So I rode a Harley today... | Page 2 | GTAMotorcycle.com

So I rode a Harley today...

Haha, they are master marketers. If they set it in the showroom with a $95,000 price tag, they wouldn't move many. Sell it for a reasonable price, sell $80 HD bolts here and $1000 chrome heat shield there and people don't even realize how much they have flushed down the drain. I know one guy that has three Harleys with over six figures into each. They aren't much different than the original bike, just more logos and more chrome.

I used to live in a rooming house with the parts guy for a GTA HD dealer. Even he was sickened by the amount of money people would drop yearly on bobbles. He rode a basically stock bike with all of the chrome painted black. He couldn't stand chrome anymore.

i find the older generation of harley guys are still into the whole chrome thing where as the newer buyers are into blacked out.
when i get one again it will be all blacked out, hard bags, backrest for the passenger but very basic.
 
Also you have to have HD gear as well or get snubbed by other HD riders.

Small tank are for rides from your house to the closet tim hortons and back. :p
 
agreed 100% on the blacked out....was never into chrome
 
I've traded rides with many looking for something excellent in a Harley. I always come to the same conclusion - the only thing they redeeming feature is the coolness of the bike. Performance...no, cornering...no, braking...no, dependability...no, but they not only look cool, there's something that just make you feel really cool when your're riding one.

Will I ever own one? Probably, but not until those other things become less important to me.
 
Haha, they are master marketers. If they set it in the showroom with a $95,000 price tag, they wouldn't move many. Sell it for a reasonable price, sell $80 HD bolts here and $1000 chrome heat shield there and people don't even realize how much they have flushed down the drain. I know one guy that has three Harleys with over six figures into each. They aren't much different than the original bike, just more logos and more chrome.

I used to live in a rooming house with the parts guy for a GTA HD dealer. Even he was sickened by the amount of money people would drop yearly on bobbles. He rode a basically stock bike with all of the chrome painted black. He couldn't stand chrome anymore.

That's not a uniquely Harley trait. Ask a Honda owner. Shadow Phantom $9,299, want an exhaust? $1000, backrest? $500, Air cleaner? $500, Tuner? $500, Floorboards? $500, good seat? $7-1000. Oh and for many accessories that you might want, the brackets to install them are sold separately. By the time I'm done I could have had a nicely appointed slightly used big boy Harley let alone a sportster.
 
I've got a Buell with over 80k and I've had two Sportsters with the current one at 30k. Only maintenance beyond oil changes has been rocker cover gasket replacement. Done them myself. Never stranded. Oil and rubber and other wear item replacements.

I did upgrade the seat and suspension. But, you can find these things with a budget if you are patient.

My 08 Roadster does have a Powervision and fuel remapped which makes it do alright in performance.

It does have twin disc rotors up front and they stop good. Feel on the other hand is a little (a lot) vague. Definitely get to know how to use the rear brake when riding a HD to help things out when stopping.
 
i disagree, every year when my friends and i do our annual cottage bike weekend we allow a chase truck to come with ramps, and every year a harley sportster gets towed for one reason or another.
the 3 sportsters i ride with are a 03 883/1200 that breaks down every other ride but has made it both there and back the last 2 years, 2012 48 which was bought new and has been towed home 2 years in a row and a 06 which was a "new" purchase over last winter and has yet to been towed but we will see what next season brings lol


ok in all honesty the 48 just keeps blowing tires because he is crazy hard on it and rides it like a dirt bike and the 03 is a wiring nightmare, if it had a new harness and plug wires it would be fine. if it rains he shorts out his starter button and has to hotwire it...no signals...well they are there but dont really work.

as for the fuel range, the tank on the 48 is really small, if you want to keep the same look but gain a little more fuel loo at the tanks off the xl883, i had a 07 and it was a very similar shape. my buddy with the 48 has been running a steel fuel tank on his sissybar with a pump to feed the primary tank, awesome looking setup but this year he actually bought a aftermarket tank off lowbrow customs. not overly sure how happy he is with the looks of the tanks shape but he doees a lot of long hauls to the states and needs the extra fuel.

im going to be getting back on a harly one day, i miss owning one but will be getting something bigger for 2 up ridding....2 up on the 600rr just sucks..

