Hi, I have been told that the Road King was modified for the 2003 year to eliminate the handling problems of earlier models. Can anyone tell me what all the changes were. I have got a 2003 RK and I am a little concerned about riding it at speed, because of things like the weave, wobble and tank slappers. I must admit that I haven't experienced any of these things, nor do I ever want to. Can anyone tell me if my bike was redesigned from previous years.
Thank you for any replies Brian.

 

I don't have any idea what the changes were. I have a 2004 RK and have put 3500 miles on it since last Sept. with absolutely no handling problems. I have driven it at all speeds including cruising at 75-80 miles per hour for hours on end.

 

Do not worry. all Harley's are slow by nature, I have a RK and it tops out at around 100.

M

 

My 02 SE RK is slow too. Tops out at 120 mph.

 

120! Not that I'm a ***** or anything, but I don't see myself going that fast on my RK!

 

Brian,

I had a 1995 Roadking with 80,000 miles on it and never noticed any handling problems. I rode at every speed from stopped to as fast as it would go. A lot of 70 to 80 MPH while traveling was the norm.

I often wonder if some of the problems that get reported are the result of bikes being set up wrong. The only problem I ever had was when I changed a front tire and didn't get the shimming in the front bearings right. It was pretty loose and dodged around a little. This is not a concern with new bikes, as the bearings are sealed, and no longer need to be shimmed.


Regards,

Bill

 

I too have an '03 RK. I have almost 15K miles on her and have never had any indication of any of those problems. I ride with the shield on all the time here in windy Wyoming, and the wind doesn't even cause it to want to show any indication of those problems. I would say ride it and don't worry about it.

 

I have a 2000 roadking and have never experianced any handling problems. I think the roadking is one of the best handling bikes on the road.


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