JWA
31st October 2005, 18:31
I got to take a friend's new (to him) VTX 1800 for a ride yesterday. Cruised about 10 miles or so. Here are my observations about the bike.
It is BIG. I mean it felt like a land yacht big-time. The bike was set up with a windshield, which made for a comfortable ride overall in the chilly weather. Combined with the low center or gravity and very comfortable seat, piloting the bike seemed effortless. The VTX seems like an exceptionally well made machine. For the price (my friend paid $7200 for the bike) of this 2003 with a little over 2000 miles, you get a whole lot. The riding position is very comfortable, upright with mid-controls. Huge amount of torque and acceleration in all gears. This is a very powerful bike for sure, but I was nervous about leaning it over like my Sporty. I could see that there wasn't much clearance on either side to lay it over. It did seem very stable through the curves, though.
The drivetrain seemed very clunky. It has shaft drive, and when shifting or accel/decel, it had some drivetrain lash. I imagine you could get used to it, but it was much more than my Sportster.
Overall, I would not mind riding this beast on a long trip one bit. Very nice machine at a great price.
I would not prefer to ride it on a day to day basis over the Sportster though. The Sporty is a far more fun, more responsive and classier ride. Much more of a "seat of the pants" experience compared to the big VTX. Comparison might be an early '70s Stingray vs. an older Cadillac Fleetwood.
It is BIG. I mean it felt like a land yacht big-time. The bike was set up with a windshield, which made for a comfortable ride overall in the chilly weather. Combined with the low center or gravity and very comfortable seat, piloting the bike seemed effortless. The VTX seems like an exceptionally well made machine. For the price (my friend paid $7200 for the bike) of this 2003 with a little over 2000 miles, you get a whole lot. The riding position is very comfortable, upright with mid-controls. Huge amount of torque and acceleration in all gears. This is a very powerful bike for sure, but I was nervous about leaning it over like my Sporty. I could see that there wasn't much clearance on either side to lay it over. It did seem very stable through the curves, though.
The drivetrain seemed very clunky. It has shaft drive, and when shifting or accel/decel, it had some drivetrain lash. I imagine you could get used to it, but it was much more than my Sportster.
Overall, I would not mind riding this beast on a long trip one bit. Very nice machine at a great price.
I would not prefer to ride it on a day to day basis over the Sportster though. The Sporty is a far more fun, more responsive and classier ride. Much more of a "seat of the pants" experience compared to the big VTX. Comparison might be an early '70s Stingray vs. an older Cadillac Fleetwood.