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- Harley Davidson takes the plunge (and us with)!
- In the increasingly competitive world of luxury GTs, Harley Davidson is redesigning its copy and switching to liquid cooling, to give more to its customers. Evolution or revolution? To find out, we went to Colorado.
- Discovery
- In the saddle
- Contact
- In the city
- Departmental
- National
- Highway
- Braking
- Practical aspects
- Nec plus Ultra, classic or limited ?
- Conclusion
Harley Davidson takes the plunge (and us with)!
In the increasingly competitive world of luxury GTs, Harley Davidson is redesigning its copy and switching to liquid cooling, to give more to its customers. Evolution or revolution? To find out, we went to Colorado.
Monument Valley, a mythical and evocative place for a brand that is no less. A nod to moviegoers, Mount Rushmmore is the setting for the closing scenes of Death By Hits, Hitchcock and, closer to home, the adventures of Benjamin Gates. The prestigious association is not innocent, but in fact the "Rushmore" project is the contraction of rush and more, which could be translated as "give more and move forward". It is true that with the presence of Victory and the return of Indian, the American giant is pushed to its pedestal, by Polaris. So here is his answer !
Discovery
A Harley Davidson that imposes and more particularly a Touring model, with all its luggage. It’s beautiful, impressive, like an American car from the "30 glorious years" The embodiment of the American dream in all its glory! The lines are as immutable as they are timeless, a hundred times copied by the Japanese, but never equaled.
Recognizable among a thousand, the Harley Davidson is identified by its enormous V2 engine at 45 ° and air cooling, but also for the "Touring" versions by its "Batwing" fairing (literally "bat wing") appeared…. in 1969 !!! (see "to your special Harley brands").
The scene is therefore set, we are moving on familiar ground, yet on closer inspection, this Harley is neither quite the same, nor quite another. Like a Porsche 911, as the staff likes to tell us, it is still identifiable, but it has been completely overhauled..
It starts with the engine which very discreetly adopts liquid cooling, called "twin cooled", since it retains its fins and its oil cooler, while the radiators are hidden in the side scoops which protect the pilot’s legs. Even if the power and the couple gain 10%, the objective of the manufacturer is not, one suspects it, the absolute performance. It is not either the antipollution standards, but simply the comfort of the pilot and the passenger who will thus suffer less from the calories evacuated by the hot zones close to them, primarily the rear cylinder head. Thus in traffic jams, the hot flashes will be less intense since the calories are transferred from the cylinder heads to the radiators. In fact, this evolution is representative of the philosophy of the “Rushmore” project as a whole, which aims to improve the comfort and the user-friendliness of the pilot and the passenger. Small or large changes, visible or not, but sensitive to use as we will discover over the kilometers. Aesthetically speaking, the shapes are redesigned, for more comfort, but always respecting the line and the spirit (like a 911 …), so that an untrained eye will not detect them. Mudguard, front, headlights (Led with daytime running lights), fairing, passenger seat, backrest, top case and suitcases are new. Also new is the 49 mm front fork and its triple trees which replace the old 41.3 mm model. Also new is the reinforced frame at the column for more rigidity. In short, it changes a lot, even if it is not visible !
In the saddle
Sitting low, feet flat on the ground, we can face the 400 kg of the beast for maneuvers. A reverse gear would not have been a luxury, but it does not exist, even in the options catalog. So failing that, we take precautions during stops, to position ourselves while reducing maneuvers to a minimum. A little gymnastics of the mind, to avoid that of the body which would sweat very quickly under the effect of the weight. Very comfortably installed behind the large fork crown, we discover the analogue needle-based instrument panel, very readable and the "infotainment" system, an English twist of information and entertainment. This is one of the great novelties of this vintage. On a 6.5-inch color touch screen, reserved for the Ultra Limited, you have access to a GPS, but also to information relating to the motorcycle (but unfortunately not to an on-board computer) and finally to the sound system, which can be sourced from the radio, or your MP3 and other I Pod, I phone, with even a voice command, which allows you to search for songs, etc. Friendly and very impressive! On the Ultra Classic, you will have to settle for a 4.3 screen without GPS or touch control. For the "current", it is in the meter that you will have the trips and the residual autonomy, but no average or instantaneous consumption..
All this is controlled from the handlebars, in a very intuitive way.
