Question for Harley riders

Message
Author
User avatar
mustangski
Elite
Elite
Posts: 180
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2005 11:40 am
Sex: Male
Location: Parris Island, SC

Question for Harley riders

#1 Unread post by mustangski »

I just got a 2000 Sportster XL883. This is the first Harley I have owned or ridden, so I have some questions. I was reading online and it said that the max speed is 92 mph. When I ride on the highway it seems like the motor is wound up pretty good when I am doing 70-75 mph. What is the real max speed? Speed doesn't really interest me too much and even with my old bike I never went faster then 75, I'm just curious. Also, my old bike was an 84 magna so the maintenance issues were completly different. Are there any maintenance issues that I should be checking regularly? I appreciate all the help,
Mustangski
2001 Victory V92C
2002 Honda Shadow 600 (Finally gettin my wife ridin!)
2000 Harley Davidson Sportster (Sold)
1984 Honda Magna V45 (Sold)

Semper Fidelis

User avatar
BuzZz
Site Supporter - Platinum
Site Supporter - Platinum
Posts: 4726
Joined: Sat Mar 20, 2004 12:02 am
Real Name: Never Used Here
Sex: Male
Years Riding: 47
My Motorcycle: makes my 'nads tingle
Location: Buttfluck Nowhere, Manitoba

#2 Unread post by BuzZz »

This is NOT a joke or a jab, just a fact :roll: ..... they tend to viberate, so check all nuts, bolts and other fasteners for loosening regularly (good idea on any bike) and when doing any work, use loc-tite when re-installing them. Red for critical areas, blue for bolts that come off and on more often.
No Witnesses.... :shifty:

User avatar
Mag7C
Legendary 500
Legendary 500
Posts: 728
Joined: Fri Jul 23, 2004 10:40 am
Sex: Male

#3 Unread post by Mag7C »

I don't know the answers to any of your questions, but NICE BIKE!!!

The 883 Sportster is one of the nicest looking cruisers around in my opinion.

User avatar
mustangski
Elite
Elite
Posts: 180
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2005 11:40 am
Sex: Male
Location: Parris Island, SC

#4 Unread post by mustangski »

I already experianced the vibrating loose of some bolts, however it was my own fault. I wanted to rotate the clutch lever down some so I loosened the two bolts, rotated it, and then tightened them back up. The only problem was that I didn't use locktight and one of them vibrated loose. So I will definitly use locktight on everything else. Thanks for the advice.
2001 Victory V92C
2002 Honda Shadow 600 (Finally gettin my wife ridin!)
2000 Harley Davidson Sportster (Sold)
1984 Honda Magna V45 (Sold)

Semper Fidelis

User avatar
iwannadie
Legendary 1000
Legendary 1000
Posts: 1072
Joined: Fri Jul 09, 2004 6:40 am
Sex: Male
Location: mesa, az

Re: Question for Harley riders

#5 Unread post by iwannadie »

mustangski wrote:I just got a 2000 Sportster XL883. This is the first Harley I have owned or ridden, so I have some questions. I was reading online and it said that the max speed is 92 mph. When I ride on the highway it seems like the motor is wound up pretty good when I am doing 70-75 mph. What is the real max speed? Speed doesn't really interest me too much and even with my old bike I never went faster then 75, I'm just curious. Also, my old bike was an 84 magna so the maintenance issues were completly different. Are there any maintenance issues that I should be checking regularly? I appreciate all the help,
Mustangski
is the max speed really only 92mph on a big motor like that... shesh. the ninja250 would prolly beat that.
slow speeds. high price. wicked vibration. lots of maintence... i find still no reason to want a harley... not to pick on anyone if you like it then by all means ride it no problem with that. but whats the reason for the slow top end? i doubt that it has an over whelming 0-60 range? my marauder800 did almost 120mph.
03 katana 600

User avatar
t_bonee
Site Supporter - Bronze
Site Supporter - Bronze
Posts: 759
Joined: Thu Apr 21, 2005 9:17 am
Sex: Male
Location: Cincinnati, OH

Re: Question for Harley riders

#6 Unread post by t_bonee »

iwannadie wrote: is the max speed really only 92mph on a big motor like that... shesh. the ninja250 would prolly beat that.
slow speeds. high price. wicked vibration. lots of maintence... i find still no reason to want a harley... not to pick on anyone if you like it then by all means ride it no problem with that. but whats the reason for the slow top end? i doubt that it has an over whelming 0-60 range? my marauder800 did almost 120mph.
When I think Harley I don't think speed. I think cruisin' along a long open stretch of 2 lane highway, sun beating down, leisurely moving along and enjoying a wonderful ride.

Speed isn't for everyone. It's not for me. For example in my MSF class I was sitting next to a 17 year old kid. They were showing someone riding a cruiser in the video we were watching and he commented that "I don't see how anyone could ride those, they are slow and ugly. I need speed and performance." He liked to race. I told him I was the opposite, I found sportbikes unattractive and I have no need to go well over 100 mph on my motorcycle. I just like the leisurely ride. The kid and I got along great in class and he ended being in my riding sessions too. We had a fun time in the class together. We just had differing ideals of what we wanted out of motocycling.

I just wish that more the kids on sportsbikes around here would wear helmets and I hope that the Robby kid does when he rides.

