It's a Porsche design people ..
#103
The Snarl of a Dragon!
I would have to record the sound... but you would have to experience it (you can feel it under your feet even if you are totally deaf!). Here is how you get the "Potatoe" sound out of your HD-VRSC:
1. V&H 2-1 Competition Exhaust: Get the Vance & Hines 2-into-1 compeition exhaust (mine SS blacked).
2. Convert Glass-Pac to SS-Pac: Pull the glass-pack baffle out and replace it with 6 3M SS scrungy "Pot Washer" pads (Source: Walmart). Place another loose pad at entry point to the baffle (after the 2 into 1 collector) to stop exhaust gas recusion. Note: Exhaust gas recusion is when at low RPM and baking off the throttle a suction is created behind exiting exhause pulses causing ambient air to be pulled into the exhaust. The downside danger of this is that if the air reaches the O2 sensors the ECU will increase the amount of fuel injected causing detonation "pops" in the exhaust system.
The sound is deep. The idle is not awkward (Potatoe) but evenly space pulses (higher RPM I think than the 750 RPM potatoe... a better sound more tuned sound. I have had a lot of great comments on the sound from many folks on the road, genarelly when I have been stuck in traffic next to (no lane splitting in Virgina so you got to pretent you are stuck!) When I shift the bike it literally "snarls" like a wild animal... like some kind of mythological dragon I am riding and it is a perforance sound that turns heads and I think what HD envisioned before they were saddled with DOT requirement for a huge capacity exhaust.
I don't like traditional Harley-Davidson's. I don't want to offend anyone but to me they seem like they are just big chromium skull laden mobile jewels -- high maintenance buckets of vibrating bolts you have to continue to tighten. If you like that sort of thing. I am a scientist so I am into fuctional beauty. So I saw the History Channel's "Making of the VRod" (still on You Tube) and was blown away by the computerized design coming from the likes of Porche Engineering Group! I also like the fact it is primarily water-cooled. To me it was a machine designed partly by Porche Engineering Group with no pre-set paradigm on what a motorcycle ought to look like. I love it. It is FAST! A true street power cruiser... it has a low center of gravity and when I park it on the streets of Fredericksburg, VA I generally find a crowd forming around it (Murdered Night Rod Special).
I had a HD dealer salesman tell me one day, "You know it really isn't a true Harley..." (he is really full of **** old school guy mad about VRSC features being added to the 2014 line).
I said, "Okay... I'll buy that... its a Porche." He agreed.
Of course I don't tell him I would wear that like a badge of courage! Porche is well known for their engineering excellence and the tuned intake tract on the VRSC is just a tip of the hat in terms of their technological expertise (few auto/motorcycle manufactures know now to create a tuned intake tract).
Only Thing Harley is the Name? Who cares!? It is better than the traditional Harley by far. I have ridden on both and it is night and day in terms of smoothness and balance (Electraglide bagger). Next to one of the Japanese sport bikes on the road I feel embarassed for them... they sound like they are riding on grandma's Singer sewing machine -- those bikes are throw-aways (junk them when someone crashes on them very soon). Sure they may beat me in a race but hey... I am on a cruiser and well... it does hae the Harley-Davison name and the HD engineering folks will tell you it is the future of HD. Another thing I have found is the brake pads are Electrglide pads... ha... the more work I do on this beast the more I find it has so many parts interchangable with other HD motorcycles! Just look at fitment for a part and see what else it fits. I think that says it shared some of the DNA of other HD machines... the good DNA anyway.
I may have to have someone record me passing by one day soon and upload it here... you can have the sound of the HD and the engineering performance of a Porche in thsi machine! Embarassed by it? Hell... I feel embarassed for the HD owners who want to "kick Vrod out of their little club!" It is like kicking Shaq off your neighbothood basketball team cause he is black! LOL I would say... if you can't stand up and laugh at the ridculousness of someone who says, "It ain't a real HD!" by saying, "It's a better HD!" Then maybe you should be on a camel.
No Mods... Plenty of mods... one thing I would never do is turn it into a "bagger" -- seems like going to Mass and praying to Satan or something! But performance and saftey improvements are good mods. For me it was Ricor AIS suspension (incredible feel and cornering confidence), V&H exhaust with SS packing, Pirelli Night Dragon tires (multi-compound with improved profile providing 10% greater contact patch than the Dunlops you probably have).
