Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/126294
An un-Harley-like set of bars and a downright petite fairing adorn the front fork tops. The left signal switch is where the horn button should be . Check the oil? Unsnap the snaps, peel back the road racer replica seat and dip away. 'Fun. That's what the 1000cc " caf e" Harley's all about. Although it may ~ u a lify for Superbike Production racing, it's not among the top contenders. Disc brakes. three in 'all. are business-like in appearance but leave something to be desired in actual use. ' Fun. That's the word to remember. Fun. Take it nice and easy. cruise the canyons, look at the scenery. Appear stylish . Beca use if you get serious. put on a race face and try to chase a good rider on anything nimble , then you 'll risk "face" at best and "life" at worst. I Remem ber the brakes? Come diving into a tight tum a t the end of , a straight, the tai llight of a bike half the XLCR's size bu rn ing a hole in your reason , and grab a handful of brake. Rea lize that you're not stopping, and grab some more. all you can, focusing every muscle in your body into an iron grip on that smooth brake lever. And hear the front tire lock with a scream, fee'l the bars twist left and right and left, and wonder how in hell you're gonna not crash, not run off the pavement, not wad up $3600 worth of Milwaukee iron. The front brakes do work when dry. ' The trouble is, they have no predictability, no feel , no warning of the utterly sharp transition between too weak to stop quickly and too strong for the fronttire to handle. There is no middleground, just too little or too much. Perhaps the master cylinder is too small for the job . The rear bra ke can't be relied upon eit he r , even though it is more controllable than the twin discs up front . T he rear b rake's master cylinder on our test bike, after 5,000 . mi les, lea ks brake fluid all over the right side cover, the swingarm, the chain. Weight transfer further limits what the rear brake can do . A better, bigger front tire , might help. In fact , a set of different tires would probably help a lot. We have read tests of the XLCR elsewhere, amazed by references to good tires and weak brakes. But then maybe the testers didn't rush into any turns with The huge. 997cc cast-iron, pushrod, 45-degree V-twin dominates the XLCR and provides pure fun power. the single-mindedness of a confirmed road rasher. The XLCR has ample ground clearance in spite of the big black mufflers on each side. Only the left muffler grounds. and that fact is a miracle. The tires feel so sq uirrely in comers that leaning enough to touch anything ' is riding at the absolute ragged edge, The forks work very well on the freeway . The fork 's small bump response is as good as any. The shocks, stiffly sprung with li tt le (2 ~ ") available travel, are less effective, although still acceptab le on the highway. Bu t the ends are mismatched for fast turning. Under pressure, the front is softer than the rear, and the rear too stiff with too little travel to deal with inevitable road irregularities and mid-tum ripples. The result is a unique feeling of instability in comers. Rushing in toward the apex of a tum. the X LC R is not bad. But accelerating out in a blast, it wants to go everywhere at once and ignores the desired line. Even in sm ooth turns the XLCR must be forced down into the curve, held down wrestled up and over and down again for left-righ t seq uences. It is as if the bike wa nts to go straight which it does - and as if anything ab ove a m oderate pace is too fas t which it is. So the XLCR is not a tourer a nd not a cafe racer. What is the XLC R good for? For cruising the boulevard. for j ust plain fu n. fo r riding a HarleyDavidson motorcycle with the mos t ."different" styling ever to come out of Milwaukee's design department. It looks outlandish, works well enough to a limit, and is a terrifically HarleyDavidson. The only problem is, where do you put the chick after you pick her up? • Specifications Bo re and stroke. .... ....... ... . ... • ... • ... ... •. ... 81mm x 96.8mm Di splacement. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... .. . . . . . • . • . . . . . . . 997.3cc Co mpression ratio ... . . • . . . . . . . • • , .. • •....•. . ... ... ...•...... 9.0:1 Carburetion .... . .... ••.. •... ... 38mm Keihin with accelerator pump Air filter Filtron oiled foam Lubricatio n . _ _ _. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. dry sump Pri mary drive. . . .. . .... ...... .... . .. •.. ... . ... •.. _. triple-row chain Cluth.. . . . .. ....... .... ...... •... . .. •.. • .. .... .. . •.. ... •.. . •. wet Front brake..• . . .. .. . .. ........... ... .... .. . ... . dual Kelsey-Hayes Kelsey-Hayes disc Rear brake Fronttire . .. . .. ..... . . . . . . . . • . . , , .. .. .• . .• . . MJ90-19 Goodyear AIT Rear t ire .. . . . . . . . • . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . .. . . . __. .. MN90-18 Goodyear AIT Frame. : . . . tubular mild steel in cast-iron lugs. double front downtubes W heelbase. . . . ... . . . . . • • . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. : 58.5 in . 509lbs. W eight (Dry) Seat height . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 30.8 in. 60 mph indicat ed, 55 mph actual Sp eedometer error Fuel tank _ _. . __ _. . 4.0 gal . _ _ __ 51 m pg (corrected) Fuel con sum ption Su ggested retail price ............ ....... . • ............... ... $3595 7