At first glance, this concept Harley-Davidson café racer could be a one-off shed-built special. God knows there are plenty of custom-build Harleys out there. But this is a little bit different – it’s actually a product of Harley’s in-house Design Dept. team, and was on show at the niche Mama Tried custom bike show in Milwaukee last week.
Dubbed the Harley-Davidson RMCR – Revolution Max Café Racer – it’s based around Harley-Davidson’s Revolution Max 1250 engine, as used in the Pan America adventure bike And the Harley factory has actually been showing the gorgeously-made ‘one of one’ prototype bike off on its social media, and asking for feedback from potential buyers and fans, to see whether it should go into production or not.
So – a serious contender as a potential new Harley road bike. And its roots are clear: Harley itself has lined the RMCR concept up alongside the legendary XLCR – a café racer built by H-D in 1977, using the old Ironhead XLCH Sportster 1000 engine. The new bike is miles away from the original XLCR in terms of tech, but has clear design links, including the all-black finish, big V-twin motor, headlight fairing, single seat and sporty chassis setup.
The XLCR was penned by a design team under Willie G Davidson, grandson of company co-founder William A Davidson, and used as his own personal bike. It was a sales flop at the time, but is now a bit of a collectors’ item, partly because of the small number sold between 1977 and 1979 before it was discontinued. And Harley says it’s the inspiration behind this new café racer.
There’s not a lot of information on the RMCR concept bike specs, but it’s built around the 150bhp 1250cc Revolution Max 60° V-twin engine, with a bespoke sporty steel tube frame design and unique braced aluminium monoshock rear swingarm.
A sweet custom dual-silencer Akrapovic exhaust looks light and loud, and Harley’s fitted premium running gear: Öhlins USD front forks and piggyback rear monoshock, with Brembo monobloc front brake calipers.
The bodywork is all carbon-fibre, with the front mudguard, sidepanels, rad guard and tank surrounds all made from the lightweight material. The single seat unit is also carbon fibre, with a solo seat pad, and a pair of LCD clocks are nestled behind the sweet round LED headlamp fairing. It’s a really neat piece of design, with only the slightly square lines of the tail unit causing any real controversy.
It’s not quite clear what sort of bike the RMCR is mind. It’s a little long and lazy-looking to work as a conventional UK-style café racer, where the rider’s weight is further forward over the front end. To our eye, there’s more of a ‘power cruiser’ feel to it, a little like the recent Langen Light Speed bike (coincidentally, also powered by an American V-twin engine, albeit from Buell rather than H-D).
If it has all the power of the Pan America 1250, then it should be perky enough – but that will also depend on how light they can keep it. Minimal mass is not Harley’s strong suit, and neither is accessible pricing.
If they do put this into production, putting out 135bhp and weighing 250kg wet, with a £35k price tag, then we’d expect it to be a bit of a flop. Keep the mass tidy, and sell it at sensible BMW/Triumph/Ducati cash, and they could have a bit of a sales street sleeper on their hands – as well as a future classic for Harley fans.
In the meantime, if you think Harley should make the RMCR then let ‘em know via the usual channels – including your local dealer! www.harley-davidson.com