2017 Harley-Davidson Touring range launch review

Name: 2017 Harley-Davidson Touring range launch review
Brand: Harley-Davidson

A stonking new eight-valve engine and new suspension add up to a step-change progression for Harley's Touring stable…

Despite what some may think, as a breed of motorcycle Harley-Davidson is difficult to categorise. It continues to play its heritage card to great effect, yet every now and then it pulls out something that's totally left field – the liquid-cooled V-Rod, for example, or the Made-in-India but selling-its-wheels-off entry-level bike, the Street 500.

When Harley-Davidson recently flew journos from around the world to Washington State (the one with the stupendous scenery, not the stupendous murder rate) to sample its next-gen Touring bikes, I was expecting evolution, not revolution – but I was gravely mistaken.

As the assembled scribes hopped aboard the various Touring models and thumbed starters, the response was instant and unanimous – what the?

The Big Twin beneath me – in this case slotted into a gleaming white Street Glide Special – fired up with all the puff and bluster you'd associate with the Motor Co's hallowed 45-degree V-twin, and soon settled into that familiar, lumpy idle. However, as I fed in just the smallest amount of juice with my right hand, the buzz and vibrations simply melted away – in a way never before seen in a Big Twin…

The weather gods may have been doing their best to dampen my anticipation, but as the pack of around 25 bikes rumbled out of Tacoma, south of Seattle, and headed for the wild and windswept Olympic Peninsula, to the west, I'm sure I wasn't the only one simply blown away by the new Milwaukee-Eight engine.

As the ninth generation of Harley-Davidson Big Twin, it was clear a half-hearted effort wouldn't do – and this new unit has propelled the Motor Co into an unexplored territory of riding pleasure. But before we head into one incredibly scenic corner of the United States, let's take a closer look at exactly what Harley-Davidson has done here in its 2017 Touring range…

ALL HEART

At the pre-ride tech presentation, Alex Bozmoski – Harley-Davidson Chief Powertrain Engineer and leader of the Milwaukee-Eight development team – admitted that plans got underway for this new engine roughly when its predecessor, the Twin Cam, was rolled out in 1999. That means an awful lot of work has gone into the new engine, and it surely shows.

While retaining Harley's traditional 45-degree V-twin architecture, the Milwaukee-Eight now has four valves per cylinder instead of two, a higher compression ratio, 50 per cent more intake and exhaust flow capacity, improved thermal management, twin sparkplugs per cylinder, improved legroom and reduced vibration. Harley also says the engine produces far less mechanical noise, giving the bike a richer exhaust note, while its muscular styling at once emphasises its modern technology and its long, proud heritage.

A single chain-driven camshaft, meanwhile, is said to be lighter and simpler in its construction, reducing friction and noise.

The new donk is also said to deliver 50 per cent more output to the battery, which will help power all the various gear and gadgets employed by the modern touring rider.

The end result, says Harley, is around 10 per cent more torque than the old Twin Cam engine, and better acceleration – all in a unit said to weigh roughly the same as its predecessor.

The Milaukee-Eight is available in three formats and two displacements. In Australia, the Milwaukee-Eight 107 (as in, 107 cubic inches or 1745cc) powers the Street Glide Special, Road Glide Special and Road King. It has oil-cooled cylinder heads, while the Twin-Cooled Milwaukee-Eight 107 – which powers the Ultra Limited – has liquid-cooled heads.

That leaves the Twin-Cooled Milwaukee-Eight 114 (114 cubic inches, 1870cc), which powers the CVO (Custom Vehicle Operations) Ultra Limited and CVO Street Glide. The one remaining CVO model in the 2017 portfolio is the Pro Street Breakout, which adopts the Twin Cam 110B engine.

SPRINGTIME

While it's the new power that's undoubtedly headlining the show, Harley-Davidson has also given the Touring range a further freshen-up in the form of new suspension. New forks features 'bending valve' technology from Japanese suspension expert Showa, while the new rear shocks are hand-adjustable emulsion units said to offer 15 to 30 per cent more preload adjustment.

Removing the hard panniers on Touring models is now easy thanks to a new threaded axle attachment (instead of the rather fiddly Dzus fasteners of old), while the 2017 range is bedecked in a diverse range of new colour schemes, with metal flake playing a big role. Ah yes, everything in fashion eventually comes full circle – surely flared trousers aren't far away…

So, with carefully crafted words of praise from the morning's briefing ringing in our ears, we headed for the serpentine northern reaches of Highway 101 – a route that continues south all the way to Los Angeles.

