The Street Rod has a lot more character than the Street 750; not just visually, but in terms of the riding experience too. The Street Rod is a motorcycle for more experienced riders who want a smaller motorcycle for riding around town. It looks a whole lot sportier, offers better performance and handles a lot better too. Harley-Davidson says it has worked extensively on improving quality levels and fit-finish levels, and our test bike’s quality echeoed that promise. The Rod has taken up the mantle of the thrill-seeking back-alley brawler of the Street family. On the other hand, the Z650 retails at Rs 5.19 lakh ex-showroom New Delhi and that is fantastic value even if you simply consider the addition of ABS and the slipper clutch, both of which make the bike a lot safer, and more dummy proof. It is a good buy for a wide range of motorcyclists – be it someone upgrading from a single cylinder machine, with its friendliness and easy rideability, or experienced riders who wanted an easy going middleweight as compared to their more potent litre-class machine. Its compact dimensions, lighter weight, shorter seat height and even more linear power delivery make it more accessible to amateur riders, while experienced riders get to revel in its improved performance and dynamics. The Z650 makes a good step-up for buyers graduating from 250cc single-cylinder bikes and has performance and dynamics good enough to keep them happy for a long time while also being unintimidating enough for them to get quickly used to. It returned 23.77kmpl in our highway tests and 21.16kmpl in the city test. To sum up - There’s ample low to mid-range grunt which is a boon in the city and in fact, the improved agility means the Z650 feels almost as nimble to ride as a 150! Initial throttle response is smoother, and riding in the city is more an easier affair.
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