People buy a Harley for a variety of reasons. Most of those reasons are related to the design of engine Harley uses. This design produces a look and sound that identifies it as a "Harley". That said, there are characteristics of this kind of engine that are not ideal. They run hot. They are heavy. Reliability suffers somewhat. They are noisy. And they are prone to give off pollution in excess of EPA limits. Whatever has been done to minimize these problems has been done by the MOCO. Little or nothing can be done further to resolve these issues unless the importance of "reasons for purchasing a Harley", referred to above, fades drastically to allow substantial redesign without impacting sales. So far that doesn't seem to be in Harley's future.

 

bikers?........gimmie a break......sounds more like Starbucks Raiders RC....

 

On their cut...CNFCFFCNFC... Caramel Non Fat Cappucino Forever, Forever Caramel Non Fat Cappucino.

 

I'll betcha it's not their first Harley either. Meaning even though the heat is unbearable they bought another.

 

If it was purely an engineering decision and looks/identity did not matter they would just replace the VTwin with an inline triple or four cyl water cooled motor or even an L-Twin like a Ducatti and be done with the technical limitations of a narrow angle VTwin. They can't do this though, a V Twin is part of the basic aesthetic of a cruiser style motorcycle and part of HD's core identity. Not sure how this is going to get solved or what future engineering compromises are going to get made but it will be interesting to see what happens.

A narrow angle air cooled V Twin has technical limitations due to the inherent cooling problems a rear cylinder poses and poor primary & secondary balance - a result of the uneven firing and cranking cycle which limits max achievable RPM due to vibration. This issue effects water cooled VTwins as well. A balance shaft can only do so much. The RPM limitation of an unbalanced engine also limits HP - HP is torque X RPM.

 

+1 anyone who thinks the transmission issue is BS start reading

https://www.hdforums.com/forum/dyna-...y-bearing.html

 

They're warrantied for 2 years. I agree that the transmission, crankshaft, and probably other internals are no longer engineered to withstand engine mods that increase power. Older Harley's, they were designed for the mods most of us did to increase hp. Not anymore.

 

Maybe these guys will learn to quit wearing flipflops and shorts while riding.

 

Maybe I can sue the state of Florida,for some reason when I visit in August,it's really hot down there

 

My 96" Doesn't burn me, unlike my water-cooled Hayabusa which will melt the hair off your calves and I'm not talking about Bessie the Cow...