Harley’s quick-change artist
THE new Harley-Davidson Sport Glide is a quick-change artist, an aggressive factory-custom cruiser outfitted with a detachable fairing and panniers ideally suited for touring, cruising or commuting.
The versatile Sport Glide slips stylishly through city streets and is equally ready for short or long-distance weekend runs.
The ninth model is based on the all-new Harley-Davidson Softail platform and is the latest in a line of 100 high-impact motorcycles the company plans to introduce by 2027, the Sport Glide presents an engaging combination of technology and style.
Designed to be lightweight and stiff, the new Softail chassis underpinning the Sport Glide delivers agility and handling performance, while the rigid-mounted Milwaukee-Eight 107 V-Twin powertrain pumps out a mountain of torque for outstanding acceleration and passing power.
The Sport Glide will be available in three solid colors: Vivid Black, Twisted Cherry and Silver Fortune.
Dave Latz, Harley-Davidson Senior Product Planning Manager said the Sport Glide offers the thrilling dynamic capability of the new Softail platform with features that make it suited for both commuting and light touring. Its factory-custom design speaks to modern performance and contemporary style.
Brad Richards, Harley-Davidson Vice President of Styling and Design, said: ‘ The Sport Glide presents the broad influence of Harley-Davidson design in a very contemporary way. In the new fairing, for example, you can see the influence of the iconic batwing fairing from Harley Touring models, but it’s been trimmed back to create a more compact, sporty shape.
The Sport Glide’s fairing is shaped to deflect wind away from the rider’s chest while leaving his or her head in a clean stream of air. It’s secured to the fork tubes with quick-release clamps, making removal or installation fast and easy.
Riders seeking even more wind protection can exchange the standard 1.5-inch-high windshield for a 5.5-inch Light Smoke Windshield available from Harley-Davidson Genuine Motor Accessories.
The new rigid (and lockable) panniers feature a sleek clamshell design.
They’re easy to load and unload and can be opened with one hand by a seated rider; a damping device allows the lids to open smoothly. Also the bags can be removed in seconds with an internal quick-release mechanism, leaving behind barely visible mounting points. Combined pannier capacity is 1.9 cubic feet (25.5L).
Additional luggage capacity can be added with an accessory sissy bar upright, luggage rack or Tour-Pak mounting rack, each with the all-new HoldFast detachable latch system designed specifically for the new Softail platform. Like the Sport Glide panniers and fairing, HoldFast accessories can be installed or removed in seconds to strip the bike back down to its essential cruiser form.