| Author | Message | ||
     Sandblast |
I was at my dealer just looking at stuff and a salesman started talking to me. He was looking at my Buell and asked if I liked the XB's. I told him the insurance on them was more than I could afford right yet, and he told me a new V- Rod is cheap to insure, and would I like to ride one? Well, I am not going to turn down a ride on anything so he photo copied my license and off I went. A few thoughts... Build quality is stunning, they did a good job, the motor sounds really tight if you know what I mean. It runs D207's, which surprised me. The motor is GREAT, fun to rev up and has a nice hit up higher in the rev range, I am glad I did'nt get a ticket. The pegs seem crazy far forward, but the bike actually feels very light, probably due to its shortness? It handles well for a cruiser, I bet a good rider on one could almost hang with OK riders on sport bikes. Despite having cool aluminum everywhere and nice paint I still think its pretty ugly. Anyway, I really liked it, but when I got back on my M2 I forgot about it pretty fast, good thing since I dont have 20 grand  | ||
| M1combat |
A V-Rod will give a 12 a good run for it's money in a straight line... I had one try to keep up with me through some 25mph corners once. I saw a shower of sparks exiting the first corner as I entered the second and didn't see him until the next gas station. He did ride by the gas station though. I don't think I could have and made it home..} | ||
| Sandblast |
lol- I never really got to lean it, I forget how quickly stuff drags on cruisers... | ||
| Bigdaddy |
VRODs don't do well in the twisties. I've read accounts of guys saying how well their VRODs eat up the twisties, but it's just not so. I guess if they've never ridden a bike engineered for the twisties it may seem fast? If it's stock you'll leave large portions of the lower muffler all over the place -- makes very little difference how I know that little fact. In a straight line the VROD will outperform the XB. | ||
| Sshbsn |
Actually I believe, in a straight line, the performance is so close between the two that it's pretty much up to rider skill. The V rod has a little more power, lots more weight and much worse aerodynamics than my 12R.  | ||
| Bigdaddy |
Okay. | ||
| Dale |
V-Rods have the longest wheel base for a H-D. 67.5". A bagger well corner faster. Great motor. 91,000 Miles on V-Rods. | ||
| 99buellx1 |
According to Motorcyclist they have the V-Rod with a 1/4 mile time that is .07 faster than a XB12S. The V-Rod is faster off the line, but the Buell is catching it by the end of the race, its speed was a couple mph higher. Craig | ||
| 1313 |
V-Rod's don't corner very well, that's for sure. Both my radiator shrouds are scraped up from making contact with the ground. Yes, the footpegs hit first and then the radiator shrouds. And then when I was in Richmond for the 21st HOG Rally I did BattleTrax with it, which didn't help.    It sure was fun to hear everyone gasp whenever I would drag the radiator shrouds... 1313 | ||
| Sfarson |
Actually, as cruisers go it is one of the better ones in the curves. Despite its wheelbase. It drags metal later than many others do. Noted a review the other day how the V-Rod dropped the hot Triumph Rocket in the curves. Of course it isn't like my M2 in the curves, but it sure is sublime in any kind of cruise mode, on any kind of road. It can purr and it can fly. | ||
| Bigdaddy |
A set of Force pipes takes care of the sublime factor. If you run one up and down the Dragon you'll drag just about everything. I left almost an entire muffler at Gravity Cavity -- a real good reason to get the Force pipes. I also did serious damage to my favorite boots and then I put the heels on the pegs. | ||
| Diomedes |
Sandblast, Glad you took it for a ride. My V-Rod doesn't even come close to flipping through twisties like a Buell (it's better than other cruisers despite the long wheelbase) but that's not why I ride it. A couple of weeks ago in Daytona two very eye-catching (and scantily-clad) young ladies from Illinois, both riding Hondas, came up next to me at a light and just about fell all over themselves wanting to sleep with me so they could ride my V-Rod. No joke. But that's not really why I ride my V-Rod either. They were some of the fringe benefits. It's just a great ride. I have moved my bars forward. I like the riding position much better. Right now I'm looking at a foot control kit that moves the foot controls right underneath my body instead of way out forward. It will be more comfortable for me. Easy to quicken up a V-Rod. '02 and '03 'rods came with a 30 tooth front pulley, '04 and later come with a 28 tooth front pulley which makes a significant difference in acceleration. There are 27 and 26 tooth pulleys out there, it's a mileage trade off. You're always going to have people putting down your bike for one reason or another... primarily because they don't have one. But the V-Rod is a great bike. That doesn't take anything away from the Buells.... completely different motorcycles. http://fullnelson.us/upload/files/PICT1191.JPG  | ||
| José_quiñones |
