In 2019, Harley-Davidson announced that it was entering the light motorcycle market and had entered into a partnership with Qianjiang for that reason. In China, the first two models of the new platform have been type-approved.
The collaboration between Harley and Qianjiang was presented in 2019 as another milestone in ‘More Roads’, the business plan that aimed to achieve 50% international growth, but failed to achieve the desired result for several reasons, including the trade war that then-President Trump had started with Europe.
Instead of growth, Harley was in the corner where the blows fell, which led to the resignation of CEO Matt Levatich, spiritual father of ‘More Roads’, in February 2020, after which his successor Jochen Zeitz threw the plan in the trash and a new business plan ‘Rewire’, the key point of which was to go back to the essence.
However, the reorganization has not affected the development of the little Harley-Davidson to be developed in collaboration with Qianjiang, which was announced in 2019 as 338R, which indicated a displacement of 338cc obtained by the battle of the Qianjiang 300cc with to combine the bore of the larger 500cc engine.
However, the Chinese giant has not been idle since then and has now launched a 353cc version, and it is that block that will be used in the little Harley-Davidson. Internally, the engine is called HD350, but the name X350 appears on a picture of the engine.
The image accompanying the type approval shows a production version which is in fact not too different from the design sketches shown by Harley-Davidson in 2019 to illustrate the launch of the ‘little one Harley’ project.
Many of the parts used on the X350 were carried over from the Benelli 302S. The same parts can also be found in the QJMotor SRK350, which is also powered by the 353cc twin. Qianjiang owns Benelli, QJMotor is its own brand.
According to the type approval, the block is good for a top power of 36 hp in the Harley X350, which is not a bad value at all. On the other hand, the bicycle weighs 195 kilos, which is heavy for an A2 bicycle. Harley claims a top speed of 143 km/h.
What else the documents reveal is that the X350 has a wheelbase of 1,410mm and appears to have the same wheels, brakes and suspension as the Benelli 302S, with 120/70 R 17″ front rubber and 160/60 R 17″ rear.
However, there is more in the pipeline. At the same time as the X350, Harley has also obtained type approval for an HD500, which will probably be marketed as the X500. The X500 is powered by the 500cc twin that Qianjiang uses in the Benelli Leoncino 500.
The X500 produces 47 hp and has a weight of 207 kilos, a top speed of 158 km/h and a wheelbase of 1,448 mm. The bike has larger brakes with radial-mount calipers à la the Leoncino 500, but wheels and tires are the same as the HD350.
Both models are made by a joint venture of Harley-Davidson and Qianjiang, Zhejiang Jisheng Motor Vehicle Co., Ltd. The new company was already established in 2021, but it was not until November 2022 that the Chinese government issued a license to produce engines.
The question remains whether the engines will only be marketed in China, or whether they can also be expected here. When announcing the project in 2019, Matt Levatich said the engines would initially be marketed in China, with other Asian countries to follow.
Other markets were not mentioned at the time, but given the growing popularity of A2 motorcycles, we would be rather surprised if they were not marketed here.
– Thanks for information from Motorfreaks.