Team-BHP - Harley-Davidson Street 750 : Official Review

Quote:

Originally Posted by ebonho (Post 3439135)

Too expensive for me bro. I am currently in talks with Ram on a much more "modest" choice price-wise. I have this itch currently which needs scratching ...... P.S. Ram, you have PM man!

If your talking to Ram for a "modest" bike, Iam sure he must be driving you towards an RD 350:D

Anyways, Iam keen to ride the HD 750 which I will at next opportunity and hope it impresses me alteast if not blows me away as the Bonnie did

Quote:

Originally Posted by ebonho (Post 3439135)

P.S. Ram, you have PM man!

Quote:

Originally Posted by mobike008 (Post 3439163)

Doc, saw your PM, will reply shortly

Avi, I am not in the business of selling mirages (a good RD 350 is almost a mirage now - I know of one rebuilt to American spec in the market in Bangalore with an asking price of around INR 400 K, will not be surprised if it goes at that price)

About 750 - I am told that the initial acceleration will indeed blow you away, but I don't know about other aspects.

Best Regards & Ride Safe

Ram

Quote:

Originally Posted by mobike008 (Post 3439098)

Couple of days ago and during one of those rare days, I was riding my bullet to work and for first time ever laid my eyes on a HD Street 750 in person.

It was being ridden by a guy with personality similar to mine. Tall and on heavier side

I followed him for about 5-8kms out of curiosity and i have to admit the bike gave me a mild shock

Dimensions looked really small and looked a bit comic
At the cost of repeating, cost cutting was glaringly evident
Belt drive with no cover on left side of bike looked shoddy
It was purring like a mellowed down cat and no trademark HD soundtrack

With regards to two-up riding. I doubt if pillion would be comfortable even in city, forget about highway rides as pillion seat is almost non-existent (especially if a big guy is sitting at front)

Shubz, I doubt it really. Have you seen the bike in person? Rear seat is almost non-existent.

Either pillion has to be size of a child or rider has to move really front to make the pillion comfortable. Either ways, I personally dont think the rear seat really makes sense for long rides

I think the tallboy seat could help here, but yes I'm having second thoughts now. I've ridden the bike, loved it but dont know how do i look on it. Soundtrack is a small issue but not a major one like the braking. Hope that they come up with ceramic pads and other options. Triumph bonnie could be a brilliant bike but doesnt fit my personal choice and the $$$ too. If I were to move out of the HD stable, I could rather get a Ninja 650 instead.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dustom_99 (Post 3439133)

Was it more comic than bonnies look for 7 odd.lac?
Was the cost cutting more than employing plastic fenders , sidecovers , cheap cycle parts and open loop fi?

Street 750 is a very nice everyday bike and anyone wanting to upgrade from bullet will love it.

I think brakes will improve a lot as they bed in during run in period , else high performance pads will be available shortly.

In the end I think we all hear and see what we want to see, I'm in love with the bike, so I crave for more reassuring and confirming points like possible upgrades in terms of brakes, seats and like. But recently the dilemma started shaping up, Street or sportsters? Coz franky I dont want to move out of HD.

On the topic of the apparent miniature size of the bike(relatively speaking ) , it is not actually small/short . Thing is the engine height in comparison to the 45deg twins is lower and the tank on top is somewhat flat as well , this results in a 3rd person perspective where it appears the rider is on top of the bike rather than behind the fuel tank as is often associated with a cruiser motorcycle .

It is a big motorcycle , similar length as the sportster range but because of its flat side profile , 17" front wheel and mid mounted controls(which results in the knees of taller riders being on a level above the fuel tank lending to the comical/cramped perspective ) , it appears small . The pillion seat and the general profile of the bike tells me it is aimed at medium/short fit men and their size zero girlfriends and not so much at mature riders looking for a serious touring bike .

Btw word on the street forum from a person awaiting his bike is mumbai dealership after delivering 20 so far has put further deliveries on hold after issues with the suspension and fuel injection(which no doubt will be blamed on fuel quality ). Relaying 3rd party info without verifiable source so take this with a massive pinch of salt but at the same time , prospective buyers will be on safer side to verify this before purchase .

