Good Review, Thanks!!! My wife has just purchased this bike as my 50th Birthday gift, and we are excited about our first road trip. After spending over 20+ years on Kawasaki and Hondas, this will be an adjustment as I never expected to ever own an HD. Your review has created further excitement, thanks again.
Thanks for the honest and fair review...I was interested to hear what you had to say after you have been riding a Victory for so long. Yeah, different strokes...personally I love the vibration of my Road Glide Custom. Only vibrates at slow speed and at a stop of course. My EVO Softail, on the other hand, vibrates at all speeds, but in a different way - it is a solid mount engine. I like the feeling of knowing that I'm sitting on top of a powerful engine - it just adds to the experience for me. I do understand though that some would prefer a smoother ride, nothing wrong with that either.
+BrewCityRider Thank you sir! There are a lot of great bikes out there and all of them are good choices. As you said everyone has different preferences. What is important is that we are all out there riding and enjoying life. Ride safe!
Good review. I have been riding for about 5 years now, and I am looking for a new bike. What Harley has done with these new bikes is amazing! I am seriously considering one of these for my new ride....thanks.
Excellent review Craig stumbled onto this, this morning. I also ride a VV now, after having a couple of Harley's. I believe you hit the nail on the head when you talk about the vibration. As an older rider I found that on the long haul my body can't take the vibration anymore. Knees hurting not being able to stretch out and the power. My experience has been to get the power out of the Harley you have to upgrade the motor, big $$. Not to mention you have more vibration making this problem even greater on ones body. One of the things that Harley has not addressed is the cost of maintenance. For those of us that are long distance riders this is a factor on a fixed retirement wage. Do I miss my Harley you bet but after a long day in the saddle it is nice to not take a day to recover from it and have enough budget for a steak instead of a burger.......
Thanks, I am glad you enjoyed the review. Overall I really liked the Ultra but I still like my Vision better. If (like me) you are looking for long distance two-up comfort and wind protection it is hard to beat.
Thank you for an honest review Craig. As someone who has always ridden Harleys I can tell you the vibration isn't an issue on long rides but I do agree with you on the size of the floorboards and pedal/ lever placement.
Thank you for the kind words. That is my goal when I do a review, to just give an honest appraisal. The Harley vibration is almost never mentioned in any main stream review, and in particular for a comparison between manufactures it seems that would be a major difference in design philosophy. That is the main reason I decided to add the discussion about vibration in my review. But as I said, in the end the Ultra is a very nice bike.
Good objective review Craig. i test Road a CVO roadGlide and a Breakout this past year with my wife. I dig the sound and the look. after we road them both...it confirmed our choice of the GoldWing. It was not a "bad" ride and not a "great" ride. I am with you...did not care for the "vibration" at low speeds. I dig the smooth torque of the Goldwing and the comfort and functionality. I commute daily and at this point, it IS about comfort and performance.
+MemphisMike Everyone has there own personal taste. Some of us like that guttural rumble and shake and others don't. It is a good thing there are a lot of great bikes out there for us to choose from.
thx for the awesome review...honesty is refreshing...i am 50 now so for me i think the smoother Indian chieftain or the victory cross country tour is the way to go...thx again..be safe and enjoy your ride
I agree 95% with you on the review...but for me,I like that vibration. It makes me realize I'm on a motorcycle,not a scooter. No disrespect intented. I rode all kinds of bikes,Yamaha,Honda,BSA,Norton and Harleys. I didn't really like early Harleys because they were not dependable. But now,I've own 4 Harleys in the last few years and they were all very good bikes. I had a 2005 1200c,2006 Streetglide,2008 FLHTC and my bike now is a 2005 Softail Heritage Deluxe with carburators. I missed having carburators. My dealer says I'm crazy...lol
Great review, the vibrations aspect of your review, might have changed my mind. I wonder. I’ve never had a cruiser/touring bike ever. Yes I want confort for my wife at the back, on the seat.
I rode the Ultra Limited in the fall of 2013. The power is lacking quite a bit. Even shifting into 5th to pass is underwhelming. I rode the Limited through a marked area in 5th, 6th is pretty weak, and from a 60 mph roll on it reached 72 mph. In the same distance using a 2012 Wing in 5th also, (top gear on the Wing), the Wing reached 78 mph. They Limited does handle fine at lower speeds, but even at highway speeds of 40 mph going into a turn, it wants to stand up in the turn. Higher speeds you will find yourself having to hold it in the turn. It was a nice ride but did not fit for me in some of my important requirements. Barry
I have to see two bikes this Monday, a 2014 Suzuki C90T for $9000. The other is this one, 2013 for $17000 with about 33k kilometres. What bike would you recommend. I’ve been riding a sports bike for 15 yrs. I took my wife foe a spin, and I have decided she deserves a better riding seat than the gxsr750 one on my bike. Thank you and have a blessed day.
