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The dealer delivered my brand new 2023 Breakout 117 last Friday. I live in Province of Alberta in Canada (where we get REAL winters), and literally bought it right after a 14 inch snow storm and during a -39C = -38F deep dive cold spell! That combination of 14" of snow and -38F temperature got me a favorable price on both bike and accessories! But, it also required free dealer delivery by the dealership's enclosed trailer, and absolutely NO chance of even a short ride, as the entire street was snow and iCE covered!
Now, the temperature has shot up rapidly to +10C = 50F, so there is a 3 foot wide strip of melting, compacted snow and ice along the street curb where the snowplows piled the snow, and the street itself, plus all the surrounding roads, is totally WET and full of leftover sand that was applied during the snowstorm! There is SO much sand, especially at all the intersections where you need to make a 90 degree turn, that it almost looks like the roads are gravel, not paved! So, still cannot take a first ride, as it would coat the bike with dirty water, sand, and chemicals, and also dramatically increase the chances of wiping out on a sharp turn, even when being careful!
It is driving me nuts to have to wait . . .
Here is a photo of my Breakout as delivered:
Note that Canadian law does not permit the side-mounted license. Canadian Breakouts come with the center-mounted license plate. The center-mounted taillight's longggger than normal length adds to the bike's "low & stretched" look.
I plan to do almost no changes beyond possibly replacing a few individual items that are not up to my appearance and/or quality preferences. This is my 2nd breakout, and its probably my 60th or so motorcycle during my lifetime (I have been riding for 56 years).
My first one was a 2014 with the metalflake silver tins, Turbine wheels, HD-installed Stage 4 kit. and an HD accesory handlebar that came back a bit further (I am only 5'7" in height, so the OEM bar was a bit too far forward for me). I was pretty happy with it when I lived in Texas. But when I moved back to Canada when I retired in 2016 (I am 73 years old now), I settled first on Vancouver ilsand. That was the wrong place for a cruiser. Its mountainous twisty and very narrow roads and low speed limits made it a place for an agile sportbike. I tried a Kawasaki ZX-14R, but it was too cumbersome. A 600cc Kawasaki ZX-6R with a 16,500 rev limit engine that produced 125 crank hp, that I modded down to a 395 lb, and regeared by 16% for instant throttle response, was the perfect bike for that environment.
But then we moved to the Canadian prairies, abiut 60 miles east of the Rocky Mountains, where the roads are flat, straight, and boring until you reach the actual mountains, and the longer distances to get there require a require a cruiser with a comfortable riding posture and resistance to the fierce winds we get here, not the 600cc missile with its tank-hugging posture and lightning reflexes!
I view this new Breakout 117 as being even better than my 2014 Breakout for this type of riding, given its better choice of rear tire PROFILE (the 1014 Dunlop tire resisted turning too much with its too-square profile), better OEM handlebar, better headlight, 25.5" seat height (I have a 29" inseam) and vastly superior engine torque and power (The 1014 BO needed the Stage 4 kit AND front and rear sprockets to have the usable torque I wanted). The stock torque curve on the 117 engine is exactly what I want. I haven't heard the OEM exhaust yet, but I do know that the D&D exhaust I had put on the 2014 turned out to be loud enough that no one I rode with wanted to be behind my bike, so I won't be doing THAT mod again. And I LOVE the highly visible but miniature instrumentation, that allows a rider to, if he chooses, see only the ROAD, versus the bike, while riding, giving him that "flying through the air" feeling that I love!
i'll see what changes I might contemplate after owning and riding the bike for a while, but at this point, I don't see the need for anything beyond rather minor appearance and quality mods, like some billet pieces. I don't know how the 240mm Michelin rear tire behaves in turning, but if it proves to be too resistant, I know from my experience with the 2014 BO that a Pirelli Diablo 240 with tis rounder profile and MUCH lighter weight and moment of inertia will solve that potential problem VERY nicely.
Of course, as I said above, I have not yet had the opportunity for even a short ride on the bike, so I need to reserve judgment until we've had a day with decently warm temperatures (10C = 52F or higher), dry ice-free roads that have had the intersections swept of the sand applied during the big snowstorm, and sunshine. Then, I'll know better what changes might be needed.
Jim G
IIRC post 2017 BO's have a shorter wheel base than earlier iterations. This would result in a smaller turning radius for the later models, or so I would think. As to other turning characteristics, you might want to investigate the front suspension upgrades discussed in some detail elsewhere in this thread. Replacing the OEM springs and adding an emulator to the front suspension made a world of difference to the handling of my 2014. I'd also recommend you consider the addition of a fork brace. We all love our BO's but the OEM front suspension is a POS. I'm thinking that especially as you have sport bike experience, these mods might really appeal to you. Hope this helps. We 73 yo frozen wetbacks need to stick together.
Last edited by HKMark23; Jan 30, 2024 at 08:11 AM.
Interestingly, HD calls it "red" versus orange. And, they offer a Sena/HD helmet in black with "red" trim that matches this trim color on the bike. the dealership's motorclothes manager, who held the helmet up beside the bike in the showroom says the helmet and bike colors are a match. Go figure.
Maybe a Harley color selector has a color vision issue?
I agree that changes front end by adding an emulator is a must! I did this to my 14 BO and it was a world of difference in handling and front end dive during breaking!
I agree that changes front end by adding an emulator is a must! I did this to my 14 BO and it was a world of difference in handling and front end dive during breaking!
I’m getting my 17 BO back today and have DK intimidators installed I hope they help with that front end break dive too. I stopped by shop briefly to see what was going on. I thought when I sat on the bike and using front break felt the front was even softer feeling. IDK but I hope it’s better than that under real conditions. I’ll know today when it’s back with me.
The "emulator" and fork brace are new to me. I'll have to Google them a bit to learn what tehy are and what they do for the Breakout. The fork brace seems somewhat intuitive, but I know nothing about the emulator., nor its cost (parts AND labor).
The thread I've put below is where I got my information for upgrading my front end on my 15 BO. I didn't change the OEM springs but I did put in the RIcor Race Intiminators and upgraded the brake pads as suggested in the thread. I had immediate and noticeable positive changes in handling on the bike along with improved braking!
The thread I've put below is where I got my information for upgrading my front end on my 15 BO. I didn't change the OEM springs but I did put in the RIcor Race Intiminators and upgraded the brake pads as suggested in the thread. I had immediate and noticeable positive changes in handling on the bike along with improved braking!
I did check out the thread. That's way more work than i want to do! Yesterday and today, the roads were dry and the temperatures got high enough to go for 2 rides on my new 2023 breakout 117. In a total of 2 hours riding, with the majority on the hgihways and a few kilometers in city traffic, here are my impressions:
It's nothing like the 2014+ models years. Way more torque - enough that the pulley changes are unnecessary. The 2023 handlebar does NOT stretch me out despite my 5'7" height. The rear tire actually is rounded enought o make sharp right turns in the city non-challening. On the front suspension: No front end dive when I apply the brakes. On the rear suspension: Following the user manual instrucitons for my weight, I set it to the softest setting (no. "1") and had no issues on any road I went down.
The new instrumentaiton is VERY readable. No issues.
Now I am 73 years old, so no young street racer, but for my purposes, this 2023 version is pretty good.
Agree with your assessment…bike handles fine and the suspension is fine. I was actually surprised at how comfortable the Breakout rides and how well it handles given the 34 degree rake and 240 rear. I believe Harley has engineered the chassis to get the best out of it despite the constraints for styling.
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Feb 13, 2015, 01:41 PM