Contact
On the way. The 103 cubic inch (1690 cm3) snorts emitting a characteristic sound of the 45 ° setting, or offset as desired. The exhausts are unfortunately a little muffled, we would like them to give a little more voice. The air filter housing, formerly ovoid, resized and more permeable allows the 2014 models to be identified with certainty. It contributes to the increase in performance. Despite the large displacement and torque, the clutch control is flexible and requires less effort than before. We engage the first of the 6 speeds, present since 2007 on Harleys and we just have to take off smoothly on the torque.
In the city
Bulky and long (2.51 m), the bike impresses more than it is difficult to handle. Very stable at low speed, it certainly does not offer the agility of a trial motorcycle, but when you see the American "cops" (cops) turning around in a handkerchief with the steps that rub the ground , we say to ourselves that with a little training we should be able to relax and forget about the pounds. It is hardly that on slippery surfaces that one is afraid of losing feet during maneuvers, because the low center of gravity and the low saddle height do everything to put you at ease (some more than others, I admit to being a little limited in this kind of exercise).
Flexible, the engine still suffers from a very long final gear that does not make it easy. The gears shift well, with a characteristic noise, but without requiring significant effort on the double-branch selector. We didn’t suffer from any real traffic jams, but the liquid cooling does seem to be doing its job well, reducing the heat under the pilot. Beware of the width of the whole, no doubt, but given that in the US we do not go up the lines, we were not bothered by the imposing size. However, as nothing protrudes, there is no risk of ending up in the port of Île de Re, hitting a satchel …. A very bearable city test and a positive result for this first leg of our trip. . Designed for the great outdoors, this Harley does pretty well in small corners.
Departmental
Even in the USA and particularly in the mountains of Colorado, there are small roads that twist. The comfortable riding position combined with the wide handlebars allows the motorcycle to be handled with ease, completely forgetting the size and the gigantic wheelbase of the machine (1700 mm). The steering is not heavy, the bike does not engage. The double-branch selector makes it easier to change gears, the brakes are effective whatever the coating, as we will see later. The bumps are well absorbed, as long as they are kept reasonable in size. Beyond a certain height, we reach the limits of a “lowered” rear suspension which by definition limits the travel to around 80mm. We sometimes manage to follow behind, but without real brutality. The new front fork on the other hand, does its “job” perfectly (since we are in the United States). The ground clearance is adapted to the vocation of the motorcycle and it will not pose a problem to the users..
National
The speed increases a bit and this is an opportunity to appreciate the quality of the sound system which distills the music of your choice in your ears, without distortion. Without being distracted, we surf from one song to another, using the controls on the handlebars, or directly the touch screen on the limited. Due to the lack of a headset allowing the installation of a microphone + earpiece kit, we were not able to test the voice control, but those who did said were delighted. The protection offered by the fairing is perfect for the upper body, while the deflectors protect your legs.
In case of strong heat, you can open or close shutters to cool or warm your legs, as desired. We also took advantage of heavy downpours to assess the effectiveness of the fairings under downpours. For the upper body, it remains perfect, for the legs, the openings on the front face, essential for air cooling, allow upwelling, especially on the left side (on the right, the exhaust pipe is a little screen). In fact, it is better to have boot covers to keep your lower legs and feet dry. So it’s not just the engine that’s water-cooled! The comfort is royal, the asphalt tape scrolls before your eyes, the engine purrs. However, it is better not to drive in sixth, because the very long gear ratio (at 2000 rpm, we already exceed 100 km / h), harms the efficiency of the times. We will therefore stay on intermediate gears (4th, even 5th), without ever exceeding 3000 rpm.
Note, however, that our trip took place at an altitude of between 2 and 3000 m which adversely affects the performance of the engine. In fact, the combination of altitude, long gear and heavy weight saw off the legs of our “twin cooled” engine, which was still poorly released (around 1000 km on the clock). Too bad, we expected more character from this revamped version. We can bet that at sea level and well established, it will be more demonstrative. Without going overboard, a pair of slightly liberated pots will do him the greatest good it seems. The comparison with the old versions of the Twin Cam 103 air-cooled and less powerful by approximately 10% did not reveal any obvious evolution. You really had to switch from one machine to another several times (!) To detect it. I should have offered to do a test by piloting blindfolded … But not sure that the ricans accepted !!! In fact, the power to weight ratio does not give pride of place to performance and times. You just have to climb on the Fat Bob 2013 equipped with the twin cam 103 air-cooled, but less heavy by 100 kg to find more thrills. More than 400 kg to drag, without pilot or gasoline, it calms you an engine !
