Harley Davidson Road Glide
New 2024 Harley Davidson Road Glide, and it’s got a whole bunch of updates for this year that trickled down from the CVO Road Glide that was updated last year.
And look, there’s some really nice tweaks here, some big improvements, so much so that I think it changes my perception of where this bike is placed in the market.
we’ll go through10 key favorite things about it.
Ergonomics :
But first up, look, we got to talk about the riding position on this bike. And yes, it is absolutely humongous, and that does have its downsides when it comes to low speed riding and maneuverability.
But on the flip side, being massive means there’s lots of space And so it really is exceptionally comfortable.
I absolutely love the handlebar position on this bike.
It suits the attitude of the bike perfectly.
And when you’re cruising along on the motorway, this mid to high rise, nice and wide, just feels super commanding and all day comfortable.
Then you’ve got a seat height of 720 mill.
And like I say, this thing is pretty heavy, so that’s nice and reassuring.
You can get both your feet down fairly easily.
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And to top it off, big old floorboards which mean you can move your feet around.
So if you are trying to shuffle and change position, if you’ve been on the motorway for a while, there’s plenty of adjustment in your riding position.
Honestly, there are very few other bikes that I’d rather be on if I was purely riding in a straight line for hours on end.
Torque :
Now, this bike now gets the 117 cubic inch version of their Milwaukee 8 V-Twin, and it seems to get bigger and bigger each year, and probably for the better.
Performance figures are up a bit, so it’s 107 horsepower now at 5,020 RPM.
I always say this with the big American V twins, that might not sound like a great deal for this capacity, but it is all about the talk with 175 newton meters right down at three and a half thousand RPM.
It’s got that big rumbling nature to it, which Harley are so well known for, and that massive punch in the mid-range, which means that this bike is far quicker under acceleration than it has any right to be.
Harley Davidson Road Glide Sound :
Now, naturally, with emissions regulations being what they are nowadays, this isn’t a particularly loud bike.
It is a bit strangled, but occasionally, you just get a little glimpse in the ear of what it could be if you’re just shifting down the gears and blip the throttle to rev match,
if you’re at the lights and give it a bit of a rev, you can hear there’s definitely some potential.
Almost certainly the first thing I’d do if I got this bike would be to fit something free and flowing, and I think it would be a fantastic sounding bike.
chassis :
As for the chassis, well, there are a few tweaks for this year.
You’ve got 76 millimeters of travel on the rear shock, so you can’t see them because of these bags. They’re tucked in behind.
And while that isn’t a huge amount compared to other bikes, it’s still a lot more than the previous generation, and so it should be a little more comfortable.
The other thing they’ve managed to do is shed quite a lot of weight, so 7.3 kilograms.
And with that extra grunt that we talked about from this new engine, of course, it’s just going to be that little bit quicker. Harley Davidson Road Glide
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And also everything helps when you’re at 380 kilograms, fully fueled, ready to ride.
I don’t ride these sorts of bikes particularly often, so it does take a moment to get used to it, especially when you’re riding at slower speeds.
But as the speeds pick up, and especially if you’re riding on some quite flowing roads, it does feel surprisingly manageable. And of course, less weight is always going to contribute to that.
Fairing :
Now we’ve got this massively redesigned front-end here, which we got a preview of, like I said, with the CVO last year.
I think for me, although this bike is always going to be a bit divisive in terms of the look, just because it’s so big, it is an improvement on the twin headlights of the previous generation road glide.
But I think more than that, with this fairing, what the real effort has gone into is the aerodynamics.
Harley Davidson Road Glide Buffeting Control
they say they’ve used a lot of CFD or computational fluid dynamics to optimize the airflow, to minimize the effects of buffeting.
I’ve got to say, I really do think it has worked.
On a lot of bikes that have a medium-sized windscreen, there are some days, especially when it’s reasonably warm, where I think I’d prefer to be on a naked bike just because the clean airflow is generally actually quieter.
With this, though, you’ve got a humongous fairing, which is a real luxury.
the way that they’ve designed it means there really is a very minimal amount of that very basey and intense buffeting that can be really tiring over distance on the motorway. Harley Davidson Road Glide
It’s worth pointing out there are a few different screen heights.
So if you are on the taller or shorter end of the spectrum and you don’t find this quiet, then you maybe want to look into the Accessories catalog and see what they got.
Wind Noise Reduction
But also, do have a little fiddle with this vent on the top here because I find when it’s closed, you can feel a bit more of a vacuum in the cockpit.
