Harley Davidson?

Question

My dad went through his mid life crisis & has taken my mother with him. He got a Harley five years ago and they ride all the time. Truth is, he let me ride it a few times & now I MUST have one! What is the least expensive type to get? Should I go new or used? I've seen the Softail & am in love with the body but it seems kind of pricey. Help me out Harley fans.

Answer 1

if u want to go extreme long distances, u'd be hard to beat the road king. for the 'cadillac' of harley, get the ultra classic....that is if u have 23 grand.

the cheapest of all harleys is the 883 or 1200 sportster. they might seem small at first, but if u have no or very little experience, u'd be better off with a sportster. they'll forgive a mistake a road king or bagger wont, they have good manuverability, light weight and easiest on gas of the entire fleet. set them up right, and u can quite easily squeeze a 300+ mile ride in a sitting. i do it practically every time i get a good weekend to ride.

its a buyers market out there now in the used. ever since the 96's came out, it seems like every1 wants one, but they cant afford 2 bikes, so they 'retire' the standard tc88. there are alot of sportsters out there that has less than 10 grand on the clock. some dont even have 5k.

the only add-on's i'd say that would be really worth it is a wind shield, engine guard with pegs, saddle bags, and a sundowner touring seat.

Answer 2

You can pick up a good used softail type bike for around 10,000.00.Early to mid 90's.I would advise you look for a heritage,fat boy,or springer model.Any Harley after 92 is a pretty dependable bike.Check the mileage.You should be able to find one with 30,000 or less for this price.Check the motorcycle trader,your local paper,or used bike shop.I would check the used bike shop last.I have found through the years that you normally get a much better deal through an individual than you do a butcher;I mean;bike shop.Good luck,Buck

Answer 3

Welcome to my world!! It depends on a lot of things. How big you are, how long your legs are and what you are looking for in a bike. In 41 years of riding, I've owned 26 bikes, the last 5 have all been harley's. I think that qualifies me to help answer your question. Obviously the least expensive bike to buy new from Harley, is the sportster model. Up till this year they offered it in the 883ci motor and the 1200cc motor. But now it is only offered with the 1200. You can buy one new, right now at harley for 99.00 per month. But this is not a long range cruiser. It has a smaller gas tank. Several of the people in my club have them, and they do all the shorter rides with us. but have to stop for fuel twice as often. If you want a more comfy bike and one that can carry you further on a tank of fuel and with more comfort, get a dyna low rider,which can be lowered for shorter legged people. It isn't bad on rides of 2-300 miles but starts to get uncomfortable for most people after that. You can of course make some changes to the seat etc for more long range comfort. But it is a more expensive bike at around $16,000.00 or you can go for a cruiser like the electra glide. I just bought another Harley in july. It is an '07 Ultra classic peace officers edition. This bike is top of the line for long distance cruising. It comes with every bell and whistle you can think of from cruise control to cd player. It has 4 external speakers. it also comes with an intercom, cb radio etc. It has a great fairing and windshield, hard bags, tour pack, 6 speed tranny and a 96ci motor, and much more. But, it starts at $20,000
and isn't for a beginer. So, give us more details on what your looking for, what kind of riding you plan to do, and your size etc and we can get you matched up with the perfect ride for you.
In the end, it doesn't matter what you ride, as long as you ride.

Answer 4

simple question with LOTS of answers.
How are you going to ride it?
If you just want a cheap HD run-a-bout, something just to putt through town on, get a 883 sporty. Cheap, easy to work on, easy to ride.
If you want to do a bit more distance, get into the Dyna family. Great handling, smooth ride, good looks, and cheaper than the Softtail family.
If you're gonna be doing a lot of cross country touring, look at the Electra-glides, or the Road glide.

Stay away from the Softtails, unless you can get a real bargin on a used one. Over priced, handle like crap, and definately the roughest right of the big twins.
BTW, before you ask, I own a '04 Dyna, and would have nothing else.

Answer 5

Get what you like. Your pretty much getting what you pay for in the price. I got a sporty and an ultra and enjoy both. If your looking to dress out the "larger"the bike the more options generally. Havent looked lately but for a time the used ones wern't all that much cheaper than new ones so in that case new is not a bad idea. the 883 sportster is the lowest price.
But you can check all the specs and MSRP's Out at HD.com

Answer 6

go with a sportster 883 or the 1200 either one is a nice bike and you'll enjoy it I know I ride my 07 sportster everyday and haven't had any problems as far as maintence goes and a lot cheaper then the softtail or the fatboy with prices starting at just under 7,000.00 at first I looked at some used ones then decided to go with a brand new model instead.

Answer 7

the 883 is the lowest priced h-d, but most people that get it usually want a larger bike soon after. look at the fxd, it is a big twin and rides very nice. it starts at $11,995.00 the best value big twin. have had 7 h-d's two of them including the one i have been riding for the last 6 years have been dyna's.

Answer 8

I don't ride Harleys, but if I were you, I'd look for a good used Sportster, 883 or whatever. Very good value and when (not if) you drop it a time or two, you won't want to jump off a bridge. You can move up later, if you decide this is something you really want to do for a long time. Many people invest heavily in big bikes only to find they can't handle them or they crash, get hurt and move on to whatever captures their fancy next. That's why there are so many good used, low-mileage bikes out there...k ;o)

Answer 9

Go with what you love, if you don't then later on you will see others on what you wanted and feel you got cheated , If your new to riding buy used (If you can buy Straight Out).If your Experienced buy New ! / I have found that if your financing your better off buying new through the Company that Makes the Bike

Answer 10

go used with low milage to get started with (that way when you drop the bike you won't cry as much)

good luck, and happy riding.