Jay D. Anderson
1. V&H 2-1 Competition Exhaust: Get the Vance & Hines 2-into-1 compeition exhaust (mine SS blacked).
2. Convert Glass-Pac to SS-Pac: Pull the glass-pack baffle out and replace it with 6 3M SS scrungy "Pot Washer" pads (Source: Walmart). Place another loose pad at entry point to the baffle (after the 2 into 1 collector) to stop exhaust gas recusion. Note: Exhaust gas recusion is when at low RPM and baking off the throttle a suction is created behind exiting exhause pulses causing ambient air to be pulled into the exhaust. The downside danger of this is that if the air reaches the O2 sensors the ECU will increase the amount of fuel injected causing detonation "pops" in the exhaust system.
The sound is deep. The idle is not awkward (Potatoe) but evenly space pulses (higher RPM I think than the 750 RPM potatoe... a better sound more tuned sound. I have had a lot of great comments on the sound from many folks on the road, genarelly when I have been stuck in traffic next to (no lane splitting in Virgina so you got to pretent you are stuck!) When I shift the bike it literally "snarls" like a wild animal... like some kind of mythological dragon I am riding and it is a perforance sound that turns heads and I think what HD envisioned before they were saddled with DOT requirement for a huge capacity exhaust.
I don't like traditional Harley-Davidson's. I don't want to offend anyone but to me they seem like they are just big chromium skull laden mobile jewels -- high maintenance buckets of vibrating bolts you have to continue to tighten. If you like that sort of thing. I am a scientist so I am into fuctional beauty. So I saw the History Channel's "Making of the VRod" (still on You Tube) and was blown away by the computerized design coming from the likes of Porche Engineering Group! I also like the fact it is primarily water-cooled. To me it was a machine designed partly by Porche Engineering Group with no pre-set paradigm on what a motorcycle ought to look like. I love it. It is FAST! A true street power cruiser... it has a low center of gravity and when I park it on the streets of Fredericksburg, VA I generally find a crowd forming around it (Murdered Night Rod Special).
I had a HD dealer salesman tell me one day, "You know it really isn't a true Harley..." (he is really full of **** old school guy mad about VRSC features being added to the 2014 line).
I said, "Okay... I'll buy that... its a Porche." He agreed.
Of course I don't tell him I would wear that like a badge of courage! Porche is well known for their engineering excellence and the tuned intake tract on the VRSC is just a tip of the hat in terms of their technological expertise (few auto/motorcycle manufactures know now to create a tuned intake tract).
Only Thing Harley is the Name? Who cares!? It is better than the traditional Harley by far. I have ridden on both and it is night and day in terms of smoothness and balance (Electraglide bagger). Next to one of the Japanese sport bikes on the road I feel embarassed for them... they sound like they are riding on grandma's Singer sewing machine -- those bikes are throw-aways (junk them when someone crashes on them very soon). Sure they may beat me in a race but hey... I am on a cruiser and well... it does hae the Harley-Davison name and the HD engineering folks will tell you it is the future of HD. Another thing I have found is the brake pads are Electrglide pads... ha... the more work I do on this beast the more I find it has so many parts interchangable with other HD motorcycles! Just look at fitment for a part and see what else it fits. I think that says it shared some of the DNA of other HD machines... the good DNA anyway.
I may have to have someone record me passing by one day soon and upload it here... you can have the sound of the HD and the engineering performance of a Porche in thsi machine! Embarassed by it? Hell... I feel embarassed for the HD owners who want to "kick Vrod out of their little club!" It is like kicking Shaq off your neighbothood basketball team cause he is black! LOL I would say... if you can't stand up and laugh at the ridculousness of someone who says, "It ain't a real HD!" by saying, "It's a better HD!" Then maybe you should be on a camel.
No Mods... Plenty of mods... one thing I would never do is turn it into a "bagger" -- seems like going to Mass and praying to Satan or something! But performance and saftey improvements are good mods. For me it was Ricor AIS suspension (incredible feel and cornering confidence), V&H exhaust with SS packing, Pirelli Night Dragon tires (multi-compound with improved profile providing 10% greater contact patch than the Dunlops you probably have).
Jay D. Anderson
#104
#105
I'm always in disbelief about how much BS there is surrounding the history of the V-Rod motor.
"The VR 1000 project was started in 1988 by then VP of Engineering Mark Tuttle. He instructed H-D designer Mark Miller to design the engine; Miller got as far as the bottom end, whereby the project was then brought to Roush Racing in 1989 for most of the remainder of the engine design phase.
The VR 1000 was a plan destined for greatness, well, at least at one time it was. In 1988, a liquid-cooled, fuel injected V-twin was to become the weapon of choice for Superbike racing, and by debuting one in 1990, Harley was in position to ride that wave to the fullest. Ducati was brought back from the brink of corporate death by their 851/888 series of sport bikes, with exactly that configuration.
