Harley-Davidson Iron 1200 test. Iron horse from the “tube” 1950s

Harley-Davidson motorcycle catalog

One of the oldest motorcycle companies in the world, founded in America in 1903, began with the idea of ​​two young men to build a bicycle with a motor. The bike turned out not to be the most successful, so work on a new project began immediately after it. It can be called the first, real “Harley” - an engine with a volume of more than 400 cubic centimeters, a steel frame, the design of which was reminiscent of the Milwaukee Merkel mountain range. It was this prototype that debuted in the 1904 races, finishing with an excellent result for a new car . The company's first factory opened in 1906, and already in 1907 the company was producing 150 motorcycles a year. Single-cylinder motorcycles sold well, but the company did not stop there and showed the world a new, 2-cylinder motorcycle in 1908, which gained enormous popularity. By modernizing it in 1913, Harley Davidson became the largest American motorcycle manufacturer, overtaking Indian, which was dominant at that time. The First World War added to the popularity of the Americans - military orders poured in one after another, so by 1920 HD became the largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world, represented in 67 countries. In the 30s, against the backdrop of the Great Depression, the company was faced with a decline in demand, and, trying to stimulate it, it invented customization, offering customers to order a design on the tank, and in 1935 it sold a license for the production of motorcycles to the Japanese company Sankyo Company, which began assembling a licensed copy of HD called Rikuo. The Second World War again brought huge money and demand from the army, who needed more and more military motorcycles, so much so that the production of “civilian” vehicles had to be stopped altogether. But after the war, production was quickly demilitarized, and already in the 50s they showed a new product that became a real legend - the Sportster family. In the early 60s, the company surprised everyone with its scooter, and in 65 it showed the luxury tourer Electra Glide, which to this day is the flagship car of the brand. Since then, new models, now considered classics, have appeared like mushrooms after rain, but the main innovation, in addition to engines, was the abandonment of drive chains in favor of belts, and then, under the pressure of Japanese technology pouring into the American market, it successfully lobbied for an increase in import prices. duties to protect domestic production. In 1998, the company opened its first assembly plant outside the United States, in Brazil, and in 2001 the whole world was surprised by the neoclassic V-Rod, essentially founding a new class of power cruisers. And in 2013, the world was shaken by another piece of news - a new, small Harley with 500 and 750 cc engines, created for Asian markets, will be produced there, and not in the USA. In any case, today Harley-Davidson is one of the largest and oldest motorcycle manufacturers, having perhaps the most recognizable brand in the whole world and setting the standard in the classic motorcycle segment.

Harley-Davidson Iron 1200 test. Iron horse from the “tube” 1950s

In the mid-fifties of the last century, the first generation of Harley-Davidson Sportster motorcycles was born. Today, this family is undergoing more than its first modernization, but at the same time it remains, perhaps, the most faithful to the roots and traditions of all those bearing the nameplate of the American brand. So the HD Iron 1200 continues to live up to its name “iron” in 2022.

Egor Timofeev
Harley-Davidson Iron 1200 Price: from 943,000 rub. On sale: from 2022

When I first looked at the Harley-Davidson Iron 1200, it immediately occurred to me to call it a dude - its appearance reeks of the “tube” 1950s. Definitely, the styling of this bike is the main feature that everyone will notice. A single seat, a high handlebar, the so-called “uphanger”, footpegs located along the exhaust - all this, combined with white paint and blue-blue graphics on the tank, looks solid.

Unlike the previous version, in 2022 Iron received a new engine with a volume of 1200 cubic meters. Of course, this motor cannot be called new, because it has been produced practically unchanged for about 60 years. The only thing that has been improved is the injection - now it is electronic and has one nozzle. The character of the engine turned out to be quite “torque”; the engine loves higher speeds and even begins to work more smoothly at them.

Like all Harley-Davidson motorcycles, the Iron has a specific riding position. And here the usually inconvenient central location of the footpegs became a plus, because the suspension travel is not impressive. The suspension in general turned out to be quite oaky, and the footrests at least allow you to stand up on uneven surfaces and thus avoid blows to the spine.

