2021 Harley-Davidson Softail Standard

A good looking, but bare-bones cruiser with plenty of power that’s best served for short trips of under 100 miles.

Harley has eight cruisers in its 2021 lineup including the Softail Standard, which occupies the bottom rung of the series, with the fewest amenities and the lowest price at $13,599. It sits below its otherwise nearly identical counterpart in the Softail series, the Street Bob, at least in terms of displacement; the Standard comes with the Milwaukee-Eight 107 engine, while the Bob ups the ante with an M-8 114. That makes it best suited for quick hops around town, where performance or wind protection aren’t at the top of the priority list, while its bare-bones architecture makes it ripe for any number of customization possibilities.

This model has seen no changes for 2021.

One of the Standard’s high points is the low price point of $13,599.

In the current cruiser landscape, the closest competitor to the Standard’s ergonomic and powertrain arrangement is probably Indian’s new Chief Bobber, which has a slightly bigger 1,818cc engine and is priced about $2K more.

The Standard is powered by the air/oil-cooled eight-valve Milwaukee-Eight 107 engine, which all the current Softails carry (in either 107 or 114 variation). During our testing, we recorded power figures on the FXST as 72.74 hp at 4,980 rpm and peak torque of 99.37 pound-feet at 2,500 rpm in stock form.

During our several months with the bike, we found an engine that “is noticeably quicker on acceleration than the previous Twin Cam setup, and…there’s power everywhere, and a fairly well-dialed throttle response means you’re never far from even more torque.” We also felt “the Standard has plenty of punch to jump ahead of traffic, but is chill enough to burble along at low revs once the madness dies down.” Gearing is fairly tall, however.

Of course there are plenty of aftermarket add-ons available from H-D or Screamin’ Eagle if you’re really looking to unleash more power.

Our thousand-plus miles of testing revealed that “steering is overall lighter than on most of its series brethren, and the bike just feels (relatively) nimble.” We also felt the “Standard hits a sweet spot of stability and power in high-speed sweepers, with the bike feeling supremely planted.”

With single-disc front and rear brakes, we found “overall stopping power to be about average. At slower speeds the front 300mm disc and four-piston combo deliver a solid initial bite if you mash the lever firmly enough, though feel could be more progressive. An antilock braking system is optional.”

In a variety of slow- and high-speed riding scenarios, we averaged 43.4 mpg.

The Softail Standard’s riding position can be best described as somewhat cramped. In our testing, With a low 26.8-inch seat and a mid-mount control layout (or more accurately, forward-biased mids) it makes for a somewhat acute hip-knee-foot triangle, which will fit riders shorter than 5 feet, 9 inches best.

The Softail Standard FXST comes equipped with an electronic LCD gauge to handle basic bike info, and a Security system is standard; ABS is a $795 option.

Twenty-four months, unlimited mileage.

Fit and finish, even on this bare-bones bike, is what you’d expect from most Harleys. Impressive attention to detail for the most part, but also areas of nothingness, or what you might want to call “the industrial look.”