http://www.harley-davidson.com/wcm/Content/Pages/Racing/vrxse_destroyer.jsp?bmLocale=en_US pretty cool really. Right off the showroom floor, a drage bike, allll set up. well, not ALLLLL set up if yer gunna get SERIOUS about it. But damn. When was the last time a wheelie bar and slick tires came as a factory options on a vehicle? Pretty cool... even if it is a Harley...
Just curious, but how far under 10 seconds in the quarter are we talking here? Just about everyone I know who is halfway decent at launching can get their litre bikes under that, low nines if the strap them down a bit. Then they can still take corners on the way home.
Professional riders could get into the 9's on last years 600's... I can hardly see this as an accomplishment, Hardley...
V-twin, I4, different beasts. Its not about 1/4 mile times persay. but even having said that, 9's arent "easy" on any bike. What IS cool, is that its a drag strip ready bike off the showroom floor.
The only conceivable advantage that this bike could have is that it probably makes alot of torque low down- the V-Rod motor is fantastic, the rest of the bike, less so. 32 large for a tweaked V-Rod is no bargain. Very easy to launch these bikes, though- and this one seems to be a little less hefty than the usual Harley. Oh, and what is that little compression tank strapped just below the seat in the thumbnail shot of the engine?
Yeah for posers and balding Lawyers to park next to the coffe shop... Get real, it's a shameless marketing con. Kinda like Honda to release a "drag racing " civic with a huge wing and NAWWSSS/V-Tech racing stickers.
actually its aimed squarely at anyone wanting to race AHDRA. easy to launch a bike? uhhhh, no. Poser bar? Not quite... The wheelie bar is functional and a must. ya'll are missing the point.. nevermind.
Sure... I dont own one... but ridden one alot... launched alot of bikes off the line too. again, no bike is easy to launch. you can easily wheelie just about any bike if you really get after it hard. Hell I can lift the front wheel of my YSR 50 or 1942 Harley WLA if I work at it. now, take a 165hp bike with nearly 100 ft. lbs of torque and add a 7 imch wide slick. yer gonna need a wheelie bar if you sit at the line with the tach near redline and drop the clutch.
the point is..... its a factory showroom drag bike. Finer points - No one else is doing it it IS competitive (see links to AHDRA for classes) for the money, its hard to beat * * for those that say you can do it for less.. I'd like to see it. Buy a V-Rod, MSRP - $15,995-17,355 stroke it, bore it, flow the heads, add bigger valves, add high comp pistons, big cam, change the transmission gearing, chain conversion, add larger injectors, throttle bodies, add a dual stage lock up clutch, air shifter, lower it, add rear sets, change the handle bars, change the wheels and tires, add race ecm, dual stage rev limiter, Data Acquisition module, shortie pipe, wheelie bar, steering dampner, braided brake and clutch lines, paint the frame and body work, strip off 90 lbs of excess weight..... then add it all up, parts and labor. if you are under $31,249, yer one hell of a shopper.
Here are some pics of mine-sorry no wheelie bar: Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I like it Whart! She's real Nice. You've done a lot to her and it shows well! Seems like Harley Lovers/Owners are pretty rare on this site! People sure love to hate on em! Nature of the Beast I guess? Jay
Jay- the bike had much work done by its original owner, another board member here from whom i bought it last year. I added brembo brakes up front, changed the foot controls to mid, got rid of the plastic dog's ass, moved the plate and rear directionals, reprogrammed the ECU and changed the pipes, added a slightly wider rear tire (200) and a few other things. ChopTop- don't get annoyed. I'm not trying to make any point other than that I have ridden the V-Rod extensively, not that modded version, and based on my experience, had the observations I made earlier. To me, it is an easier bike to launch than the Italian bikes I have owned so far, and part of it has to do with the amount of torque that motor generates at low revs. I don't drag race so cannot compare notes on that basis.
well taken whart. Yes the V-Rod is an easy bike to launch than Ital sport bikes. Much so. Its long, low, heavy.
Harley's are like Ferraris in that they're rarely the fastest nor the best handling in their class, they seem to attract the higher income white collar type demographic, they are never the cheapest to maintain nor the most reliable in their class, and most people buy them for their looks and sound. If you have to ask, you wouldn't understand!
Actually, Frank, in my neck of the woods, most Harley guys are barely educated, are largely blue collar, overweight morons, but where you live, that's probably white collar. (yuck, yuck, yuck).
That may be the old image of Harley owners, but certainly not the post-evolution engine one. The guys I ride my AIH chopper with are all doctors, lawyers and business executives that don their leather every week-end or so to pretend and look like outlaws as a form of therapy to give them relief from the daily grind of making money and payroll. While I'm sure there are still poor Harley riders left, they are few and far between with the cost of buying one having gotten so high compared to Jap bikes. I am a memebr of H.O.G.(Harley Owners Group) which did a survey a couple of years back that indicated that the average Harley owner had a family income of over $100k. I suspect the income average of $30k to $100k custom bikes and choppers is even higher.
