ISSUE 175
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Is this the 2021 BRONX?
You know me with my KISS philosophy: Keep It Simple Stupid. Well, with that in mind, here is my take on the 2021 Model Harleys.
https://live.harley-davidson.com/day/1
To me the most visual new bike Harley has to offer is the Street Bob 114. Out with the 107 and in with the 114 M8 engine. Simply put, the Number One paint job coupled with the 114 engine with a Ventilator air cleaner, wire wheels and tiny pillion seat are all old school classic! Enough said, this will be the number one best seller if Harley Australia can get enough to meet demand! And there are plenty of paint options.
https://www.harley-davidson.com/au/en/motorcycles/street-bob.html
But what about the heart throb of all Harleys, the engine. Well evidently, by the fact that the California Air Resources Board has not recertified any new Harley engines as of 29 January 2021, the engines are exactly the same as the 2020s. The 107 M8s are still the only engines in the Softail Standard, Softail Slim and Sport Glide. All others are fitted with the 114, and all CVOs have the 117. Maybe on 22 February that will change with the release of the Pan America adventure bike with its new 1250 Revolution Max modular engine.
https://ww3.arb.ca.gov/msprog/onroad/cert/hmc/2021/2021.php?so=3
https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/owners/engines/crate-engines.html
Now you can read all over the place about the “H-D 21 Global Reveal Virtual Launch” of the new Harleys with a little bit here and there. So let me break it down by model types and what has been revealed by all the sources I can find.
https://live.harley-davidson.com/day/1
Dropped
The most confusing thing about the H-D 21 was, and in fact is, what has been dropped? Well, it depends on the market. In the USA Harley has dropped the Breakout, FXDR 114, plain Low Rider and Deluxe. But in Australia and Europe the Breakout 114 continues. Then, too, the Street production in India (with the exception of a few learner training 500s for the USA dealers), no more 750s will be made. And now Sportsters are listed at H-D.com/au as a “Street model”. The Roadster 1200 was dropped while the Iron 883, Iron 1200 and Forty-Eight continue. Do you remember when the name Dyna was dropped and those owners/lovers were not happy with the name change to Softail…now we have the Street Sportsters! Or do we?
Touring
This too is confusing because you would think all the Touring bikes would get the same updates. But some black and lowered Specials get the option of chrome. Some CVOs get the new sound system but others don’t. Some Tourers get a new fuel filler cap on the right-hand side of the tank and others don’t. So let me lump the Tourers into subcategories and updates:
■ Hydraulic clutches are now replaced by the good, old, easy-to-adjust cable clutches as on the Softail models. To me the new Softails cable is smoother than the Touring hydraulic shift and trouble-free while being easy to adjust.
https://motorbikewriter.com/harley-hydraulic-clutch-recall/
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4o5yW4Nctu4
■ Daymaker LED headlights are now standard on the Road King Special and Street Glide Special.
https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/shop/7-in-Daymaker-Adaptive-LED-Headlamp/p/67700427A
■ Screw-on fuel caps on the right side along with a new tank panel are standard on the Street Glide and Road Glide Specials. The Ultra Limited and CVO Limited keep their fuel doors.
https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/shop/Flush-Mount-Fuel-Cap-and-Gauge-Kit/p/62818-06G
■ Ventilator air cleaners are now stock on the Heritage Classic (no longer classed as a Softail), Road King, Road Glide, and Street Glide Specials. The Ultra Limited has the old M8 style air cleaner while the CVOs do their own thing.
■ Then there is the half-size engine guard for all but the water cooled Limiteds. The only Touring model without a stock engine guard is the Heritage Classic.
https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/tools/get-a-catalog.html
■ One downside to all models is the apparent replacement of the current EFI data port with a new one so that aftermarket race tuners can’t be fitted, for now.
https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/shop/Screamin-Eagle-Pro-Street-Tuner/p/41000008C
■ After that it is all about chrome being available on most bikes as well as the Specials. But not the all-black Low Rider S or Road King Special.
■ And finally, the “Harley-Davidson Audio powered by Rockford Fosgate” is installed on half of the CVOs and is available through the parts catalog for all 1998-2021 model Touring bikes. The standard Boom Box GTS now has wired Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.
https://rockfordfosgate.com/products/selector/motorcycle-kits/
www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFILkUvfzbs
Hardwire 2021-25
This last year under the new Harley CEO Jochen Zeitz has been known as Rewire. Now in 2021, Harley has moved forward with its five-year Hardwire strategic plan. To understand all of this let me summarise Rewire and where the Motor Company says they are going with Hardwire. This really impacts not only The Motor Company but also the dealers and us customers. Rewire was the overhauling of The Motor Company and making it leaner, more aligned organisation while making decisions faster. Rewire included cost cuts, staff reductions, pulling out of some world markets and cancelling several bike models like the 975 Bronx, and finishing with H-D 21 presentation in January. There are two more models coming out this year with the Pan America 1250 in February, and the high performance cruiser (with the name to be confirmed), by year’s end. At the end of the H-D 21 video are five hidden Easter eggs: the Pan Am and Custom 1250 releases; a photo of a new fuel tank with the name Revival; and then hints that new reveals will take place at Daytona Bike Week in March, and of course Sturgis in August. As always there are rumours of the Euro replacement of the Sportster with perhaps a 750 and 975 bike based on the new Pan America modular engine.
