I enjoyed reading this post and I appreciate your perspective because I only have my own eyes to look out of.
Harley being American had almost nothing to do with me buying a Harley. I'm a huge fan of Japanese bikes. I bought my Fat Bob because it looks awesome, is fun to ride, and it's the "muscle cruiser" that I've been looking for. I do understand that there are Harley fans that only buy Harley because they are an American company though. I just don't fall into that category. Not all Americans are blindly patriotic.
Personally, I wanted to slow down because I'm getting older and more responsible. I'm guessing your younger generation over there is still interested in the newer/faster/better bikes of which you speak.
I can surely appreciate the simplicity of an air cooled Sportster and that's exactly why I'm considering trading my 2007 Buell XB12Scg for a 2007 XL883L. I want a project bike that I can work on in my garage over the winter. It is perfect that it's an 883 because then I can tear into the engine and add a 1200cc kit myself. I'm an engineer not a professional motorcycle mechanic. And the vast aftermarket support for a Sportster is another good reason that it would make a great project bike.
With that being said, I realize companies can't remain stuck in the past forever. Harley could have long had a Sportster S with its modern, high power, liquid-cooled engine selling alongside of the air-cooled Sportster for years. I still don't think the bike would have been accepted by the Harley faithful though.
Nice bike BTW!
They have had the v-rod with the air cooled Sportster for years. They also had the Street. Did you buy one? Here you are applauding this new Sportster while accusing the “Harley Faithful’ for not accepting change. Meanwhile, you have a traditional bike with the M8 and are on the verge of getting another traditional Harley for all the reasons we traditionalists want traditional Harleys. Seems like a touch of hypocrisy. Why don’t you help save Harley and pony up on one of these amazing new Sportster S models?
For me, I will never buy a water cooled Sportster. I will buy another new Harley. I have been waiting for another CVO Road King to come out. Provided the paint scheme is good, I will trade. I’m not done buying new Harleys as long as the M8 is around. Should be 17 years on the patents unless the left wing governments intervene further.
Last edited by stratplexi; 10-08-2021 at 12:00 PM.
Well that's your opinion and you know what they say about those.
Personally, I'm glad the new Sportster has no ties back to the original model. Being so stuck in the past is why Harley Davidson is on the edge of financial disaster. The Sportster S isn't an "Evolution" of the Sportster it is a max revolution (Revolution Max) and I'm glad it's here. The Sportster was ancient and decades overdue for a clean sheet redesign.
the sportster s is more v rod then sportster.
I loved my v rod and i love my sportster 1200c
with that said i would not be cought dead on a sportster s
Looks to me the real winner would be a person with all 3, an Evo Sportster, a V-Rod , and a new Sportster S. They are all great in their own way. Crap, add a Livewire to that and call it perfect.
the sportster s is more v rod then sportster.
I loved my v rod and i love my sportster 1200c
with that said i would not be cought dead on a sportster s
Truthfully makes no sense, not trying to be rude but you have a V-Rod....you have a fuel injected Sportster already.....with your way of thinking.....you would be on a Carb'd Sportster pre rubber mount. Just my opinion. And I do like V-Rods & the Sportster S except the radiator would have to be some kind of custom job eventually.
Well of course it's my opinion . What else would I be expressing on a discussion forum ? I think it's all a matter of perspective . In the UK , with the exception of Triumph , ALL bikes are foreign bikes . So we are not bound by any sense of patriotic duty to buy whatever Harley Davidson cares to throw at us . The guys who cut their teeth on original British bikes are moving into their 70's and 80's now and the rest of us in our 40's 50's and 60's all started out on Japanese bikes . When I was starting out , people would gather round a Harley in awe as if it had descended from another planet . After 20 to 40 years of riding bigger , faster and smoother Japanese bikes , many of us in the UK , because we are ready for a change of pace , have turned to Harley Davidson . We actually want to go slower , we want something we can easily work on , we want something that shakes and rattles and looks old fashioned . We love the iconic 45 degree V twin with its easy oil changes and accessible spark plugs . We love the way that a Sportster can be so easily customised and we love the enormous range of things we can buy to bolt on to it . There are thousands of Sportster riders in the UK who meet and ride in groups and who absolutely worship these bikes despite ( or even because of ) all of their shortcomings . So when I express my opinion , please bear in mind that many of us view things from a very different perspective . Hello gorgeous . ♥️
Truthfully makes no sense, not trying to be rude but you have a V-Rod....you have a fuel injected Sportster already.....with your way of thinking.....you would be on a Carb'd Sportster pre rubber mount. Just my opinion. And I do like V-Rods & the Sportster S except the radiator would have to be some kind of custom job eventually.
the v rod was the first harley i bought it was the only bike the davidsons had signed as a family.and yes those are the proto type bags from the making of the v rod tv special.
it is nothing like a fi sporty the sporty is a 45 degree air cooled v twin the v rod was a 60 degree liquid cooled rev engine the sporty s is a 60 degree liquid cooled rev max engine.
I would never own a sportster s i would go back to jab bikes
I guess I’m hopelessly stuck in the past. I’m all for better engines with more power and less vibration, but I have to like the looks of a machine to want to buy it. That new thing they call a Sportster looks like a full-size plastic child’s toy. I’ll just keep my old one and ride on into the sunset…lol
10-08-2021, 11:50 AM