While the VR 1000 project was at Roush, a talented young designer engineer named Steve Scheibe worked on different areas of the bike, including the cylinder heads and the machine's fuel injection system. After a running engine was conceived, Harley-Davidson wanted to bring the project back within the halls of Harley-Davidson racing and engineering, but they wanted someone from Roush to oversee the project. Scheibe left Roush and became a Harley-Davidson employee in the early 1990s." [http://harleytechtalk.org/htt/index....34442.70;wap2]
And more...
"Back in 1988, two gentlemen working for HD dreamt about the ultimate Superbike that HD can offer to the then non suspecting world. They were Mark Tuttle, the then VP of Engineering and designer Mark Miller. They knew that have something very big in their kitty. Of course it had to be, and it was in the form of a liquid-cooled, fuel injected V-twin which will dominate SBK racing. In 1989, these gentlemen bought their half done product to Roush Racing to complete the engine design phase. Another gentleman, Steve Scheibe, designer joined the team and he started working on the main part of the heart of the VR 1000, the cylinder heads and the machine's fuel injection system.
....in 1993, the VR 1000 took its first road test in Gratten Raceway, in Michigan. And finally went into official racing by 1996." [http://raregems.onsugar.com/HARLEY-D...ution-3610058]
But but but.... PORSCHE!!??!?!
"In 1995, Harley decided to build a performance cruiser around a derivative of the liquid-cooled, 60-degree V-twin VR1000 racing engine
Harley partnered with Porsche Engineering Services to develop the street engine and the Kansas City engine line, loosely based on the VR1000 engine."
As seen earlier in the thread, the V-Rod was conceived as a semi-cruiser chassis that delivers the VR1000 motor to the street. The race motor was heavily reworked for street reliability - at that point - by Porsche.
This is a motor raised up by some of the very best minds and mentors in the petrolheads anonymous club. Its a great motor to live with every day, and with plenty of 'character' in all the right places.
A "real" Harley? Who cares, and I mean who cares about the sort of mental illness behind the very idea of a "real Harley"? I've found that I get more attention on my 2012 VRSCDX than I really care for, people like this bike.
"The VR 1000 project was started in 1988 by then VP of Engineering Mark Tuttle. He instructed H-D designer Mark Miller to design the engine; Miller got as far as the bottom end, whereby the project was then brought to Roush Racing in 1989 for most of the remainder of the engine design phase.
The VR 1000 was a plan destined for greatness, well, at least at one time it was. In 1988, a liquid-cooled, fuel injected V-twin was to become the weapon of choice for Superbike racing, and by debuting one in 1990, Harley was in position to ride that wave to the fullest. Ducati was brought back from the brink of corporate death by their 851/888 series of sport bikes, with exactly that configuration.
While the VR 1000 project was at Roush, a talented young designer engineer named Steve Scheibe worked on different areas of the bike, including the cylinder heads and the machine's fuel injection system. After a running engine was conceived, Harley-Davidson wanted to bring the project back within the halls of Harley-Davidson racing and engineering, but they wanted someone from Roush to oversee the project. Scheibe left Roush and became a Harley-Davidson employee in the early 1990s." [http://harleytechtalk.org/htt/index....34442.70;wap2]
And more...
"Back in 1988, two gentlemen working for HD dreamt about the ultimate Superbike that HD can offer to the then non suspecting world. They were Mark Tuttle, the then VP of Engineering and designer Mark Miller. They knew that have something very big in their kitty. Of course it had to be, and it was in the form of a liquid-cooled, fuel injected V-twin which will dominate SBK racing. In 1989, these gentlemen bought their half done product to Roush Racing to complete the engine design phase. Another gentleman, Steve Scheibe, designer joined the team and he started working on the main part of the heart of the VR 1000, the cylinder heads and the machine's fuel injection system.
....in 1993, the VR 1000 took its first road test in Gratten Raceway, in Michigan. And finally went into official racing by 1996." [http://raregems.onsugar.com/HARLEY-D...ution-3610058]
But but but.... PORSCHE!!??!?!
"In 1995, Harley decided to build a performance cruiser around a derivative of the liquid-cooled, 60-degree V-twin VR1000 racing engine
Harley partnered with Porsche Engineering Services to develop the street engine and the Kansas City engine line, loosely based on the VR1000 engine."
