Four V-Twin Motorcycles - The 'Tude Test

Let's Hit It

Comfortably positioned, we hit the city streets for a shakedown cruise. Next to styling, the big concern in most American riders' minds is probably engine size. And all these bikes had the beans to make our rides spirited.

But some of us were snickering outright when we first got on the Harley. There was no way this thing could hang with the likes of the Warrior and M109R-legitimate musclebikes. But like a hair plug on Donald Trump, the Harley Street Bob actually grew on our test group, especially after they rode it again on the second day. All riders, to a man, praised the Street Bob's neutral manners, no-nonsense power output and decent all-around comfort. The Twin Cam 96 engine brings torque down low (92 ft-lbs at only 3,000 rpm), but some riders felt the Bob ran out of steam up top. The Street Bob's six-speed Cruise Drive transmission gets you a little extra grunt out on the highway though, and successive gear changes get smoother the more you shift through the box. You won't get any passenger points with this bike-it's got a solo seat, and clearly it's not made for touring-but it is a blast around town.

Although lacking the overdrive sixth gear of Victory's Freedom 100/6 powertrain, the 8-Ball's 50-degree V-Twin still manages to impress. With 1634cc of displacement, the New American Motorcycle's engine stacks up favorably against Harley's 96 cubic-incher, offering a broad spread of torque and bigger horsepower numbers. Initial turn-ins require a bit of muscle, but it's nothing overwhelming, and only the floorboards stop it from leaning over more. The Victory, by virtue of it being so neutral, appealed to everyone but didn't stand out in any one regard.

With their high zoot performance bits and tachometers, both Warrior and Suzuki obviously bring a sporting intent to the table.

The Warrior comes with a classic V-Twin power delivery, giving you plenty of torque and linear power throughout the powerband. Twin bore fuel injection also assures spot-on fuel delivery. With so much pulling power, we found ourselves trolling boulevards in fifth gear as low as 1,000 rpm. What's not normal for most V-Twins is the relatively vibe-free character of the Warrior mill. The bike accelerates without hesitation even in top gear at higher rpm, though hunting for neutral can be a chore. A slightly notchy transmission earned several complaints from our testers.

If you're a spec-sheet geek, the Suzuki is the leader. The M109R is tuned to produce massive power all the way from idle to redline, which translates into head-snapping acceleration. You'll feel the torque from right above idle so getting to your cruising speed only requires two or three shifts. It's a rush akin to that of the V-Max. The thing about V-Twin engines is that they vibrate (except the Warrior's) and this big boy is no exception. Although not excessive at low revs, the all-over massage you get around 5000 rpm is fairly noticeable.