Harley-Davidson CVO 1800 ROAD KING FLHRSE 2014 — Specifications

So there's a machine that poses a simple question: how far can you push the touring motorcycle concept without betraying its DNA? The 2014 CVO Road King is Milwaukee’s answer, a massive, chrome-laden, and expensive answer. We're talking about the pinnacle of Harley factory craftsmanship, a Road King transformed into a luxury liner to conquer the interstates. Weighing in at 378 kg fully fueled, it's not a motorcycle; it's a rolling statement.

Its heart beats with the largest engine in the range at the time, the Twin Cam Screamin' Eagle 110 cubic inch, or 1801 cm3. The figures? 99 horsepower may seem modest on paper, but that's misleading. The important thing is elsewhere, in those 158.9 Nm of torque available from 3750 rpm, a visceral surge of power that propels this colossus with seemingly no effort. Compared to a Japanese or European engine, it’s archaic. But it's precisely this character, this "grunt" as they say, that constitutes its unique charm. The six-speed transmission and belt drive ensure serenity, while the new Heavy Breather filter gives it a more assertive breath.

This CVO is distinguished above all by its equipment, the result of the Rushmore project which redefined Harley touring bikes. The forks gain in diameter, the brakes benefit from reflex ABS, and the clutch is lightened. But it's in comfort and details that the luxury package truly makes sense: cruise control, heated grips, a removable Vented Wind Splitter windshield, and a leather seat worthy of a club chair. The One-Touch system for locking saddlebags and the fuel tank with a simple touch is typical of this search for premium usability. The Mirror Chrome wheels and black finishes bring this "factory custom" style that justifies the price difference.

For whom? Clearly for the pure Harley touring enthusiast, someone who travels as a couple and for whom the journey is as important as the destination. At 31,000 euros, it cost a fortune, much more than a Gold Wing or a BMW K 1600 GTL, which are much more versatile and technological. But the comparison is futile. You buy this CVO Road King for the feeling of riding an overloaded chrome and leather icon, for the characteristic boom-boom of its twin cylinder, for the image. It's an object of passion, irrational, heavy, thirsty, but with a character that no Japanese motorcycle will ever be able to copy. A must for the wealthy aesthete, a sublime anachronism for others.