The saying goes that “racing improves the breed,” but you might have been wondering when all this bagger racing was going to result in a better Harley-Davidson. The answer is, “now.” But you’ll have to be very well-off to play this game, as the new CVO Road Glide RR is the most expensive Harley-Davidson customer bike ever built.
On the other hand, the new machine is also their most powerful ever made, so if you’ve got a way to pay, then maybe you want it just for the bragging rights. The key is a Screamin Eagle 131 engine that’s rated for 153 hp at 5,750 rpm and 150 lb-ft of torque at 4,750 rpm. The 2147cc engine is the same as the MoCo’s factory race team’s powerplants, as used in their roadracing Road Glides. It’s put together with Screamin’ Eagle Stage IV parts, and assembled by Harley-Davidson. Trick parts include CNC ported heads, with oversized valves installed in multi-angle seats, fully blended into the ports and combustion chambers. There’s a high-performance camshaft for more flow at high RPM; a race-inspired air intake to feed the engine, CNC’d to offer the smoothest possible airflow while minimizing weight and offering more leg clearance. The air filter is from Screamin’ Eagle, as are the valve lifters and springs, the camshaft bearing, the high-volume oil pump and other bits.
A 30-tooth output sprocket puts more muscle to the rear wheel through the six-speed gearbox, with lower final drive ratio. Speaking of the gearbox, the bike uses the Screamin’ Eagle Racing King 6 Transmission, same as the factory race team. Harley says “key features include modified back-cut angles on the shift dogs to improve gear engagement and gears and shafts shot peened for strength.” There you have it.
There are plenty of other billet parts, for more precise mechanical tolerances and less weight, and a full titanium exhaust from Akrapovic, with titanium fiber endcaps. Harley says it’s a full 10 pounds lighter than a standard Milwaukee Eight exhaust.
Suspension comes from a partnership between Ohlins and Harley-Davidson’s factory race program. Up front, there’s a USD fork (Ohlins FGR 253 Hypersport Superbike, 43mm diameter). It’s adjustable for rebound and compression damping, as well as preload. In back, a set of dual Screamin’ Eagle Ohlins remote-reservoir shocks keep everything in line, again all fully adjustable with a billet aluminum swingarm offering superior handling. That suspension kicks the bike high enough (two extra inches) that the machine has a 36-degree lean angle capability on the right, 35-degree on the left, 3 degrees more in either direction from the CVO Road Glide ST.
To slow this big bike down, you need good brakes. Brembo GP4-RX CNC front calipers, with four 32mm pistons, work with extra-thick Brembo T-Drive discs, 320mm in diameter, to give you braking capability that was previously impossible on a Big Twin. There’s a four-piston Brembo caliper in back with a 300mm disc.
Those beefy components might leave you thinking this machine carries a lot of extra weight, and it is indeed a heavy bike at 750 pounds “shipped” weight, but Harley’s PR points out that’s still 50 pounds less than the CVO Road Glide ST.
Along with all the high-performance hard parts, the CVO Road Glide RR also comes with electro-upgrades like electronically-linked brakes with cornering ABS, as well as cornering-sensitive traction control and drag torque slip control, tire pressure monitoring and selectable ride modes that control the level of interference as well as your engine performance.
Mid-mount pegs allow for a more sporty riding position than the usual floorboards (and leave you with more lean angle capability). There’s a race-style solo seat, and a raised handlebar to allow for better control. And because this is a street-legal bike, they also put a Rockford Fosgate Stage III audio system on the bike, with 6.5-inch speakers rated for 250 watts per speaker (two speakers in the fairing, plus a 4-channel 500-watt amplifier). Welp, we know where we’d start cutting weight…
There’s also a set of hardshell saddlebags with 2.42 cubic feet capacity apiece.
Honestly, the list of tricked-out features could go on another 1,000 words, but the bottom line is this: MSRP in the States is $110,000 USD, and we aren’t even sure if it’s coming to Canada, or if it would be subjected to a 25-percent tariff if it did. Chances are, if any come up here, it will be a veryyyyyy small number.
I got x2 on order gonna park em beside the Honda XR150L and the Triumph Speed 400. NOT!