28 January 2022

Low down on the Low Rider

Hot on the heels of its Livewire and PanAmerica successes, Harley-Davidson is launching a new cruiser, the Low Rider.  Sitting comfortably within the Softail family, the new machine comes in S and ST forms.

An enthusiastic team at Harley-Davidson have been making a really big effort over the winter months.

The Livewire project has grown wings and the PanAmerica is selling really well.

They have now come out with new colours for the Pan Am as well as injecting a whole lot of energy into the CVO lineup.

They’ve all got a lot brighter and the colours are a lot bolder than ever before.

Hitting a new Low

Brand new for this year is a new cruiser that sits in the Softail family.

There are actually two derived from the same engine, the Low Rider ST and more powerful Low Rider S models.

Both motorcycles utilise the V-twin muscle of a Milwaukee-Eight 117 powertrain. That’s a 1923cc engine in new money!

The ST model offers the versatility of hard bags and a fixed fairing.

On the ST the fairing is mounted onto the frame while the bike sits higher on its suspension than traditional Harleys. It’s properly vented to reduce buffeting on motorways and topped off with a six inch screen. The headlamp is a powerful LED unit.

Giving it the V

That Low Rider’s V-twin engine is dual oil and air cooled and is the pinnacle of regular-production Harley-Davidson powertrains. This unit engine delivers 125 ft.lbs. of torque at 3,500 rpm for a performance boost the rider can feel and love.

Meanwhile the high-performance, tuned Heavy Breather intake, with its forward-facing exposed filter element, flows more air into the engine to produce more mid-range torque. It also gives the motorcycle that cooler-than-cool hot rod look.

The engine is rigid-mounted in the frame. This makes for a stiffer, better handling chassis.

This, in turn, is assisted by a set of 43 mm inverted forks which ,with a rake of 28 degrees, offers the kind of handling that you want on a brisk country spin.

Down the back the mono shock is taller by a decent 12mm and offers 25mm more travel than any other Softail.

This makes for a more comfortable and better handling beast.

Exhausting stuff

It’s two-into-two offset shotgun exhaust is tuned to provide smooth and broad mid-range torque while dual counter-balancers in the motor reduce primary vibration at idle for improved rider comfort.

The saddlebags are lockable, rigid and feature a sleek design that makes them easy to load and unload.

They can even be opened with one hand by a seated rider and the damping allows them to open smoothly. They can be taken off in seconds with a quick-release mechanism. Between them both they have 53.8 litres of space.

Instrumentation is a compact digital display that lives in an inset in the handlebar riser. This gives the bike that custom, “no gauges” look.

The Low Rider will be in dealers shortly. To find out more give Alan a call on 051 844 200 or Derek on 01 464 2211.

Best Harley-Davidson bike insurance quotes? Call our specialist motorbike insurance team on 0818 945 950.

 

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