Harley Davidson is set to ship the XR1200 to dealers in Europe, the Middle East and Africa next Spring. If you were thinking it was the kind of Sportster that might get you into your local Harley dealer here in the U.S., put your checkbook away because there is no mention yet of any shipments stateside.
The XR1200 is styled after the XR750, a motorcycle that gained its fame on the flat tracks of the United States but evidently, the Motor Company believes demand for that type of motorcycle isn’t sufficient to introduce it here, at least not yet. This is the first time they have introduced any model in a country other than the U.S. before introducing it here.
The 1200cc Sportster based machine has sport tuned suspension with inverted 43mm forks and ergonomics designed to fit the average height European rider. The wide handlebars work with semi-rearset footrests to give you an upright yet sporty riding position. It also has ample cornering clearance, which is a welcome addition to any HD machine. But none of this matters for U.S. riders because you can’t have it.
It’s easy to criticize the decision but you have to figure, Harley has pretty good statistics on the customers buying their bikes. If they believe it wouldn’t sell here, they may be right. If no one is beating down their doors asking for this kind of bike, why build it, but, were customers in Europe demanding a flat track inspired Sportster?
Customers often don’t know what they want before seeing it. It’s always a gamble to introduce a dramatically different motorcycle but the XR1200 hardly qualifies as dramatically different, a nice change with sporty pretensions perhaps, but still a Sportster.
If you want a flat track styled Sportster, you can find the necessary parts to change the look of your bike from Storz, among others, so the option is still there, however, a full Storz conversion is no cheap date, which is why he recommends going in stages to make it an affordable changeover if that’s an issue.
Personally, I like the flat track look, whether on Sportsters or on the very popular Yamaha XS street tracker conversions but whether it’s popular enough here for this model to succeed is another matter. Do they plan to offer it in the future? They might, but maybe they believe the average Harley Davidson customer in the U.S. wants a cruiser or bagger and these just don’t fit in. Of course, if a lot of potential customers start asking Harley Davidson to sell it here they may listen.
Link: Harley Davidson Great Britain
Related: Storz XR1200 Conversion Street Trackers from Mule Motorcycles
Ron Wood BMW F800 Flat Tracker Moto Carrera Street Trackers
When the HD Sportster Was the Fastest Motorcycle
Tony says
I wonder if this will be offered through aafes (army airforces exchange service)?
Clive M-Sanders says
“Harley davidson, the all american motorcycle, that just happens to be sold exclusively to europeans.”
HotRodTroy says
Now this is about the only Harley I can get excited about. I hope they are reading these posts. Sell it here. PLEASE
PigIron says
TRAK-TEK sells a lot of tasty Sportster parts. I think the best conversions are ones based on the pre-2004 XL’s. A sub-400 pound Sportster is achievable with the stock frame if you work at it.
http://www.trak-tek.com
aaron says
“sport tuned suspension with inverted 43mm forks and ergonomics designed to fit the average height European rider”
maybe the european set up is for a 160lb rider, and HD is still working on getting the set-up right for a 240 pound rider and his 200lb wife….
but if the north american version has a big gulp sized cup holder, I’d think they went a little overboard….
but then, I’ve recently become enamoured with the styling of the vr1000… so what do I know?
akbar says
Hmm, if one wanted a Sportster with handling, wouldn’t you just buy an older Buell? Or, hell, go vintage and buy a real, honest to goodness XR750?
OMMAG says
Yeah right!
The Milwaukee boys know very well that they can’t make a real sport bike…. so they foist another fake onto some unsuspecting Euros.
This will really go a long way toward improving their brand….sarc\
kneeslider says
It will be interesting to see if the upside down forks and rearsets and other pieces show up in the Harley Davidson parts catalog over here. Will they bolt right up to a U.S. spec Sportster if they do?
PigIron says
When I was in high school in the early sixties the big rivalry for street cred was between the Triumph Bonneville and the Harley-Davidson Sportster. The Vincent Black Shadow was purported to be the “world’s fastest motorcyle” but they were pretty scarce on the ground in the US. Both the Norton Atlas and Royal Enfield Interceptor were real stones.
If you preferred handling then the Triumph was the way to go, but if it was a straight drag then the Sportster ruled. The radical street set-ups were Triumph TT Specials, BSA Spitfire Hornets, and the XLCH. They came with straight pipes and no lights but you could register them for the street back then and you wouldn’t get a ticket if you didn’t ride them at night or get on the throttle in a hospital zone.
Contrary to popular belief, the beginning of the end for those traditional muscle-bikes of that era was not the Honda 305 Super Hawk/Street Scrambler or even the CB750. It was the Suzuki X-6 Hustler then the Kawasaki 250/350 Samurai/Avengers and ultimately the 500/750 triples that toppled the old order.
