Uh huh, most of us grew up on some kind of scoot. Dirt was the most likely unless you one those sissies runnin around on a moped.
I was fortunate to grow up around them. Young age wanna go fast, hot doggin. Older I got seems to slow down and like that putt sound, slow ride.
To each his own tho, heh?

 

Respect to Slim as R18 will not created without it. BMW itself admit that they benchmark and inspired by Slim.

 

Boxter style engine BMW or Honda. I just can't get comfortable on any more.

 

"Harley people are Harley people", it's been like that for years. You are what you are.

The most real statement in this thread .
The fact you don't get it makes it even more relative.

 

Did you read the article? LMFAO!!

 

To chip on on the R18, a lot of people posted it's not a good bike for the price, and I totally agree. So did BMW and their dealers, because they were running some pretty serious discounts when fall came around. After shopping for a new cruiser all last year I bought a R18 in October with passenger accommodations and cruise control for a fair bit less than the price of a new 1200 Sporty and BMW offered 0.9% financing. That beats the heck out of Harley, where the dealers regularly jack up the rate offered. Even with a chunk down, after interest the R18 is gonna come in at half the overall cost of a Fat Boy. At that point the value proposition went to BMW all the way. It is a great bike for short, sturdy people. You can't have very long legs and be comfortable, but it's also heavier than any of the 2018+ softails.

One of the reasons it got dinged about the suspension in a lot of the early reviews is that BMW puts the shock in a shipping position when they box them up and most dealers didn't know that. I rode one with the shock locked down like this and it rode like garbage, one of the worst riding bikes I've ever been on. Once the shock is properly adjusted, the ride reminded me a lot of a Fat Boy, which was on my short list and I rode a few times last year. Speaking of shock adjustment, you have to pull off a side cover to do it, but the tool to adjust it is mounted in that side cover, which is handy.

Other than price, one of the biggest differences between that and a Slim or a Fatboy is how thin it is at the rider's legs. My sweetie is 5' even and can get way more foot down on that R18 than any of the Softails, mostly due to the width at the primary, where you put your legs down. But getting the ***** of both feet down helps out her confidence when she rides it, where on a Slim she could only get one foot down solid, or two feet on tip-toes. That means she'll be able to ride it when I'm not using it.

The fit and finish is top notch- reminds me of Harley back at the turn of the century. Parts and accessories ain't cheap, even aftermarket right now. BMW definitely has to up it's game to get a competitive product at list price, but Harley discontinuing the Slim probably will help sales, especially if BMW keeps up their promotions. Heck, a lot of the dealers in my area wanted $2,000 over msrp out the door, where my local BMW dealer bought up a bunch of the 2021's and were blowing them out at $5k under msrp out the door, no surcharge, dealer prep or shipping costs added. I figure if I don't like it in a couple years I can get my money back out of it.

 

Have not ridden the R18 but did sit on one at the dealer. The bike is a true work of art. Looks amazing in person and the fit and finish is great. It's a big bike (I'm 5'8" 190) but I had no problem with peg placement (all be it standing still. lol)

My brother is a die hard BMW guys (has 3 old RTs) and is eying the R18. He says "I would be caught dead on a Harley". Family right!

 

Smart move. Enjoy a unique bike for a couple years and sell at no loss. Honda only sold around 2,200 of the 2ng gen Valk manufactured 20014-2015. MSRP was $18K. Honda eventually sold them for $9K to get them off the floor. Thay are going for around $10K 5 years later.

 

I almost bought one of those Valks when they were blowing them out, and you are right, I could have sold it for more money now with 20k on it. I hear those inline 6's are a real joy. Those things take up a lot of space in the garage, which oddly enough is why I didn't get one at the time. I wasn't sure it would fit with the other bikes I had at the time. Put together a Sporty with 16" apes and a hand shift that took up way less space and was fun in it's own way.

 

I sat on a couple of R18s at the dealership today. Some actually have floorboards. Looks nice but at 6' 2" and over 50 I could never ride it with the location of those floorboards and pegs.