User avatar
mustangski
Elite
Elite
Posts: 180
Joined: Sat Mar 19, 2005 11:40 am
Sex: Male
Location: Parris Island, SC

#7 Unread post by mustangski »

This is the smallest motor that Harley makes, I am sure that if you get a larger motor they are quite fast. However, I agree with t_bonee I am not interested in speed. Actually the bike is fast getting up to speed and has a lot of low end torque, I don't think I have ever ridden anything faster then 90 mph including my 67 mustang. I would rather just ride at slower speeds and enjoy it, althogh one of my best friends traded his Harley for a 05 GSX-R. He likes the speed, I don't and yet we still have a good time riding. When he takes off I just keep riding and I will catch up soon. nobody can do 90 mph for ever. To each his own.
2001 Victory V92C
2002 Honda Shadow 600 (Finally gettin my wife ridin!)
2000 Harley Davidson Sportster (Sold)
1984 Honda Magna V45 (Sold)

Semper Fidelis

User avatar
Gummiente
Site Supporter - Platinum
Site Supporter - Platinum
Posts: 3485
Joined: Wed May 11, 2005 11:34 pm
Real Name: Mike
Sex: Male
Years Riding: 38
My Motorcycle: 03 Super Glide
Location: Kingston, ON

Re: Question for Harley riders

#8 Unread post by Gummiente »

iwannadie wrote:is the max speed really only 92mph on a big motor like that... shesh. the ninja250 would prolly beat that.
slow speeds. high price. wicked vibration. lots of maintence... i find still no reason to want a harley... not to pick on anyone if you like it then by all means ride it no problem with that. but whats the reason for the slow top end? i doubt that it has an over whelming 0-60 range? my marauder800 did almost 120mph.
Another one that doesn't have a clue what he's talking about when it comes to Harleys. :roll:

Slow speeds - well, DUH! Speed is not what Harleys are about.

High price - have you priced a Gold Wing or BMW lately? But let's talk resale value and see who comes out ahead at trade-in time.

Wicked vibration - again, compared to what? Have you actually ridden a Harley?

Lots of maintenance - another myth. Talk to OWNERS, not wannabe's and get some facts before making a statement like that.

BTW, I find no reason to buy any motorcycle that is capable of dragstrip 0-60 times and a top speed approaching that of fighter aircraft on takeoff runs, but to each their own.
:canada: Mike :gummiente:
It isn't WHAT you ride,
It's THAT you ride

User avatar
Telesque
Legendary 500
Legendary 500
Posts: 514
Joined: Sun May 08, 2005 10:40 pm
Sex: Male
Location: Lansing, Michigan

#9 Unread post by Telesque »

The only reason Harleys won't (or don't) reach speeds high-end sportbike speeds is because they are intentionally not built to. Mostly, it's in the gears. If you change your transmission gear ratio's, you could get your Harley to do some seriously crazy speeds.


The rest might be slightly off topic:

It's just a lifestyle thing, really.

If you want a machine that'll get you from 0-60 in 2 seconds and do 200 MPH, good for you.

What about your lawn mower, though? Is it fast enough? Does it cut big enough parts of your lawn at a time? Does you electric razor shave your face in 3.4 seconds? If you could get a faster bike for the same price, but it looked ugly as ever, would you buy the faster one?

There's a lot of different factors whenever you buy anything, really. Books, food, motorcycles. Sure, a lot of the 'cruiser' -Harley or not- look tends to be 'oh man, I'm so badass, I'm so tough', but that's just a stereotype, really. More often than not it's just one of those 'stop and smell the roses' things. How many times have you ever been told to 'slow down and taste it' while you were eating when you were younger? ;)
-'95 Honda VT600CD / 'Shadow VLX Deluxe'
-'84 Ruestman WTF606

"[The four stroke] cycle is basically this -SUCK, SQUEEZE, BURN, and BLOW." -Dan's Motorcycle Repair Guide.
http://www.dansmc.com/MC_repaircourse.htm

User avatar
allawybiker
Site Supporter - Gold
Site Supporter - Gold
Posts: 103
Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2005 8:49 pm
Sex: Male
Location: moved to Calgary, AB

#10 Unread post by allawybiker »

come on guys, the question and concern are valid. Not long ago, I was shopping for my first bike and did a lot of research via the Internet, talking to existing/prev. bikers, and going to show rooms. One thing that was consistent about the Harley is that they require a lot of maintenance and not very reliable; this is from 5 existing Harley owners. They listed several issues related to vibration, valve adjustments, etc... Two of them had a second bike (Japanese) and they said maintenance is very low or near nil. I don't claim to know much about Harley's let alone motorcycles in general, but when existing owners tell me that they like the image of owning one but not the amount of money/time they have to put into it, then I have to take their word for it...
Now, when I read iwannadie's reply I thought "ok so who care about 0-60 range?" but I do care where the engine is capped. If I compare two bikes that have the same engine size and close HP, I start wondering why one of them tops at 90mph while the other can do 120mph. I am not planning on getting to 100 or 120, but does it not mean that the engine would be revving higher on the Harley at the same speeds? I don't know the answer to the question, so can someone reply? And please, put your Harley hat aside as you read this, no one is putting Harley down just wondering if the comments we hear from Harley riders are correct! As a matter of fact, I started my search thinking I was going to purchase a Harley!

Piece :)
AB
Suzuki Boulevard M50 Black


Mankind must put an end to war, or war will put an end to mankind.

Post Reply