World's Smallest and Cheapest Harley-Davidson Sells in India

Harley-Davidson may be known throughout the world for its large capacity Stateside cruising V-Twins but it’s a lowly single pot powered bike that’s making the most noise right now.

That’s because the iconic brand has teamed up with a bike manufacturer in India to produce the new X440 for the domestic market so far dominated by Royal Enfield and a new lightweight challenger from Triumph, the Triumph Speed 400. Harley's lightweight air and oil cooled single assembled by Hero MotoCorp has received more than 25,000 orders for the world's cheapest Harley Davidson motorcycle, sending shares up over 3%, Reuters reports.

The company said 65% of the bookings for the X440 were for the motorcycle's top-end variant, priced at 269,000 rupees ($3,250.76) despite raising the prices of the bike by 10,500 rupees ($126.8) across models earlier this month, days after Harley Davidson's CEO said pre-orders of the new model exceeded the company's expectations.

Hero, the world's largest motorcycle maker by sales, said in a statement it will begin production of the X440 in September and begin deliveries from October. Harley partnered with Hero to develop and sell a range of its own branded bikes in India, starting with the X440, after exiting the country and closing most of its local dealer network in 2020. It appears a move away from its big capacity expensive products towards an affordable lightweight machine is paying dividends in the motorcycle obsessed nation.

— Paul Myles is a seasoned automotive journalist based in Europe. Follow him on Twitter @Paulmyles_  and Threads