7 Things to Consider Before Buying Your First Harley
Here are a few things to consider before plunking down a wad of cash on your first Harley, or any cruiser.
1. You're Going to Need a License
So you've decided it's the right time in your life to buy a Harley and you are ready to enjoy the sense of freedom that two-wheels has to offer, but do you have a motorcycle license? Many years ago, you may have been able to go to the dealership, sign a couple of papers, maybe leave a deposit, and demo their bike around the neighborhood. Today you'd be lucky to find an private seller, let alone a dealership, willing to let you have a go on their bike without a motorcycle endorsement showing you are capable of riding a motorcycle.
With Harley offering dozens of models, and none of them cheap, you are definitely going to want to give them a try before you buy, and the only way that will happen is with a license. And, of course, once you own the bike you are going to need a license to legally ride it on the road. A great place to start, if you don't have a friend willing to lend a training bike, is the Harley-Davidson rider training, where you lean on their new Street 500 cruiser, and they don't even mind if you scratch it.
2. Adjust Your Performance Expectations
Harley-Davidson motorcycles are comfortable cruisers and touring bikes, with ergonomics well suited for long periods in the saddle and plenty of low end torque. While they offer more contemporary models, such as the V-Rod, and Street lines of motorcycles, their big (mostly) air cooled V-twin heavyweight cruiser formula is designed to eat up miles in style.
The power-to-weight ratio of Harley-Davidson bikes puts them at a disadvantage compared to modern sport bikes, so if you are coming from a Japanese liter bike it is going to feel slow and heavy. If a Harley will be your first bike, even a Street 500 will feel fast. But even riders who have ridden the latest sport bikes have come back to the Harley faithful because of how effortlessly they cruise down the road, and that fat torque curve that gives you instant power everywhere.
3. Test Fit the Bike to You
A mistake that first time Harley buyers often make is choosing the wrong bike based on the bike they think looks cool but isn't comfortable to ride. Quickly they find themselves taking a loss to trade up the bike for something they could have bought the first time around, or spending thousands on mods to make it fit. The forums are full of riders who bought a fully dressed bagger only to realize that the bike is too big and heavy, or a Sportster that is uncomfortable to ride. With Harley-Davidson having such a large variety of cruiser and touring models, you should sample the comfort, features, ergonomics and size that the various models offer before committing. In any case, it is important to evaluate your abilities and needs as a rider when shopping for a bike, and not simply try to one up your friend who bought a CVO Street Glide.
4. The Advantage of New
Once you have decided on the Harley you want, the next step is to determine whether you want to buy new or used. The greatest benefit of purchasing a new Harley is that it comes with a standard 24-month warranty covering everything but wear items. If you are out on the road and have a breakdown, any authorized Harley dealership in the country will fix your bike on their dime. In addition to the warranty, many dealerships will offer a discount on parts and accessories for a set period of time when purchasing a new bike from them. The downside to buying new, besides the steep price, is that modding it or installing aftermarket items (that are not genuine H-D parts) may void your warranty.
5. The Lure of Used
In today's society, many people are caught up in having the latest and greatest toys, and always want the next new model. When shopping for a Harley, this translates into plenty of money saved by purchasing a used bike versus a new one. There are plenty of late model Harleys out there that have limited mileage, owned by guys who wanted to own a motorcycle more than they wanted to ride a motorcycle.
A benefit of a used bike is that they should have the quirks and kinks associated with recalls already addressed by the time you buy. Most Harleys have fairly good resale value, so after it takes its initial depreciation hit, you should be able to enjoy it for a years and still be able to recoup a good portion of your money when you decide to step up to something newer. If your plan is to mod and build your own unique bike, used is definitely the way to go, as long as you get a bike that has a solid foundation and a clean title.
6. Leftover New Bikes
Bikes often overlooked by those shopping for a Harley are left over showroom stock, last year's bikes that are still new but never sold. These NOS bikes are typically a model year old that have been sitting on the dealership floor for a period of time, sometimes just because of an unpopular paint color. A leftover stock motorcycle will include the original factory warranty just as any current model year bike does, but can often be had for quite a bit cheaper.
One thing to consider are the updates that have been made to the current model year, for instance the new Milwaukee-8 motor, and to decide if those are worth the extra asking price. Typically, even at the larger Harley-Davidson dealerships, there are few leftovers from year to year, though it is much better than it once was when there were sight unseen waiting lists for new bikes.
7. Budget for Mods and Maintenance
The initial cost of a purchasing a Harley-Davidson is usually just the start for most owners. Perhaps the biggest piece of advice you will hear from Harley guys is that you should budget for modifications right from the start. The allure of owning any Harley is that there are literally thousands of parts that allow owners to upgrade and modify their bikes to suit their individual needs and styles. Just like with tattoos, it is easy to go crazy once you get started, spending way too much time and money on customization. Maybe you are just going to buy a Road Glide and ride off into the sunset, but you should still budget for maintenance, because tires, brakes and fluids need to be changed and checked, and if you have the dealer do everything it will cost a pretty penny. The Street Glide pictured has had a $5,000 Aerocharger turbo kit fitted, which immediately gets you 125hp and 150lb-ft of torque, and will wear out rear tires really quick.
Once you have the bike, or for more information on doing your own maintenance, check out the How-to section of HDForums.com.