Look at as many bikes as you can and take the wife with you to make sure she will be comfortable on the rear. If you want a big cruiser, look at the Indians. They are very comfortable and smooth. Same price range as Harley. The Kawasaki Voyager a less expensive alternative.
I just bought a 2014 ultra Ltd. 100,000 kms. is 65,000 mi. Run's like a new bike to me. I don't see or feel any issues with it. Ton's of power. Smooth riding. Bike has attitude. Change your fluids on time - Cheapest insurance you can buy. Oil. Best part is they don't run HOT with the liquid cooling. This should aid in longevity.
You got to love Harley, so you have to leave the lowers on because the head cooling mechanism runs through them, which is like putting out a fire with a garden hose, so you can reduce the operating by, what, 10-15 degrees? I can do that just by removing the lowers and letting the increased air flow do that without the head cooling system. Wouldn't you want the lowers off in the summer anyway?
Great video .. the vibration is a personal preference for sure .. I find it therapeutic almost on trips .. as you said when fully loaded I feel the weight when accelerating but all in all a very nice ride
Hello..enjoyed the Harley review and the Indian Chieftain review. My question is do the Indian chietain and/or your Victory vision vibrate like the Harley at all at any speed? And did you and/or your wife notice vibrations at only 35 mph or at various speeds on the harley? I am currently shopping for a touring bike so interested to hear. Thanks.
Thanks, glad you enjoyed the videos. The Victories and Indians do not vibrate like the Harleys at low speed. Once the Harleys get up to speed they smooth out. So at highway speeds you would not feel the vibrations. If you are looking for a touring cruiser I would suggest you take a look at the Ultra and Road Glide from Harley, the Vision and the Cross Country from Victory, the Roadmaster from Indian and the Kawasaki Voyager. Go ride them all and see which one you like the best. They all have their pluses and minuses. I will be posting a video of my Roadmaster test later this month...it is a really nice bike.
Victory's can be a bit 'buzzy' at mid and higher rpm's but nothing like the Harley vibs can be. Victory's engines are mostly counter-balanced. They could have eliminated all the vibration but chose to leave just a little vibration to give character in they bikes. I wish they would have totally eliminated it but Lloyds Motorworks makes a timing advance wheel that enhances performance and makes the vibs almost non-existant. One thing to keep in mind is Victory solid mounts their engines in the frame as a stress member of the frame so any vibs at all are going to harmonic through the bike but this design has many advantages in frame strength and overall handling and performance. Harley recently came out with new rubber isolators that do a fair job of squelching the vibs at most rpm's other than idle but that's a deal breaker for me because that is masking rather than correcting the cause and I agree with this video author on that point. I also agree with him that Harley did an excellent job with the vents in the fairing. I rode some of the new Rushmore machines and they are very nice with some great changes but not enough to make me want to own one. My current ride is a '14 Victory Cross Country Tour and I have yet to find a better bike that functions as it does and that even includes the new Indians!
You mentioned the heel shifter, and I'm in agreement that I don't prefer them and would likely take it off. You also stated getting larger boards. Is that because by removing the heel shifter, you CAN get bigger foot boards?
Dig your vid! Yea, Harley's vibrate and sure sometimes your hands are left with that riders buzz feeling, "What else can I say, it's a Harley! Great info on the bike.
FYI, vocal mix is only showing up in the left channel. Music is stereo, but it makes it hard to listen to the video if your vocals are only in one channel.
Sorry you had trouble hearing the audio. I use a wireless mic that only picks up one channel when I plug it into the camera. I have to find a way around that.
Karl Knier First, you have to ride each of them and find out which one works best for you. With that said, I think they are very similar bikes as far as the riding position, handling and comfort goes. The Indian has the edge in the engine department, it just has more torque than the HD and is much smoother at lower speeds. I am also a big fan of the electronically adjustable windscreen. The Ultra however has a better "infotainment" system and there will be a much greater variety of after-market parts--but that is changing fast. Harley also has a much more developed dealer network, but the Indian network is growing quickly. Both the Ultra and Roadmaster are very nice bikes. It really gets down to what your are looking for. The intangibles for me would be the local dealer(s) available to purchase from. Which one did I have more confidence in and of course which would give me the best deal. As I said in the beginning, ride each of them and see which best fits your needs.
