Tach at 5,500 rpm. Dump the clutch. Just dump it. Big, meaty 180/55ZR18 rear radial slides sideways, squealing for traction. Butt pinned to a hump built into the semi-solo seat. Arms stretched wide from the acceleration.
Cripes, this is a Harley?
Sticky Dunlop D207 finally finds traction. Pin the throttle. Just nail it. Tach needle literally skips to 9,000-rpm redline. Fingers go white from gripping the handlebar so tightly.
Cripes, this is a Harley?
Grab second gear. Tach passes 6,000. Front wheel gets light. Snick into third just below nine grand. Front wheel still light. Bar waggles under acceleration as you pass 140.
Cripes, this is a Harley?
Say hello to the V-Rod, the Harley-Davidson that thinks it's a Ducati. Forget any back-handed compliments like "good power for a cruiser" or "sophisticated for a Harley," the new V-Rod's 1,130-cubic-centimeter engine is a marvel. As soul-stirring and powerful as a Ducati 916 and as well behaved as a Honda VTR1000, the V-Rod sports the most powerful V-twin cruiser engine in the biz.
The 60-degree V-twin, designed with input from sports car legend Porsche, puts out a reported 110 horsepower at the rear wheel. Though its large displacement V-twin format practically guarantees sufficient low-end torque, it's the eye-opening surge at 5,000 rpm that really gets your attention. In the lower gears, you have to be ready to tap dance on the shift lever because the V-Rod really does flash through revs once it gets a head of steam.
And since the four-valve-per-cylinder V-twin is fuel-injected, it is also a model of civility, its muted throbbing feeling all the world like a cross between Ducati's ST4 sport tourer and the aforementioned Honda VTR (though how well these favorable comparisons will sit with the Harley faithful — who have long held they prefer their American iron because it "feels" different from Japanese and Italian V-twins — still remains open to conjecture). Credit the Porsche involvement. Give thanks to improved Harley-Davidson quality control. Either way, the engine is a revelation (and likely why it's officially dubbed the "Revolution" engine by Harley-Davidson).
Its only downside stems from the fact that this is Harley's first liquid-cooled street bike. In the sultry dog days of summer, the cooling system's fan was almost always running full blast. And it is very loud. Noisy enough at idle to make the V-Rod's muted "potato-potato" exhaust note hard to hear. Besides, at rest, it blew plenty of superheated air onto my right leg.
Though the styling is radically different, the V-Rod's chassis is typically Harley; long, low and oh so stable. The steering head angle is a whopping 38 degrees (trick triple clamps bring the fork tubes back in four degrees for an effective rake of 34 degrees). The front end looks like it came off of a circa '70 Bay Area cruiser.
In fact, the front wheel is so far out there that it remains in your peripheral view even when you're riding. It lends an impression that the V-Rod is even longer than its massive 67.5-inch wheelbase suggests. It's quite a cool sensation. Chassis specs like this usually equate to a rather evil-handling motorcycle. But somehow Harley has managed to make the V-Rod fairly adept in the corners. For a cruiser, of course. The radically raked fork can make the steering awkward at parking lot speeds, but the V-Rod's handling gets more precise as speed increases. There's also a little more ground clearance than usual for a cruiser, so the V-Rod acquits itself quite well when traversing off-ramps.
While the 49mm front fork's damping is relatively plush, the rear shocks are quite harsh. It's typical of any low-slung cruiser since wheel travel is limited in order to get the low seat height (in this case, 26 inches). Nonetheless, the biggest improvement Harley could make to the V-Rod is another 25mm of rear shock travel along with softer springing. Surprisingly, I found the seating position quite comfortable. Surprising because the V-Rod's layout places the rider's footpegs so far forward. Although I would have preferred they were moved two inches rearward, the seat-to-handlebar relationship was ideal for my 5-foot-11 frame. At least for city and backroad riding. Like all other cruisers without a windshield, the sit-up-and-beg riding position turns the pilot into a sail at elevated highway speeds. But then, Harley never meant for the V-Rod to be a tourer.
What it wanted was the biggest, baddest power cruiser on the market. And it got it. Long-time fans of this segment will remember the impact of Yamaha's V-Max, itself a sport-bike killer amongst cruisers. The V-Rod is similar in spirit. In fact, this new engine deserves much more than just being limited to cruiser use. Harley should build a Ducati Monster-like street rod around it, and Buell would have a category killer if it slipped the V-Rod's engine into the new XB9R Firebolt.
The V-Rod's exclusivity commands a premium, even at already hefty Harley prices. The 2003 version retails for $17,995, and by the time you read this, the '04s should be in town, complete with a price increase and additional paint options.
