Harley Davidson
I am not a Harley fan, you know. I love Italian brands but today we have an authentic American machine. If you, silly Russian, are thinking that this brat is bad, then you are hella wrong. You’re just like me when I thought that this motorcycle was the same as old steel Harleys.
To be honest, I really didn’t expect anything like this from this motorcycle. Let me briefly tell you about it because standing here beside it I can’t say much.
The rest should be told when you’re already riding it. That you will see in a moment. So, this is Fat Bob 2020 version. The motorcycle got updated if I’m not mistaken, a couple of years ago, in 2018.
At that time the Harley company said they’ve made a kind of let’s say, a younger version of Harley. So, originally, Harleys were these steel, heavy, hard-to-steer, hard-to-brake motorcycles that were popular among the older generation.
Those who are over 40, already not 30 or even over 50 years, you can say. They were not suitable for younger riders since people like me, for example, in my age… What do we want? We want to be able to ride, to steer a motorcycle, we want to have a dynamic ride.
But at the same time, we give up on comfort. And here’s the turning point. I’m almost 30 y.o. You start thinking about comfort already. But you still want the motorcycle to ride, wheelie faster, and so on. See? A frog jumping around. It must be out of focus, guys. See that? Jumping right to me, little princess.
Should I give her a kiss? Harley Davidson company have updated their motorcycle. Before they had Dyna from the Softail family. Yeah, it’s the Softail frame here. Then Dyna got discontinued. Anyways, I’m not an expert when it comes to Harleys.
If there are Harley fans watching me, then you know this story better than me. I won’t tell you this story now. Anyway, they’ve created a new motorcycle. It’s rougher, sportier, and implementing new technologies. For example, there is a new Milwaukee-8 engine on the FXDR motorcycle that I was testing.
Here we have a 107 engine and there’s also a 114 version. This engine has two camshafts and four valves per cylinder. It made this Harley a brand new motorcycle. I mean with this engine: A – it’s riding and B – there’s less vibration, but you can still feel this enormous capacity, Harley capacity.
Because it’s a 107 engine… So, we have 1,748 or… Well, almost 1.8. Let’s round it to 1.8 liters. The engine is huge. It has two cylinders with almost a liter per cylinder. You can really feel it. The engine has 145 Nm. Sheesh, it’s unbelievable! What do I even do with these 145 Nm? That’s typical for Harley.
They don’t have much horsepower, but a lot of Nm. Yeah, there isn’t much horsepower here. It’s around 80+ but when you’re riding you don’t really feel that it’s so low. You’re more impressed with the torque and the thrust this motorcycle has. It speeds up very fast even though it’s very heavy and made of steel.
I have to say it is lighter than the old Harleys, though. The normal weight for an old Harley is 350-400 kg. This motorcycle when fully loaded weighs around 301 kg. Well, basically 300 kg. This makes a difference. We all know physics: the less mass it has, the less effort we need to stop the motorcycle.
It brakes much better now. The less mass is, the easier it is for the engine to speed up the motorcycle. Now it is much faster and steers way better. It has keyless access. It’s just the same as on any other Harley. It starts with a button. The base version has a pre-installed alarm, but the company doesn’t turn the sound on.
It’s built in, but if you want it to go off you have to pay extra money. The base version is not equipped with it. The motorcycle sounds… I just heard its upgraded exhaust. There are also flutes here. It’s not too loud but it’s really beautiful.
I have to say that the new Milwaukee-8 engine seems a bit quieter. It causes less vibration. Firstly, because the engine is different, and secondly, because the fastening is changed. It sounds a little different. Let me start the motorcycle so you can hear it.
When the engine starts the motorcycle trembles a bit. It still vibrates a little. This “jar” here is not loud. It won’t bother pedestrians, but it creates a nice sound.
