2013 Harley-Davidson FXDX

Not long ago - early April in fact - a handful of images of what appeared to be a brand new Harley-Davidson model began appearing on various HD forums, and sent the Harley community into overdrive.

Is HD firing a pre-emptive shot at Indian Motorcycles? Is this the beginning of a new product onslaught?

In short, no. It was a hoax.

Seen here, the images showed what was purported to be the 2013 FXDX model, a brand new cruiser was leaked ahead of time. But the images were a very cleverly crafted (and time consuming) April fools joke, put together by a bloke called Bas Leek of Dutch firm West Coast Motors.

The motorcycle was in fact a custom job created by West Coast Motors in The Netherlands, based on new Harley-Davidson Street Bob. The bike was modified with several parts from other bikes, such as the XR1200 front end and swingarm, and a 2005 FXD fuel tank with custom paint work was also used.

What made the hoax so believable were the smaller details.

Bas Leek ensured that most of the pictures showed the bike coming out of a packing crate and the little warning stickers dotted around the bike that usually only come on brand new bikes were a nice touch. Packing protection materials on the tank and bodywork were also good details.

The Dutch dealership behind the talented ruse eventually posted on the XR1200 Owners Group forum, explaining the true origins of the 2013 Harley-Davidson FXDX. The explanation revealed that the stunt was originally an April fools joke, but that it was also intended to send a message to HD's top brass, to encourage them to expand the range in such a direction.

Will it work? Watch this space…