Tourer
Posts: 446
East TN | ElroyJ - 2009-06-30 6:44 PM
Joe,
Fact is, this is by far the best bike I have ever owned. I rode many different bikes over the years including renting a street glide and a UC for a week at a time to see if I really wanted one. Sadly, one ride on the Vision and I was hooked!
The advantages...
1. Great looking bike
2. Handles better than any other touring bike out there...BAR NONE! You will scare the crap out your friends rockets because you can do the twisties just about as fast as them.
3. The tour premium comes already done. No add-ons needed unless you WANT them:
Heated grips, heated seats, chrome, trunk, powered windshield, HID light...etc.
The disadvantages:
1. Not enough time or room to ride (FOR ME). I ride more miles now than ever and I am at 9000 miles at 6 months of riding.
2. Having to answer a ton of questions no matter where you stop. Ok, this isn't a disadvantage until your group takes off leaving you behind to answer questions. Ha!
3. People hitting the brakes to slow down and wave, give you a thumbs up or just stare and smile. I really haven't gone anywhere that I don't get at least one look and one question per day on the bike. SO, if you don't like talking...DON'T BUY IT!
I did find out this weekend that I have one disadvantage compared to my buddy's UC. His stereo has the feature that will tell you the radio station and songs that are being played. The stereo display on the Vision is a bit weak. However, for that small drawback, the cool part is hooking up my iPhone and creating my OWN playlists and being able to control it from my stereo controls and not having to play with the phone itself while rolling down the road.
As for dealers...they are all just that...a DEALER! You will find good AND bad. I have heard nothing but bad things about Grand Prix here in Denver where I purchased mine. Truth be told, I have had little issue with them. I have brought in the flag ship bike and they are more than willing to go an extra mile to ensure I am happy. They know who buttered their bread and make sure I feel like they know it!
I will tell you this one too. Roll up to a poker run and have a ton of Harley guys walk up and tell you they have seen them in the mags. They really do drool about the time you start to talk about the bike. They are sold when you drop the bike onto the TOP (tip over protection). I did this at my last poker run and all I kept hearing from everyone as the bike was going over (from those that didn't hear me say, 'watch this...you'll freak'), "OH SHIT...he just dropped that gorgeous bike...he is going to need some help picking it up and a lot of money to fix that!" The best part is watching my puny 5'8" frame pick up a 900 pound bike without breaking a sweat!
I am NOT a huge sound guy from the pipes. I actually hate riding with my buddy and ask him to hang in the back because his bike gives me headaches. I absolutely LOVE the purr it makes when cruising at 75. Its quiet enough to enjoy the ride and loud enough to sound beautiful while riding!
I picked up my bike off the show room floor for about 19k with 4 miles on it. Didn't even think twice about it! And DO NOT LOOK AT THE COMFORT! Go with a Premium! You will NOT regret it!
The first 1k miles you will feel like the engine is going to explode and fall apart because of all the rattling and noise. But give it the first 1k and you will find it quiets down and becomes MUCH MORE reliable than ANY S&S engine out there. How do I know? My buddy...again! He has had so many issues with his 103 stage III that I can't count.
The last para brings me to my last point. My buddy on his UC is comfy, yes! However, he had to put on an extra seat, grips, tons of chrome, pipes, power commander (or whatever fuel controller he got...can't exactly remember) and so on. He has NO movable windshield and is stuck with a lot of mounting hardware hanging off of the back of his bike when he removes his trunk. While his bike looks nice...its not nearly as nice as mine. I remove my trunk and have a completely new look and a cover in place to make all the ugly mounting wares go away! Now...for the KICKER ... he paid close to 37k for his while I have a total of 26k in mine and my bike is COMPLETELY AWESOME the way it is. I did add quite a bit of hardware to make this the bike I want. For example, CB, GPS, heal toe shifter, Stage 2 pipes...etc. But off the floor...it was great...so unless you want to spend money, you don't have too and you will find you are in the bike for almost 50% of a UC fully loaded WITH a 103 kit. Yes, I said, 103 kit. The Vision is already at a 106 and the 103 STILL can't keep up! So, why pay for all the extra ponies when you can pick up a Vision for less with more?
Do I want to get more power? Hell, I am a guy and a gear head so YES! Does the Vision need it? Hell NO! Will I get Lloyd's cams...etc.? HELL YES! But only because I love the extra power...NOT because it needs it. Roll on the throttle in 6th gear and never drop a gear and you will motor on around any cages in the road like they weren't there.
Now, by far the absolute best part of the bike...I OWN ONE!
Now, stop thinking and just get out and find a reputable dealer, score a deal and ride your happy arse home! Heh heh! When you do, you WILL be SO happy you did! And when you do, WELCOME to the family!
Thank you for the information!! GREAT POST ALSO!!! Looks like i will be testing riding one in a couple of weeks if everything works out....Heading to Cummings, GA.>If Candyman can get permission form the WARDEN!!! |
Thinking about switching to a Vision
