Harley-Davidson Forty Eight Special And Street Glide Special To Launch On March 14

Both the motorcycles have received an aesthetical makeover, while the Street Glide Special features a more powerful motor as well. 

• The Forty Eight Special has ape bars rather than the standard low-set bars.
• The Street Glide Special will be available with a higher cubic-capacity engine.
• Both the motorcycles will cost higher than their standard variants.

In a bid to expand its model line-up in India, Harley-Davidson will launch the Forty-Eight Special and the Street Glide Special on March 14. What’s so special about these motorcycles? Well, the differences between the Forty-Eight standard and the Special are mostly visual, but the Street Glide Special gets the larger-displacement Milwaukee-Eight 114 engine as well. 

The Forty-Eight features 70’s-inspired body graphics and the wheels have received blacked-out treatment. Another visual change is that the Forty-Eight Special has ape hangers instead of the original low-set handlebars. Powering this Sportster is a 1,202cc, air-cooled engine that churns out 60.8PS of power and 96Nm of torque at 4,250rpm. Non-adjustable 49mm forks with 91mm of travel up front and adjustable shocks with 40mm of travel at the rear take care of suspension duties. Just as the standard model, the Special features dual-piston brake setup at both ends. Currently, the standard Forty-Eight is priced at Rs 10.48 lakh (ex-showroom, India) so expect the Special to cost more than the standard variant.

Unlike the standard Street Glide, the Special isn’t shiny. Instead, it gets the same blacked-out treatment as the Forty-Eight Special, but here, Harley-Davidson has taken things up a notch. The seat, exhaust system, front forks, engine cover and alloy wheels are dipped in black paint. To further differentiate between the two, the Street Glide Special has received a new alloy wheel design. The Street Glide Special will be available in seven colours: gray, red, silver, blue, orange, black and silver/ black. It is equipped with a touchscreen display that displays information such as tripmeter, average speed, navigation and tyre pressure.

The 1,868cc motor churns out 163Nm of max torque at 3,000rpm. The Milwaukee-Eight 114 motor made its first appearance last year in India when Harley-Davidson launched the Fat Boy. Stopping this 380kg beast is not a small feat. For this purpose, the cruiser has been equipped with dual 300mm rotors up front and a single 300mm rotor at the back that makes sure you stop gently and swiftly. 

Harley-Davidson hasn’t revealed anything about the prices of the Street Glide, but we expect it to cost around Rs 30 lakh. Stay tuned to our social media feeds for more updates.