Hero Motocorp and Harley Davidson have revealed their joint new motorcycle, the first of ten in the pipeline, and it is the X440.
Technical specifications have not been released as yet but it is a single cylinder air cooled engine with approx 35hp from the 440cc engine. It has a twin shock set up for the rear and upside down forks at the front with single brake disc for the front. It comes with LED lighting and LCD instrument panel too.
The pictures paint a pretty picture of what customers might expect in India, as that is the only market the motorcycle is likely to be sold. When H-D pulled out of India in 2020, they soon entered a commercial partnership with HERO to not sold be the distributor of H-D bikes in India but also develop bikes specifically for that market.
In recent weeks there have been spy photos of the bikes being tested and these are seen as competition for the Triumph & Bajaj bikes coming out soon as well as the KTM 390 and the BMW too. However they are most likely to be aiming their sights at the likes of Royal Enfield with their 2350cc engine bikes but also the 500cc air cooled sector as well as the 300-450cc liquid cooled sector too.
The main question here is how expensive are these bikes going to be for the average Indian customer. Yes they are meant to be a premium product and the air cooled bikes are still king for the average rider, but will anyone pay a king’s ransom for one.
Specs and pricing to be announced soon.