Need opinions on Harleys vs. Victory's

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Teebird31
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Need opinions on Harleys vs. Victory's

#1 Unread post by Teebird31 »

I'm looking for a reliable bike i.e. starts everytime, a comfortable ride for both myself and my wife for up to 3 to 4 hours at a stretch, and American made. So far I've narrowed it down to the 2009 Harley Road King Classic, 2009 Harley Heritage Softail Classic or the 2009 Victory Kingpin Tour. They all ride awesome but a 20 minute test ride doesn't tell much vs the life of owning the bike. I'm not interested in resale value simply because I plan to own this bike for life and hence reliablility is the more important factor. I have owned Honda's in the past....great bikes....but not one of my options. Anyway, if anyone can give me experienced opinions and feedback on one or all of those bikes, I would greatly appreciate the assistance. Thank you!

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#2 Unread post by Gummiente »

Oh boy, here we go again. Threads like these usually turn into all out flame wars, so be prepared. :lol:

If comfort is the prime factor, go with the Road King or the Kingpin Tour. Both are good at what they do. The Heritage Softail is more built for eye candy than serious touring - remember, it has limited rear suspension travel as compared to the other two - but you can tour with it.

Reliability wise, both are on par with each other. Harley offers up to 7 years of full coverage, unlimited mileage extended warranty, while I believe the Victory will offer up to 5 years limited mileage (best to check with a Victory dealer to make sure).

As for "American Made" being one of your factors, that pretty much cancels the Harley. They are assembled in America from a mixture of domestic and imported parts, while the Victory is pretty much all-American.
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#3 Unread post by cdillon23 »

I have ridden a Kingpin and really liked it but did not ride the tour version. As for the Harley I could not say but I sure do love the look of them.
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#4 Unread post by Mkultra »

I rode Harleys for 30 years, and my favorite was the RoadKing. Traded my last one for an Ultra Classic, got dicked around by HD, and bought a Vicotry Vision. Now it is weird looking, but the ride is the best of any bike I have ridden. The choice between a Kingpin Tour and Roadking, i would opt for the RoadKing. Seems to be a bit more room for rider and passenger to me. Have you tried the Vision?

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#5 Unread post by Teebird31 »

Thank you for your input gentlemen it has been very helpful. It's nice to know there's still unbiased opinions out there. Believe it or not, everyone I've spoken with that owns a Victory have all said they are a terrific ride, reliable, look good, and here's the kicker....."but it's not a Harley". In speaking with Harley owners, it appears the reliability of today is pretty solid and the concerns of the AMF days are long long gone.

Mkultra: I have not tried the Vision. The looks kind of steered me away....different and neat to look at but do I want to own one ....sort of thing. So you feel it's worth a try.....why not, I'll let you know what I think when I do. Hey, how did you get dicked around by Harley?

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Is this thread still open.

#6 Unread post by Ryethil »

Teebird31 wrote:Thank you for your input gentlemen it has been very helpful. It's nice to know there's still unbiased opinions out there. Believe it or not, everyone I've spoken with that owns a Victory have all said they are a terrific ride, reliable, look good, and here's the kicker....."but it's not a Harley". In speaking with Harley owners, it appears the reliability of today is pretty solid and the concerns of the AMF days are long long gone.

Mkultra: I have not tried the Vision. The looks kind of steered me away....different and neat to look at but do I want to own one ....sort of thing. So you feel it's worth a try.....why not, I'll let you know what I think when I do. Hey, how did you get dicked around by Harley?
One added point. I've found that Victory motorcycles are more specialized and as a long time Harley fanatic, the differences in their model line are confusing to me. All three of your choices are exceptional motocyles. Actually I was looking at a Victory Vegas Eight Ball for a while. but for some reason they decided on that model to reduce the 6 spd transmission to 5 spds. And things like that. However the attention to details and over reliability almost got me to change my mind and go with the Victory.

And there is one more thing is that there are almost a glut of HD dealerships there just isn't that many Victory shops. Actually, I hope Victory gains in popularity for I think it would keep the HD management honest and their bikes more up to date. It would be a greater world.
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Re: Is this thread still open.

