I test rode one for about 45 mins.

FUNCTIONALLY, I think its a pretty nice bike. I agree the seat is too soft and too narrow in the butt area, but thats me and my personal preference.

Power is ok, but I honestly don't think it lives up the the Hype or displacement. When I rode the Vision, I had my Stage 2 103 SG, and remembered thinking that my SG would walk away from the Vision 106 easily. Not to say they don't have enough power, or that they don't have more power than a bone stock 96" HD, I just expected more that what it had from all the chest thumping Victory puts out about the 106 motor. The power curve is a bit different, and biased a little bit more towards the mid-higher RPMS than HD. Not quite the low end grunt of the HD, but the flip side is, IMHO, you have more power to pass without downshifting. Took both bikes up to 100, and they were pulling pretty well in a speed/RPM range that my Harley's have started to run out of oomph. (post 80mph)

Vibration, more than I wanted. EVERY Victory I have ever demoed, which includes the Vision, Hammer, Kingpin, and Cross Country, has quite a bit of buzzy vibration when under any kind of acceleration. Once you get in top gear and are cruising, its smooth enough, but give it any throttle in any gear, and you get the buzzing in the floorboards, handlebars, and especially, the seat. The Vision was probably the best of the ones I rode, the Cross Country was REALLY bad. Getting back on my HDs after the Vic test rides, they both felt smooth as silk, throughout the rev range, by comparison. This is the drawback to using the motor as a stressed frame element, counterbalanced or not.

Ergos on the Vision (and Cross Country) for the most part were excellent for me. Im 6 feet and 197 pounds. Other than the too soft seat (personal preference) which I felt was too narrow in the rear (I don't like seats that hug my ***) it felt great. Love the huge floorboards. I could ride either bike without the need for highway pegs. Very low seat height on both bikes. Good angle and position on the bars, better than HD IMHO. Electronics controls are lame and seem cheap. compared to HD. (radio, cruise, etc.)

Storage on the Vison is a JOKE for a full blown touring bike. The saddlebags don't hold dick, despite looking huge. Ironically, the Cross Country, fitted with their new tourpak, would carry more than their full on touring bike.

Handling and ride quality was good on both bikes. They "feel" very Long when you ride them, and you have to get used to that, but they do handle quite well. When I had the Vision, I found a parking lot and did a lot of low speed tight turns. It was impressive. Cant say its any better or worse than my Harleys, but its surprisingly easy to handle at low speed, moreso than you would think from looking at the thing. Both have far more rear suspension travel and ride nicer than any HD I've owned.

Sound system was about on par with stock harley. The Stock Goldwing system beats both HD and Vic by a pretty big margin, IMHO.

The fairing/shield on the Vison worked great for me. Almost no buffeting and very good protection. The electric windshield was actually kinda kewl, as I like to be able to look OVER the shield for the most part, but being able to raise it up on the fly as needed would be kinda nice to have. The Cross Country was about on par with my Street Glides.

I dont hate the looks as much as most guys, I can appreciate the design, although its not quite my cup of tea. My feeling is, if I saw a Vision at a bike show, and it was a one off custom, It would be pretty damn kewl. But as an everyday production rider, Im just not sure. A bit over the top. I actually like the Cross Country. I think its the perfect blend of traditional with modern, although the saddlebags look a big too large for my taste (but then, I don't like extended bags on Harleys either) The Vision is definatly out there. My biggest concern is would I look at it differently in a year? (and possibly hate it)

I liked the Vision enough that I told my wife I wanted her to test ride it with me. In the end, we didn't, but I would strongly consider either bike. Especially now that they have a trunk option for the Cross Country.

My two cents.

 

this bike was designed to make the goldwing look good , right ?

 

This must be what I read. My memory isn’t as good as it use to be…………..and it definitely ain’t as good as my wife’s. She remembers every thing I ever said or did.

 

Just too much plastic and ugly, no matter how good it runs.I'll stick with my Ultra.

 

interesting feedback guys - i have noticed the Cross Country also which also gets good reports. The dealer network as someone mentioned is very poor in the UK and i doubt if the resale is all that great - HDs in the UK command VERY high 2nd hand prices.

I'm thrilled with my Ultra LTD and wont be selling anytime soon but it's always good to know what's out there.

T