Over the past 40 years I've ridden so many bikes I can't remember them all. I recently did an H-D Demo Ride, an Indian Demo Ride, and a Victory Demo Ride. Harleys are no longer on my list in any way, shape, or form. In my opinion, Indians ride better than anything I have ever been on and they go. Victory is nice as well. By the way, who in their right mind would spend 39 K for a freaking H-D CVO motorcycle? I guess if you have the money...
I ride a 1988 Goldwing. I have test rode pretty much every Harley and they are just not as comfortable as a wing to me. the last test ride, I could not wait to get back on my wing. just my 2 cents.
There are plenty of YOU TUBE VIDEOS, posted by Harley owners on all these problems and more, concerning the TWIN CAM engine design. Just type in YOU TUBE:Harley Crank run out or Cam Chain tensioner problems, and you will see them for yourself, posted by Harley owners. Just look at the Harley owner's manual or Service Manual on the TWIN CAM and you'll see no mention as to when the periodic engine inspection mileage interval should be on two silent chain cam tensioners, which where designed to wear out and be replaced. Harley, doesn't want you to know about these problems, naturally, but, they got rid of the reliable, single cam, EVOUTION engine, which was produced from 1984-1998, and was the "engine which saved Harley" from going belly up, after they had sold Harley back in 1969 to 1981, to AMF, which turned out Harleys nobody wanted to buy back then. When the Davidson family bought Harley again, and took it private in 1981, they began working on a totally new engine to get back in the game and they came up with the EVO. It was a nice engine, 1340cc (80 CID), but, for whatever reason, they decided to get into making more money on repairs, so, they came up with a sure fire way to a bigger is better engine concept to cut corners and have more repairs, coming up, after the warranty period.The word is slowly getting out, but, some Harley owners are so loyal, they don't want to be the ones to say they made a bad buy, would you? So, they like THE MOTOR COMPANY, pretend the problems don't exist, for what ever reason, they may have. Others are more vocal and have sold their TWIN CAM bikes, that's why you see a lot of used late model Harleys, everywhere for sale.
Hi, Craig. It is a good video and your good voting for this bike. I think, you spend respect and honor, if someone makes it good. But you are not a "blind" Harley-Davidson-"Believer" who says, everything is good, if its H.D. I agree with your voting, but I´ve not ride this model. (I ride motorcycles since 39 years, starting Age 14) H.D. are the most beautiful bikes for me, but not the very best. H.D. has a dilemma. I think most customers buy Harley, because the bikes are typical Harley. Even typical with its vibration. A Harley is not i.e. a Honda Gold Wing. So H.D. ist (too) carefully to change and modernise his bikes. Because they don`t want to loose customers. The Victory-Bikes goes another way. I think, they want to build the best motorcycles in the world. And I think they do it. Because they don´t need to build the typical Harley-feeling. (BMW Germay build also very good bikes - but they are expensive, even with spare parts ?) If you put a victory-engine in a H.D. bike - is it a Harley any more ? It is the better engine, but not typical Harley. Finally the prices. A Victory bike like this is cheaper than H.D. I think, you must pay more, because you buy a harley = dream bike. So if you pay more, you expect an original H.D. - even with vibration. So the vibrations are "paid" too. And the H.D. engine sound at low rpm. Where you seem, that you hear every step of the "old fashioned" H.D. engine. That you don`t hear on a Victory bike. If you want to buy and ride Harley, you must love it, with all its ways. (goods and bads) If you are not "in love for H.D." you are free to choose, what bike you want. If you like H.D. most - it is ok. They are not bad, and has its quality. And even my respect, because they are made in USA. (not in China or any others) Greetings from south west germany. I subscribed your channel, to see all your videos. If you want, you are free to use my posting here. i.e. for a comment in a video. Peter
The BMW K 1600 GT is a much better motorcycle for the same price of even less if you don't get some options. Furthermore on the BMW you get a straight six with no vibration as well as 160 hp and 129 ft. lbs. of torque.
Derek, if you want speed, buy the BMW. If you want soul in your ride, buy the Harley. I have owned both. I just got rid of my BMW K1200R Sport. If you really want speed, buy the R Sport model. Depends on "how" you want to ride. Heck, I could ride my old Honda 250 Rebel and be happy.... Take care brother.
