Harley-Davidson

Lots of Harley-Davidson’s lineup hit the cutting room floor this year, but the top-shelf Ultra Limited and Ultra Limited Low remains a constant, at least through the 2019 model year. This pair represents the pinnacle of the MoCo’s standard, non-CVO tourbike development, and they come with all the bells and whistles you’d expect on top of the largest, most powerful Big Twin powerplant ever to see the full-dresser lineup. As its ingeniously clever name suggests, the “Low” comes slammed to the max, and that opens it up for use by inseams that are a skosh short for the regular “Ultra.” I expect a full spectrum of comfort-related geegaws on these bikes, and it seems as though Milwaukee, once again, does not disappoint.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson Ultra Limited and Ultra Limited Low.

Minimalism and understatement do not always go hand in hand. In this case, it is the whole point of the design. Bringing the designs from their history books and fusing them with cues of early performance models, manufacturers catered to the ’bob-job’ from the 1930s through 1990s custom scene.

Stripping excess bodywork from a motorcycle, shortening the fenders and having a bob-tail, here is our list of the top seven Bobbers of 2018 that run on huge engines yet harks back to a different time – ostensibly the post-WWII era when returning servicemen stripped their bikes of all unnecessary weight for the sake of going faster.

Full dresser, full dress tourer, or dresser are jargons for machines that love to hit the asphalt covering some major miles in the most sumptuous comfort. With complete sets of saddlebags and top box to carry all your and your passenger’s belongings, dressers are the ultimate cruising weapons that give you creature comforts like no other on two wheels.

Coming in hot with full fairings to protect you from the elements, large engines, navigation systems, an all-important music, and connectivity options and by far the most comfortable seats, here are our top ten dressers of 2018 that does all of it in luxury:

Baggers are nothing but motorcycles with large motors with plenty of low-end torque, forward set footpegs, and a laid-back reclined riding position defining any modern-day cruisers, with an addition of saddlebags. Meant for long distance travel, baggers maintain agility, an open feel, and classic motorcycle styling. In addition to the bags, they will often have windshields, partial fairing, a more comfortable seat, better suspension, larger tank, and forward controls.

Touring is synonymous with motorcycles; it’s an integral part of the riding experience. No other feeling satisfies a man’s desire for freedom, to head in a direction unknown. And if you don’t have the right tool to do it, the whole feeling just becomes uncanny. Here is our list of top ten baggers of 2018 touring the roads of the world:

Harley-Davidson’s “Limited” has always been a top-shelf machine, so how do you improve on something that already comes with all the bells and whistles? Why, you turn it over to the Custom Vehicle Operations division, of course. The CVO Limited represents the pinnacle of Harley’s tourbike development with all the gadgets and gizmoes of the Ultra Limited, plus the pure-D awesome-sauce that comes with “CVO-ification”. An updated infotainment system joins the brushed-up, year-model specific design details to boost curb appeal, and the MoCo shoehorns in the largest production mill it has ever built to drive it all. Like the rest of the CVO line, the Limited comes with three distinct paint packages with varied levels of bling, so without further ado, let’s dive into Harley’s premium two-wheeled performance tourbike.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson CVO Limited.

Harley-Davidson rolled out the newest generation of its hot-rod bagger, the Street Glide, last year when it shoehorned one of its brand-new 107 cubic-inch Milwaukee-Eight engines into the frame, and that more or less carries straight over into MY2019. Updated suspension components join the new powerplant and recently-revised bodywork to make this latest boulevard bruiser one of the most popular models to come out of Milwaukee right now. Today I’m going to dive into this newest version and see what other yummy-goodness the MoCo has in store for us.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson Street Glide,

Being the closest thing to flying without leaving the ground, Cruisers have been the incarnation of the ‘30s to ‘60s American lifestyles. Large motors with plenty of low-end torque, forward set footpegs, and a laid-back reclined riding position define any modern-day cruisers. Traditionally, large V-twins ran under the hoods, but inline engines have become more common these days.

