Anniversaries are a big deal at Harley-Davidson. As they should be for any company that has survived for more than a century in a business as mercurial as motorcycling. But not only has Harley survived, it has frequently flourished, with 2013 marking the 110th year of operation for the motorcycle that made Milwaukee famous.
No surprise, then, that Harley’s biggest news for the coming year is all about its 110th anniversary. There are no new models in the lineup to commemorate the occasion, however, and two others—the XR1200X and XL1200N Nightster—have been dropped from the Sportster range due to lagging sales, according to Greg Falkner, Manager of Motorcycle Product Planning.
But all the Big Twins remain, six of which (Super Glide Custom, Fat Boy Lo, Heritage Softail Classic, Road King, Electra Glide Ultra Limited and Tri Glide Ultra Classic), along with the Sportster 1200 Custom, will be available in both standard models and limited-edition versions celebrating the company’s 110th anniversary. They all have special bronze-and-black paint and badging, and are serialized, numbered and fitted with elaborate bronze tank badges.
Production runs of the anniversary models will range from 1450 units for the Super Glide Custom and Tri Glide to 3750 for the Electra Glide Ultra Limited. Harley set those numbers to ensure a degree of exclusivity while being able to provide at least one or two of each model to every dealer.
Other news for 2013 is a restyle of the popular Street Bob, which now has a side-mounted taillight, tapered mufflers, a round air-cleaner cover and a new black battery cover. Most important, the MSRP for the base model is the same $12,999 that it was last year, allowing the Street Bob to remain the most affordable of all the Big Twins.
