Honestly, at first glance I was a little underwhelmed by this new-for-2016 offering from The Motor Company. I thought it was a little sparee, a little spare, and an exercise in understatement. It was not until I started to familiarize myself with the bike that I realized this is the whole point of the design.
Still, my disappointment persisted as I labored under the misconception that this bike was just a lightly modified version of existing Sportster models, but again I was off target for it actually using a slightly different frame than the other Sporties, and comes with enhanced suspension as well. At this point, I abandoned all of my preconceptions and took a slightly more objective look at the Roadster, finally willing to give it an honest chance. This is what I found.
Design
There is no delicate way to say this, so I'll just say it. This is kind of a peculiar-looking machine. Kind of reminds me of the earless, tailless cat named Old Bob that hung out at the shipyard docks. The rear fender comes chopped back to the struts, and the low bars and mirrors lends it the earless look. Word from the factory is the number of influences and mashed them together for this project. Features from the '50s-era KHR models and subsequent racers based on the OHV, "Ironhead" Sportsters made the DNA pool, and the new Roadster carries the same cut-down, bare-bike look.Although the definition of the word "Roadster" has been added to over time, the modern interpretation of the spartan machine with minimal appointments. That's what we have here, reminiscent of the old "gasser" bikes where everything that did not directly contribute to performance got cut off / removed / uninstalled. I guess one could call the fastback saddle somewhat cafe'-esque, and the lightening holes in the heat shields and belt guard could really come from almost any era.
As a bonafide member of the Dark Custom series of bikes, the Roadster comes with the blackout treatment in full effect from the split-spoke cast rims to the engine, heat shields and shock springs for a final tie-in to Harley's backyard-custom heritage . This ride carries a 2016 model year, to include sportier suspension, finned timing covers, special cast wheels, special seats, and as always, model-specific tank graphics.
While largely unchanged for 2017, the factory did see the wisdom of adding a battery of tender harness as standard equipment
Chassis
The factory pulled the steering head in a bit for 28.9 degrees of rake and 5.5 inches of trail, geometry it is optimized for the agility in keeping with the race-tastic bent of the roadster. A set of 43 mm, usd forks with tri-rate springs supporting the front on 4.5 inches of travel, and a set of gas shocks with tri-rate, coil-over springs and a screw-type preload adjustment on 3.2 inches of travel.I like inverted forks for their stability and torsion resistance, and these make the Roadster look like serious business, definitely my favorite of the new-from-2016 features. The 19-inch front, and 18-inch rear tires push the seat up to 30.9 inches high, leaving us with 6 inches of ground clearance and the potential for over 30 degrees of lean. All of this gives us more suspension travel and lean angle than you would normally expect from a Sportster model.
Twin-pot calipers bind the overkill-sized, 300 mm front brake discs, with a third dual-piston binder in back. You can add the ABS option for a few dollars more, or go old-school with the unaugmented brake system. I would point out that the dual-piston-and-anvil calipers act as the limiting factor to avoid overbraking I suppose. A 120 / 70R19 front and 150 / 70R18 rear hoop rounds out the rolling chassis with a decidedly street-racy tread profile.
Drivetrain
The Sportster lineup has essentially been used the same basic engine design since 1986, so this engine has certainly paid its dues. There have been a number of innovations and improvements over the years that make this mill superior to its forebears, no matter how much they look alike. Harley goes to fuel injection across the board to meet emissions standards, but so far have kept the Sportster as an air-cooled mill in its characteristic, 45-degree V-Twin configuration.The 3.5-inch bore and 3,811-inch strokes add up to 1202.8 cc (73.4 cubic-inches), and the mill runs a 10-to-1 compression ratio, not particularly hot, but high enough to take mid-grade at least. All this combines to produce 76 pounds-feet of torque at 3,750 rpm and 48 mpg. This is plenty of power for explosive hole shots and relatively quick acceleration, but top-end is still only going to be around 100-ish, so it's quick, but not necessarily fast.
Unlike my 2000 Sporty, rubber isolation mounts prevent much of the vibration from transferring to the frame, and so it will be less fatiguing on the highway. A five-speed transmission and belt drive makes the final connection to the rear wheel and pavement.
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