As the world’s longest-running production motorcycle, the demise of Harley-Davidson’s beloved air-cooled XL Sportster came as quite a shock. despite the “Sport” part of its name being mostly ironic at this stage, the torquey V-twin was a global hit, selling a reported 35,000 units worldwide every year.
Discontinued in 2022, the Sportster’s demise proved a major blow to the Milwaukee manufacturer’s sales. With (yet) another CEO at the helm – the third in about a decade – the firm has decided to revive the XL model for next year, as H-D focuses on increasing revenue by adding more affordable machines to its showrooms. In addition to bringing back the original Sportster, Harley-Davidson is also planning to resuscitate the Sprint, last sold in the 1970s. This time, the label will be applied to a 440cc, four-stroke commuter single that’s currently sold by H-D in Asian markets. Expected to retail for around $6,000, the stylish Sprint is expected to challenge the likes of Royal Enfield for a share of the bargain middleweight market.
What remains a challenge for reviving a motorcycle line like the XL, is precisely what contributed to its end; worldwide emissions standards. Air-cooled motorcycles are increasingly difficult to sneak past increasingly stringent pollution levels, and the larger their displacement, the more carbon they emit. Many Western riders have been clamoring for a bigger-displacement version of Royal Enfield’s popular 650cc air-cooled twins, but as company CEO Siddartha Lal once confided in me, making Enfield’s bigger just invites more problems when it comes to actually getting them EPA and Euro % approved for road use.
In some instances, manufacturers have bene able to get their air-cooled retro bikes approved by attaching every more restrictive exhaust and fueling systems, while other de-tune their machines so they’re street-legal. The Sportsters may have been equipped with remarkable off-the-throttle torque and a certain old school appeal, but slashing their already modest horsepower to appease the authorities doesn’t sound like a good long-term solution.
Whatever technological solutions H-D manage to utilize to get this popular ride back in circulation will certainly prove interesting. It’s very rare indeed for a motorcycle manufacturer to re-introduce a model from its past as they make their dollars with constant innovation and the appeal of the new. Corporations are designed to look forward, not to the past, for inspiration.
Nevertheless, wat an interesting and unexpected development this is. Long live the Sportster, however it may roll.
