2027 Harley Davidson Sprint 440 Review: A New Entry-Level Harley Tested

Harley-Davidson may be one of motorcycling’s most historic and appealing brands, but it’s rarely been easy to access their bikes.

Until recently, its machines fell into two broad classes – the old 883/1200cc Sportster family and its big, now 1700cc-plus ‘Big Twins, neither of which, because of both price and a lack of ease of use, were within the realm of novices.

Things changed recently with the deletion of the old Sportster, due to not meeting the latest EU emission/noise regulations, and its replacement with a new, liquid-cooled Sportster family. But with those bikes being either the 1250cc Sportster S or the 975cc Nightster, they still weren’t really within reach of the inexperienced.

To its credit, Harley has been aware of this problem for some time. The Indian-built (by partner Hero) Street 750 was launched in 2015 specifically to be a more affordable, entry-level ‘Hog’, but that bike largely disappointed and was dropped in 2021.

Now Harley is trying again with this: the single-cylinder, sub-£5000 Sprint 440. We went to its world press launch in Barcelona to see how it measured up.

On face value, the new Sprint 440 is very simple – and a little concerning.

Again built in India by Hero, primarily to keep costs down, it’s based on Hero’s own Hunk 440 (as we tested last year), has a virtually identical 440cc single-cylinder engine producing an unremarkable 27bhp, but with a revised chassis and new styling.

On closer inspection, however, things get better. Harley themselves are at pains to emphasise that they’ve learnt the lessons of the old Street 750 and this time have been more fully involved in the design process through its Product Development Center in Milwaukee.

“Getting the appearance right is really, really important,” emphasized Harley’s Head of Design, Bjorn Shuster, in Barcelona. 

As a result, he claims, 60% of the Sprint’s components are different from Harley’s X440 (the Harley variant of the Hunk sold only in India). The engine, mildly retuned; the tubular steel chassis has a different rear section; the electrical, including ride-by-wire, is different; and the bodywork and ergonomics are all new. 

Quality is significantly improved, too, with better finishes, more bespoke Harley design touches such as the tank ‘strap’, ‘eyebrow’ above the headlight and metal fenders. The result, certainly from particular angles, is unmistakably a ‘genuine’ Harley, and even the name, Sprint, which revives that of popular Aermacchi-built, lightweight two-stroke Harleys built in the 1960s and ‘70s, is authentic, too.

The result is very much intended as a new, authentic, ‘entry-level’ Harley which will hopefully appeal to younger and maybe first-time riders.

In case you missed it, ‘entry-level’, c.400cc, affordable bikes have become big news in recent years.

Triumph launched its 400cc single-cylinder family in 2024 to great success, which has since grown to five models; Royal Enfield got the ball rolling even earlier with its Meteor and HNTR 350s; Honda has its GB350S, BSA its 350 Bantam, there are others from KTM, Husqvarna and Yamaha, and BMW has just replaced its G310 single with a new F450 twin, with all priced between £3500 and £7000.

With that background, I half-expected the new Sprint 440 to cost approaching £6000 (it is a Harley, after all) but to my impressed surprise, in Barcelona its price was announced at a very competitive £4995. 

OK, sure, that admittedly doesn’t tell the whole story. That’s the price of the base grey version I’m riding in the pictures. But if you want the arguably more premium teal blue or black colourways, it’s £200 more.

But that’s still a good price, which puts an entry-level Harley, for perhaps the first time, within reach of all.

As with all current Harleys, the Sprint 440 is available now via Harley’s UK-wide dealer network. For full details and to find your local dealer, go to the Harley UK website.

As already mentioned, the 440cc single-cylinder engine used in the Sprint, although a new Harley model, is not a new powerplant at all, instead effectively being the same unit already used in the Hero Hunk 440 we tested last year.

The cylinder finning might have you believe it’s air-cooled, but it’s actually oil-cooled, with a slightly hidden oil cooler mounted on the left-hand side. It does, however, have a different exhaust, complete with twin slots on the chrome heat cover intended as a nod to Harley’s old 883 Sportster.

Output, naturally, is virtually identical to the Hero Hunk, too, along with a six-speed transmission and chain final drive. Although it uses a ride-by-wire throttle, there are no rider electronic aids or switchable riding modes.

But although all that sounds a little underwhelming, especially compared perhaps to some rivals such as the slick, liquid-cooled, DOHC, 40bhp Triumph unit, it actually performs decently and suits this Harley role well.

Being tuned more for torque than top-end power is perfectly in keeping with the Harley ethos. The controls and gearshift all work fine, with the very slightly crude clunk of the transmission, which might be a criticism on a slicker, more modern machine, again actually suiting the Harley ‘vibe’. 

