harley vs. sport bikes

[fatninja19]

my history teacher rides a big fat yellow harley, and i was reading a magazine about sport bikes in class one day and got into a discussion about which bike is faster in a STRAIGHTLINE. harley vs. sportbike(like a r-6 or something.. or even a gsxr1000).. i dont know much about harleys or sportbikes.. so someone please enlighten me.

[Kennedy200]

The only time a Harley will be faster than a sport bike is right off the line. Harleis have a lot of low end torque that allows them to get off the line pretty quick. But, in about 30 yards or so, the sportbike will overtake the Harley. Even a 600cc sportbike will eat a Harley.

My brther in law has a 1200 Sportster and he weighs about 120 lbs. Occasionaly, he wants to race me on my GSXR1000. He pulls me off the line every time. His sporty has tons of lw end. But once he gets up around 4000 RPM his bike falls on it face and I blow by him like he is standing still.

I had the oppertunity to go up against one of th faster Harlies in the area when I had my GSXR750. The harley was a mid 90s dyna, bored, stroked, lots of head work, and it was on the bottle. They guy that built it knows his stuff and he and his son hold many 1/ 4 mile records. When the light turned green, I got a hell of a launch. When I shifted into 3rd, he was a small spec in my mirror. My bone stock $9000 gsxr completely destroyed a custome built $25000+ Harley.

When it comes to the twisties, the Harleys dont even compare to sportbikes. THe emphasis on cruisers is cruising. Almost none of them can take a turn like a sport bike. The suspension on most Harleys is weak. The forks and shocks are designed to offer a good ride for cruising, they are not meant for taking turns. On my sport bikes, there are turns that I can take at 130, but on my Dyna, 90 is about the limit. Even at 90, it is quite scary. The sad thing is that most aftermarket suspension parts for cruisers are weak. I have yet to see any aftermarket stuff that even comes close to the OEM suspension on sportbikes.

Then there are the brakes.... Almost any sport bike has top notch brakes. The rear brake on sport bikes is almost useless. The only time I really use it is when I am hauling a passenger. The front brakes are capable of flipping the bike foreward if you get on the too hard. The brakes on Harleys are starting to improve. But, they are still about a decade behind. But, that is alright because most Harley riders dont really ride too agresively, so they dont need tremendous stopping power.

[fatninja19]

thanks for all that info and for reassuring my beliefs.

[speediva]

That's why we call them "Hardley Ablesons"

Sportbikes rule. I miss mine already.

[COUNTACH]

When it comes to Harlies the general rule is they're all show no go. If you're into speed or reliability for that matter stay away from Harlies. If you're into fads or cruisers HD is alright. Harley does build Buells though too for those who prefer sportbikes, the competition from Europe and Asia is still better though compared to this newcomer. I drive a Suzuki 700 Intruder myself, rather have a Hayabusa though.

[Big Lebowski]

Originally posted by COUNTACH
Harley does build Buells though too for those who prefer sportbikes, the competition from Europe and Asia is still better though compared to this newcomer. (

I think Buells are such a joke. To call them a HD sportbike is the same thing as calling a Titan or a C+C machine a HD custom. Its too different companies. I wish buy would try to sell on thier own instead of tring to ride on HD's coattails.

HD did build a fully faired spotbike for many years. But like in the above quote it couldn't stand up to the competition. They used a liquid cooled 4 vavle race motor that wasn't up to par, this motor BTW is similar to the used being used in the V-Rod. HD I think made it as far as third place one year in all of these years of racing. They stopped racing and gave up on the idea of competing. Too bad I would really like to buy a HD sportbike. Here is a link to the HD sportbike site


http://www.amasuperbike.com/vr/index.htm

[Kennedy200]

THe VR1000 could have been a great bike, except the management of the project was poor. If HD had thrown a little more money and some better people at the program, they would have done a lot better. Too late now.

[redimpss5]

i have a 95 impala ss, and in the 1/4 mile i can stay next to a harley. i cant do that with a sport bike! you do the math, my impala weight is 4200lbs

[R1-rider]

the VR1000 is the founding engine and groundwork for the VRod, see the similarity in the name right? Unfortunately harely didnt have the mechanical knowledge to make a sporty engine, so they turned to Porsche to help them. Basically all they did was take a vtwin sportsbike engine and placed it on a light weight cruiser frame. Not to difficult. Now take a look at like the vtx1800, that is a cruiser with crazy power, yet incredible refinement. Sure Honda could have just as easy thrown the RC51 motor on their to make it superfast and make the VRod stand still in a race, however they decided to make the largest displacement vtwin out there, while reducing nearly all the vibration and drivetrain whine and clunks related to your standard vtwin cruiser.

While Harley doesn't make that great of a motorcycle, their PR department deserves the pulitzer prize or something. I have absolutely no idea how they spawned such a image of the harley. And labelling the harley and "all american" bike is rubbish, seeing as how all the exhaust, carbs, and ignition systems are all imported from japan. And not to mention that Honda's motorcycle plant in Ohio actually hires MORE americans then all of Harley does...

Whatever, Harley in its purest form is for the stubborn and ignorant American's.

[2of9]

i'd go for the Sport bike, arent those WAY QUICK!!!

what can they hit in a 1/4 mile??

[flylwsi]

general statement?
come on...

sport bikes are quick, if you want to know the speed's in the 1/4, go to a manufacturer's website or look around here.

don't post pointless posts.

[Kennedy200]

Originally posted by Silver_GTR34
i'd go for the Sport bike, arent those WAY QUICK!!!

what can they hit in a 1/4 mile??

My firt time down the 1/4 I ran an 11.20 @ 140mph. Considering it was my first time down the strip, I think I did OK. (I was on a mostly stock 01 GSXR 1000, and I weighed over 250 lbs with all the gear on.) I have read of some other guys running stock motored GSXR 1000's and getting in the mid 9's. Although the bikes were lowered and stretched.

[Big Lebowski]

11.20 is pretty good. I was running around 11.00 flat at the end of last summer. I had only been to the track three times and had alot of problems with my launch. I hope to get into low tens this year. I was running a sport touring tire that was a touch too hard of compound to grip at launch. This year I'm going to run a softer tire with one tooth up sproket in the rear. I only saw one GSXR1000 running last year. He had the front end strapped down but still had the front tire skimming the ground for about an 1/8 mile. Those short wheelbase litre bikes seem like they had such a hand full to run. My buddy was racing his R1 and could never really break into the 10s.

Ofcourse 'Busa's and Ninja 11's were the fastest bikes. I was the only one there with an XX. I saw a couple of Ninja 12s running but those guys were like me; too much bike for a first time drag run.

Hopefully this summer I can post much quicker times:smoka:

[R1-rider]

So far my best time is 9.79 @ 151mph. This ofcourse was on the bottle, however I know I could drop another half a second if I could get the perfect launch. My first time on the drag strip with my R1 was not my first 1/4 mile drag, my first time was on a gsx1100r, which clocked in at 11.8 @ something. My first time on the R1 I got 10.91, which had made me more then happy at the time. I'm still a little cautious of the launch pad at most drag strips, they are just straight up nasty.

[OneSicR6]

Originally posted by Silver_GTR34
i'd go for the Sport bike, arent those WAY QUICK!!!

what can they hit in a 1/4 mile??

I have an 01 R6, my best time was 11 flat at 123.2 I don't know about that Harley taking you off the line thing, I think you guys need to practice your launches more. Or maybe we need some Harley people who can actually ride around here instead of pose. I've never lost to a Hardley off the line, and that includes tricked out drag Harleys.