Oh boy!

This bike is made for third-world countries so I was under the impression that it can run on whatever normal fuel you get on the highways (91 Octane? I have no clue). Everybody who reviewed it had good things to say about the suspension, so that would be surprising. Harley wouldn't do such a shoddy job unless someone in India missed doing his job and did some last-minute jugaad in the assembly line, which is backfiring now. But better to wait and watch.

Tusker Harley in Bangalore have one test ride bike ready with a sissy bar, so they have asked me to come over with my wife next week. So will ask them how true this rumor is. Am sure they would be the first one to know of any issues.

Aditya, I know about your Black Bruiser, been following it pretty keenly on your thread. I doubt you will find the small Harley as comfortable as the Bonnie given your frame. It is for people my height (5'8"). But test ride it nonetheless.

Sweet thing is, my Bolero and Thunderbird are gone now and I can actually take a decision within this year. Feeling excited.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oreen (Post 3440464)

Oreen and basuroy,

I sure hope you are guys are only kidding :) Do you think a company like HD, Triumph, Kawasaki etc will do some last minute jugaad for something as important as a fuel system? :) Or do you guys seriously think these companies are not aware of the different grades of fuel thats available in India?

So for whatever reasons deliveries are being held up (am not sure if it is actually being held up) - its got to be good news for the existing and prospective customers. :thumbs up

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shubz (Post 3440869)

I have no idea , I was relaying 3rd party info without any verification as I clearly mentioned . I normally won't do that but since there are a few members here in this thread expressing interest in the bike and that comment was made by someone who himself has ordered the bike , I felt it is better if this information is shared here and before reaching a decision , one can make a cursory search for the issue if there is one .

Regarding your question , I don't expect a company whether it is bajaj or harley to intentionally make a decision that will affect engine performance , the FI is from MIKUNI which is reputable brand in my opinion. Personally I don't find fuel injection issues (assuming they are there ) surprising , it is necessarily not a question of octane grade(they told me 91 will do fine) or the bike itself but the quality of fuel as in the extent of adulteration , feeding a high compression engine with fuel that has anything between 5-20% kerosene is inviting trouble/complete disaster .

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oreen (Post 3440932)

Hi Shubz, I wouldn't want to believe that rumor at all. I will be damn sad if it is found to be true.

But you gotta admit, the level of trust for anything manufactured in India is always a couple of notches lower than what we have for something manufactured abroad, no matter the brand.

+1, these are some serious issues and I think they could be some rumors. After researching superlow for so long, I agree Indian manufacturing is couple of notches below the international standards.

I'm still waiting for a genuine ownership report here on Tbhp and also for some mods to counter the quality issues (brake pads, exausts etc.)

Quote:

Originally Posted by abhimanyu_singh (Post 3443109)

Curious to know what quality issues with exhausts we talking about?

Talking of comparison between Street 750 and Superlow - we talking of two bikes of different character.

The XL is completely made in the US and assembled here. While the S750 is made and assembled right here. Yes, there could be a world of difference as the primary target market of 750 is not the same as XL. But I personally don't think its an inferior bike by any means.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shubz (Post 3443137)

My bad Shubz, it means quality and other issues. No quality issues with exaust as such. I'll edit the post.

A drive-by of Street 750.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=no246zaCvGo

Rode it last day. It was
+easier to push and pull ( as in when you wanna park or reverse).
+enough power to make you happy
+peppier than expected
+tyres looks wider/bigger then I expected
+can seat 2 even though seat looks smaller in pix. Holding on to dear life if rider is having fun..thats another story.
+have enough ground clearance; peace of mind
-U turns will be an issue;
-exposed wires/connectors
-engine sounded like it needed a rework (TD bike and hence?)
-no potato potato ( watch video).

Do I suggest? Yes.
Costs 4.7OTR @ Trivandrum