You'll have to decide if that's money well spent. I can tell you that, after 40 years of living on its '60s reputation for building the baddest motorcycles on the planet, Harley-Davidson once again has the fastest custom on the market — no excuses necessary.
Cripes, this is a Harley?
Sticky Dunlop D207 finally finds traction. Pin the throttle. Just nail it. Tach needle literally skips to 9,000-rpm redline. Fingers go white from gripping the handlebar so tightly.
Cripes, this is a Harley?
Grab second gear. Tach passes 6,000. Front wheel gets light. Snick into third just below nine grand. Front wheel still light. Bar waggles under acceleration as you pass 140.
Cripes, this is a Harley?
Say hello to the V-Rod, the Harley-Davidson that thinks it's a Ducati. Forget any back-handed compliments like "good power for a cruiser" or "sophisticated for a Harley," the new V-Rod's 1,130-cubic-centimeter engine is a marvel. As soul-stirring and powerful as a Ducati 916 and as well behaved as a Honda VTR1000, the V-Rod sports the most powerful V-twin cruiser engine in the biz.
The 60-degree V-twin, designed with input from sports car legend Porsche, puts out a reported 110 horsepower at the rear wheel. Though its large displacement V-twin format practically guarantees sufficient low-end torque, it's the eye-opening surge at 5,000 rpm that really gets your attention. In the lower gears, you have to be ready to tap dance on the shift lever because the V-Rod really does flash through revs once it gets a head of steam.
And since the four-valve-per-cylinder V-twin is fuel-injected, it is also a model of civility, its muted throbbing feeling all the world like a cross between Ducati's ST4 sport tourer and the aforementioned Honda VTR (though how well these favorable comparisons will sit with the Harley faithful — who have long held they prefer their American iron because it "feels" different from Japanese and Italian V-twins — still remains open to conjecture). Credit the Porsche involvement. Give thanks to improved Harley-Davidson quality control. Either way, the engine is a revelation (and likely why it's officially dubbed the "Revolution" engine by Harley-Davidson).
Its only downside stems from the fact that this is Harley's first liquid-cooled street bike. In the sultry dog days of summer, the cooling system's fan was almost always running full blast. And it is very loud. Noisy enough at idle to make the V-Rod's muted "potato-potato" exhaust note hard to hear. Besides, at rest, it blew plenty of superheated air onto my right leg.
Though the styling is radically different, the V-Rod's chassis is typically Harley; long, low and oh so stable. The steering head angle is a whopping 38 degrees (trick triple clamps bring the fork tubes back in four degrees for an effective rake of 34 degrees). The front end looks like it came off of a circa '70 Bay Area cruiser.
In fact, the front wheel is so far out there that it remains in your peripheral view even when you're riding. It lends an impression that the V-Rod is even longer than its massive 67.5-inch wheelbase suggests. It's quite a cool sensation. Chassis specs like this usually equate to a rather evil-handling motorcycle. But somehow Harley has managed to make the V-Rod fairly adept in the corners. For a cruiser, of course. The radically raked fork can make the steering awkward at parking lot speeds, but the V-Rod's handling gets more precise as speed increases. There's also a little more ground clearance than usual for a cruiser, so the V-Rod acquits itself quite well when traversing off-ramps.
While the 49mm front fork's damping is relatively plush, the rear shocks are quite harsh. It's typical of any low-slung cruiser since wheel travel is limited in order to get the low seat height (in this case, 26 inches). Nonetheless, the biggest improvement Harley could make to the V-Rod is another 25mm of rear shock travel along with softer springing. Surprisingly, I found the seating position quite comfortable. Surprising because the V-Rod's layout places the rider's footpegs so far forward. Although I would have preferred they were moved two inches rearward, the seat-to-handlebar relationship was ideal for my 5-foot-11 frame. At least for city and backroad riding. Like all other cruisers without a windshield, the sit-up-and-beg riding position turns the pilot into a sail at elevated highway speeds. But then, Harley never meant for the V-Rod to be a tourer.
What it wanted was the biggest, baddest power cruiser on the market. And it got it. Long-time fans of this segment will remember the impact of Yamaha's V-Max, itself a sport-bike killer amongst cruisers. The V-Rod is similar in spirit. In fact, this new engine deserves much more than just being limited to cruiser use. Harley should build a Ducati Monster-like street rod around it, and Buell would have a category killer if it slipped the V-Rod's engine into the new XB9R Firebolt.
The V-Rod's exclusivity commands a premium, even at already hefty Harley prices. The 2003 version retails for $17,995, and by the time you read this, the '04s should be in town, complete with a price increase and additional paint options.
You'll have to decide if that's money well spent. I can tell you that, after 40 years of living on its '60s reputation for building the baddest motorcycles on the planet, Harley-Davidson once again has the fastest custom on the market — no excuses necessary.
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