Only the Harley Sportster survived through 2003 but as far as I’m concerned it too bit the dust after the Hogification of the frame occurred in 2004 with the rubber mounting of the engine (and the addition of 60 extra pounds.)
todd says
I saw a nice sportster the other day. It was mostly stock but had clubmans bars and rear sets. I think one could go this route for fairly cheap; the sportster is begging to be cafe’d.
-todd
PigIron says
LOTS of Sporty cafe info:
http://xlforum.net/vbportal/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=5
Dan says
I think that HD has a long memory. Look at this bike side by side to an XLCR and it is only missing the front fairing. Now, XLCR’s go for big $$ on ebay but no one wanted them when they were new. I think that the XR1000 suffered a similar fate. I would get in line for one of those but I think that the typical HD buyer is going to think twice when they see the price. 10000 euros is a little more that $14000 for a sportster. For a comparison of what the manufacturers think that we want compare the lineup of Honda’s UK and US bikes. Honda has a lot of cool bikes that they do not think that US riders want, yet most of their US cruiser lineup is not available in Europe. I hope that HD sees the light soon because I want one, but we will see.
Jeff says
I have always loved the traditional looking Sportster . The XR1200 looks somthing like a late seventies early eighties supersport . One of the reasons I love to ride my XB12R is because of the sportsterish engine and great handling . It’s fun . The XR 1200 it’s cool looking but I wouldn’t buy one . Buell has spoiled me . 🙂
zipi dachimp says
and mert lawwill’s trackers are chopped liver?
http://www.mertlawwill.com
thanks.
Willie Schmitz says
Thanks, PigIron. Nice account of the way things were. Lotta good memories.
Bottom line the Sporty is just to heavy. It’s got the looks and heritage but wrestling it around gets old quick.
Steve H. says
I agree with our respected website host in his view that Harley did their research as to who would buy this bike. The people running the marketing dept. know very well what they are doing, which is one of the reasons Harley is one of the most successful vehicle manufacturers in the world. From my brief experience with The Motor Company from a position in the trenches, I can say they do nothing without extensive Market Return Analysis. They are very good at it. There will need to be alot of noise before they sell that bike here – they are world-class players now.
RobC says
One sentence…
I Want One! 🙂
This combines the HD engine in a fun frame/suspension, a HD that can do twisties! 🙂
Better not wear traditional HD gear though, this baby calls for all the safety gear, because it begs to be pushed to the edge.
Clive M-Sanders says
RobC works for Harleys Marketing dept.
Jeff says
In reference to Mert Lawwill . Now that’s what a street tracker should look like . The new XR1200 doesn’t .
Tanshanomi says
Upside-down forks have standard on sportbikes for a long time now, but to me they still look… well, upside down. Putting ’em on a Sportster is just wrong.
Chris says
hook me up with an XR!
Tanshanomi says
Just a thought, perhaps that cool looking air induction system doesn’t meet US emission/noise regs?
daddyc479 says
if you build it they will come….buyers that is. i’d really like them to build something like the Roehr bike.
justpete says
Tony, I dont thinkthat AAFESS will be able to sell the. I am not 100% sure but because it is a European model we cannot get them. Same with the Pontiac GTO and certain other cars that were developed overseas.I’m sue there might be a way for us GI’s to get a od of oneand bringit back anyway. I will be abe to find out more in a few months when I am back overseas. I like it!!
justpete says
Sorry about all the spelling errors. I wasn’t paying attention when I submitted that.
Tim says
I sure hope they get to this part of the world. Ive told our local dealer I really like it, and he told me he wants one also.
I just like the idea of an HD that you can get your knee down on, without following it with the rest of your anatomy….
Ricky Bean says
Hiya All!
I’ve been wanting to build a Harley flattracker for years, to me the XR 750 is one of the best looking bikes ever built. But over here in England, XR 750 motors are as rare as hens teeth. So I couldn’t believe it when I saw the posters for the new XR 1200 in our local Harley dealer. A few weeks later, Harleyworld, Chesterfield, had what i’m lead to believe was the only XR 1200 prototype, in the country, in their shop. I went and had a look, and listen, (no test rides allowed unfortunately!), and sat on it in the car park. I was sold! I put my £100 deposit down and wait in anticipation, for next spring when it’s due to arrive. The price has been capped at £7900. Considering the crappy weather we’ve had this year, waiting until next year isn’t such a pain. I’ve already made space in my garage for it, right next to my Heritage. It does sound different to any Harley I’ve heard though, maybe it’s the fuel injection, or the restrictive exhausts ( which will have to go!), but it sounds more like an enduro bike, and riding (well sitting!) position reminded me so much of the old Kawi Z 900’s.
I can’t believe I’ve heard it’s not gonna be released in America. The home of Flattrack racing! It sounds stupid to me, and i’m sure they’d sell thousands. I’d be suprised if there wasn’t a national XR1200 race series, similar to the 883 series too.
Cheers
Ricky~~~~~~>