So about this Harley-Davidson Roadster, why should Harley-Davidson consider building this? My feeling is that since the pie doesn’t seem to be getting any larger at the moment, The Motor Company should reach out to non-Harley riding customers and make a few models to compete directly with some Japanese and European models. The Japanese yen is going through the roof right now and I don’t want to even think about what is going to happen to the dollar in the next few years. We may be able to be price competitive in the lower price markets with a bike built right here in the United States.

I think there are a number of good reasons to build something like this mock- up. One, it could be a 2,000- to 4,000-unit seller, small in the scheme of things but a decent incremental increase. Plus it would bring in new customers, not so much convert old ones. Isn’t this just another Buell or XR1200? Well no, not at all. This would be a Twin Cam B counterbalanced bike. The latest edition of the Twin Cam is a much, much more refined motor in my opinion. The engine noise is way down, done in the effort to let Harley give their bikes a little more exhaust noise and still make the Feds happy. Plus the torque figure, 110 lb-ft or so if you have a stage III set up, would be up about 30% over that of the air-cooled Buells and almost 50% more than the XR1200. But the biggest issue in my opinion, and refinement is already a very big one, is the engine isn’t rubber mounted. You can’t underestimate how hard it is for a non-Harley rider to handle a rubber- mounted engine. Some simply can’t get used to it. If you are on the highway 95% of the time, rubber mounting is great. For an all-around, general use bike however, the Twin Cam B can’t be beat. No shaking at idle, no engine movement in corners when letting off the gas, and no blurring of the mirrors during acceleration and deceleration. That and torque like a Peterbuilt.

What else would draw new customers to this “Gentleman’s Express” type of bike? One, this would be an extremely durable and reliable bike with huge factory and aftermarket support from day one. Want a blower? It is already made. Want a stroker kit? The factory already has it in a box waiting. Don’t like the air cleaner? There are fifty alternatives. Plus, I think if you let Japanese and European bike riders onto a bike like this with a standard seating position that has a 110 lb-ft of torque, they’d never quit smiling. Most riding reports from the Yamaha MT-01 are generally very positive. There is a magic to this Twin Cam engine, but to date it hasn’t been put into a chassis inviting to the rest of the world, the non-cruiser and non-touring markets. The deal breaker could be weight. I think it would have to weigh in at less than 525 pounds to be acceptable. And that could add a lot of money to the low-ball price I typed up. But we’ll leave that to the engineers, we’re dealing with just marketing here, right?

I’ll put this design up online at www.barnettharley.com shortly and have space for comments and suggestions. If you have an idea that you think would be interesting, and even if you think you’re the only person who would like it, send me a message at the above email. We can ask Mr. Bezzi what he thinks.