But if you crack it open, like I say, if it’s a warm day and you don’t really care so much about trying to stay warm, then there’s a noticeable difference in the reduction of that bassy sound, and it becomes more, I think, high pitch wind noise, which you can pretty much remove most of with a good set of ear plugs.
Genially, I think it’s really very good on the motorway, and I think it’s almost quieter than something like a Gold Wing with the big touring windscreen fitted, which I found had more of that heavy buffeting, whereas this is really nice and clean.
Adjustable Airflow and Temperature Management
I also quite like little, I think they’re called Louvers. little adjustable wind shields on the side because, again, this allows you to play with your temperature on the bike.
They have fitted liquid cooling to this generation of the engine to try and improve thermal comfort. Harley Davidson Road Glide
But if it is a hot day, you can just tuck these in and you’ll get a bit more airflow to the engine and, of course, around your knees, and that’s just going to help keep you that little bit cooler.
Harley Davidson Road Glide TFT Size :
Inside the cockpit, though, we’ve also got a big change, and this is where this bike starts to feel quite a bit different to some of the previous generations.
It’s a massive 312 millimeter TFT display, and it’s about as big as it gets on the motorcycle market, apart from maybe some of the BMW, Touring, and R18 models.
What that means is you get absolutely loads of screen space, and it means that you don’t have to compromise on any of the features, and also everything can be nice and big and easy to read.
Skyline OS :
On top of that, you’ve also got their latest Skyline OS, which I think is really nicely designed and easy to use.
You’ve got a similar look and feel to some of their other bikes with TFT displays like the Sportster S or the Pan America.
But just with all this extra screen space, it means you really can make the most of all the features and layouts. Harley Davidson Road Glide
I particularly like the fact that it’s white characters on a black background.
I think it looks good, but also it’s really easy to read, and it’s That’s another big plus for this update for me.
Harley Davidson Road Glide Touch screen :
I should also point out as well, it is a touch screen, and while you might not want to use that all the time, it’s quite a reach from the saddle to the touch screen.
So if you’re on the move, you might prefer to use this really comprehensive switch gear.
If you do pull over and get the bike on its stand and whip your glove off, it is quite responsive.
I think it perhaps allows you to make changes to stuff like the custom riding modes that little bit quicker.
You don’t always get touch screens on bikes like this. But for me, I think, again, just adds to the feeling of modernity.
Harley Davidson Road Glide Riding modes :
Now, through this dash, you can now manage a nice selection of riding modes.
So you’ve got Rain, Street, Sport, and some custom slots, and each of them affects a whole bunch of rider rates, which I’ll get onto in a moment.
But look, while it might not feel absolutely necessary to have a whole bunch of rider modes for a bike like this, where you’re not exactly going to be ringing its neck all the time, it is a big machine. Harley Davidson Road Glide
There’s a lot of torque. There’s a high chance you’ll be riding it two up.
And so if the conditions do a little greasy, you might appreciate having that rain mode just to fall back on.
Equally, the sport mode really does liven up the throttle response, and so you really can make the most of all that torque that this new engine brings.
Rider Aids
And here, like I say, the technology package in terms of the individual rider aids is right up there with the best now.
So you’ve got cornering traction control, cornering ABS, linked break in.
So whether you use the lever up here or the foot control, you’re going to get break in from all three disks, engine drag torque So it’s like a deceleration traction control, stopping the rear wheel from locking up if it’s low grip.
Cruise control as well and then also all the connectivity features that you typically associate with a dash like this.
And that, my friends, is exactly what I think, repositions this bike a little bit when it comes to the large capacity touring market.
You see, previously, look at the Harleys as maybe a little bit old school and more so relying on the looks and character and brand as opposed to techy features and the latest gizmos.
Generally, previously, I would have probably recommended something like a Goldwing or a K1600 from BMW if you were looking for a big, cushy touring bike that had all the latest bells and whistles. Harley Davidson Road Glide
And look, what they have, I think still preserve the essence of what this bike is about with that big V-twin, plenty of rumble, the brilliant looks, a bit of chrome here and there, that typical Harley riding position.
The technology has come on leaps and bounds, and I’d I’d almost say, in fact, I’d definitely say that this new dash is better than what you currently get on the Gold Wing, for example, which hasn’t been updated for quite a few years.
So for me, it’s a bit less of a black and white decision now between the character and soul of a Harley and the latest tech on the Hondas and BMWs.