1. Home
  2. Reviews
  3. Bike Reviews
  4. Harley Davidson Breakout Review Fantastic But Set Your Expectations Right

Harley-Davidson Breakout Review: Fantastic, But Set Your Expectations Right

There’s nothing quite like the Harley-Davidson Breakout that says you’ve ‘arrived.’ It's every bit a factory chopper motorcycle - a raked out front end, long, low, a fat rear tyre and a price tag that separates you from the rest.

By Manav Sinha

Photography By Hiyan Chauhan

17 May, 2025

6 min read

Follow us on

Harley-Davidson Breakout

Harley-Davidson Breakout

The world of motorcycles is a fascinating one. There are so many kinds of it that there’s one to suit everyone’s need, yet, motorcyclists can’t have enough. In this world, there’s one motorcycle manufacturer that firmly holds its own – Harley-Davidson. Over the years, even the mighty HD has dared to cross boundaries and experimented with different kinds of formats. However, the Harley-Davidson Breakout is a stark reminder of their strengths and absolute mastery of the cruiser motorcycle format. But before we dig into how the motorcycle is on different parameters, it is important to understand what it is in the first place.

Harley-Davidson Breakout Review: What is it?

Loosely, a cruiser motorcycle. You won’t be wrong if you call it so, but if you want to be specific, it is a chopper. And this distinction is of utmost importance for you to truly understand the Breakout and judge it fairly. You see, the best way to judge a bike is to start with its intent. Adventure motorcycles are meant to take the path less travelled, sportbikes are to chase the ten-tenths around a racetrack and cruisers, in the larger sense, are meant to munch miles with ease, highways being their preferred playing ground. Choppers, on the other hand, have one purpose – to make an impression. So, if I were to sum up the Breakout based on things like cornering abilities, touring capabilities and so on, it would be unfair on the motorcycle.

Harley-Davidson Breakout

The rise of choppers and the popularity of the Harley-Davidson culture go almost hand-in-hand. A huge fat rear tyre, rigid frame and a long raked out front end is the quintessential image of an American Badass on two wheels. Of course, this format takes us into the world of fat wheel custom choppers and eye-watering prices, but that’s a story for a different day. This is the early 2000s we are talking about, and towards the end of the decade, Harley would come out with the Rocker C – their take on what a chopper should be like, practically inventing the ‘factory chopper’ genre. It came with a funky rider seat which could be folded out to ‘unwrap’ the rear seat! Surely, not many would remember that, but it’s worth looking up.

It was good, but it was Harley’s second attempt that gave us one of the most popular fat wheel factory choppers of all time – the Breakout. Fast forward to today, and the Breakout sticks to that design theme and continues the legacy.

Harley-Davidson Breakout Review: Great Story, but how is it today?

Let’s start with the fat rear tyre, perhaps the biggest draw of this motorcycle. It’s a full 240-section unit, wider than even the fanciest cars or SUVs you can think of! Next is the insane 1,923cc, 45-degree V-Twin air- and oil-cooled engine! In full display with exquisite attention to detail, no less. Add to that a slim front-end design, a massive 34-degree rake, shotgun exhausts, a 2.3-metre length and over 300kg of weight (in running order) – you get the idea. Thankfully, it has a decently sized 18.9-litre fuel tank – unlike the puny tanks in custom choppers. It’s a motorcycle that will appeal to the purists in every sense.

Harley davidson breakout

At a standstill, it looks like a million dollars. But when on the move, it is every bit a typical Harley – butter smooth drivetrain, oodles of torque at the slightest twist of the throttle and that addictive, dominating riding stance that makes you feel like the king of the road. For perspective, it makes a mind-bending 168Nm of torque, and surprisingly, Harley even quotes the horsepower numbers for this one at 100bhp. You sit with your feet stretched out with a little bit of reach to the almost flat handlebar. Its rip-it-and-grip-it ride experience is equal parts intimidating and utterly, utterly addictive. The almost 1.7-metre-long wheelbase and the fat rubber means the motorcycle is slow to turn, and u-turns will have to be planned well in advance. But a bike that gives a lack of confidence it is not, and the ride quality is surprisingly good!

