The current Harley-Davidson Sportster is almost unrecognizable from its original incarnation. The motorcycle delivers serious power and performance to the sport bike enthusiast, and it begs to be revved hard for everyone around to hear.
Features
One of the Harley-Davidson 1200 Sportster’s most important features, introduced in 2004, is its rubber engine mounts that isolate you from vibration so well you won’t be able to believe it. On the other side of these mounts is a 1200cc, air-cooled, 45-degree tandem V-twin powerplant, which has been improved to handle all the hard riding you’ll want to give it now that it won’t shake the teeth out of your head. The 4.5-gallon tank goes for nearly 200 miles, and you’ll want to ride this bike for a long time indeed.
History
Harley-Davidson first rolled out the line in 1957 with the 883 Sportster, which was bigger and more aggressively-tuned than the vast majority of bikes of the day, and it reigned as the undisputed champion in its class until the late 1960s. It was slowly overtaken by faster and more efficient motorcycles, and it became known as a sort of second-rate Harley for many years. But in 2004, HD almost completely redesigned the bike, keeping little but the frame of the original, and the Sportster 1200 Nightster is master of its domain once again.
Famous Appearances
The Harley-Davidson Sportster 1200 has graced the silver screen in Monster Garage (in which the bike is featured quite prominently), Muppets from Space, and Radical Jack. It has also appeared on television’s Oz, Matlock, and Hotel Babylon.
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| Harley Sportster 1200 |
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| Harley Sportster 1200 |