Feb. 2—The XL1200C Sportster Custom, long the refined flagship of the XL platform, returns to the Milwaukee line-up in the middle of the 2011 model year after a brief sabbatical, and it’s now offered in a mind-boggling 2,688 flavors, believe it or not—but we’ll get to the details of that in a moment.
The basic new Custom has a number of distinctive features that set it apart from previous iterations starting with a burly bobberish 130/90-B16 front tire and wide-spaced forks, replacing the familiar narrow front end and skinny 21-incher of its predecessors. The model now gets a trademark Sportster “eyebrow” above the headlamp, but one adapted from the traditional design to extend over the bullet shell of the light. In back there’s a redesigned taillight, one that’s been reduced in size and equipped with an LED element. New chrome 5-spoke cast wheels front and back replace the laced/slotted disc combination of yesteryear. A two-up seat, forward foot controls, pullback handlebars and a black motor with chrome covers complete the package, and the MSRP for that base model in Vivid Black is $10,299.
That’s just the starting point on this bike, however, and from that baseline configuration things get a little wild, and that’s because the new Custom is the model being used to roll out The Motor Company’s elaborate new “H-D1” factory customization program that offers potential buyers an online menu of factory installed tweaks and flourishes to choose from in personalizing the machine before ordering. The categories for consideration included in the smorgasbord of customizing options include:
- Wheels: For an additional $460, you can get laced wheels in either chrome or black, or black 5-spoke cast units with machined highlights.
- Handlebars: In place of the standard pullbacks, both drag bars and mini-apehangers are offered or an upcharge of $180.
- Foot controls: Another $180 will get you a set of mid-mounts instead of the standard forward-mounts.
- Seat: A solo seat option is offered at no additional cost.
- Engine: For $250 you can have black covers instead of the chrome
- Paint/Graphics: A truly extensive palette of options is offered on the Custom, beginning with six solid-color treatments ($290), five two-tone schemes ($500) and a pair of splashy $600 custom offerings—Cool Blue Pearl with Scalloped graphics and White Hot Pearl with Hot Pink Flame graphics.
When you add the optional Smart Security System to the mix, the permutations add up to that 2,688 variations figure, with the most expensive combination running $12,379.
According to Harley-Davidson, once the customized Custom order is placed with a dealer, the turnaround time for delivery of the bike is in the neighborhood of four weeks—with some wiggle room for factory production scheduling.