Highway
The endless straight lines are an opportunity to engage the "Cruise Control" (speed regulator), very easy to use. The extraordinary stability of the machine then allows you to let go of the handlebars and sit behind, in the passenger seat, to admire the landscape from above. Guaranteed success with children you pass by in the car !
Equally extraordinary, the quality of the sound system which cannot be denied, even at 130 km / h. It takes advantage of the aerodynamic work done on the new fork crown, to reduce turbulence – and noise – at the driver’s helmet. The result is simply incredible! Nothing to do with the inaudible horsehair hair found on some high-end motorcycles. Something to reconcile with motorcycle radio !
In a few winding and slightly bumpy descents, approached at 140/150 km / h, the chassis gives way to movements that hardly make you want to go see beyond what is happening. Even with a new fork and a reinforced frame, the rigor of a Victory is not achieved. But is it so important in everyday use? Otherwise, no vibration, a comfortable position, feet firmly on the steps, we swallow the kilometers, forgetting the time and any notion of speed. American dream !
Braking
Intelligent, is a qualifier that fits like a glove to this ABS braking, coupled with over 50 km / h. At low speed, it is therefore independent, with a "transparent" ABS, in normal use, but indeed effective. If you brake above 50 km / h, the distribution of the front / rear coupling depends on the intensity of your stress. The coupling therefore remains until it comes to a complete stop, whether you use the lever or the brake pedal. It’s comfortable, efficient, safe, especially on a machine of this weight. Without fail !
Practical aspects
Let’s start with the duo, which has received a lot of attention for the space allocated to the passenger and for its comfort, both acoustically and physically. Then let’s move on to the luggage, which is also very successful. All open with one hand. It’s handy when you have something in the other! At the front a small storage compartment receives your I pod or your MP3, with a USB cord, for music (blue tooth connectivity possible). Too bad it does not lock. The capacity of the upper trunk has been increased by 5%. It easily contains two full-face helmets and a maximum of 13.6 kg. On the limited version, it has a pretty parcel rack. The side cases support 9.1 kg each. They are very easy to remove thanks to screws ¼ "Dzus" tour. Behind the left case, you can access the preload adjustment of the rear shock absorber (which only works on one side therefore). The secondary transmission is always done by belt. On the Ltd, you will also benefit from heated grips, adjustable in intensity thanks to a knob at the end of the handlebars, on the left. Very convenient. The filling of the tank is concealed under a hatch, which locks automatically when the ignition is switched off. The cap is screwed on, so it is not hinged securely. The tank holds 22.7 L, but moving from one motorcycle to another, we were unable to take a reading of the consumption..
Nec plus Ultra, classic or limited ?
For a few dollars more, (€ 1,100 exactly), the Limited offers you the GPS with touch screen and voice control, which accepts being told an address in one place! In addition, there are heated handles and the tour pack luggage rack. Frankly, do not hesitate between the two, which still brings the bill to € 28,290 … but no, we do not take you for Americans. Console yourself by thinking on the one hand that a Harley lasts forever and that it keeps an incredible coast on resale. A kind of placement therefore !
Conclusion
The years go by but the spirit remains. Even if we crossed the Atlantic to discover these new Harley Davidson Ultra classic and Ultra limited, we did not have an appointment in unknown land. Air-cooled or water-cooled and wrapped in on-board electronics, it remains a Harley, pure and authentic. We would have liked more pep of the new engine and a little more rigor of the chassis, frankly the general comfort, the quality of the sound system, the finish and the equipment are of the first order. ABS reflex braking is very efficient. On their handlebars, you will discover a peaceful and calming approach to motorcycling, far from radars, an invitation to travel. A special vessel, to move around the great outdoors and discover new horizons while taking your time.
Strong points
- general comfort
- sound system
- GPS and voice control (Limited)
- braking
- resale quotation
- cruise control and user-friendly controls.
- perfect integration of liquid cooling.
Weak points
- heavy weight
- motor not demonstrative enough
- final gear too long
- lack of rigor of the chassis at high speed
- high price
Datasheet
Competetion :
Kawasaki VN 1700 Voyager (€ 19,999), Victory Vision tour (€ 23,590) honda 1800 Goldwing (€ 23,590), BMWL (€ 23,300), Moto Guzzi 1400 California touring (€ 19,350) Triumph 2300 Rocket III touring (18790)
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