Royal Enfield Interceptor 650 rivalling Harley-Davidson X 500 launched in China

Harley Davidson has officially launched the X 500 in the Chinese market. It sits above the X 350 in the line-up which was launched in March. There were a lot of speculations around the X 350 and X 500 and now most of them are cleared. It seems like both these motorcycles will not make their way to the Indian market. Instead, Harley-Davidson will be launching a new motorcycle that has been co-developed with Hero MotoCorp.

In terms of design, the X 500 looks like a larger version of the X 350 and a smaller version of the XR1200X. The lighting elements on the motorcycle are LEDs. The instrument cluster on the motorcycle is a monopod digital unit.

Harley-Davidson X 500 shares its underpinnings with the Benelli Leoncino 500. So, it uses the same 500 cc, parallel-twin engine that is liquid-cooled. It puts out 47 bhp and 46 Nm at 6,000 rpm. It is mated to a 6-speed gearbox.

Harley-Davidson X 500 is being offered in three colourways in the Chinese market.

The frame is also the same steel tube frame that is suspended by 50 mm Up-side down forks in the front that get rebound adjustability while the rear one is an off-set monoshock that gets rebound and preload adjustability. Braking duties are performed by twin discs in the front and a single disc at the rear. The front caliper gets four pistons while the rear one gets a single piston.

In terms of dimensions, the X 500 should feel quite compact. It measures 2,135 mm in length and has a wheelbase of 1,458 mm. The seat height measures 820 mm while the ground clearance is 153 mm. The factory weight of the motorcycle is 199 kg while the fuel tank can hold 13 litres. The X 500 rolls on 17-inch wheels and they are wrapped in Maxxis Supermaxx ST tyres. The front tyre measures 120/70 whereas the rear one is wider at 160/60.