NEW HARLEY-DAVIDSON® ROAD GLIDE® CUSTOM IS LOW AND LEAN
This Slammed-and-Stripped Road Glide Model Has a New Hot Rod Attitude
The new Harley-Davidson Road Glide Custom motorcycle is a tougher, younger vision of the shark-nose Harley-Davidson classic. Here's a bagger with a frame-mounted fairing that offers a lean, hot-rod look. Road Glide Custom leads with a big 18-inch front wheel draped with a clean FL fender, follows with a 2-into-1 exhaust feeding a long chrome muffler, and exits with a smooth new tail light assembly. Hugging the pavement on a slammed rear suspension, the Road Glide Custom rolls with a cool swagger.
But cool can still tour. That aerodynamic fairing offers outstanding weather and wind protection and holds a cockpit-style array of instruments. Hardshell saddlebags and the 40-watt Advanced Audio System by Harman/Kardon are standard equipment on the new Road Glide Custom model.
Key Road Glide Custom Features
The rear suspension is lowered by one inch, so the Road Glide Custom model appears to hug the highway, a look that is reinforced by the "ground effects" trim at the bottom edge of the rear fender.
An 18-inch Black Slotted Disc cast aluminum front wheel has machined highlights. Combined with a lower-profile, 130/70B18 tire, the new wheel updates the front end styling and offers enhanced steering feedback.
An aerodynamic, frame-mounted fairing incorporates dual headlamps, a cockpit-style instrument display with silver-faced gauges, and two glove-box storage compartments. The frame-mounted fairing offers lighter steering feel than a fork-mounted fairing.
New head lamp trim replaces the clear cover used on previous Road Glide models, improving serviceability.
A low-profile dark windshield creates a sleek shape up front.
The new 2-into-1 exhaust feeds a single, four-inch-diameter chrome muffler located below the right saddlebag.
The new tail light assembly joins a pair of red LED brake/tail/turn lamps with a sweeping chrome bracket that doubles as a visor over the low-mounted license plate. This design eliminates the separate tail/stop lamp. Tri-line LED lighting is located at the bottom edge of the rear fender.
The new custom bucket seat has a perforated insert in the rider position.
GTX nylon hard saddlebags have color-matched latches. Inserts fill the spaces between the saddlebags and the rear fender.
Streamliner footboards, brake pedal and passenger pegs feature full chrome pans and three chrome bands inset in the rubber surface.
The 6-speed Cruise Drive® transmission is fitted with a new helical-cut fifth gear for smooth operation.
Tour with Custom Style
The Road Glide Custom model is built on the innovative Touring chassis introduced by Harley-Davidson in 2009, based on a single-spar, rigid backbone frame developed to withstand the demands of long-haul touring riders and today's more-powerful engines. The cast aluminum wheels were created using finite element analysis for maximal stiffness with minimal weight. The 180/65-16 Dunlop® D407 Multi-Tread rear tire designed specifically for the Harley-Davidson Touring chassis feature a harder center tread compound and softer shoulder compound to enhance handling and extend rear-tire tread life by 25 percent.
Air-adjustable rear shocks accommodate variable passenger and luggage loads. Chassis geometry and suspension calibration work with the dynamics of the frame to deliver a combination of comfort and handling from a touring motorcycle that's equally at ease rolling down the Interstate or negotiating a tight parking situation.
The Twin Cam 96™ V-Twin engine features Harley-Davidson Electronic Sequential Port Fuel Injection (ESPFI) that delivers crisp response, easy starting cold or hot, and self-adjusts to changing elevation and atmospheric conditions. Electronic Throttle Control (ETC) unclutters the handlebar area and enables an easy upgrade to optional cruise control. The engine is rubber-mounted in the chassis, and mated to a 6-speed Cruise Drive transmission with a tall top gear for quiet, economical highway cruising. The exhaust system is designed to minimize heat exposure to the rider and passenger.