So you are saying they are unreliable but they are unreliable because one guy blows his tires out and another guy has a bad wiring job which I am assuming is not stock and the last guy, well he has not had an issue yet. Sounds like your logic is sound and Harley really is unreliable! So I could counter you and say of the 6 guys I know who ride Harleys none of them are ever left stranded or broken down at the side of the road, did have a Honda CB919 have some pieces fall of on a trip last year though.

My aunt had a sportster 883 and the range was horrible, definitely not meant for touring, I think she was getting maybe 150kms on a tank if the wind was at her back. She has a 1200 sportster now and it is better though not sure by home much.

The day of Harleys leaking oil and parts falling off is pretty much gone, sure there will be a case here and there of a failed bike, but every brand will have that. I would not think twice about taking a modern Harley from coast to coast.
 
So you are saying they are unreliable but they are unreliable because one guy blows his tires out and another guy has a bad wiring job which I am assuming is not stock and the last guy, well he has not had an issue yet. Sounds like your logic is sound and Harley really is unreliable! So I could counter you and say of the 6 guys I know who ride Harleys none of them are ever left stranded or broken down at the side of the road, did have a Honda CB919 have some pieces fall of on a trip last year though.

My aunt had a sportster 883 and the range was horrible, definitely not meant for touring, I think she was getting maybe 150kms on a tank if the wind was at her back. She has a 1200 sportster now and it is better though not sure by home much.

The day of Harleys leaking oil and parts falling off is pretty much gone, sure there will be a case here and there of a failed bike, but every brand will have that. I would not think twice about taking a modern Harley from coast to coast.

The leaking, unreliable bikes were over in 1984 when the Evo arrived. Show me an unreliable Harley and I'll show you an owner who think's he's a mechanic. Amazing how many garage guys think they can just slide in an aftermarket cam then blame Harley Davidson when the valve train fails and they trash the engine. Every bike I see failing from any brand is usually the victim of aftermarket mods. Motorcycles are very reliable these days including Harley Davidsons. I took my Softail right across Rte 66 to California, often in 100F+ temps, then up the coast highway and back through the Nevada desert and the Pony Express Trail. It's a great bike, most reliable I have ever owned.
 
Another pro for the sportsters? Theyre light.(relatively speaking)

After riding softails and dyna's and baggers last year, the 48 felt so awesome in comparison
 
With modern bikes, I believe that reports of breakdowns and failures are attributable mostly to two things.
1-Electronic sensors and gadgetry, the more we add the the more likely to be a problem.
2- Improper maintainence. We all know that guy who is planning a 3 day trip with 50k on his chain and sprockets and no fluid changes of any kind for 3 years. He's likely to wind up breaking down.

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I have a XR 1200, and I love it. It goes,stops,handles great. I ride almost every weekend with Ducatis and keep up quite easily. I wouldn't head off to Vancouver on it, that's what my FJR is for, but for a Sunday ride the XR is a ton of fun. The fact that it shares virtually no parts with any other Harley can be a bit of a challenge, and the guy at the parts counter doesn't even know that they existed is problematic, but mostly it's a great choice if are interested in a Harley that behaves like a sports bike. Finding one is the issue.
 
You want a fun cruiser? Try the Ducati Diavel. No comparison to the HD. It actually turns, handles and accelerates. An absolute riot to ride.
Probably because it's naked sport bike, not a cruiser.
 
Re: News Financial Post: On the Road: Hog turns Japanese

East meets West in Calgarian's customized Harley-Davidson Sportster Forty-Eight



http://driving.ca/harley-davidson/auto-news/news/on-the-road-hog-turns-japanese
That actually looks like a really fun bike, the constant changing mentality of the guy is pretty rad too!
I like the tank the most probably, the 48 shape is cool, the amount of gas it can take is far less than cool.

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Probably because it's naked sport bike, not a cruiser.

Have you ever ridden a Diavel or xDiavel? They are definitely muscle cruisers.
The riding position is NOTHING like a naked sport bike. The Diavel is more standard, the xDiavel is somewhat foot forward.

Either one will outdo anything that HD has to offer in absolutely every way possible. Full stop.
 
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Myself, I would love to try out the new fat bob. First Harley that looks fun ride.


I keep getting emails/calls from HD dealers, asking me to come out for NSA test rides...

A fella aint in a position to turn down free rides on new bikes(shouldn't have given my contact info during the demo day)

Even though I have really no intention of buying a Harley anytime soon


I think i finally know how it feels to be a chick gettin free drinks all day everyday
 

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