As seen earlier in the thread, the V-Rod was conceived as a semi-cruiser chassis that delivers the VR1000 motor to the street. The race motor was heavily reworked for street reliability - at that point - by Porsche.
This is a motor raised up by some of the very best minds and mentors in the petrolheads anonymous club. Its a great motor to live with every day, and with plenty of 'character' in all the right places.
A "real" Harley? Who cares, and I mean who cares about the sort of mental illness behind the very idea of a "real Harley"? I've found that I get more attention on my 2012 VRSCDX than I really care for, people like this bike.
The VRod engine was originally an engine Buell wanted but HD decided to also use in the HD line up use to so costs could be shared.
#106
And the point of all that was....If you like a certain bike honda yama saki uki whatever vrod, hotrod, boss, fxd, henderson, thor, indian, victory, whatever buy what you like and ride the wheels off it and then replace them and do it all over again. I don't care what you ride it don't bother me none if I don't like it it's not mine so it don't matter. I used to have a XL1200C then I got a Yamaha R1 (I know I know I've been kicking myself ever since) but it just helpled me realize that yeah I like to ride fast but there aren't many places that I can ride it at speed or lean into the turns with out going for a long (and painful) ride or spending the money to go to a track. it's one hell of a bike and it's more advanced than I could imagine it's been a fun ride but I miss my hog and I want a bigger one then my sporty I had so I'm looking for a buyer for this japcycle and then I'll be looking for a dyna or a softail (can't decide I like them both) I've taken a day to go to my local dealer and spent time on a victory judge it was a very enjoyable ride and reminded me how much I miss my sporty but something was missing and although one of the other victory's available to ride was right next to me with the optional cobra pipe it sounded good but I knew then and there that no matter how great the impression victory left on me it still didn't bring the raw essence that I had on my sporty and I know now that I will always have an HD in my stable even if I ride others occasionaly nothing can replace the place in left by Harley with the loud and proud sound! theres just nothing like it. Ride on! Respect!
#107
Why cant we have both and be happy?
Came over here on these boards to see what the talk was concerning the V-Rods and lo and behold as per usual, cause it's the same talk you'll here on other sites, that being wanting to get the traditional Harley potato sound out of the V-Rods.
My only statement is where most of you even aware of what you where buying when you bought your V-Rod, or did you just buy it because it was a Harley ?
The only real thing Harley about the V-Rods is the name. And trying to get that traditional Harley sound goes completely against what this Porsche/ Harley represents.
What that all means is, the V-Rods don't need that sound and in fact would ruin the Aesthetic principle. The V-Rod is Harley's greatest statement and if you feel embarrass by it then I would simply say the bike is way out of your league.
The V-Rods are truly Harley's only models that do not require any mods except a rider who understands form & function from a design perspective.
My only statement is where most of you even aware of what you where buying when you bought your V-Rod, or did you just buy it because it was a Harley ?
The only real thing Harley about the V-Rods is the name. And trying to get that traditional Harley sound goes completely against what this Porsche/ Harley represents.
What that all means is, the V-Rods don't need that sound and in fact would ruin the Aesthetic principle. The V-Rod is Harley's greatest statement and if you feel embarrass by it then I would simply say the bike is way out of your league.
The V-Rods are truly Harley's only models that do not require any mods except a rider who understands form & function from a design perspective.
#108
And the point of all that was....If you like a certain bike honda yama saki uki whatever vrod, hotrod, boss, fxd, henderson, thor, indian, victory, whatever buy what you like and ride the wheels off it and then replace them and do it all over again. I don't care what you ride it don't bother me none if I don't like it it's not mine so it don't matter. I used to have a XL1200C then I got a Yamaha R1 (I know I know I've been kicking myself ever since) but it just helpled me realize that yeah I like to ride fast but there aren't many places that I can ride it at speed or lean into the turns with out going for a long (and painful) ride or spending the money to go to a track. it's one hell of a bike and it's more advanced than I could imagine it's been a fun ride but I miss my hog and I want a bigger one then my sporty I had so I'm looking for a buyer for this japcycle and then I'll be looking for a dyna or a softail (can't decide I like them both) I've taken a day to go to my local dealer and spent time on a victory judge it was a very enjoyable ride and reminded me how much I miss my sporty but something was missing and although one of the other victory's available to ride was right next to me with the optional cobra pipe it sounded good but I knew then and there that no matter how great the impression victory left on me it still didn't bring the raw essence that I had on my sporty and I know now that I will always have an HD in my stable even if I ride others occasionaly nothing can replace the place in left by Harley with the loud and proud sound! theres just nothing like it. Ride on! Respect!
#109
#110