The Sport gets dual brake...
The Sport gets dual brake discs and a "sport-style" front fender between cartridge-fork legs. The additional disc and single-piston caliper account for much of the extra weight the Sport carries compared with the other 1200s.
IN BRIEF
High Points: More power for the quickest Harley, adjustable suspension, distinctive styling touches.
Low Points: Too much vibration at high speeds, riding position cramped for taller riders.
First Changes: Fit more responsive shocks; lower fender to close gap between it and front tire.
Friedman: It's not every bike that can punt a deer out of its way and continue down the road, but I'm here to tell you the 1200 Sport can.
Our day's testing had ended by dusk, and we'd followed up by comparing notes and chatting. It was dark when my companions headed one way, and I set out the other, over the coastal mountains above Malibu.
The deer appeared on the right side of the road, ahead and above me on a ledge left when the road was cut. It leaped down onto the road and then did the usual deer thing and froze. Assuming it would continue to the left, I steered toward the right edge of the road and tromped on the brakes. There was no way I was going to get stopped before I reached it, and just as I did, the deer started to spring. It never got off the ground before the Sporty's front wheel slammed into its hip at, I'd guess, about 20 or 30 mph. The impact tossed the animal's hindquarters up and to the left, out of my path and off the cliff at the side of the road. The Sportster gave a mighty twitch, then continued down the road, shaken not stirred. I had no desire to go back and see what damage had been wrought.
Most of all, I was stunned to be upright. Aside from some fur on the front end, the bike showed no sign of the encounter, unless there was something bent I couldn't detect when I looked it over the next day in sunlight. The incident is a testament to the stability of the Sportster (and maybe the providence accorded to fools). Sportbike-type steering geometry, or just a 16- or 17-inch front wheel, would probably have deposited me in the ditch instead of emerging from that twitch. In other circumstances, I might have bemoaned the vibration, criticized some styling point, or weighed the pros and cons. But for the next 20 miles that night, nothing seemed as significant as that locomotive-like stability.
Art Friedman
Send your "Deer Art" emails to Art.Friedman@sorc.com.
Brasfield: Although I didn't go to the lengths that our editor Art did to test the Sporty Sport, a single sensation colors all my feelings about the bike, influencing my perspective to the point that I find it hard to remember how, on smooth pavement, the Sport loves to corner. Providing that you don't ask it to change directions too quickly, the Sporty Sport achieves some of the best lean angles in cruising -- not that that's really important to us cruisers, right? OK, so maybe if the road were twisty, I would want to ride the Sport. Highways? Yeah, right. Could you trailer the bike to the mountain for me?
Visually, the Sportster carries a spartan demeanor that I'm certain will earn it proponents and detractors. The bike has a rugged, yet classic look with some thoroughly modern touches, like the two plug heads and the nifty sand-cast-look powder coating on the engine. The black paint and checkered-flag motif appealed to me. The dual front discs add visually to the sporting look, and they work well as well. No, I can't say the Sport is gorgeous, but it's popular enough to be, if not an icon in its own right, part of the constellation that gives the Harley icon its shine.
Unfortunately, the Sporty Sport suffers from a tragic flaw, preventing it from reaching star status. The engine vibrates too much for riding the Sport to be any more than tolerable. Quick off the line, the Sport's around-town brusqueness doesn't offend and works quite well for a commuter weapon, but hit the highway or even just run the engine into the upper vibration range -- oops, sorry -- rev range and the shaking becomes so violent that it changes the adjustment of the mirrors and possibly the local fault lines. More than a week has passed since I last rode the Sport, and the feeling is just begining to come back into my hands.
The 2003 Sportster Sport,...
The 2003 Sportster Sport, shown here, was the last of the line.
So, if someone asks me if I want to ride the Sportster Sport, I reply, "No thanks, I gave at the office."
Evans Brasfield
Ask Brasfield what he gave at the office, since he doesn't worl there any more via his website.
SPECIFICATIONS
1998 Harley-Davidson Sportster 1200 Sport
Designation: XL1200S
Suggested base price: $8395 ($8515 CA)
Standard color: Black
Extra cost colors: NA
Standard warranty: 12 mo., unlimited miles
Recommended service interval: 5000 miles
ENGINE & DRIVETRAIN
Type: Air-cooled, 45-degree tandem V-twin
Valve arrangement: OHV, 1 intake, 1 exhaust valve; operated by pushrods, hydraulic adjusters
Displacement, bore x stroke: 1200cc, 88.8 x 96.8mm
Compression ratio: 10.0:1
Carburetion: 1, 40mm CV
Lubrication: Dry sump, spin-on filter, 3.0 qt.
Minimum fuel grade: 87 octane
Transmission: Wet multiplate clutch, 5 speeds
Final drive: Belt, 61/29
A tachometer, redlined at...
A tachometer, redlined at 6200 rpm, is standard on the Sport. Both instruments are electronic, and the speedometer includes a tamper-resistant LCD readout that can be switched between tripmeter and odometer.
CHASSIS
Wet weight: 537 lb
GVWR: 948 lb., 51% rear wheel
Wheelbase: 60.2 in.
Overall length: 87.7 in.
Seat height: 28.0 in.
Rake / trail: 29.6 degrees / 4.6 in.
Wheels: Cast, 19 x 2.15 in. front, 16 x 3.00 in. rear
Front tire: 100/90-19 Dunlop D591F Elite SP tubeless
Rear tire: 130/90-16 Dunlop Elite K591 SP tubeless
Front brake: 2, single-action, single-piston calipers; 11.5-in. discs
Rear brake: single-action, single-piston caliper; 11.5-in. disc
Front suspension: 39mm stanchions, 6.1 in. travel, adjustable for spring preload, compression and rebound damping
Rear suspension: 2 dampers, 3.15 in. travel, adjustable for spring preload, compression and rebound damping
Fuel capacity: 3.3 gal., (0.5 gal reserve)
Handlebar: 27.6 in. wide, 1.0 in. diameter
Inseam Equavalent: 32.8 in.
ELECTRICAL & INSTRUMENTATION
Charging output: 266 watts
Battery: 12v, 18 AH
Forward lighting: 5.5-in 55/60-watt headlight, position lights
Taillight: Single bulb
Instruments: Speedometer, tachometer, LCD odometer/tripmeter; warning lights for high beam, neutral, oil pressure, left and right turn signals
PERFORMANCE
Fuel mileage: 31 to 48 mpg, 39.9 mpg average
Average range: 132 miles
RPM at 60 mph, top gear: 2800
200 yard, top-gear-acceleration from 50 mph, terminal speed: 65.6 mph
Quarter-mile acceleration: 13.39 sec., 95.2 mph
To read our riding impression of the 2004 Harley-Davidson Sportster 1200 Roadster, the completely revised motorcycle that replaces the Sportster Sport in 2004, click here.