAVIDSON INTRODUCES A NEW RANGE OF SOFTAIL MOTORCYCLES THAT HAS SET TONGUES WAGGING. BY RODERICK EIME.

FAT BOY

Here is your H-D leading man. Now buff and taut, with no unnecessary accoutrements, newly svelte Fat Boy wears a tuxedo-trim outfit with the lowest-profile superwide rubber, bobbed rear fender, 1949 Panhead FL-style boulder headlamp and tasteful, sculpted console. Pack the standard 107 or beefcake 114 into your brooding attire and you’re all set to go. ABS standard.

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BELOW: 2018 Harley Davidson Softail Range

FAT BOB Choose between

107ci or 114ci engines in this chunky, unapologetic bad boy, which H-D cheekily describes as “white-knuckle performance with brass-knuckle styling” and “the bike to escape the zombie apocalypse”. Brad Richards admits here is where they “pushed the DNA to the limit”. The sci-fi inspired ‘death ray’ headlight and the warm golden exhaust mufflers set this bike apart. ABS option.

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J

ust as Dyna replaced the FXR Super Glide in the early 90s, so Dyna’s day must come too, and from 2018 the familiar exposed twin rear shocks and rubbermounted Twin Cam 103 engine on H-D’s mid-size machine are no more.

In what some observers have described as “the largest product development project in company history” the outgoing Dyna models like Street Bob and Fat Bob have been seamlessly absorbed into an expanded Softail range that now comprises eight machines, all with the new 107ci Milwaukee-Eight (M8) V-Twin four-valve engine as standard and hard-mounted to the new, lighter, stiffer frame. The bigger 114ci unit is offered as an option on four models.

Why the big shake-up? Well, H-D has stuck its neck out and is claiming to have 100 new models to launch in the next 10 years. While the production process is simplified (read: cost-saving) by less welding, fewer components and lighter materials, the overhaul also includes substantial enhancements to the bikes.

So confident are H-D’s development engineers, they trumpet the reborn Softails as having “phenomenal handling, improved power-to-weight ratio and vehicle competence at a whole new level never reached before”.

WORLD was invited to take H-D up on its claims with some extended test rides and as a result we’ve found it hard to disprove these boasts completely. The Softail entry-point Street Bob, for starters, turned in sharper – without the pegs digging in – and pulled out of the corners smoothly and effortlessly with only moderate throttle application. Confident and satisfying at the same time while the whole bike seemed more focused on putting down the power to the tune of that trademark exhaust note instead of shaking like a mixmaster set to ‘frappe’.

BREAKOUT

Long and low on fat, low-profile tyres, this is the street bruiser that will fill the gap left by the AWOL VROD drag bike. Spiderweb ‘Gasser II’ 20-spoke, 18/21-inch wheels, bright engine contrasted with dark cycle parts. A 13.2l smooth-top tank sits behind a vertical oval headlight between the raked (34-degree) forks. ABS standard, 114ci option.

STREET BOB

“Straightup, two-fists-in-the-wind attitude and no extra fat,” says H-D. This is where Softail starts. It’s pared back bobber-style, blacked out and naked. Rubber fork gaiters, zero dark mini-ape handlebars and big front wheel recalls late 60s choppers, while those sculpted M8 cylinder heads on the 107ci engine are on full display under the minimalist 13.2-litre fuel tank. ABS option.

Bill Davidson

When Harley-Davidson celebrated 100 years Downunder in 2017, (young) Bill Davidson, the great-grandson of the company’s co-founder, William Davidson, was in Australia to help blow out the candles. WORLD was afforded an exclusive interview with the man who really does have Harley-Davidson in his DNA. Here is an excerpt from that interview: Bill, welcome to Australia and congratulations on 100 years and becoming the top-selling road bike brand in Australia.

Thank you.

The other big news around your visit is Harley-Davidson’s commitment to release 100 new models over the next 10 years. How are you going to do that?

We’ve all been working really hard to crank up our product development machine and looking at everything from styling, engineering, manufacturing and cost, so we’re now able to develop these new models much more efficiently than we have in the past.

The other thing we’ve done is go out and listen to customers. For example, the new [750cc, water-cooled] Street Rod we’ve just launched is the result of speaking to more than 3,000 customers and making sure we’re giving them what they want in a motorcycle. We have really engineered this bike to meet the specifications obtained from that data.

DELUXE The gorgeous Deluxe is the sparkling diva of the Softail range. Swathed in gleaming chrome, bedecked with deep valanced fenders, whitewall tyres and a few kilos slimmer, she’s ready for her closeup. This is pure boulevard glamour at its nostalgic best, all to the rousing tune of the M8 big V-Twin playing through shiny two-into-two shorty dual pipes. And those chrome-laced wheels. Swoon.

SOFTAIL SLIM

H-D decks out this model in raw, vintage style, yet retains a modern edge: distinctive ‘Cokecap’ front fender and bobbed rear, along with dark polished finishes, blacked-out fork, engine cylinders and air filter case. Just the single headlight and ‘Hollywood’ handlebars up front with 19l fuel tank and console. ABS option.

LOW RIDER

This 70s throwback recalls when Willie G. and his team mated the Big Twin and Sportster-style front end with lots of chrome for a distinctive look and style. “I’m a Dyna rider, but I can lean this one more,” says chief stylist Brad Richards. The bike sports narrow shortarc front fender, bobbed rear, ninespoke Black Radiate cast wheels with machined highlights, dark cylinder fins, a 19l fuel tank with console and dual tank gauges. Great scope for customisation. ABS option.

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HERITAGE CLASSIC

This one is almost an Elvis tribute. H-D stylist Kirk Rasmussen happily admits to getting his cues from the Harley-Davidson Museum in Milwaukee, starting with the 49 Panhead and going edgy. From the Vegas Elvis, all chrome and whitewalls, we end up in a late-60s comeback version with PD-style windscreen, dual chrome pipes, Hydra-Glide-esque forks, fat tyres, hard-form locking bags and thick, 16-inch wire-spoke wheels.

Looking down the track, where do you see HarleyDavidson, say, 10 years and 100 models later?

Well, I can tell you we’re going to focus on the customer as number one and our philosophies of ‘look, sound and feel’ while supporting our network of excellent dealers and making them a welcoming place for our customers to visit and just hang out if they want.

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