The 2018 Harley-Davidson Softail lineup. Photo courtesy Harley-Davidson.
When?s the last time you rode and evaluated 20 different bikes in one day" More to the point, we?re talking about 10 brand-new bikes engineered from the ground up, along with another 10 previous-generation counterparts brought along for comparison purposes.
In all likelihood, you?ve never done anything close to that, right" Well, join the club because neither had I?and I started road testing bikes way back in the 1970s. So all in all, this sneak peek was a Very Big Deal, an event made bigger given that it was Harley-Davidson setting loose an exclusive club of 10 international motojournalists to experience firsthand this engineering tour de force?an accomplishment it calls ?the most extensive research and development program in the company?s history.? By folding Harley?s former twin-shock Dyna line into this new solo-shock Softail family, Harley creates eight distinctly different, drawing-board-fresh cruisers sharing common yet adaptable chassis architecture. All models come loaded with either a 107ci (1,746cc) or 114ci (1,868cc) next-gen Milwaukee-Eight V-Twin?terrific engines both, featuring oil-cooled heads. The Deluxe, Slim, Low Rider and Street Bob models can be had with only the 107ci mill, while Heritage Classic, Breakout, Fat Bob and Fat Boy buyers can choose between either engine.
One of the major changes for 2018 is the addition of the new Milwaukee-Eight engine to the Softail family...