Typically, motorcyclists use front brakes in most cases, but Iron's rear brakes were more effective. In general, it has no shortage of brakes if you use both at the same time.

The Harley-Davidson Iron is definitely a city motorcycle; long trips, due to its specific seating position, rigid suspension and lack of wind protection, are not its path at all. And controllability suffers due to small tilt angles, which, however, is typical for almost all Harleys - as soon as you’re about to tilt the motorcycle, you’re already scratching the footpegs on the asphalt. By the way, the centrally located running boards are quite dangerous: the metal pads wear off on the asphalt, become sharp, and you can injure your feet on them when you move them in a traffic jam. Although in general it is not difficult to get between the rows - the high uphanger steering wheel allows you to pass the mirrors of neighboring cars under the handles. But you have to sneak past crossovers especially carefully.

Motorcycles of the Sportster family are relatively inexpensive in the Harley-Davidson line, but along with the same Iron 1200 you purchase a ticket to the HOG party, that is, the opportunity to attend all the official events of the Harley-Davidson owners club in Russia and generally feel and be a full-fledged “Harleyist” . And although I, despite the company’s attempts in recent years to change its opinion about itself, still believe that HD are motorcycles for people over 40, the Iron 1200 is also suitable for the younger generation: for many today, a spectacular appearance is important, and the iron “Iron” “Effectiveness and brightness cannot be taken away.

Technical characteristics of Harley-Davidson Iron 1200

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Harley Davidson Tri-Glide

It's interesting that Harley Davidson does not position the Tri-Glide as a device for those who are tired of driving two-wheeled vehicles. New (read: young) riders are interested in the Tri-Glide at the same rate as experienced ones. Harley Davidson says the CVO version of its trike has become "the most sought-after model in the history of Custom Vehicle Operations."

Why not? When you buy it, you get the latest hardware and software, including a special three-wheeled version of RDRS, Boom! Box with four columns of 75w, 192 liters of luggage capacity. And its curb weight is only 575 kg, that is, the third wheel adds only 180 kg to the weight of the two-wheeled Glide.

Winding roads are definitely not the Tri Glide's cup of tea, unless you're looking for a fun way to flip. But when driving in a straight line, you literally forget that you are on a trike. Well, of course, on a smooth straight line: on an uneven road, according to the apt observation of Peter Egan, the trike will definitely remember its main purpose - to let the rider feel all the bumps and holes.

That's it for the 2022 model year. Harley Davidson continues to chart its own course. In some cases we don't really like this course, but the FL series touring motorcycles are something unique in their kind, and there are no other models as balanced and at the same time characterful and charismatic as them.

Harley Davidson CVO Limited

I was perfectly happy and fully prepared to write about what a great touring bike this Road Glide Limited was, until I upgraded to the new CVO Limited and realized what a fool I was.

The thick seat of the Harley Davidson CVO Limited feels like it will be stuffed with the most delicate clouds and hummingbird feathers. It's extremely comfortable, and with a lower handlebar than the Road Glide, this bike feels like a cozy nest of blankets and pillows. Being a CVO, it has a few extra cubic inches of dual-cooled Milwaukee-Eight displacement—the 117, to be specific. The CVO Limited engine produces 169.5 pound-feet of torque—4 pound-feet more than the 114. You don’t feel this when driving, but it’s nice to know that your piston is larger than your friend’s - even if only by 1.5 mm.

CVO Limited

Limited, i.e. limited edition is almost exclusive, but if you're hoping to see electronic suspension or something like that on them, sorry.

Like regular Harley Davidson Glides, they feature a standard suspension with 5.3cm of rear wheel travel. That's the price for a low seat of just 70cm. And despite the outrageously short wheel travel, this thing rides extremely smoothly. Still, there is something of a ship in motorcycles weighing almost 410 kg.

And if that's a lot, you can ditch the trunk and about 36kg of weight and take the new CVO Street Glide, which weighs 392kg with 22 liters of petrol. At the same time, these things are surprisingly (for those who have not driven them before) nimble when handling winding roads. But their real strength is in the way they gobble up the long miles: set the cruise control, strike a relaxed pose and enjoy the way its really big engine hums at 2500 rpm.