My brand new Harley broke down...

Gee, imagine that!
Three years at work on an Electra Glide and the bike kind of grew on me. I rode it 5 days a week and never had a problem with it. It's slow and the brakes aren't great but the bike is super comfortable to ride and they handle great at slow speed. So after thinking long and hard and creaping up on 40 I decided to get my own. Last week I buy a 2007 Street Glide and with 250 miles on it the starter breaks and it's in the shop. Guess I should have bought the Ducati Monster I was looking at....

 

How are they to ride though? Will I be bored to death?

I'm thinking about,

Electra Glide Standard

Road King

Softtail Springer

Buell Ulysses

This is for me and the wife to ride. I'm 36 and I need to stay out of trouble.
I'll be keeping an SV and two XRs (one XR street legal).
Should I stay away from the springer if I want it to go around corners?


Sorry your bike broke.

 

ElectraGlide...my wife loves it and I love it too.
(x'cept mine is an UltraClassic) 30,000 miles and not one issue (yet).

Guess where your broken starter is manufactured???LOL

 

I really loved my 79 FLH80. But, for the life of me, I don't know why. (it did have 250,000+ miles when I sold it. (and 10 top ends and 2 bottoms and 1 tranny and I think the only thing original when it was sold was the frame, wheels and cases.!) Guess it was because it was lightyears ahead of my old 69XLCH magneto kick bike!

 

I really love the bike and I'm sure it was just one of those things. The 2007s have 96 cubic inches and six speed trannies. I'm sure u won't be bored with it! I have XM radio on it and it's a blast to cruise around and lisetn to the tunes.

 

So is is safe to assume you're back from Baghdad now or do they have a H-D dealer in the Green Zone?

 

Why no V-Rod on your list?

 

I'm in Kirkuk now. I was home on leave last month. I got back 3 days ago.
No there's not a dealer in the IZ but I did see a Harley when I was there!!!

 

Those bikes listed are harley's, the Vrod is a posser

Seriously, alot of harley puriest hate the rod. I think its ok, but if i were to buy a HD it'd be one of those listed too. Im partial to the road king. The smaller (as compared to Ultra classic) bike but still having bags enough for an overnighter or 2.

Hide

 

With the liquid cooled Sportster in 2008, the big twins won't be far behind. All of the "purists" are going to have to deal with it or ride vintage bikes.

 

I think you meant to say, "allot of harley posers".

 

I'd go with the electra glide. The street glide is basically an electra with some chrome, xm radio and a few other small things, plus it's 3k more...

 

I bought an '02 BMW R1150RT in Sep. '05 with 16,100 miles on the clock for under $9k. This bike has surprised me. It ain't no sportbike in the mountains, but it certainly isn't too bad either. It's a fantastic commuter with great weather protection. Super comfortable for hours on end. The electric windshield is like magic. I can cruise effortlessly and comfortably at 85 mph all day long. It truly is a mileage disposal unit and I can understand why many police departments also use this bike. I also get about 44 mpg at that rate. Downside is a box of racks tranny, but you get used to it.

 

Yes, also if you want to go in a straight line or anything between the two. They do look good sitting still, so they got that going for them.

 

It all depends on what your expectations are. Harleys are one thing: cool. If you don't 'get it' then don't buy one...there's no point in spending all that money. There are a zillion Japanese cruisers that do everything Harleys do (more in some cases) for significantly less money. However, the one thing they can't do is be a Harley, so if you're a guy who's always wanted a Harley, a substitute won't do.

The Ulysses is _not_ a Harley by the way If you disagree, ride one to your local get-cocked-and-fight biker bar and park it out front. Hilarity ensues...

 

I thought the same thing before my dept switched from the BMW R1100RT to the Electra Glide. I wasn't happy about the switch at all until I started putting some hours on the thing. For 3 years I rode the Harley 10 hour shifts 4, sometimes 5 days a week. Now one thing I can't stand are those silly ape hangers, choopers, and loud straight pipes and all the leather and image crap that you see everywhere. But if you get a newer Harley and keep it relatively stock it is a very enjoyable bike to ride. Also, you pay a lot more for a Harley but when it comes to resale value, you can't go wrong. If u buy a Japanese cruiser you're gonna get hammered on the resale value.

 

The Beamer is a great police/touring bike but the Harley was more comfortable for me for all-day city riding. I loved the electric windshield, heated grips and the non-linked ABS that the police bikes have but the clunky tranny and the dry clutch weren't my favorite.

 

I didn't say it wasn't enjoyable...obviously _alot_ of people like Harleys...no doubt about that. All I said was that there is nothing about a Harley (in general) that is 'better' than other bikes for less money. The modern-era Harleys are perfectly good bikes quality-wise as far as I can tell. Great finish quality too...although when you sell a 750 pound air-cooled bike that makes 65hp for $20,000, it damn well better look great! I know the idea behind Harleys isn't performance...I'm just commenting on the dollars v. technology.

As far as resale value, that is true for sure...I generally put 60k-75k on a streetbike before selling it, so resale value is a foreign concept to me. I sold my Daytona 1200 (already a sucky resale bike) with over 50k on it for $2200. Ugh.

I meant to say before, I really dig the Street Rod. I haven't sat on one yet, but I am sorely tempted to buy one of these as my next street bike. Chances are I'll end up wanting to spend less, but that bike is by _far_ the most character/style on any 'standard' bike going right now.