Took my 2014 FLHTK out for its first 'longish' ride today - 170 miles. Not far, but 1st of the year. Over the winter I put new handlebars and a Freedom wide touring windshield on it, and had new front brake pads and American Elite tires installed. At 32,000 miles the bike ran great on a 75F degree day. The tranny shifts better than ever. I'm 64 and for me, the new tires handled great in the corners, not squared off like the old ones. The new front brake pads were bedded in and I had forgot how well they stopped. I know the linked braking system works a lot better than what I had on my Gold Wing. And thank God for the ABS when a herd of elk decided to cross the road last year. The GPS is stock - is it the best? I don't know but it works better than the On-Star in the 2009 Buick and the GPS in the 2017 Toyota. I've never used the Boombox to its full potential but I will listen to the radio when out on the road. I noticed with the new Freedom wide touring windshield the sound is better as it shields wind from the front speakers. Overall, a very pleasant ride.

At the lunch stop there were two 1800 Gold Wings of the last generation, and a GTL 1600 BMW. Nice looking bikes, and the owners seemed happy, but not the shine and polish of the Harley. You pay your money and make your choice. Which brings me to my point. A recent discusion on here went on about whether is "Harley a premium brand"? I certainly don't know. I bought mine new and its entering its 6th riding season. I've rode it WA to Alaska and WA to Arkansas, its never let me down. With a little wax, it still looks new other than the badge of honor where I dented the fender slightly working on it. Doesn't leak or burn a drop of oil. The air intake, heads, cam, headers, and mufflers are stock. Its goes faster than I need and pulls great on the highway, while being fairly quiet. The shocks and forks are stock. I know they are not great, just the best I've ever had over 19 bikes. I've spent more than a few enjoyable afternoons updating some of the lights to LED's. Occassionally I've added some chrome - lower windshield trim, axle nut covers, etc. I scored a HD hammock seat off Craigslist for a good price and put that on. And I've had four different windshields on it, looking for magic. I never replaced the shield on my Gold Wing in 17 years - what a cheap-*** I was, it looked like hell.

In the winter I still like to sit in the garage with the heater on, drink a beer, and think that after 48 years and 18 other bikes how glad I am too own the Harley. So is it a "Premium Bike"? I don't know, you tell me. But I sure got my money's worth out of it.

 

Yes..

 

Do you think it's "premium"?
If so, that's all that really matters!

 

Goldwings are a premium bike Premium HDs are 40,000 Plus just for the name ???

 

$40,000? You must be talking about a CVO model. I ride an Ultra Limited, six model years old now, and I recall it came in at about $26k. Nothing wrong with a Gold Wing although the plastic aged over time on mine. And Honda did fix that 4th gear problem they used to have on them. And I'm sure the frame welding problem was resolved so that footpegs don't fall off going down the road like mine did. And I'd guess the sticky switch issue has been fixed - I'll never forget the look on my cousin's face when he started up that big six cylinder engine and the starter switch stuck in the 'on' position. Boy was he surprised! His brother on a HD laughed his azz off. Of course all these problems are fixable, just like Harley's are.

 

One of the reasons I bought my first Harley was because even the top of the line touring bike was a little cheaper than the base Goldwing.

 

Here we go again

 

My Suzuki motorsicles are keepers...just sayin'.

 

Is it still winter???
Premium
Finally spring time weather here

 

Premium compared to what?

A Chinese scooter, yep.

But look at the other Touring Bikes and their costs, Not much difference between Harley, Gold Wing, BMW , Indian, I'd consider all of them in the same league, none a premium over the others. The only touring bike that is kind of cheap in my opinion is the Kawasaki Vulcan Voyager or their Vaquero bagger, but their price reflects that.