Motorcycle Test: 2000 Harley-Davidson FXDX Dyna Super Glide Sport

One morning, during the height of rush-hour traffic, a late-model Lexus sedan pulls alongside our 2000-model-year Harley-Davidson Dyna Super Glide Sport. The driver rolls down his window, and with great fanfare leans out of his car to admire the bike.

"That's an FXDX, right? Man, I love that bike. I've been looking at them at the local dealership."

The light turns green, bringing the one-sided conversation to an end. At the next light, he's more emphatic, gesturing toward the back of the bike.

"Who's shocks are those?"

"Stock."

"But they're adjustable!"

Green light. This time he has to work the traffic, passing a few cars rather abruptly, to arrive next to our test steed at another red light. His eyes are open wide, and he loosens his tie.

"Now, don't tell me those brakes are stock, too."

"Yep, just like the satin-black exhaust system, the skinnier drive belt and the fatter rear tire. They'll be in dealerships when the 2000 models are available."

"You mean I gotta wait?"

The light turns green and the Lexus driver is left behind to ponder the mysteries of the universe.

Have It All

Introduced last year, the FXDX Dyna Super Glide Sport delivers what many riders may feel is the Holy Grail of cruiserdom: good looks, good power, competent handling and a Harley-Davidson logo on the tank. If the Motor Company considers the Dyna series to be its sporty motorcycle line, then the FXDX (which shares most basic features with the rest of the line) carries the mantle for the entire series.

The Dyna Super Glide Sport, like all Dynas, features a 28-degree steering-head angle for responsive steering. The mild steel, rectangular-section backbone frame features twin downtubes that cradle the engine. Keeping the single-crankpin, 45-degree V-twin's inherent vibration from reaching the rider, the Dyna incorporates a remarkably effective rubber mounting system. The engine resting in those rubber mounts is essentially the same as last year's updated model.

In 1999, the Twin Cam 88 (a.k.a. Fathead) engine thrust Harley-Davidson -- already the leading cruiser manufacturer -- into the forefront of V-twin power. Seen by many industry insiders as a preemptive strike against budding American motorcycle manufacturers Excelsior-Henderson and Victory, H-D showed it could respond to a challenge and compete with updated technology -- now that buying a Harley would no longer be the solitary equivalent of waving the Stars and Stripes in the face of the foreign incursion. The Fathead engine also addressed the cottage industries sprouting up around the country claiming to be motorcycle manufacturers while powering their machines with hopped-up Evolution-based engines built out of aftermarket parts. Harley's sovereignty would henceforth be maintained by the walls of the mighty U.S. Patent Law and a moat of almost no interchangeable parts between the Evo and the Twin Cam engines.

The Fathead was designed with strength, lightness and ease of assembly in mind. The crankcases are stronger, lighter and manufactured to tighter tolerances, thanks to a high-pressure casting process. The single crankpin features an increased diameter (when compared with the Evo) that will withstand the higher output of performance-tuned engines. (A 95-inch H-D kit proves this.) Beefy knife-and-fork connecting rods thrust 95mm pistons through a 102mm stroke, yielding 1450cc (or 88 inches, hence the Twin Cam 88 moniker) displacement with a 5500-rpm redline. The mixture squeezes into a bathtub-style combustion chamber for an 8.9:1 compression ratio. Two valves (one intake and one exhaust) move the combustibles to and from the cylinders. Chain-driven cams (yes, there are two of them now) motivate both cylinders' valves, hydraulic adjusters and pushrods. Hydrocarbon hanky-panky takes place in the 40mm Keihin CV carburetor. Spent gasses exit via a pair of shorty duals after the festivities simmer down.

Only three of the new FXDX's changes have anything to do with the engine. First, the exhaust system is graced with a new, high-tech, baked-on satin-black ceramic coating. Stylistically, the new system blends in better with the blacked-out look of the engine than last year's chrome unit. The larger 3.25-inch mufflers also offer a claimed 2 percent increase in power. The final change to the power-delivery system manifests itself in the narrower but stronger final drive belt. The 1.125-inch belt (down from 1.50 inches) forgoes the old Kevlar cords for lighter, stronger X3N carbon fiber. Although this change was implemented to allow the Super Glide Sport to wear wider rear rubber (150 instead of last year's 140), all 2000 Dynas will be outfitted with the improved belt.

Turn for the Better

The '99 FXDX's handling received favorable reviews from our testers, so we were elated when we discovered the biggest changes to the Sport were directly related to its back-road manners. The front suspension was changed from a nonadjustable unit to a fully adjustable, cartridge-type 39mm fork similar to those found in sportbikes. The rider can easily adjust the fork's preload, compression and rebound damping to suit riding conditions or personal tastes. The twin gas-charged rear shock absorbers feature adjustable preload of the dual-rate springs and adjustments for compression damping. The rebound function is not alterable. Still, the upshot of these changes is that front and rear preload can be adjusted in a matter of seconds to accommodate a passenger or heavy luggage. Damping adjustments make it possible to tune the suspension from boulevard-soft to back-road firm as rider preference dictates.

Since the folks in Milwaukee intended for the FXDX to generate more speed, the new brakes slated for all 2000 Harleys were well-timed. All H-D calipers will incorporate a dual-action, four-piston design. New brake pad material grips clever one-piece rotors, which are designed to expand uniformly as they heat under heavy use. Warping should not be a problem even under the most abusive conditions. In keeping with Harley's recent ease-of-manufacturing philosophy, the same rotors are used throughout the bike, whether they are front, rear, right or left discs. Similarly, many of the same castings are used on the calipers, regardless of their mounting position. Finally, the fixed caliper mounts don't require any periodic maintenance.

The 2000 model also wears stickier rubber at the tarmac end of the equation. While the softer Dunlop K591 tires -- along with the 150/90-16 rear's larger contact patch -- offer better grip, ground clearance will limit twisty misbehavior long before traction becomes an issue.

Other notable changes to the Dyna Super Glide Sport include a new American-made battery that mounts to the frame sans battery box. Consequently, the battery was embossed with "Harley-Davidson -- Made in U.S.A." (As if any astute viewer would need such a visual cue.) The left-side cover for the electrics appears to be a bolt-on piece, but it pops out of rubber grommets when pulled -- as on many metric cruisers. Although this does ease access to the fuse box somewhat, a metal bracket still interferes with changing blown fuses.

Cast-aluminum wheels are now standard fare. Cruisers who powerwash their rides will benefit from the sealed wheel bearings appearing on all Harleys in 2000. The bearings extend their service interval to 100,000 miles and require no end-play adjustment. Finally, two new colors (pearl blue and purple) enter the lineup, alongside last year's black, pearl orange and pearl white.