Shortly after the close of WWII, Germany's DKW motorcycle plant was put to use by Harley-Davidson as part of U.S. war reparations. This resulted in Harley-Davidson's introduction of its first small-displacement two-stroke powered 'Model S' in 1948.
The Model S and followup 165cc 'Model ST,' the 'Bobcat,' and the 'Hummer' which had a distinctive peanut-shaped gas tank and telescoping front forks.
1954 Harley-Davidson Hummer
In an attempt to enter the scooter market, Harley introduced the "Model A Topper" scooter in 1960, and "Topper H" in 1961. The Toppers were boxy looking versions of the more popular Italian Vespas. The short-lived Topper line was fazed out in 1965.
Harley-Davidson & Aermacchi
In 1960, HD affiliated with the Italian company Aermacchi to introduce the 250cc Sprint H, ERS Sprint (CR/CRTT), which had an Aermacchi 'undersquare' (long-rod) engine, or 'oversquare' (short-rod) 2-stroke engine.
1971 AMF Harley-Davidson Leggero 'Mini Cycle' 65cc Two-Stroke
Other versions of Harley-Davidson's small-displacement two-stokes were the 175cc Pacer, Scat, and Scat 'Dual Sport' scrambler models.
1974 Aermacchi AMF Harley Davidson SS-350 Sprint
Other collaborations produced during the AMF years were the Aermacchi-Harley Davidson SS-350 Sprint, and the 65cc AMF Harley-Davidson Leggero 'Mini Cycle.'
These small-displacement Harley-Davidson/Aermacchis were not well accepted by the typical HD demographic, and sales continued to decline throughout the early 1970s. In 1974, Aermacchi production was discontinued, and the company was later sold to Cagiva in Italy.
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