Here is our list of the cruiser motorcycles of 2018 that gets us to simply cruise, at one with our bike, taking in the sights and smells, the cool air washing over, and supposedly cleansing the soul. Basically defining the concept of motorcycling, cruisers keep us wandering off with just a twist of the throttle to the unknown.

Harley-Davidson’s Custom Vehicle Operations division always turns out the best toys, and this year is no exception as it sees a number of improvements and new options for its fixed-fairing boulevard bruiser; the CVO Road Glide. The “CVORG” features new body panels with model-year specific paint details and paint packages that present you with a choice between three levels of brightness (or the lackthereof). On top of all that, the MY2019 CVORG boasts the largest displacement (and most powerful) production engine currently made by the MoCo, and Harley’s latest Infotainment system spreads some power to the audio system as well. Since the CVO range serves as H-D’s top-shelf product line, it’s safe to expect the best Milwaukee has to offer. Let’s see how they did.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide.

Traffic-carving performance wasn’t the first thing I think of when hearing the name Harley-Davidson, but the MoCo started changing that perception with the new-in-2017 Street Rod 750. While it is, in fact, based on the current Street 750, multiple changes in the setup and equipment turn it into another animal entirely. Shorter steering geometry, a more aggressive rider triangle and a more powerful engine come together in H-D’s decisive push into the sport-standard market.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson Street Rod.

Harley-Davidson revamped its Street Glide Special yet again for the 2019 model year in an effort to keep it “special.” First, the factory stuffed the largest non-CVO engine into the frame. Then it boosted the infotainment potential with the new Boom! Box GTS system. Color choices span the spectrum so there should be something for everyone on the palette. What else makes the “Special” so special? Let’s find out.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson Street Glide Special.

The new-in-2017 107-inch, Milwaukee-Eight engine from Harley-Davidson delivers nearly 114 pounds o’ grunt along with improved suspension components and other, comfort-related improvements over the MY2016 units. Naturally, this is in addition to all the tour-tastic yummy-goodness that made the Ultra Limited such a touring staple in the first place. Today I’m going to take a look at this pair to see what else is new and exciting, then we are going to see how it measures up against the Indian Roadmaster that I reckon will be its most direct competitor.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson Ultra Limited and Ultra Limited Low.

Harley-Davidson has released its 2019 lineup, and it looks like the newly revamped TriGlide Ultra is the hot ticket to debut all the new tech to come out of Milwaukee this year. The TriGlide combines the stability of a traditional trike platform with all the same tour-tastic goodies that makes H-D’s two-wheeler tourbikes such a success. New this year, an updated infotainment system gives you better touchscreen performance along with better sound system options, but the real performance boost lies in the engine area as Harley beefed up its already massive mill. Attention was paid to the suspension components as well to make this generation of trike smoother than ever before, so as you can see, the MoCo did its homework and gave the people exactly what they want, and more of it. Or, did they? Let’s find out.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson TriGlide Ultra,

Harley-Davidson advances its 100-new-bike agenda in 2019 with the new FXDR 114 that turns the nearly-new Softail into a drag race-inspired stoplight burner. The factory went outside the envelope for design inspiration, with some interesting results that head in an unexpected direction to say the least. A 114 cubic-inch engine delivers the goods to make the FXDR the most powerful production Softail up for grabs so far this year, so you can be assured that it’s by no means an all-show/no-go machine. Plus, an effort was made to shed some weight to improve handling- and ride-quality, and that translates into even better acceleration to make this a rather sporty, non-Sportster ride. Let’s dive into the details.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson FXDR 114.

Once again, Harley-Davidson takes what’s old and makes it new again with its revamped-in-2018 Softail lineup, and the drag-tastic “Breakout” is one of the models that made the jump and carried into 2019. Harley offers this bobber-burner with the 109 pound-foot, Milwaukee-Eight 107 and the Mil-8 114 that boasts a total of 119 pounds o’ twist. The ground-up Softail-family rebuild contains myriad changes from the remarkable to the mundane that go way beyond a handful of re-arranged trim packages. We’re talking about the re-invention of the whole range with capabilities meant to offset the loss of the Dyna family, and technology that is more in line with the current industry standards. We’re talking a renewed focus on the Softails as H-D’s sole (or should it be soul?) cruisers. This is it; the drag-tastic sub-model of the range that Harley hopes will attract the younger buyers.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson Breakout.