If we took the flutes out it would be even nicer. There are exhaust catalysts installed here. “I need your clothes and your motorcycle.” “You forgot to say please.” The mirrors are tiny. It’s fun, guys. I’m really riding… Cool! Look! It’s really riding! What a surprise…
In 2020 you’re surprised a Harley can ride at all. Usually a Harley doesn’t ride and can’t steer. This is so much fun! Especially the first feeling. It can boost too! The mirrors are definitely not adjusted for my height. What I also like is that it’s narrow.
I’m just a bit worried about these arches. Riding in the traffic was convenient from the very first minute. Let’s push the gas! Ready… Go! We’re at 140 km/h already! 150! 160! It’s really riding like a powerful street motorcycle! Well, not the premium liter one but a 900cc or 800cc, something like that.
There’s not much horsepower but there is a ton of torque. The thrust is amazing. You can clearly feel the power of this 107 engine with almost 1.8 liter capacity. It goes, “Du-du-du-du”.
It has this hammering sound. They say this motorcycle is a new breed of Harley. There are two camshafts and the vibrations are not like on older Harleys. That’s true. Even when you’re going at low rpm you can enjoy the ride because there’s no hammering.
You still feel the engine capacity, though. It’s cool. It speeds up very well. The thrust is amazing. The engine revs as great. The motorcycle owner told me that he used to ride a Yamaha MT-09. That motorcycle has the fastest acceleration in the world.
It can get up to about 150 or 100 or so. I asked: “How do you feel riding the Harley after MT-09?” He said: “I feel great. It rides. It brakes. Everything’s cool.” I was like “Rides? Brakes? A Harley? No way, bro. You must’ve got it wrong.
Did you really buy a Harley? Not a Ducati?” He was right. It really rides and brakes. Well done, Harley. Really well done. You’ve created a good motorcycle. It can do it, guys! It really can! We’re up to 170 – 180 km/h.
It steers and brakes well from this speed too. It’s passed the dynamics test too! Superb! Listen, guys. The steering is so awesome! I decided to push it a little in the traffic. It’s unreal! It’s on par with a street motorcycle.
I don’t feel like I’m riding on a big block of steel, unlike the old Harleys. The old ones don’t maneuver very well. You have to really work them. You don’t have that here at all. This feels exhilarating! Yeah, it’s still the same steel-made Harley. It’s just lighter. Much lighter.
The frame is still big, long, and solid. After all, why would a Harley have a small frame. That’s what makes it so stable. By the way, the front wheel is very big – the 150/80 one. It’s bigger than those on any street or sport motorcycle. In theory, this should have some influence on the steering.
It might feel a little unstable when you ride over road markings or bumps in the road. Now I’m riding on the markings… and to be honest, I don’t feel anything.
If I think carefully and pay close attention to how it feels, I might feel a little something, but that’s it. You might say, “Hey, I feel that the tires are too wide here.” I really can’t feel it.
I’m riding on all the bumps and road markings, and I don’t feel anything. It wouldn’t make the motorcycle wobble. For example, I’m riding over these arrow markings. Let’s ride over these markings again. See? I’m not holding the steering wheel.
I’m riding over the left side of it and the right side of it. These markings are quite thick here. They’re about 1 cm. It doesn’t have any issues with the steering. As I said, when you’re turning at intersections or following winding roads, you won’t have any trouble.
I guess they tested that before this new version was released. It was a conscious decision to install a wheel this big. They wanted the motorcycle to look intimidating and manly. So, yeah, there really aren’t any problems with that.
This is a motorcycle that will easily speed up to 160-180 km/h. it’s a cool feature too. When you’re riding with your bros in the city and the light turns green, you can peel out of there in a flash You won’t be left in the dust.
If you’re riding with some liter sport motorcycles on a suburban track, then, yes, it would be hard to keep up, but in the city, that won’t be a problem.
If you want to start fast at the traffic light like them, then you have plenty of Nm and torque for that. Just hit the gas and wave goodbye. This Harley is also equipped with 200 mm tires for a better road grip. It makes a larger contact area.