Harley-Davidson Breakout Seat
The clever bit done by Harley is that the monoshock rear suspension is hidden under the seat, giving the motorcycle a hard tail look. I have to be honest, this Softail chassis has been around since the late 2010s, but still is every bit modern and always leaves me surprised with just how it copes even on poorly surfaced roads. It’s no ADV, obviously, but way more capable than you would expect from a motorcycle of this appearance. The only thing that was a bit bothersome was the protruding air intake. As good as it looks, it comes in the way of using the rear brake. Speaking of which, on the safety tech front, you have Anti-Lock Brakes (ABS) and Traction Control System (TCS)… and that’s all. I love it!
Harley-Davidson Breakout Speedometer

On the features front, you have a minuscule 2.14 inch (yes, you read that right) LCD instrument cluster which gives you bare-minimum information at a time, but the complete set so long as you are willing to toggle through the menu set.

Harley-Davidson Breakout Review: Verdict

And well, that’s about it. The motorcycle is fairly simple and a refreshing throwback to what motorcycles are all about – the experience, the image and the personality that comes with it. Let’s face it, the experience of motorcycling is subjective and very thematic too, if I may say so. Off-road riders, enduro riders, supermoto riders, track riders, long-distance haulers… the list can go on. If you judge the Breakout based on its specifications, features and brochures,  you’ll be committing a grave mistake. But if you kick it old school and go for a test ride, that is when you will appreciate what the motorcycle has to offer.

Harley-Davidson Breakout Rear

It has everything that you would want from a bike like this. An engine called Milwaukee-Eight 117, massive displacement of 1,923cc (litre-class cylinders, almost), an air intake called ‘Heavy Breather’ and tyres that are called ‘Scorchers.’ It even has the eye-watering price tag and an unmistakable road presence! The motorcycle may not do a lot of things and could be seen as ‘too simple,’ perhaps. But it leaves you with a lasting memory. So, let’s play some Rock n’ Roll and take in the view with bikes like these while we can, before the ugly ADVs take over completely. Motorcycling is subjective, remember?

Engine: 1,923cc V-twin, air- and oil-cooled

Transmission: 6-Speed

Power: 100bhp

Torque: 168Nm

Fuel: Petrol

Price: ₹30.99 Lakh (ex-showroom)

X-Factor: As good as it gets if you love chopper-style motorcycles.

Pros           
•  Road Presence, Refinement

Cons
• Pricey, Low Ground Clearance

Tags:

Harley-DavidsonHarley-Davidson BreakoutTwo-Wheeler Reviews

Related Articles

Harley Davidson Breakout Set Your Expectations Right AutoX 1750653509776
2024 Harley-Davidson Breakout: Set Your Expectations Right | autoX
HD Breakout 1750421444393
Hero MotoCorp Announces India Pricing for 2025 Harley-Davidson Motorcycles
I8wx HD Fat Boy Grey Ghost 1 Final
Harley-Davidson Gray Ghost Limited Edition Marks 35 Years of Fat Boy, in Style
Nxim Harley Davidson CVO Road Glide RR
Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide RR Globally Debuts, Priced Equivalent to Rs 91 Lakh
E9e0 TVS Apache RTR 310 Long Term Report January 2025
TVS Apache RTR 310 Long Term Review, January 2025 Report
TVS Apache RTR 310 Long Term Report October 2024
TVS Apache RTR 310 Long Term Review, November 2024 Report

Recent Posts

  • News
  • Reviews
Read More
Quick Links
  • Magazine
  • Subscribe Today
  • Advertise With Us
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • autoX Awards
Others
  • Luxury Cars
  • Diesel Cars
  • Electric Cars
  • Sedan Cars
  • Mileage Cars
  • Petrol Cars
  • Fuel Price
Popular Car Brands
  • Maruti Suzuki
  • Hyundai
  • Tata
  • Volkswagen
  • Honda
  • Mahindra
  • Kia
Popular Bike Brands
  • Royal Enfield
  • Honda
  • KTM
  • Bajaj
  • Yamaha
  • TVS
  • Hero
C-103, Okhla Industrial Estate
Phase III, New Delhi - 110 020, India
Phone icon
 +91  114279  5000   
Email icon
 info@autox.com
YouTube IconInstagram IconFacebook IconX (formerly Twitter) Icon
Sign up for our newsletter
© 2006 - 2025 Comnet Publishers Pvt. Ltd. All Rights Reserved