30 May 2024

New Glide brings Street cool

Breaking from tradition has paid dividends for Harley-Davidson in recent years.

Whilst you might say that the US biking behemoth’s range has been a touch polarising to us Irish bikers, now, its higher powered,  liquid-cooled machines are attracting a whole new audience to the brand.

Among the newbies is a coolly streamlined Street Glide, which, as Paul Browne reports, turns out to be something of a lightweight. In a good way.

 

The new Street Glide from our American cousins at Harley-Davidson has landed in the dealerships.

While a lot of us have. historically, had mixed feelings about the range, it’s probably safe to say that there are two types of rider; those who think they know that Harleys aren’t worth riding and those who have actually ridden one!

In the last few years European legislation forced H-D to add liquid cooling to the range.

While some of the old guard HOG members regarded this as affront to over a century of signature air-cooled V-twins, it invited a whole new generation of motorcyclists to explore the brand and its models.

Powered up

It also allowed them to roll in some significant changes,  including increasing the power that was being offered with a new engine, the Milwaukee Eight.

While all of this drew heavily on the company’s heritage; the engines were still big V-twins and the styling only changed subtly.

Then they broke the mould with the Pan America and the first major departure from tradition in living memory. The gloves were off.

Which brings us back to the Street Glide, a bike which very much epitomises how times have changed.

Not feeling the heat

After being out on the Street Glide for a while, I’m struck by what’s missing: the heat usually generated by a H-D big twin.

Adding liquid-cooled heads to the new block may be sacrilege for the traditionalists, but it means more riding comfort for me!

Light work

I clocked this whilst riding in Waterford, a city endowed with more than its fair share of roundabouts. Thanks to the way the bike feels, it’s agility, the Street Glide inspires great confidence when navigating them.

This, it turns out, is because the new machine has shed some bulk, weighing in at a staggering 8.2 kilos lighter than the old one!

The electronics also make for an easier ride.

The new TFT screen allows the rider to use a choice of display options and a brand new ‘Skyline’ infotainment system to answer the phone and pick the tracks on your playlists,  access google maps and select rider modes.

The push release drawer under the screen that houses your phone and the charging cable is a really nice feature.

All of the bike’s lighting is integrated into the machine’s bodywork.

It’s also all LED and delivers three things; a lighter weight, reduced drag and a cleaner line throughout the bikes bodywork right down to the panniers and those very cool tail lights.

If, for some inexplicable reason, you can’t make it to Killarney, you’ll also find Waterford Harley-Davidson team are on 051 844 200.

If you ask really nicely Lenny might even give you a spin on his pride enjoy. Prices start at €34,595.

Harley-Davidson insurance quote? Call our specialist bike insurance team on 0818 945 950.

 

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