First Drive: Sting in the Softail

Harley-Davidson let the motorcycle media loose on four of its new Softails, near Barcelona in Spain. AutoTrader was there.

By Justus Visagie

 

These Harleys are really, really new

Each year, when Harley-Davidson reveals the following year’s models, closer inspection reveals that the term “new” is used rather loosely. New handlebars here, some new paint colours there, and it’s a new bike, y’all. According to H-D, anyway. But not this time.

With excellent bikes, like the Indian Scout, gunning for Harley riders, the Milwaukee company had to come up with something special. They did. It’s the new Softail range, comprising of a whopping eight new bikes. That’s cause for celebration, not just because there’s a bike for every taste, but because they’re exciting too.

Style with substance

“An exciting Harley-Davidson!?”, you might exclaim from your Honda Fireblade or KTM Super Adventure. It’s actually true and for three main reasons: they’re beautiful to behold,  endowed with powerful yet smooth engines and the new chassis is rock solid.

The latter is the most significant update. It’s lighter and a 34 per cent more rigid than the outdated chassis it replaces. A single, hidden centre damper (a.k.a. shock-absorber) replaces the twin dampers. It’s a great technical improvement and allows the Softail to keep its hardtail look. They way the new suspension absorbs shocks is a joy to experience and adds to the range’s good handling. This we discovered on fast bends in the mountain passes of Montseny near Barcelona. More about the ride below.

Power for the new Softail range comes from two different V-Twin engines that both belong to the brilliant new Milwaukee Eight family. One is a 114 cubic inch (1 868 cc) unit that develops 75 kW and 161 Nm. The other is a smaller-but-still-huge 107 cubic inch (1 745 cc) motor that makes 69 kW and 145-149 Nm, depending on the bike.

The Dyna is killed off, but you wont miss it

Harley-Davidson has “merged” the Dyna and Softail, effectively ditching the Dyna range. It makes sense after the addition of the entry-level Street bikes and should save H-D money, while making it easier for customers to tell their Fat Boys from their Fat Bobs.

The new Softail range consists of the Street Bob, Fat Bob, Low Rider, Breakout, Softail Slim, Deluxe, Fat Boy and the Heritage Classic. You’ll have to visit Harley-Davidson.com to make sense of them all. We only sampled four of the eight, although the complete set was on display.

What we rode and what we learnt

The Catalonian roads, that blossom with pedal-powered spandex and lycra specimens over weekends, were wonderfully deserted, allowing us to exploit the bikes’ handling on smooth tarmac and through sweeping bends. First, I got on the Fat Boy’s saddle. Despite it’s high, mini “ape-hanger” handlebars that make it look big, I felt a bit contorted on the low seat. Then came the surprise. Even though tall handlebars often give an indirect steering feel, the Fat Boy felt sharp and obedient.

Then came the Breakout, with its signature long wheelbase. A chopper type rake angle usually blunts steering, but again the chassis and suspension compensated to give it fair handling. It’s also a good fit for taller riders.

The next day we were on the Heritage Classic (first) and I wanted to get it over with ASAP. It's a classic tourer with pannier cases, decorative studs and a screen that has its lower half blacked out. It has the old-school Harley image I associate with The Village People and their hit song YMCA

It had footboards too, that were duly scraped when I chucked the Heritage ’round the countryside. It turns out this is just about the sharpest of the four Softails we evaluated. If it weren’t for those long footboards, it could have managed a much sharper lean angle. Suddenly Harleys are fun in corners! Okay, naked bikes like the KTM 1290 Super Duke R won’t have sleepless nights over the Milwaukee onslaught, but the new Softails’ handling prowess is worlds apart from its predecessors’.

The Harleys are still limited by their heft, though. These new Softails weigh an average of 300 kg. Compare that to the 200 kg or so of a Triumph Thruxton R or BMW R nineT. The difference is massive, but the Harleys carry their extra fat surprisingly well. Fortunately there’s ABS on all Softails.

The best saved for last

The last of the four Softails we experienced was the most exciting thing to come out of the Milwaukee factory since the Project Rushmore Harleys of 2013 onwards. It’s the new Fat Bob and it could be the closest the company has come to building a naked bike. Where the others have typical, low cruiser pegs or footboards to limit the lean angle, the Fat Bob’s pegs are higher. I had the feeling of graduating to a bicycle without training wheels back when I was five: scary yet exhilarating.

It has a forward seating position, almost straight handlebars and fat wheels, all of which enhance its bad-ass, attacking look. Unfortunately the width of the front rubber makes it a bit stodgy and the soft front suspension doesn’t help. But its complete absence of chrome, exhaust detail and unique headlight design – combined with the 114 engine – had me under its black magic spell.

Now rob a bank

Unfortunate these Softails are still not bargains, but for some potential buyers the long price tag will add to the Harleys’ “exclusive” appeal.

Street Bob®	R 188 700 to R 197 700
Fat Bob®	R 226 500 to R 253 400
Low Rider®	R 215 400 to R 220 400
Breakout®	R 277 400 to R 303 900
Softail Slim®	R245 700 to R 250 700
Deluxe	R 271 700 to R 280 700
Fat Boy®	R275 500 to R 309 900
Heritage Classic	R 281 700 to R 312 500

For more info on each model, prices and the full 2018 range, visit harley-davidson.com.

Rivals

Indian Chief Dark Horse and other bikes in the Chief range