The Milwaukee brand will enter a new phase in 2019 with its brand new “More Roads to Harley-Davidson” growth plan through 2022. Harley Davidson has showcased multiple concepts under the LiveWire bandwagon including the 2019 production ready LiveWire motorcycle.

The production-ready model is out and we have the flesh sleaze of images in a bright orange getup. And honestly, this is arguably the most forward-thinking machine to have ever come out of the gates by Harley. A huge leap into the unknown for a brand with 115 years of vintage heritage.

Harley-Davidson’s Custom Vehicle Operations division is at it again with a revised CVO Street Glide model for 2019. The newest “SG” sports a new Boom! Box infotainment system with some serious speaker packages, and it comes with a choice of three distinct finish categories; bright, dark and really dark. Power comes from the Milwaukee-Eight 117 that makes its sophomore appearance and brings its “guns” to the table with oodles of torque and a new color band as a model-year identifier. There’s plenty more to see, so let’s get into the details of Harley’s top-shelf custom-tour bike.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson CVO Street Glide.

We brought you this news almost half a year ago where Harley-Davidson ties the knot with Alta Motors to develop next-gen EVs’. It was an equity investment sharing ideologies and infrastructure to set up new technology and R&D to come up with innovative solutions to develop electric motorcycles.

But fresh new information tells us that the Bar & Shield brand had done a complete flip and have exited from its joint motorcycle project with Alta. They have culminated all involvements and investments in the San Francisco startup.

Harley-Davidson remakes its hot-rod trike, the Freewheeler, ahead of the 2019 model year with a host of improvements that the factory hopes will help it compete against the burgeoning three-wheeler competition. Brand-new-for-2019, traction control and backtorque-defeating measures have been put into place, and they’re buttressed by a new suspension system for an overall increase in safety and stability. That’s not all; the beating heart was upgraded as well with a 114-inch powerplant shoehorned in where a 107 used to reside, so there’s even more of that grunty performance we expect from Harley’s three-wheeled stoplight-burner. This year makes a significant benchmark in H-D’s technology development, so let’s dig in and see how well it stacks up against the competition.

Continue reading for my review of the Harley-Davidson Freewheeler.

It nearly took two decades to happen, but Harley-Davidson finally joined the 21st century with a host of new electronic gadgets that are meant to increase safety and put the MoCo on a more even footing against the products and systems coming from just about all the other major manufacturers.

Continue reading for more on Harley-Davidson’s new electronic technology.

It seems like it’s been an extra-long wait for the new Harley-Davidsons to start rolling out this year, but the floodgates have finally opened and I want to start out by taking a look at the new models coming out of the CVO division. H-D’s Custom Vehicle Operations serves as a proving grounds of sorts, a crucible in which up-and-coming tech is forged, so naturally it gets all the very best toys first. This puts it at the tip of the spear, as it were, and makes the best place to start, so let’s get started.

Continue reading for more on the new CVO line.

With what went down as the biggest shift in the company’s corporate stance, Harley Davidson has gone on record showcasing its future plans over the next five years in great detail. As part of its brand new “More Roads to Harley-Davidson” growth plan through 2022, HD has showcased multiple concepts under electric motorcycles, adventure-tourers, streetfighter, and Customs being the prominent ones.

But Harley has definitely taken care not to forget about its past nor the present. After releasing nine new Softails earlier this year, the Milwaukee brand has unleashed a brand new one, and this time, it gets the biggest of the Milwaukee-Eight 114 engines with 1868cc. It’s the FXDR 114, and it comes built around the new platform with 240-section rear tire and lightweight aluminum swingarm.