HARLEY-DAVIDSON STREET ROD (2005 - 2012) Review

This bike is quite a good all-rounder, big and heavy enough to do a long slog, but not enough to make quick blasts a chore, I use this bike for work, rest and play. I would say the worst part is the numb fingers on the throttle side, on long journeys you'll find yourself flexing your hand every now and then to get the blood back, the bike is vibey but not as bad as other Harleys. The brakes are fantastic, even stopping this big hunk of metal at high speeds. As stated before, the riding position is the same as a sportsbike, not as extreme but still in essence the same, if you can do long rides on your sportsbike then you'll breeze it on this. For short rides it's the same, the only 'err' is that the bike is quite heavy so if you're short remember this before buying as it isn't going to be like you're plastic rocket and be easy to move with your feet on tip toes.

So the engine capacity is 1130cc and a sportster is 1200cc, but don't worry the little sporty will be a small speck in your mirror within seconds. The engine are supposed to be bullet proof on these Harleys and capable of racking eye watering miles if looked after, I have seen people bragging of 150,000 and still going strong. As I have said when the 1130cc bike was released it was at the time of the evo Harleys and would easily smoke them all, in comparison it was a snarling pit bull straining on its lead, however with the bigger twin cams and the release of the 1250 V rod it's a bit more doberman than pit bull now, but still it's a great engine and puts out respectable amounts of power.

Like most bikes, this isn't going to make you happy in the winter, I have run this bike through one without applying anti corrosion (I know silly) and it started showing, come spring – the clean was HELL. Having owned a few Harley-Davidsons I must say this one has been really good no break downs in the 14 months I have owned it. I would say this bike quality-wise knocks the spots off the evo's it was running with at the time. Owned a few evo Harleys and had some problems with them that I haven't had with the VRSCR (touch wood).

This is where the V rods start to fall apart, they are very expensive to service at the main dealer: £309 for the small service up to £500+ for the big service the problem is the big service doesn't include the shims, which is usually around £300-£400. Shop around for servicing as you can get it cheaper but make sure they know what they are doing, the V rod is quite a complicated bike to do the big service and shims on. Tyres are bloody expensive, the cheapest I found were £300, and parts for this bike are not cheap, even compared to other Harleys.

I can't say I have anything I would say is my favourite feature, I like the overall package as someone who also loves a sportsbike but wants a Harley, but one thing I absolutely detest is the clocks, what on earth was Harley thinking? The angle they are at is just weird, you have to bend down to see them properly as you're looking down on top of them. The other 1130cc V rods were the same. Optional extras, well from Harley there isn't a great deal the luggage cloth bags will cost you £700 when you get the kit to hold them on the bike and by reading reports on them people aren't impressed with them neither, the luggage back rack only comes in black, so it's off to China if you want a chrome one for your chrome bike which 90% of V rods were before the dark editions. I would shop elsewhere for add on bits, but there isn't a lot. As for parts, well expect your wallet to cry, this bike isn't cheap.

Front brake has excellent stopping power but discs are slightly warped. Rear brake pedal in wrong position, much too high.

Visually one of the nicest, sounds fantastic but too loud in tunnels. This bike has aftermarket exhausts, Supertrapp slipons. I usually wear ear plugs. More than enough power for this type of bike.

This machine is built like a tank. Not sure abut oil consumption yet. Talking of oil, HD recommends their own brand, just the same as for old air cooled motors. Some dealers say Synthetic, some say semi, others say mineral. Not to mention the many references to a good quality oil approver for diesel engines. I could talk about this subject for ever but without any proper conclusion. Go and find a few V/rod riders, ask this question and stand back.

Cant give ant comments here, except that a couple of HD dealers have told me that they don't bother with the valve check as it involves a lot of work, engine out of frame.. They tell me they listen for excessive valve clatter and if all sounds well they advise so. In my opinion this may be the case on a push rod engine but the opposite is true with OHC where the clearance decreases with wear. There for I have no intention of paying a fortune in labour charges to someone with such minimum mechanical knowledge. In my opinion in 50 years of riding, Main dealers were usually good with at least one fully trained mechanic when I started on a BSA C15 now the mechanics are elsewhere and have been replaced with fitters. and there is all the difference in the world between them.

Turn signal switches are strange, one on each side, but one gets used to them. Best thing is they are self cancelling and this system that HD uses is as near to perfect as you will find.