#7 Unread post by Gummiente »

Ryethil wrote:keep the HD management honest and their bikes more up to date.
What, so fly-by-wire throttle, closed loop sequential port fuel injection, electronic ignition with crank sensor, ABS, Brembo disc brakes front and rear, belt final drive, 6-speed transmission, full electronic instrumentation and a factory security system aren't up to date enough for you? :dunno:
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Re: Is this thread still open.

#8 Unread post by Ryethil »

Gummiente wrote:
Ryethil wrote:keep the HD management honest and their bikes more up to date.
What, so fly-by-wire throttle, closed loop sequential port fuel injection, electronic ignition with crank sensor, ABS, Brembo disc brakes front and rear, belt final drive, 6-speed transmission, full electronic instrumentation and a factory security system aren't up to date enough for you? :dunno:
Okay! Let me find my way out of this one...

My thinking is a bit different on the place of Harley so bear with me for a minute. I'm stuck between two worlds both the "real" one and a lost "traditional" one. I'm a pretty hard core but I don't remember the bad old days of AMC or anything like that. And I want Harleys to remain Harleys.

On one hand, All the things you mentioned are welcomed with open arms by most bikers. The problem with these changes is that HD motorcycles are changing at a faster pace. Is Harley going to go the way of most marques in that in 5 to 10 years the dealer won't carry the parts your bike needs to stay alive. In the "tradional" world, big twins didn't change that much but the dealer kept a larger supply of parts that meant you could keep you particular bike going for a longer time. And If the dealer didn't carry the parts then aftermarket places kept the parts and your bike continued on.

The first bike that I built was a really ratty ex-cop Shovelhead. I learned to love Harleys because of that bike. But it was fairly easy to scrounge parts for it and when I was finished, it was like new. If planned obsolecence takes all those parts away then a whole generation of HDs will die.

Now the real meat of what I was saying. I've been told that like the British bikes before they died the first time, Harleys went through a period where the Haley company was treated like any other "asset". It was more a point to make profit as large as possible. The bikes turned into crap and stagnated. Their customer base started to dry up and everything looked black.

Now however, in the few years since the turn of the century, HD motorcycles are getting better each year and there more different styles to choose from. I want that to continue. The V-Rod is a good example of of what is the best and the worst of Harley. It started as a combined Porshe-Harley Motor that gathered dust because AMC and the early company under Willie didn't have the funds to actually build a motorcycle around it. Now the engine has been updated and a really nice motorcycle was built around it. Ta-Da! The V-Rod. I want that to keep up. I want more Women's programs. I want the search for the perfect motorcycle to continue. I want it all.

So I feel that a company like Victory or Indian to come along and make HD concerned about its vision for the core bikes that make up the base of Harley Davidson has got to be a good thing. Anything but the stagnation of the Bad Old Days.

"Dreamer" takes a deep breath. I love the good old new days and want them to continue. But I also want new models and present bikes to be made better with more options. I want to go into the Easy Rider shop and go wild because I can. Why? Because Harleys are doing it all, And I think one of the factors of all this is competition is a "good" thing.

:rockon:
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#9 Unread post by XB08 »

while the Victory is pretty much all-American. and Harely not now that is funny the both have a lot of japanese parts on them and Victory is really from you country. American made means USA but not anymore I guess so lets all say Honda is they have three plants here. I like Victory and I like Honda. I like them all even the cheap one out there.

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#10 Unread post by Ryethil »

XB08 wrote:while the Victory is pretty much all-American. and Harely not now that is funny the both have a lot of japanese parts on them and Victory is really from you country. American made means USA but not anymore I guess so lets all say Honda is they have three plants here. I like Victory and I like Honda. I like them all even the cheap one out there.
I like your thinking but Honda is shutting down it's America plants. Anyway, all the profits made by the Honda plants and dealers go to Japan. So I'm for keeping a little bit more here in the US.

Just a thought...
Alex
It's good spelling but it Wobbles, and the letters get in the wrong places. WtPooh

My First Custom, Late 90's Sportster, Heavily Breathed On, Big Block, S&S HP Heads, Custom High Performance Pipes. Wickedly fast, Uncomfortable, Front end is a jackhammer. Age 18yrs, Still have the bike!

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