Baggers are all the rage in the American bike scene at the moment and Harley-Davidson’s new Road King Special is leaping straight onto the trend.
Based on the Road King, the Road King Special is stripped of its chrome and the stock bike’s screen. New wheels, different bars and reshaped side bags complete the transformation.
It’s powered by the latest Milwaukee-Eight 107 engine, which uses four valves per cylinder and makes 10% more torque than its predecessor.
Brad Richards, Harley-Davidson Vice-President of Styling and Design, said: “The Road King Special pounds down the boulevard like a gleaming locomotive rolling through a train yard at midnight. The Road King has always reflected the purity of the Harley-Davidson FL riding experience. By exchanging chrome surfaces for black and lowering the bike’s profile, we’ve moved the traditional Road King into a new space that’s very current in the custom bagger scene.”
Harley-Davidson Designer Dais Nagao added: “Chrome was retained only on some key engine components. The lower rocker boxes, pushrod tubes and tappet blocks are finished with chrome to emphasize the V-Twin shape of the Milwaukee-Eight 107 engine. We added a new engine-turned air cleaner insert, a finish that’s also featured on the tank console.”
The key changes include the 9-inch high ‘mini-ape’ bars and turbine-style alloy wheels, with a 19-inch front to fit the big-front-wheel bagger trend. Black replaces chrome wherever possible.
The new saddlebags are extended back and down to give a lower profile to the bike and the appearance of less ground clearance. Suspension travel is actually unchanged, though. A fascia panel is fitted between them at the back, below the fender, with a low-mounted licence plate.
The suspension is as on the other 2017 Harley-Davidson Touring models. The rear shocks are hand-adjustable and damping is improved at the front. ABS is standard, of course, as are linked brakes and a security system.
The almost military-looking green – actually called ‘Olive Gold’ – seen here is just one of four paint options. The others are Vivid Black, Charcoal Denim and the tongue-twisting Hot Rod Red Flake Hard Candy Custom.
UK prices start at £19,995. In Germany the bike costs €25,255 and in America it’s $21,999.
