In stuff you don’t see every day in China: a 2008 Harley Davidson Electra Glide Ultra Classic 105th Anniversary trike, released in the year 2008 to commemorate Harley Davidson’s 105th birthday. It is the only one of its kind I had ever met in China, I saw it in April 2017 in the capital Beijing.
The trike was based on the Harley Davidson Electra Glide Ultra Classic 105th Anniversary motorbike (with two wheels). Harley Davidson offered factory conversion kits to transform the motorbike into a trike.
The 105th Anniversary edition was limited to 7000 units. It didn’t matter if the unit was a bike or a trike, as the conversion always took place after manufacturing anyway. This example in Beijing is number 1476.
The trike doesn’t have license plates. This sort of heavy trikes, as opposed to lighter motorized tricycles, cannot be legally registered for road use in China. So heavy trikes of any kind are ultra rare.
Harley Davidson has been active in China for over a decade now, selling US-made bikes, and they are developing an affordable Harley-branded bike with Chinese motorcycle maker Qianjiang. This bike will be made in China.
The Electra Glide Ultra Classic 105th Anniversary was a beautiful bike/trike, fully loaded and painted in a flashy combination of Copper Pearl and Vivid Black. Power came from an air-cooled ‘Twin CAM 96 V-2’ 1.584 liter two-cylinder 4-stroke gasoline engine. The 96 was a big but not very powerful motor, with an output of 71 hp and 91 Nm.
The trike seats two with the passenger sitting higher than the driver. The rear is … wide! With wide wheel arches and tires. Five-spoke alloys are super bling. The exhaust pipes are located under the body. It has a cool luggage box atop the rear, which itself it topped by a luggage rack. Black antennas are for the regular radio and for the CB radio.
A nice anniversary badge, ‘105 years 1903-2008’ with the Harley Davidson logo in the middle.
The only other trikes I’ve seen in China were in museum-like exclusive car shops, but never one parked on the road like this 2008 Harley Davidson Electra Glide Ultra Classic 105th Anniversary edition. Note the ‘do not use your horn’ sign in the background. These are common in residential compounds in China.