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114ci street glide special


Guest Richzx6r
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Guest Richzx6r

So I was asked a while ago by a member on here who's name currently avoids me to test ride a harley and give an unbiased review of the bike I rode, so here goes;


So I approached Gateshead Harley Davidson originally to test ride a cvo something or other but instead got a ride on a brand new top spec 20 plate street glide special in white which retails at around the £25k mark :shock: .

 

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Street glide special

 

So specs wise it appeared to have all the bells and whistles on it like cruise control which only works above 25mph or I could only get it to activate from 25mph but it was easy to use and made the 8 mile m/way trial a doddle just set it and forget and it is deactivated by braking or by pulling in the clutch.


It also had the full quota of infotainment system with built in D.A.B radio, satellite navigation and bluetooth connectivity to your phone though I didnt try connecting with my phone so I cant give any feedback on that.

With the infotainment system it has a touchscreen which is easy to use but whilst riding the controls for it on the left and right bars took alot of time to fathom out which is abit of a put off as it was billed by the salesman as very easy and quick to use whilst on the move but it proved to be a pain to get the hang of.

It also had a full trip computer with A and B trip, remaining miles in tank and the one I tested also had front and rear tyre pressure monitoring system which I thought was neat but not a deal maker.


Now on to the 114ci (1860cc) motor.....it was a nice engine for a very big v twin and felt nicely balanced and there wasnt the characteristic Harley head shake of old that I had kinda expected but was pleasantly surprised and happy that it was good and smooth.

It didnt have much power but it just floated you along on a huge glob of torque which was there from idle all the was up to the redline of 5500rpm which meant that cruising at 70 was extremely comfortable and easy.


That however is where I have to stop saying nice things and start pointing towards the bad points and I have to say from an unbiased perspective theres more bad than good though I'd guess Harley owners would say they are more character points than actual problems.


But here we go;


The gearbox.......what to say about that monstrosity of engineering it was from my point of view something more akin to a 100 year old tractor it was that clunky and horrible to use and trying to find neutral was almost impossible as it took that much pressure to get it out of 1st that it would just go straight in to 2nd and also the ratios were so large that clutchless 2nd-6th was almost impossible without feeling like you were riding a bucking bronco so it had to be clutched all the time.

The clutch on the other hand was nice and light and it was easy to find the biting point but that is the only positive factor in the gearbox.


The brakes.......even though it had twin discs with 2 pot calipers up front they were the size of milk bottle tops and lacked any bite or feel so you couldn't really use much of the torque for fear that you might need to brake at some point which didnt really inspire me with much confidence to use the sublime motor installed.


Manoeuverability at slow speed was also a big issue, though the bike weighs alot (nearly 400kgs) it didnt feel that heavy as it's all very low down in the frame but the ergonomic design of the bar position, seat position and foot footplate position made it feel very awkward when either trying to ride at a slow pace or manoeuvre it in a car park setting as it just felt very wobbly and unconnected.

 

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The dash and controls

 

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So this is my personal view point and not of anyone else


And I can honestly say this is a bike I wouldn't consider adding to my garage space but each to they're own


Thanks


Rich

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Well that's all very interesting and not altogether surprising . You have my admiration for even trying to ride one of those sanitised land barges . How about popping back next week and taking a 1200 Sportster out for a spin ? It's no good asking me to write a review because I love mine so much that I wouldn't be able to say anything objective about it .

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Guest Richzx6r

Well that's all very interesting and not altogether surprising . You have my admiration for even trying to ride one of those sanitised land barges . How about popping back next week and taking a 1200 Sportster out for a spin ? It's no good asking me to write a review because I love mine so much that I wouldn't be able to say anything objective about it .

 

I honestly have zero wish to ever swing my leg over a Harley again, for me once was more than enough

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Guest Richzx6r

Two things..


1) Why does it have so many gears? Wouldn't four be better?


2) How does it manage to weigh so much!?

 

I have no idea why it has a 6 speed box, I'd think with a 4 speed box it would be worse as there would be an even bigger distance between the gear ratios and it would be intolerable and I'd have not done 5 minutes let alone the hour.


I'd guess it weighs so much because it's made from pig iron and some other hither to unknown to science material that weighs alot.....maybe it's the harley badges that weigh it down

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Well that's all very interesting and not altogether surprising . You have my admiration for even trying to ride one of those sanitised land barges . How about popping back next week and taking a 1200 Sportster out for a spin ? It's no good asking me to write a review because I love mine so much that I wouldn't be able to say anything objective about it .

 

I honestly have zero wish to ever swing my leg over a Harley again, for me once was more than enough

 

That's a great shame because what you rode and how you described it was about as far away from riding a Sportster as you can possibly get .

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Guest Richzx6r

Well that's all very interesting and not altogether surprising . You have my admiration for even trying to ride one of those sanitised land barges . How about popping back next week and taking a 1200 Sportster out for a spin ? It's no good asking me to write a review because I love mine so much that I wouldn't be able to say anything objective about it .

 

I honestly have zero wish to ever swing my leg over a Harley again, for me once was more than enough

 

That's a great shame because what you rode and how you described it was about as far away from riding a Sportster as you can possibly get .

 

That maybe so bob but I honestly didn't think I would hate it so much after have ridden a cruiser years ago....yes it was a Kawasaki eliminator 125cc which may not really count for much but it felt completely different, it was easy to handle, it also went round corners and I quite enjoyed the time I spent with it but I just didn't enjoy the harley no matter how much I wanted to.


In what way would a sportster differ from the street

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I honestly have zero wish to ever swing my leg over a Harley again, for me once was more than enough

 

That's a great shame because what you rode and how you described it was about as far away from riding a Sportster as you can possibly get .

 

That maybe so bob but I honestly didn't think I would hate it so much after have ridden a cruiser years ago....yes it was a Kawasaki eliminator 125cc which may not really count for much but it felt completely different, it was easy to handle, it also went round corners and I quite enjoyed the time I spent with it but I just didn't enjoy the harley no matter how much I wanted to.


In what way would a sportster differ from the street

 

450 cc different for a start . Not heard anything good about the Street .

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Guest Richzx6r



That's a great shame because what you rode and how you described it was about as far away from riding a Sportster as you can possibly get .

 

That maybe so bob but I honestly didn't think I would hate it so much after have ridden a cruiser years ago....yes it was a Kawasaki eliminator 125cc which may not really count for much but it felt completely different, it was easy to handle, it also went round corners and I quite enjoyed the time I spent with it but I just didn't enjoy the harley no matter how much I wanted to.


In what way would a sportster differ from the street

 

450 cc different for a start . Not heard anything good about the Street .

 

No it is abit like a barge but out of water, though when pressed it will propel you at the scenery at a fair lick but that's as far as the good points are really

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That maybe so bob but I honestly didn't think I would hate it so much after have ridden a cruiser years ago....yes it was a Kawasaki eliminator 125cc which may not really count for much but it felt completely different, it was easy to handle, it also went round corners and I quite enjoyed the time I spent with it but I just didn't enjoy the harley no matter how much I wanted to.


In what way would a sportster differ from the street

 

450 cc different for a start . Not heard anything good about the Street .

 

No it is abit like a barge but out of water, though when pressed it will propel you at the scenery at a fair lick but that's as far as the good points are really

 

Oh , sorry , I thought you meant the 750 Street range not the Street Glide . Ok well the difference would be like the difference between a Goldwing and ... Well a Sportster ! A Transit and a hatchback . The Sportster was specifically designed to take back Triumph and BSA sales in America and that's what it's like to ride . They just happen to be a V Twin . It's ridiculous to lump all Harleys together .

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