Here we have a decreasing-radius turn. Hey! So easy! So easy! This is how it should be steering! How’s that possible? How? I can’t! I didn’t want to praise it! I didn’t want to! I thought I would get on this Harley and say, “Gosh, this old clanky thing…
Who would ever want this?” But this is cool! It’s a cool motorcycle. It’s even better if you ride on suburban tracks when it’s sunny and there aren’t many cars. There are a lot right now, though. This type of motorcycle is called a Cruise motorcycle for a reason.
You feel like you’re really goin’ easy when you ride it. You’re cruising. Put a girl on a passenger seat behind, but make sure she has an airbag or two. I’m not saying this motorcycle is unsafe.
It’s just that in the past, I would always say that the Harleys I used to ride were hunks of metal that wouldn’t brake or steer… I considered them to be dangerous for obvious reasons. I didn’t feel confident in the traffic because I had use force to turn, brake early, maintain a big distance, keep the speed down, etc.
The old Harleys would never let you let loose and enjoy the ride. You would always feel nervous when you think about how dangerous the situation is for you and how dangerous motorcycle riding is in general. Here it’s not like that.
This motorcycle gives you confidence. It rides. It brakes. You really feel your motorcycle. The steel Harleys I rode in the past never gave me such a feeling. FXDR was close enough, but in the review I said… By the way, you can watch that review.
I said that FXDR definitely steers better than the older Harleys. They brake very well, but it wasn’t enough. It was lacking. This Harley lacks nothing. You want steering? Here you go. Suspension? Take it. Brakes? They’re here for you.
An engine that speeds up properly? Here you go too! You don’t want to ride it like this. You want to ride like this. I enjoy it a lot! “He who understands life is no longer in a hurry” I also like that this motorcycle is affordable.
Yeah, a Harley is not a cheap “toy”, but this model is $19,000 so it is very affordable, especially for a motorcycle like this one. Well, yeah, it doesn’t have very modern electronics. It doesn’t have any of those features.
Man, you think that for $19,000 you would get a Mode with traction and control of this and that to make it super safe. When riding this motorcycle I can rev it up and stuff and I don’t feel that it lacks any of these electronic features.
I think this price is perfectly reasonable. It’s ok to pay $19,000 for this new Harley. Of course, if it’s a second-hand one you can buy it cheaper. I really, really enjoy riding it, it’s worth it. They installed an inverted fork here that has the lean angle of a sport motorcycle.
It improved the steering significantly so the motorcycle now rides way better. I don’t know how they did that, but it also brakes well. Oh! I just rode over a railway track and didn’t feel it. It was that smooth.
I don’t know if it’s a soft saddle, but the seat feels very comfy. I think I could easily do 1000 km without stopping. Maybe it’s because of the shock absorbers. The motorcycle is very smooth to ride.
Even going over speed bumps is pleasant. I don’t get hit anywhere. I think it’s both the suspension and a soft saddle that contribute to that. The saddle height is high. I’m 1.90 m tall. When I’m sitting on it I feel comfortable.
I’m not squatting really low like on other cruise motorcycles. A short person… Not good, it’s not good to call other people short… An average height person would also be comfortable sitting on it. The saddle height is 710 mm as was said on the Harley website.
I think it’s a golden mean that would be comfortable for both a tall and a short person. Nobody will feel any kind of discomfort because of that. The ergonomics are also nice. It’s comfortable to sit on it. The arms and back are not strained like on FXDR.
The riding position is not too “cruiser” like. It is much more comfortable. It doesn’t have that high, wide, and bent steering wheel. The steering wheel is straight as you can see. It’s easy to lean on the tank, not like on FXDR. The drawback is these mirrors.
Sometimes my left hand fingers accidentally hit them, I got used to it pretty quickly. I think these mirrors are ingenious. Just look how short they are. They don’t stick out over handles and it’s an ideal shape for moving through traffic jams.
You don’t stress over your mirrors sticking out too much. I don’t know if these are stock mirrors or upgraded ones. I think it is a stock shape. This is truly an ingenious invention.
