2006 Harley Davidson V-Rod

[banditvt]

Took my motorcycle out for a spin yesterday and took advantage of the nice weather. Got back and broke out my recently acquired D800 and my very recently acquired Nikon 105mm f/2.5 and got a few shots of the bike.

They're far from perfect shots, but It was just a quick impromptu series in my front yard after a nice ride to practice with the lens a bit more.

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[rick_reno]

Nice looking bike. Is that the water cooled one they developed with Porsche?

 

[banditvt]

Nice looking bike. Is that the water cooled one they developed with Porsche?

It is, there are essentially two model generations with a third kind of (hybrid) version mixing the frame of the first generation with a wider rear end to accommodate a very wide 240mm rear tire and a slightly larger motor. Mine is a first generation that was the first year of a major upgrade to the original 2002-2004 release models in that mine (and every model since) is equipped with a full Brembo braking system as the factory Harley brakes people complained of not being up to the task of hauling this 600lb motorcycle down from speed as it can get to 100MPH plus extremely quickly.

There was a great documentary that aired on TV several years ago about the initial concept, design, and development of the V-Rod. It's available to watch on YouTube. It's a real shame Harley Davidson discontinued them in 2017. This is by far my favorite bike from HD. It turns heads wherever it goes, and I get compliments all the time on it.

 

[Allan]

Beauty of a bike.

 

[buellXB9]

It was my favorite Harley.
Great bike.

 

[kilofoxtrott]

If I remember right, the engine was constructed by Porsche.

Kind regards
Klaus

 

[banditvt]

If I remember right, the engine was constructed by Porsche.

Kind regards
Klaus

The engine was derived from Harley Davidson's VR 1000 superbike that raced in the Daytona 200 in the 1990's. Harley Davidson sent a design team to Porches factory to lay out the design expectations for the engine and then worked alongside Porches engineers to develop the engine. The rest of the motorcycle was designed, built and tested by HD themselves.

The V-Rod was not widely accepted at first and it took nearly a decade before sales started to take off. In fact even today there are some who refuse to accept the V-Rod as a true Harley Davidson, and believe falsely that the entire bike was designed and built by Porche which was one of the reasons for the Documentary I linked to in my previous post.

The fit, finish, and general "feel" of the bike is unmistakably Harley, but that's where the similarities end. I challenge everyone to give one a try if they have the opportunity.

 

[soxOZ]

Nice looking ride you got, & photos are great as well... ?

I remember when they first released the VRod, the backlash from the Harley crowd, was because they wouldn't & didn't accept a water-cooled bike. But any of the HD riders that were looking for performance didn't worry about what the Air-Cooled HD owners thought, and the VRod started to sell. Also, Vance & Hines racing them in NHRA Drag racing helped their popularity. Pity they stopped making them, as I feel they were one of the best looking HD and definitely one of the quickest.

 

[banditvt]

Nice looking ride you got, & photos are great as well... ?

I remember when they first released the VRod, the backlash from the Harley crowd, was because they wouldn't & didn't accept a water-cooled bike. But any of the HD riders that were looking for performance didn't worry about what the Air-Cooled HD owners thought, and the VRod started to sell. Also, Vance & Hines racing them in NHRA Drag racing helped their popularity. Pity they stopped making them, as I feel they were one of the best looking HD and definitely one of the quickest.

Thanks for the kind words.

I started riding in 2007 with the duration of that time on a Suzuki Bandit 1200 setup as a sport touring bike. As a somewhat younger rider in my thirties I had no interest in a cruiser of any kind and had not even entertained the thought of a Harley Davidson as I figured I'd never be able to afford one (new or used), but from the very first time I laid eyes on a V-Rod and learned what it was, I said that if I ever did get a Harley, a V-Rod would be the bike I got. I came across this particular one at a fairly large used dealer in New Hampshire in August of 2019 (completely by chance) while looking at moving on to something different than the Bandit. Apparently when HD discontinued production of the V-Rod in 2017 the trade and resale values dropped significantly. Given the age of this bike combined with the sudden drop in resale, I snatched this one with only 4316 original miles on it for under $5000.

 

[soxOZ]

Wow, a 2017 VRod for under $5000, that bike would sell for around $20,000 plus here in Australia. I looked at buying a VRod back in 2010, but wasn't willing to spend that much, so for half the price of a used VRod I bought a new Honda Shadow. Still riding it today. BTW, I started riding bikes way back in the 1960's, now that makes me feel old, LOL... ???
This is my Shadow, still love riding it... ?

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[banditvt]

Wow, a 2017 VRod for under $5000, that bike would sell for around $20,000 plus here in Australia. I looked at buying a VRod back in 2010, but wasn't willing to spend that much, so for half the price of a used VRod I bought a new Honda Shadow. Still riding it today. BTW, I started riding bikes way back in the 1960's, now that makes me feel old, LOL... ???
This is my Shadow, still love riding it... ?

View attachment 1683191

Sweet Ride, my wife started her motorcycling voyage on a 1987 Honda Rebel 250. My V-Rod is a 2006 not a 2017. The V-Rod was discontinued in 2017 causing used values to plummet for some reason resulting in me being able to snag mine with only 4316 miles on it for under $5000. Another factor was the fact I bought it through a non-Harley dealership. Our local HD dealer is selling a 2006 like mine (only in blue) with 16,??? miles on it for $7500 US.