Harley-Davidson Convertible

HARLEY-DAVIDSON CONVERTIBLE

CYCLE WORLD TEST

V-Twin rumble, real-world practicality

DON’T LET IT GET AROUND, BUT RUMOR HAS IT THAT some people out there secretly believe that motorcycles are impractical. These people—some of them motorcyclists themselves—think that bikes are too expensive, lose their value too quickly, are too specialized and too inconvenient. The riders who think like that are easy to spot—they’re the ones who don’t know about the Harley-Davidson FXRS Convertible.

The Convertible is, quite simply, the most-versatile motorcycle on the market. It’s a touring bike, it’s a sportbike, and it’s everything between. It’s a bike that will maintain its value better than any American automobile made today. It’s a bike with workings that are perfectly understandable, one that can be repaired by anyone who ever used a Crescent wrench. In a word, it’s practical.

And if, by chance, skeptics believe that any motorcycle bilied as “practical” and “versatile” is by nature forged in the fires of compromise, then it’s certain they don’t understand the Convertible. Sure, as a touring bike it can’t match the range or the capacity of a Gold Wing. But range and capacity don’t always make a bike more enjoyable over the long haul—sometimes they only complicate matters. And as for those who insist that the Convertible isn’t a sportbike because a GSX-R goes faster, or because, well, the Convertible is a Harley, then they have far too narrow a definition of the term “sport.”

Harley-Davidson created the Convertible by taking a FXRS Sport Edition—that’s the 1340cc Twin with the rubber-mounted Evolution engine and longer suspension components-and then adding a higher handlebar, a windshield and soft saddlebags, the latter items designed to be removed from the bike quickly and easily, without leaving unsightly mounting hardware behind. The idea is for the rider to have the windscreen and bags for longer trips and then be able to remove them easily when he gets to his destination. Hence the name “Convertible.” The saddlebags are even easier to remove than the windscreen: No tools are required at all. Three large knobs hold on each side’s bag, and removal takes only a couple of minutes. The bags are made of leather, plastic and nylon, and are a bit on the small side. In fact, they’re too small to hold a full-face helmet. For trips of much length, they will have to be supplemented by additional luggage.

So why not ride around with a windscreen and bags all the time? Face it: Appearance is important, especially for a Harley-Davidson owner. When you own a bike that is so well-detailed that the head of almost every bolt is chromed, you don’t want to permanently alter the lines of the machine with a bolt-on fairing, no matter how attractive that fairing is.

So, the windscreen on the FXRS Convertible comes off with a two-turn twist on each of four Allen bolts. When it’s in place, the windscreen’s protection is so complete you wonder if traditional full-dressers really need to carry around all the plastic they do. The Harley’s windscreen protects everything except the rider’s hands and feet. Shorter riders, in fact, complain that the windscreen is too big, that the top edge interferes with vision, and that the mounting brackets offer only a slight amount of up-anddown adjustability. Six-footers have no such problem.

As for the rest of the machine, it’s a pure FXRS Low Rider Sport Edition, which is considered by many to be the finest machine in Harley-Davidson’s line. While the bike surrenders some of the esthetic appeal of the low-andmean Softail models, it has features to endear it to those who value their comfort as much as their image. One of those is the rubber-mounted engine. At idle, the entire machine pulses with the beat of the big V-Twin. But once underway, the engine’s gymnastics are effectively isolated from the rider. The engine could do backflips and the rider would never know. At freeway speeds in particular, the Harley can match even the most-refined Japanese Multi for smoothness. The engine just pulses away, doing its job and not bothering the rider in any way.

And what a job that engine does. It’s possible that nobody really knows how broad a Harley Big Twin’s powerband truly is, because no one has ever found the bottom edge. The engine quite literally has power from idle all the way to redline. In fact, you can lug the engine below its normal idle speed and it still pulls.

Admittedly, when a bike has a redline that’s barely over 5000 rpm, it won't have any other kind of power besides low-end; the Harley doesn’t like to be revved at all. And when the engine is pulling a hard load at low revs, it pings badly, especially when it’s running on low-octane gasbest to feed it the good stuff. But the Harley engine is still a joy to play with. There’s an earthy satisfaction to rolling on the throttle and feeling the bike pull, no matter what rpm you’re turning. The big V just chugs away, making a lot of torque and very little noise.

With such torque, the thumb-screw throttle jam is as effective as a fully computerized cruise control. Just pick a throttle opening, turn the screw mounted under the twist grip and the bike maintains a constant speed as long as the ground is reasonably level. Computer chips are fine and dandy, but when a spring and a screw can do the job, they’re hired.

