Newest Fat Boy Upholds Lofty Reputation as ‘Ultimate Cruising Motorcycle’
Gorgeous 2022 Fatboy Sports many of its old features, but adds some new goodies.
Let’s say you are the guys who design and build the Harley Davidson Fat Boy, the iconic motorcycle many riders already call the ultimate cruiser. How would you go about holding on to that lofty reputation every year? Easy: You keep feeding the beast, make the Fat Boy even Fatter.
“This is the definition of a cruiser,” said Jawline Rider in this 15-minute 2022 Fat Boy review on his official YouTube channel. “The one and only Fat Boy. I believe it is the only Harley that carries that fat-ass tire in the back.”
Indeed it is: 240 millimeters in fact. There have been motorcycles with fatter tires, but the Fat Boy is the original, fat-tire cruiser. The Motor Company bumped the rear tire up from 200mm in 2021 to its current size.
Big Bike Personality
How does that massive tire affect handling? Well, the Fat Boy will never be a sportbike, but seasoned Fat Boy owners will tell you it’s just a matter of getting used to the big bike’s personality. I’ve had three Fat Boys and I can attest to that. “It definitely takes turns a little awkwardly,” Jawline Rider said. “But I’m just not used to it. I (normally) drive a very sporty bike.”
Seat height is 25.9 inches, a drop from last year’s 26.6 inches. “This is interesting,” said Jawline Rider. “Super, super low seat. Not too cushiony, but not bad.”
Serious Power
Needless to say, the Fat Boy needs some serious power to move all that 699 pounds of heft. The Milwaukee-Eight 114 cubic inch engine – with its 119 foot/pounds of torque at 3,000 RPM – supplies that, as it has since the 2018 model was introduced into the softail lineup.
“Whoa, I can never get enough of this 114 engine,” said Jawline Rider as he twists the throttle in the video. “This motorcycle definitely has that torque and the bike uses it well.”
‘Phenomenal’
The Fat Boy’s appearance makes quite an impact this year, with added chrome flourishes, a newly designed 11-spoke turbine design on the wheels and a revised tank badge.
“They’re phenomenal-looking motorcycles, they really are,” Jawline Rider said. “They are really going to turn heads.”
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