Into The Great Wide Open
Out on the superslab, we let our right hands do the talking. The Star continued surprising riders with the aforementioned glitches in its power delivery. There was also some driveline lash at speed, making throttle modulation mid-corner more choppy than we liked. The VTX motor has more punch right off the bottom, but the V Star overpowers everyone but the M90 from the midrange on up. The suspension felt overly soft and bouncy for the bigger riders, but the 67-inch wheelbase means it's stable in fast turns. Ground clearance wasn't as generous as on the other bikes though.
The 689-pound Honda rolls on a 19-incher up front, but because rake isn't so pronounced, it's easy to toss around-though you still need muscle to do it. Stability is good at low speeds, but the VTX's suspension tends toward the sloppy side. Most riders found it acceptable, and heavier riders seemed to settle the bike better, but all agreed there wasn't enough rebound. The majority liked the power characteristics of the VTX mill once it got going, and the bike's easy nature appealed to all riders, whether on twisty roads or freeways.
The M90 made the most of its 200cc displacement advantage, smoking the other bikes in almost every stoplight-to-stoplight contest. And not only does it ride more smoothly, the fact that it weighs roughly 40 lbs less than the M109R improves maneuverability. Peak horsepower arrives at higher rpms than both Harley or VTX, but the M90 has more of it. The wide bar helps the bike go into corners effortlessly, and the long wheelbase gives it good stability. The suspension doesn't wallow or move around too much, and the rear shock had surprisingly adequate travel for all the testers.
The Harley's renowned engine character almost disappeared in this group. It still has that signature Sporty vibe, though rubber mounting makes it smoother than past versions. Throttle response is linear and fueling is fine, though riders reported some snatchiness in transitions. The clutch required some effort to pull, but it engaged predictably (with a distinct clunk in first gear). The broad power spread starts at about 2000 rpm and extends almost to redline, so our Custom ran well with the others to about 60mph. The 1200 is smooth at normal speeds, though it offers little in the way of wind protection.
Whip It Good
Day two dawns clear and brilliant; the kind of epic Southern California day that occasionally graces the area after a winter rain scrubs the smoggy skies free of particulate. As we'd be riding mountain roads this day, the bikes' handling would be our biggest concern.
Negotiating corners is a bit of a struggle for most testers on the V Star, and its low ground clearance became problematic for some. Changing lines mid-corner isn't a problem as long as you're moving at a good clip. The suspension usually managed to strike a nice balance though some testers said bigger bumps made things too unsettled.
The Harley's tall 21 inch front wheel felt vague for most of our pilots, and the narrow contact patch did nothing to build confidence at speed. It was hard to gauge input, though the Custom goes into turns easily, thanks to a short wheelbase. Around town, everyone was a fan. Most testers felt it tracked stably enough in the sweepers. The Custom appeared to have more ground clearance than the others, but the bike's biggest drawback was limited rear suspension travel; big bumps connected hard, despite Harley's assertion that spring and damping rates have been recalibrated for 2009. All riders felt the travel rates to be nearly intolerable on potholed, urban stints.
The sense of balance a rider gets from the M90's neutral handling is apparent within the first few miles of twisty road. Ride quality from the front suspension is fairly forgiving, though harder bumps came through more than we'd like. Fortunately, steering input isn't lost in translation between the bars and tire. Maybe it's the Bridgestones (the only radials here), or just careful engineering, but the M90 steers easily and predictably. Unlike on some of the big power cruisers, that biggest back tire in the group doesn't slow steering. Those radials made a difference when strafing the canyons, keeping the bike planted in turns. The suspension also felt more settled at speed.
Whoa, There
The way back home involved coming down a fairly long series of steep hills-the perfect set of circumstances in which to test out the bikes' binders. Again, most of the opinions were unanimous.
All testers felt the Harley's single front disc provided just adequate stopping power, with a weak initial bite, with more power when the lever was fully squeezed. We suspected that once Harley decided on a narrow 21 inch front tire, they had no choice but to go easy on the brakes-there isn't much of a contact patch to work with. Most riders used both brakes on the downhills.
The biggest question we had for Suzuki was-where are the M90's brakes? They're sure not related to the excellent binders found on stablemate M109. The M90's two-piston, sliding-pin front calipers lacked power as well as feel, and the rear brake, though a four-pot unit, still required a serious shove on the big brake pedal.
Most of our riders found that Honda's lone twin-piston caliper gripping a large single 336mm disc on the bow was neither good nor bad-it was the Golidlocks brake setup of the bunch. All our riders said that four fingers were needed to really get results, and the 296mm disc with a twin-piston caliper at the stern was occasionally called into duty.
V Star was roundly praised for its progressive binders and easy actuation, though some felt the two-piston, single-action calipers were old tech. There's a weak initial bite, but the 298mm discs do a decent job of hauling the bike down from speed-if you put muscle into the lever.
Add It Up
After some 400 miles of pavement-pounding, we eventually got around to the nitty gritty of comparing notes on the bikes. All testers ranked the M90 as first or tied for first except for one, who picked the Honda first and Suzuki second. That was surprising, considering the Honda's many issues. All cited the M90's motor as the biggest factor for its high marks-it was just plain fun to ride in all situations. Apparently, ergonomics counted for a lot in this crew, and the Sportster's or V Star's ergonomics simply did not fit the majority of testers. In the words of one pilot, "the Honda just feels like a more complete bike".
But no matter what your bottom line is, it's clear you can't really go wrong in this group. It comes down to ergonomics and riding style: if you're a more aggressive rider, you'll probably like the Honda or Suzuki. If you're shorter or prefer to just cruise, then look to the Harley or V Star. There's no longer any reason to compromise.