Revolution not evolution
Harley-Davidson have announced that their next new bike – so far known only by its prototype name of 1250 Custom – will be revealed in a matter of weeks. It will be unveiled in a video release involving H-D leadership, product designers and no doubt some trendy custom builders. The project is called ‘From Evolution to Revolution’ which, quite apart from sounding like a quote from Alan Partridge, gives away a lot about the bike.
First up, the ‘From Evolution’ bit: All of Harley-Davidson’s engine platforms – and until very recently, the Sportster model range – were powered by the Evolution engine. With the entry level model to H-D now off sale, it’s clear it’ll want to plug that hole sharpish.
In the same vein, the ‘Revolution’ refers to the new ‘Revolution Max’ engine, which debuted in the recent Pan America. Chances are Harley will have modified it for more torque and a bit less top-end, but we’d still be expecting power over 100bhp, maybe even as much as 120bhp, which would be a considerable leap over the fun, but underpowered, Sportsters. The timing/firing order might have been tickled for a bit more classic Harley sound, too. But the biggest question of all is price. When it debuted, the Pan
America shocked a lot of people with its competitive pricing and we hope H-D will repeat the same trick with the new 1250. Given the price of its major competitors (Triumph Bonneville Bobber and Indian Scout), as well as the outgoing Sportster range, we expect a price of around £10,000-12,000. Get the full story in the July 14 issue of MCN.