In my opinion, the reason for the vibration of the engine is due to the fact that it is a TWIN CAM engine, and is a FATALLY FLAWED DESIGN. Here's why:1/) The flywheel assembly on this bike is already running out of true, and causing internal damage to the primary shaft and pinion shaft, bushings, bearings, oil pump rotor and bushings and eating up the cam support plate bearings and the two stock INA cam bearings and eventual CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE WILL occur. The reason is that the flywheel assembly, on all TWIN CAM engines, produced since 1999 to the present, are merely pressed together, at the factory, with a 400 ton press. Nothing is holding the two halves of the flywheel together, Only a wing and a prayer. Unlike, all previous, single cam Harley engines, that came before the TWIN CAM engine, which had a crank pin bolt and nut, torqued to hold both halves together and in true, the TWIN CAM does not have that feature. Harley knows its a design failure, but, does not acknowledge it. The primary and pinion shafts should have a max run out at shafts end of 0.001", but, as the flywheel wobbles out of true, sooner, rather, than later, some with as little as 1,500 miles, they begin to exceed the0.003" of run out and damage to everything begins and it just accelerates from there, until the engine craters. THE ONLY SOLUTION IS TO TEAR DOWN THE ENGINE, WHEN BRAND NEW, and take the flywheel to a performance specialty shop where they will set it on a truing stand, and dynamically true both halves, plug and weld them together and have the shaft run out set at 0.001", where it will stay in true from then on.2.) The TWIN CAM engine also has two silent chain drives, one to operate the oil pump and the other to operate the two cams, and they each have one thumb-sized, chain tensioner which is made of PLASTIC, to rub against a METAL chain,. and they are meant to be periodically inspected for wear and where designed to wear out and have to be replaced with a new tensioner. This is a costly, time consuming procedure to do. More business for Harley dealership, though, and that is what it's all about, as Harley could have chosen for a gear drive instead. Failure to replace a worn out tensioner, will lead to the tensioner falling apart and then you have METAL TO METAL contact, and the metal shavings are inducted into the oil pump, the crankcase and the cylinders, and causing, IMMEDIATE, CATASTROPHIC ENGINE FAILURE, THE ENGINE SEIZES UP AND LOCKS THE REAR WHEEL AND THE CRATERED OIL PUMP SPEWS OUT 250+ HOT, OIL ALL OVER THE REAR WHEEL. Imagine the thrill ride you will have, if you survive the crash. The engine can't even be rebuilt, just have to be another new, defectively designed TWIN CAM engine and the life and death cycle begins, anew. It's a never ending cycle.3.) The stock oil pump is junk and inadequate for the job, it only pumps out 3-8 psi of oil pressure at idle, and makes this engine run extremely hot and heat is an engines worst enemy.4.) The stock INA CAM BEARINGS are short-lived and inadequate for the cam shafts, and should be replaced with the TIMKEN TAPERED ROLLER BEARING instead for a longer life, at the time you change out the cam chain tensioners on the cam shaft silent chain drive.There are many videos on YOU TUBE telling you about these problems.CAVEAT EMPTOR-LET THE BUYER BEWARE, THE TWIN CAM ENGINE.
Wow, I do not have the knowledge to comment on your post. My initial question is that if the current Harley engine is so prone to failure, and given the volume of bikes that they sell, why don't we hear more about this?
@@LivingOffTheSlab Never heard of a catastrophic engine failure as you describe. Many Harley's go 150,000 mi. without issues. Operator abuse and failed maintenance procedures surely lead to excessive wear. They would have been out of business many years ago describing what you did.
Thanks for the review of the new design. Not sure why they decided to leave the balancer off of the Limited that is a good point. However I like the shake at idle and really do not notice anything from the motor while riding down the road. I have an 05 Road King and a 13 Limited. I really like the carb on the Road King. The Limited is stock except a lower windscreen. I have ridden all over on the RK 99,000 + miles and the vibration has not been an issue for me. I have only taken two trips on the Limited and did not have a problem with vibration. I guess it's just what your used to. With 20,000 + miles on the Limited I feel like I am used to driving it and it is very different from the Road King. I like the lowers and fairing on long trips because the wind is way more of an issue than the vibration. I normally average around 500 miles per day. i376.photobucket.com/albums/oo205/OneHorseRally/RoadKingWithMap3.jpg i376.photobucket.com/albums/oo205/OneHorseRally/FLHTK_StatesVisited.png
If you want 'acceleration' buy a 200 kgs lighter Japanese, not a USA great touring bike. Or buy a 'Honda Civic car with 6 cylinders on 2 wheels', the Gold Wing. But you get half the style, half the joy and half the kick of riding a Milwaukee Iron.
At the time of this test ride I had not ridden the Indians and the Roadmaster was still a year away from being released. I am currently working on a Roadmaster review. It will be up in late December. At least that is the plan...