05 February,2017 01:21 PM IST | | Harket Suchde
With a crucial improvement, the Model Year 2017 Harley-Davidson Street 750 is more than just a straightforward makeover
We have always believed that the Street 750 is the most dynamic bike in the Harley-Davidson line-up. Small, quick, and amazingly agile for a cruiser, the Street is quite the bike indeed. If it had one drawback, it was the braking power, which was an obvious sore spot on an otherwise brilliant package. H-D rectified this deficiency with the 2017 Street 750, which now comes with ABS (making ABS standard across the line-up). Have they succeeded? We were itching to find out as soon as we saw the new 750.
The badging and dual-tone paint job are the two prominent visual changes on the Street. Pics/Harley-Davidson India
Before we go there, let's talk about the aesthetic qualities of the smallest bike on the H-D roster. The 2017 Street 750 gets a brand-new, two-tone paint job, which appears on the tank and the tail of the bike. It looks pretty great, although we still prefer the clean single-colour styling of the previous model, so we were glad to see that it has been retained as an option. Another change incorporated into the looks department is the addition of the new, and sizeable "Harley-Davidson" running along the tank in text as opposed to the original emblem that was just a small representation of the bar and shield. The engine, transmission, suspension, and pretty much everything else is exactly the same as before, with Harley-Davidson sticking to the tried and tested "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" approach.
The biggest change though is the addition of an anti-lock braking system
As mentioned earlier, the big change is the ABS has given the Street 750 some stopping muscle to match its other attributes. We tested the brakes on NH 48 thanks to errant animals and people who ran across the highway. The result was a staggering improvement. The Street 750 stays on course under hard braking and invites its rider to push harder, safe in the knowledge that it can quickly shed speed if the situation demands it. The brakes feel urgent when pumped hard and show enough progression to allow for varied braking scenarios.
The Street 750 is now priced at Rs 4.91 lakh, ex-showroom. With the inclusion of ABS, at that price point, the Street 750 is still great value for money, and now an even more complete motorcycle than it ever was before.