I want the same mirrors for my Dorsoduro. They wouldn’t look good on it, though. On a Harley, they look perfect. I’m so used to Harley now that when I’m turning I barely hold the right grips because I know that this Harley will behave well. It won’t lean too much and won’t fall down, etc.
Cruising on it is pure satisfaction. The riding position here is a bomb. The only thing is that as a tall man, I feel that the position of the footpegs is odd. Maybe there are some upgraded footpegs that you can adjust.
On a base version, I want my foot to be a little further away. Because see? The angle under my knee seems a little off. I want these arcs with special footrests, to be a little further away as well. Again, I’m like a Daddy Long Legs.
If you are as tall as me maybe you will also feel that they are too close and would want them moved further away. Man, it just keeps surprising me. Hell no. It’s not a Harley. It’s not a Harley. I’m serious, what is this? Harleys never brake like this. My Lord, you can’t steer it like this.
Gosh, how good this is. The only electronic feature it has is an ABS. Only an ABS. No Traction Control. I’m not even mentioning Slide Control. It doesn’t need it. It doesn’t have Traction Control here, but it has an ABS. I have tested this ABS and figured it’s the latest generation system.
It doesn’t turn on when it’s not supposed to and works well enough. We almost missed our turn. By the way, have you heard the sound of ABS working? It worked on the edge. The wheel whistled a bit but it didn’t get stuck. That’s it, guys.
There’s nothing left to talk about. Yeah, I can tell you how they’ve changed things from generation to generation. How they replaced engine fasteners. How they made little changes to the frame, made the swingarm lighter, etc.
But in reality, those who buy a Harley couldn’t care less about those things. Usually, people who watch motorcycle reviews also couldn’t care less… Well, the majority couldn’t care less what changes were made, like how they’ve changed the piston stroke.
They care if the motorcycle is now ridding better. Does it? It does. Does it brake better? It brakes better or maybe worse. Does it steer ok? It does. This is the most important. It specifically manifests in Harley because the most important thing is how you feel when you’re riding it.
When riding a Harley, you don’t want to rush at all. I think riding this motorcycle to the seaside would be amazing. The owner of it has ordered a backrest but hasn’t installed it yet. He has also installed some additional components.
Like different footpegs and these footrests with these arcs. He has a bag hanging behind. The first time I saw this motorcycle I was amazed. I want a motorcycle like that. It looks cool, not like an old grandpa motorcycle.
It doesn’t have this bent ram’s horn wheel. I feel sick looking at that thing. You immediately remember those dudes wearing worn-out jackets, cowboy boots, like this. You just keep thinking: “I don’t want to be like that dude.” This is a modern motorcycle.
You can wear a classic leather motorcycle jacket and boots or sports shoes when riding it. You can ride in the city. You can go to an event or take a girl for a ride. It’s very nice. Speaking about the dashboard, it’s reminiscent of the classics, but it still looks modern. Even on a cruiser like this Harley. It’s small.
Here we see the revs. The main clock face is for the revs. We also have a little digital display where you can switch between different metrics, but usually it shows speed. I like that it shows the fuel sensor. Do you remember me showing you these little signals that turned on a classic Harley?
They show how much fuel you have left. If they’re off then you’re running out of gas. You can also look at the time and the gear it is in. The screen is very small. You have to lower your head to see but everything is visible, even under the sun.
Yeah, if you compared it to modern motorcycles with super LCD-displays and TFT-displays, and so on, it would definitely not stand a chance.
Like, you can’t see anything on it. But it doesn’t need a huge dashboard here at all. On an electric Harley you understand that it’s called an electric Harley for a reason. You want the dashboard to be high-tech and digital, but here it doesn’t ask for that.
Why would you even need to look at it? For speed? To not be caught by a traffic camera? I don’t know. I look down for a second. I see everything I need in a quick glance. On street motorcycles you also have to lower your head to see dashboards. To look at the gear?
Why would you even need it on such a motorcycle? It rides well in any gear. You just push the gas and it pulls you ahead, puttering all the way: Pata pata tata tata patata. Though as I said, there are exhaust flutes installed so it’s not too loud, but it still sounds good.