As mentioned by others, it's all relative. Compared to other cruisers it is among the best handling cruisers. But it's silly to compare any cruiser to a sportbike in terms of twisty road handling. That being said, I have surprised some sport bike riders here in the No. Va area with my V-Rod, particularly corner exit speed blowing by people just because they have to baby the throttle until they are straight up and down to get on the gas. The Vrod is a sportbike trapped in a cruisers body. The engine wants to go fast all the time, but it's also happy puttering along at 3,000 rpm if that's what you want to do. But if you do that you are kind of missing the point of the bike. It wants to be ridden HARD. Diomedes, welcome to Badweb, hope you come up our way again for a Vrod Ride, there's a bunch of cool roads up this way. I have the Kosman Mid Controls, when I get a pipe (the V&H Powershots) & Techlusion I'll be able to mount them on the bike. Can't wait! Brankin, How about putting Titanium plates under on the lower radiator guards, then you can put on a show! | ||
| Buells Rule! (Dyna in disguise) |
Rider ability is what it comes down to. Obviously equal riders aboard an XB12 vs a V-Rod in the twisties & the XB will prevail. I have run my Dyna in B-trax a few times & have beaten quite a few sportbike times. Get a good rider aboard a HD bagger or a Goldwing & an average sportbike rider had better watch out cause they could soon be seeing nothing but tailights. | ||
| Turnagain |
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| Sshbsn |
You're sure right about that, Dyna! I learned my lesson many years ago when a friend of Dad's aboard a dressed 'Wing stuck to the tail of my Yamaha IL4 650 through eastern Oklahoma hills. I was 17 and couldn't have weighed over 135 at the time, but Dave Keller and his darned CUPHOLDER on the handlebars filled my mirror most of that ride! | ||
| 1313 |
Since were talking V-Rod's and handling here I am posting a couple pics of a German V-Rod that a friend of mine in Germany (who owns a SWEET X1) sent me. Some pretty interesting mods...   Kind of reminds me of the first V-Rod I rode in a couple of ways... 1313 | ||
| José_quiñones |
As time and $$ allows, my Vrod will end up looking like closer to that German bike, not like the one Steve shot above. The guy did a nice job with that one Steve took a picture of, that paint looks really neat in person. Here's another very interesting German Creation:  See more in the Gallery Section of VrodForums.com (Message edited by josé_quiñones on November 08, 2004) | ||
| José_quiñones |
Here's another one:  | ||
| José_quiñones |
and of course the one created by North American Warhorse in Scranton, PA  | ||
| Buells Rule! (Dyna in disguise) |
I like the rims on this one This one has the fat tire kit which really makes the bike look tough And except for the price the new CVO Screaming Eagle V-Rod is great | ||
| 1313 |
Now, don't get me started...       1313 | ||
| Firemanjim |
Saw this one at Bonneville--he was having teething problems with his turbo---(stolen from Landracing.com) http://www.landracing.net/cgi-bin/pro/emAlbum.cgi?c=show_image;p=Bub%20Speed%20Trials/2004/September%208,%202004;i=5 | ||
| Jlnance |
The fat tire kit is the first thing I noticed. Honest. | ||
| 1313 |
I can't believe it took me this long to find the picture of the first V-Rod I rode...  1313 | ||
| Mikej |
1313, That isn't Convict Lake out by Mammoth Lakes is it? | ||
| Firemanjim |
Brankin,is that a test mule??When was that? | ||
| 1313 |
Mikej, FMJ- It is actually about half way up Mt. Evans in Colorado. Idaho Springs, Colorado if memory serves me. It is a test mule, and the picture was taken the week after the P4 (H-D codename for the V-Rod) and Firebolt XB9R were released to the public. 1313 | ||
| Sfarson |
That last pic is at Summit Lake, just below the summit of 14,000ft. Mt. Evans in the background. Well above timberline here. This area and slightly below (Echo Lake) is known for photo ops of pre-release bikes. Recall seeing the new gold Wing and Honda RC51 with cameras rolling before they became available. Others too. | ||
| M1combat |
That's sort of the way it is here in Prescott... I saw a Land Rover with it's bumpers all covered up the other day. I saw an '05 Viper in '02 and an '05 Jeep in '02. I saw what looked to be a Corvette the other day too... I think maybe there are some GM wigs around here. | ||
| 1313 |
A few more to check out from Mt. Evans:      1313 | ||
| Court |
Brankin: That is a high "pucker factor" ride! Fellows who think they are cool on the way up, get very cautious on the way down. If you look at one of the pics in the first issue of Battle2Win you'll see that lake in the back ground WAY behind (and below) me. My first time up there was with a group of Ducati riders in the Denver area who had never heard of a Buell. There was a H.O.G. event in Denver, so I left about 11:30PM, arrived in Denver around 7:00AM, met Rich and Anne Teerlink for breakfast and spent the day giving "unoffical" Buell demo rides on my S-2. The next day, I met the Ducati club and German BMW rider Britta Rotzsky and made the Mt. Evans pilgramage. The lat trip was when we did the great gig at Kim and Cheryl's in CO. Ron Dickey and crew were on hand and we hit a load of snow! Great memories......from aboard a Buell, Court |
