Ultra Classic test rides

[Cajunrider]

Yesterday morning the local Harley dealer called me at home to come in for a test ride. I told him I wasn't buying a new bike now but he insisted. So, I caved in and rode two Ultra Classics.

Here are my reviews:

The first was the 103 cubic inch Screamin Eagle. Beautiful bike in Pearl White with some metallic silver pin striping. Great stereo system with speed compensated volume, cruise, no buffeting at all with the upper and lower fairings, plenty of low and upper end torque and a very smooth ride. The bike is more nimble in parking lots than the Nomad is. It seems more balanced. Plenty of storage room in the tourpak. But, the bags don't have as much room as the Nomad bags do. The ride is smoother over the bumps than on the Nomad, but I didn't feel as comfortable in the saddle as on the Nomad. The seat feels more narrow and I was also sitting up higher as my legs were more straight when stopped with both feet flat on the pavement. The heel/toe shifter sits higher off the floorboard than on the Nomad. I actually had to raise my foot off of the floorboard to up shift and downshift. Maybe the floorboards are adjustable and could be raised a little. I didn't ask. I felt a little cramped up with my feet on the boards already so raising them would cramp me even more. The boards also feel like they are mounted a little more to the rear than on the Nomad. With the lower fairings, I didn't see a way to mount highway pegs. Maybe there is a special model Harley highway peg for the Ultras. If so, they should be already mounted for the price of the bike.
I also rode a Black 96 cubic inch Ultra. Pretty much identical to the 103 except not quite as much, but still plenty of torque. I noticed a whining noise coming from the primary that I didn't hear on the other bike. Both were off of the showroom floor. Not demo's.
Now for the worst part. They offered me $7,830 on a wholesale trade for my Nomad. It is an '07 with 7,200 miles. Immaculate shape and garage kept. What an insult. If I couldn't get $10,500 retail for my bike right now, I'd just have to keep it. The good part about it is I'm not interested in selling it or trading it. It felt great when I rode away on my Nomad. Oh, I forgot to mention, the OTD price on the black 96 cubic inch Ultra with the 2 year service agreement was $26,145. I can buy a new pickup truck for less than that. All in all, the test rides were fun and I learned that the Harley glimmer and rumble is nice but not that nice.