A steady throttle hand is also the best way to approach twisty roads on the Harley. The FXRS responds best to smooth technique, with none of the hard, shift-brake-andbank antics that work with Japanese sportbikes. The Convertible works best if you pick a gear and leave it there. Thanks to its longer shocks and fork legs, the Convertible doesn’t run out of cornering clearance as soon as the standard-model Harleys, though the sidestand does make a little noise in the occasional sharp left turn. The Harley is an easy bike to ride at any speed, and good riders on FXRSs have embarrassed more than their share of hardcore repli-racers on Sundaymorning rides.

Overall, then, the Convertible possesses impressive ride qualities: firm enough for jaunts along country lanes but still allowing comfortable boulevard cruising. One questionable suspension feature, though, is the bike’s “air-assisted antidive” front fork, which is nothing more than airassisted springing such as some motorcycles have had since the early Seventies. The problem is that if you pump the fork up with enough air to prevent dive, it becomes too stiff overall. H-D uses the air space inside the handlebar to increase the total volume of the fork—a hose connects the fork legs to a tap at the base of the bar. This is done because the greater the volume of air being compressed, the less progressive the suspension travel, a desirable trait, in theory, if you want to prevent fork dive while retaining a comfortable slow-speed ride. But in reality, the Convertible’s air setting has to be so high that ride quality suffers. Plus, our test bike’s system was afflicted with a dribble of fork oil leaking from the handlebar, of all places. The suspension works best with four to six pounds of pressure in the fork, although at that pressure anti-dive qualities are negligible. That air is fed, incidentally, through a Schraeder valve in the end of the left handlebar grip.

Odd features aside, the Convertible still ranks among Cycle Worlds all-time favorites. The saddlebags and windscreen add $246 to the price tag, which is a bargain considering the price of similar aftermarket goodies. Altogether, the 49-state Convertible we tested sells for $9475. If you want candy-apple paint, add $70, or if you want two-tone paint, add $150. California riders get to add $118 more, courtesy of that state’s emissions requirements. If that sounds like it’s adding up fast, there is at least a silver lining to that dark monetary cloud: Harleys have traditionally held their value very well come resale time.

So, the case for the Harley-Davidson Convertible is becoming more and more convincing: It’s economically feasible, it’s versatile, it’s convenient and it’s simple. Oh yes, and it’s beautiful.

Suddenly, motorcycling looks much more practical.

H-D

CONVERTIBLE

$9475

EDITORS' NOTES

IT’S NGT SOMETHING I THINK ABOUT OFten, but once in a while I wonder what I would do if I came back from lunch and there were nothing but a smoking hole in the ground where the Cycle World offices used to be. California is a land of earthquakes, you know. Would I shed tears for my lost comrades? Would I say a silent

prayer for David, Camron and the crew?

Naw, I’m not that deep. But one loss that would really hurt is all those motorcycles I could never ride again. And the first stop I’d would make on the way back from the unemployment office would be a Hariey-Davidson shop, where I’d buy a Convertible. After having my pick of so many different bikes for years, the Convertible would cover all bases. The bike is a blast on the open road and when it comes to tight, twisty roads, it’s almost as satisfying as anything with clip-ons. After that I’d probably call David’s or Cam’s house. I’m sure they’d be okay. They take long lunches too.

—Ron Lawson, Managing Editor

ONE OF THE MOST-MEMORABLE TRIPS I have ever taken on a motorcycle started in Montana and ended back at the Cycle World offices. I was riding a Harley Low Rider Custom, and the lope of the large V-Twin matched the rise and fall of the mountains in Big Sky country. But I kept thinking it would be nice to have a small wind-

shield on the bike, and made-to-order soft luggage.

I should make that trip again, this time on the Convertible. It’s a bike I’ve wanted for quite some time: A modular motorcycle that looks great when all the pieces are on, and even better when you take them off.

That Harley chose the FXRS Sport Edition to debut the Convertible system was a great choice. After all, it is one of the best of the Big Twins. But an even better idea would be to make the system available on all HarleyDavidsons, from the Sportster on up. Then, you get the bike you want with all the advantages of the Convertible.

—Camron E. Bussard, Executive Editor

I’M ALWAYS AMAZED AT HOW THE SIMple addition of carrying capacity improves a motorcycle’s appeal. Touring bikes seldom are left in the Cycle World garage. As soon as we get them, they’re pressed into service, ferrying everything from aerobics gear to unedited manuscripts to and from work. Ditto for sport-tourers

with clip-on saddlebags. Add Harley’s Convertible, with its Marlboro Man luggage, to the always-in-use rostrum.

Less successful, at least for my 5-foot-9-inch body, was the easy-on-easy-off windscreen, which left me either sitting ramrod straight in order to peer over its top edge or uncomfortably slouched to look through it. I could cure the malady with a coping saw, but I’d rather see Hariey-Davidson provide a little more adjustability.

At close to $10,000, about the same as most luxury touring bikes, the Convert’s price tag will scare a lot of people off. But those who ante up will have the satisfaction of owning the most-versatile Harley ever.

David Edwards, Editor