https://www.hdforums.com/articles/op...street-750500/

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After looking at & sitting on one they reminded me of the old CB500.

 

First thing that came to mind when I saw the first one,cheap POS. Since that first site,it has grown on me a little. Not enough that I want one though. Overall not a bad bike but some small and very inexpensive fixes. The exposed wiring on the neck and part of backbone are a disgrace The horn and bracket, well you have seen it right. Both of these are cheap fixes and r&d at Harley should not have let that slip.

 

I'll always have a soft spot for it because it was the bike I learned on. But that was also enough of an experience to know that I'd never buy one.

 

Earlier this year I purchased my first HD, I hadn't been on a bike in 20+ years so I asked the dealer to include with the purchase the rider training course as a refresher.

The dealership had just received 10 or 12 new, never ridden 500's for which I spent (2) full days riding on, putting one through its paces, at least up to shifting into 3rd gear (approximately 40 MPH).

I have to say they do run cool, handle well and provide some very adequate braking power, (I won the shortest braking distance award). I really like the look and feel of the bike, to be honest it was a hoot to ride.

I am sure that HD will have a full line of customizing parts to allow the owner to modify to their liking, which is something the metric producers don't have OEM parts for customization.

 

Many of us old timers remember the small displacement Harley-Davidson motorcycles that existed up until the late 1970's when AMF sold Harley's financial owership stake in Aermacchi that was producing these motorcycles for Harley-Davidson. These motorcycles didn't recieve a lot of sales here in the US because, well, they were made in Italy for one thing and many were 2-strokes. With the loss of these Harley's that historically had been from 50cc to 350cc typically, Harley lost the small displacement motorcycle market. Later Harley teamed with Buell but a Buell was still a Buell and not a Harley either.

For years I've lamented that Harley Davidson didn't offer any motorcycle smaller than the Sportster. As a rider I'd learned on smaller motorcycles stating and it was several years before I graduated to a 500cc plus motorcycle. We need to remember that a 500cc motorcycle is not a "small" motorcycle historically nor is it a small motorcycle today. Over the years we've had "displacement inflation" and the 103cid (1687cc) and 110cid (1803cc) Harley's are stock motorcyles today. The S&S 145cid(2376xx) engine is commonly used custom motorcycles today. These are literally "automotive" size engines if we compare them to small car engines both past and present.

When Harley announced the Street 500 and 750 it was exciting news because finally Harley was addressing a "medium" size, by today's standards, motorcycle for the market. The decision to base this motorcycle on the proven engine design of the Revolution engine was also an excellent choice. While I was glad that Harley Davidson was bringing back a really good medium size motorcycle I had no personal interest in owning one being very happy with my XL50 Sportster that met all of my riding needs. Times and circumstances change and as it turned out the Street 750 happened became a motorcycle I needed to build an "old school" custom chopper as a tribute to my brother that passed away a year ago. The 750cc engine size is a perfect fit for a chopper based upon the golden age of the 1960's where bobbers and choppers were typically in the 500cc to 1000cc displacement range.

By January of this year I had already reserved the first Street 750 at my local dealer (Sound Harley Davidson) and finally took delivery of the first one they received in July. I also had the opportunity to ride the Street 500 which arrived in June before mine showed up. Knowing that I would void the Harley warranty but building a complete custom rigid frame old school chopper I decided to ride the 750 to the first service at 1,000 miles before tearing it apart for my custom build project.

Except for a couple of very minor issues (e.g. the low fuel indicator wasn't working correctly) based upon my personal experience I'm going to state that both the Street 500 and Street 750 are exceptionally good motorcycles. While stock they're best suited for local riding, as promoted by Harley, they can be used for virtually any purpose. I found the Street 750 to be an absolute pleasure for day rides in the mountians and it corners better than my Sportster. My best friend, a former professional motorcycle road racer, said it "pushed" slightly going into a turn but I never noticed that. Of course he said he could fix that. LOL

Once owning my own Street 750 I joined a forum dedicated to the Street 500 and 750 and the types of "riders" purchasing these motorcycles is really quite varied. There are some new riders and for them this will be the first mototcycle they've ever owned. There are also an equal number old riders that have settled on the Street 500 or Street 750 as a good general purpose motorcycle that fits their needs. To try and pigonhole the owners as being anyone in particular is a mistake because the diversity and reasons for purchasing the motorcycle is so wide spread.

I would agree with the article that the Street 500 and 750 were not designed to compete with the new Indian Scout that is in more direct competition with the 1200cc Sportster or even with the current Triumph Bonneville that competes with the 883cc Sportster. The Streets are smaller, lighter, more nimble handing, and lower priced. They compete with any other 500cc and 750cc medium size motorcycle IMHO.

On a final note I found little significant difference between the 500 and 750 but then I find little difference between the 883 Sportster and the 1200cc Sportster. There is a slight power difference that most riders will never even notice. Rarely, for example, do I ever crack full throttle on my 1200cc Sportster and I can certainly "live without" the additonal performance advantage of the 1200. The size, weight, and handling of a motorcycle is far more important than it's engine performance IMO.

 

The majority of younger, cash strapped new riders will pass on these bikes based on the simple fact that they will be able to purchase a used English/Italian/Japanese with more features for half the price.

Honda has hit the nail on the head by introducing the Grom / MSX 125. A 125cc commuter motorcycle with fuel injection for under 3500-. Kawasaki has taken noticed because a year later, they have introduced the KSR Pro - a 111cc motorcycle with fuel injection.

These kind of miniature road legal motorcycles are what the motorcycle industry needed to get more people interested in buying motorcycles, not a 25 year old design touted as revolutionary and cutting edge.

 

Cheap,silly looking junk.

 

I honestly don't think anything about them. I know I wouldn't buy one, even if I had the money. But I feel that way about some/most of the larger bikes Harley has.

 

Much like learner Japanese bikes, I predict the Streets will be a "disposable, throw away" motorcycle.
Indifferent owners won't maintain them and they will be left outside to rot. 5 yrs later, they will be sold as an urban beater until it quits. Not worth fixing and finally into the scrap pile