I’m not sure my camera can catch it. I’ll try riding in silence for a moment to give you a chance to hear and check it out. It’s all amazing guys but these darn Harley turn signals… I have no idea why they’ve made it like that.
Yeah, it’s a good feature that the left turn is on the left handle and the right turn is on the right one, but it’s so inconvenient. My left hand is almost always free to push and release the button with two pushes, but it is inconvenient for my right hand even when I’m cruising.
I’m holding the gas when I’m cruising so when I try to hit that right turn button, it takes a lot of effort to reach it. I was just cruising now and sped up gradually. What if you need to make it speed up quickly in the city?
I mentioned it in the FXDR review. It’s impossible! This bloody thing. Oh, whatever… It’s a special feature and at least it looks interesting. The controls have some symmetry. Those of you who like symmetry, look at the three buttons on the left: two vertical and one horizontal.
On the right it’s the same: two vertical and one horizontal. See? I pulled the gas handle again and it was inconvenient to turn it on. The good thing is that they turn off automatically after you have finished turning. I like riding on a track. It’s just there’s no windshield.
Harley riders like installing them because Harleys are usually equipped with a big wide windshield. It protects you from the wind, but detracts from its appearance. Moreover, the owner of this motorcycle usually rides in the city to work or for personal business so he doesn’t need a windshield.
I wouldn’t bother installing it either because it has a wide front and the wind is blowing on your face and helmet, not your body like on a naked motorcycle. When you’re riding a naked the wind blows on your body as well.
It’s quite fresh outside but I don’t feel cold from the wind. This wide front seems to be protecting me from the airflow. Cool. I like how this motorcycle looks from the first person. It looks very cool especially with this thick steering wheel.
It’s so thick and massive. It’s wide too. This is a guy’s motorcycle. It’s a true Harley. Though not the dude’s one but a guy’s one. The coolest feature this motorcycle has is not something I’ve already said.
It’s not how it brakes, though that is great. The best thing is the way you look and feel when you ride it. As I said, it’s a black motorcycle. It looks very cool. I don’t know how to put it in words. Man, it’s such a guy’s motorcycle, you know, like a black BMW.
This time it’s a black Harley and it looks just as cool. Plus the sound of this big-capacity engine gives me a thrill! People notice and watch you go by. You’re thinking as you ride: “Yeah, I am a total stud.
I am a champion!” Remember to stay focused on the road and not get carried away or else the winner will become the loser in a second. Hey, Charlie Davidson, hey! You’ve made a great motorcycle, bro. Very good, bro. I’ll take it. It’s a pain…
Summing it all up, guys, I have to say that this Harley really surprised me. I was stunned. I decided to try it because I had to make a video about the new model. I hadn’t tested it, but people kept asking me about it because it’s a popular model. I assumed I would be harsh with it.
Yeah, I thought I might like a couple of features compared to older Harleys, but I assumed it wouldn’t stand a chance as a motorcycle for a young and ambitious man. Wow, was I wrong. It rides well. It brakes well. It steers awesome even for a non-Harley standard.
Riding at a low speed with decreasing-radius turns is easy. Even at a higher speed like around 180 km/h it behaves amazingly when you’re entering an intersection.
It’s very stable, so you don’t have to hold these pieces of metal in place with your hands. It turned out to be a great motorcycle. If I ever buy a Harley, I would probably get this model.
In other words, if I had a lot of money and I could afford Ducati Streetfighter and the like, I would definitely buy this one to put in my garage Because it’s a freaking awesome Harley.
It’s a real young guy’s Harley. If you had any doubts, if you’re a Harley fan, if you’re a young guy and you’re trying to decide whether to buy an FXDR or this one, I would recommend you to take this one.
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It’s more suitable for a guy and, in my opinion, looks better. It’s more comfortable and also less expensive.
These are its main good sides. Maybe you could assume that I started liking Harleys because I’m getting older, but if you took a ride on this one you would understand me. It turned out to be a great motorcycle. This was Explosive Mike.
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