And on the move it’s both pleasingly brisk away from lights, rumbles along in a very Harley-ish way at cruising speed and also (just about) has enough top end to satisfy any Harley-inclined novice. A further bonus, meanwhile, is its impressive, claimed economy of around 80mpg, which is more than enough to get approaching 200 miles out of the tank and negates any presumed criticism of its meagre nine-litre capacity.

There’s nothing remarkable about the Sprint’s chassis, either, to be honest, and much of it again is derived from that of the Hero Hunk – but it is up to the job.

So, although the trellis-style, tubular steel front section is the same as the Hunk, the rear section is new, for an even lower, more cruiser gait. Suspension is by Japanese brand KYB (formerly Kayaba) all round, with sturdy 43mm inverted forks at the front and piggy-back twin rear shocks.

Wheels are 19in front and 17inch rear, for a traditional, mild cruiser profile, and are a typical Harley cast aluminium, 10-spoke design, while the brakes, although conspicuously a bit budget and basic, comprise a single front disc with only a two-piston conventional caliper, with a smaller single-piston version at the rear.

But if that all seems a little, yes, ‘budget and basic’, again, it doesn’t really matter in terms of how the Sprint rides – as said repeatedly, this is intended as an affordable, entry-level Harley, not as, say, a performance KTM or Aprilia.

So, being very low and relatively dinky (I’m 6’3”, BTW, if you think I look large in the riding pics) means that, not only is the Sprint, for a novice, completely unintimidating to get on board and feel at ease with, it also makes it nimble and easy around town.

At cruising speed it’s stable and with a decently set-up ride and even when riding more, er, ‘enthusiastically’ through the mountain hairpins north of Barcelona, despite its slightly cruiser gait and steering geometry (rake is a fairly lazy 27.6 degrees with accompanying trail of 108.3mm), although never exactly sharp and sporty, it’s still fairly instinctive and fun to weave through the bends.

In fact, the only minor criticism I can make here is of the standard Indian MRF tyres (Indian-built export bikes are legally required to be fitted with Indian-made tyres) which, although competent, never truly inspired complete confidence, either, although they did provide enough grip to ground out the foot pegs when really ‘going for it’!

At the end of the day, the new Sprint 440 has been designed and built as a novice-friendly, entry-level bike at an affordable price and a cruiser-styled one at that – none of which adds up to having much in the way of sophisticated equipment.

That said, the 3.5in TFT dash is smart and crisp and well-placed atop the handlebars and provides all the basics you need. The switchgear also has a classic Harley style to it, even if it is a little bit ‘plasticky’. The tank is beautifully finished and includes another classic Harley design motif – a ‘strap’ down the middle.

The ‘eyebrow’ above the recessed headlamp is another traditional Harley cruiser design motif, which all adds up to the riders’ eye view being about as authentically ‘Harley’ as you can get. And there are plenty of other neat Harley design touches, too, such as the mirrors, LED lights with the headlight including the Harley logo, embroidered seat which includes fancy French seams, and the ‘bobbed’ tail section which also features a quickly detachable number plate hanger.

Besides, being a Harley, if you want more, that’s also available too, via an impressive accessories and customising list. Two different types of seats are available to change its profile or suit the rider, as are different handlebars. And you can also get a touring screen, pillion ‘sissy’ bar and even panniers. See, told you Harley were taking getting this ‘entry-level’ Harley’s authenticity seriously.

Not much. As already mentioned, three different color choices are available: grey, black and teal blue (although, with the latter two costing a £200 premium, I’d probably stick with the grey). 

Recommended service intervals are a fairly standard every 6000 miles or annually, whichever comes first and it comes with Harley’s standard two-year warranty. 

The new Sprint 440 has a very specific goal – and one Harley has conspicuously failed to achieve previously: to be an authentic, affordable, entry-level Harley-Davidson.

It achieves that admirably. Thanks to Harley USA’s additional input it has enough HD styling and quality authenticity to be credible. Dynamically, without ever excelling, it’s more than adequate, especially for a novice cruiser, generates a pleasing amount of ‘Harley vibe’ and is completely welcoming and effective as a novice machine. While, perhaps best and most significant of all, at just £4995, it’s priced bang in the ballpark of where bikes like these need to be, never mind a Harley one.

The sum total of that is: if you’re looking for a c.400cc, entry-level A2 bike (and, boy, there are a lot of them these days), are attracted to the Harley brand and style, and on a budget, you won’t be disappointed.

Welcome back to the novice class, Harley, you’ve been missed! Thanks to Harley-Davidson UK for inviting us on the launch.