The format of the launch was simple – ride to the town of Port Angeles via a detour to the 1600-metre Hurricane Ridge, then head back the next day taking in a bit of a loop along the stunning coastline. Swapping bikes regularly, I got a chance to sample everything coming Australia's way and even some models that aren't – like the Freewheeler trike (pity – it's a blast!).

MECHANICAL MIGHT

The Milwaukee-Eight really is a marvel. So smooth yet so refined, it's still intrinsically a Harley Big Twin, with a beating heart and gobs of low-down and mid-range torque.

At 70mph (approximately 113km/h) it's pulling below 3000rpm – it's big, lazy and under-stressed, and happy to lope along at low revs all day. Conversely, wind it on and it's equally happy to respond, with fuss-free fuelling and crisp response.

The roll-on acceleration from 120km/h is impressive, while the engine also pulls cleanly from as low as 1500rpm. Incidentally, the idle speed has been dropped in these new engines, the Milwaukee-Eights ticking over at 850rpm instead of 1000rpm.

Impressively, throughout the rev range the bike's mirrors remain crystal clear, without a hint of vibration. In fact, there are no annoying vibes at all – just robust performance and a bit of a beat felt through the 'bars and highway boards.

After even more performance? Harley's Stage I, II and III kits are available to take your 2017 Touring machine into tyre-shredding territory.

SLIM AND TRIM

Harley says it's put significant effort into reshaping the new engine to provide more legroom and to make it easier to get a foot down. Now I had little complaint with the older Twin Cams in these respects but certainly there are no problems with the new powertrain. I experienced cool riding conditions in the US (around 20 degrees) so I can't vouch for the claims of improved thermal efficiency, but I didn't experience any undue warmth wafting up from that big lump of an engine.

Where I did notice an appreciable difference was the ride and handling of these mile-eaters. Harley-Davidson made great strides with the Touring range's handling several years back and now it's been refined yet again.

Contrary to our general perception of America's billiard-ball-smooth highways, the roads I encountered had plenty of bumpy, potholed sections – more akin to our typical Aussie roads, I'd say. However, in this environment the Touring models excelled, the new springs effectively ironing out the dips and bumps and allowing these large, heavy machines to be punted through corners at a pace that belies their bulk.

Sure, push well beyond their normal limits and they'll get a bit of a wobble on, but nothing untoward or unexpected.

A new attachment system means removing the panniers is fast and simple, and the hand adjustor makes light work of setting the correct preload for the bike's load.

MILE-EATERS

Springs and powertrains aside, the Touring range is every bit the attractive proposition it always was. Seating is plush yet supportive and compliant. The wind and weather protection is impressive on the Street Glide Special, the Ultra Limited and the Road King (when fitted with a screen) but, surprisingly, I found the Road Glide Special's screen to be largely ineffectual.

The new Milwaukee-Eight 114 CVO models are particularly sweet. Take all the grunt of the 117 and then add some – in fact add a lot – without losing anything in the way of refinement. Add in the wild paint and it's easy to see the appeal, although the price tags pack a punch to match the visual impact.

Physically it might look like the biggest of the models to come our way, but I found the Ultra Limited's ride position to be reasonably compact (although I am 188cm tall).

I also had a stint on the Freewheeler trike – a model that's available in New Zealand but won't be coming to Oz. It's a real hoot; an involving ride that requires you to really muscle it through the corners, and it comes with a heap of boot space (sorry, trunk space) and a reverse gear.

The pick for me, however, was the Street Glide Special. I love its hot-rod looks and when you combine the luggage carrying capacity with the quality Boom! audio system and the performance of the Milwaukee-Eight, it's a touring bike you'll never want to get off.

Now that's a statement I never thought I'd hear myself make about a Harley-Davidson. Maybe, at 42, I've reached a certain motorcycling threshold, or maybe after a solid two days of riding Harleys the Motor Co has got under my skin.

Whatever you think about Harleys, or big tourers, or American bikes in general, Harley-Davidson's 2017 Touring range is a step-change progression for the brand. Given that, as is Harley's historical pattern, we should also see this impressive new Milwaukee-Eight engine find its way into other H-D families, the new Touring range is also a warning salvo across the bows of any Harley rival.

The 2017 Touring models will start hitting Australian dealership from October 2016, with the full range available in November. As far as I'm concerned, they can't get here soon enough…

2017 Harley-Davidson Touring range launch review

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