Nomad - Road King Compare/Contrast

[BassAddict]

This is NOT a bashing thread. I would give comparisons on any two bikes I have the opportunity to ride. It just happens that I road a 2008 RK for about 80 miles this afternoon.

Differences I noticed:

The RK seems to have a little more "grunt" than my Nomad, and that's with the Thunder Air kit, TFI, and Roadhouse Dooley exhaust on my Nomad. It wasn't a lot more, but some. (EDIT - after switching back and forth between the bikes and really trying some throttle on the RK I need to change this observation. The RK has noticeably more pull than my Nomad.)

My Nomad is much smoother at idle but the two bikes are both very smooth when rolling. The RK shakes pretty badly at idle. The first time I backed off the throttle and started braking I thought the brakes were bad and shaking the bike. It was just the engine.

Both bikes have good brakes. I didn't notice any real difference between the two except that the RK rear brake squealed sometimes when stopping.

The transmission on the RK is much noisier than my Nomad's transmission. I do run Amsoil, but I have a hard time believing that with dino oil my transmission could make noise like the RK.

The 6th gear on the RK was nice. I'd like that on the Nomad too.

The stock seat on the RK is better by far than the stock seat on the Nomad. It was pretty close to the Mustang seat I now have on the Nomad.

The cruise control on the RK worked perfectly. I would really like to have that on the Nomad.

Both bikes have self cancelling turn signals. The RK has the signal switches on both sides of the bike, left for left and right for right. That took a little getting used to before I stopped trying to signal right turns with the left indicator.

The sitting position and bar position on the RK is less comfortable for me. I am 6'1" and I felt a little more compressed. I also felt like I was reaching for the bars more on the RK. I can't remember if my bike, when stock, was the same but I don't think so. I have the small riser extenders on the Nomad now.

The RK has just a little more "fall off straight" affect when being ridden slowly. It wants to fall to the side more than the Nomad.

The smaller and more curved windshield on the RK seemed to cause less turbulence. Even though the bike does not have lower shields on the forks there was very little buffeting. I had more air hitting my helmet but it was more laminar.

The temp was mid 80s for the ride and I did notice a little more heat on my right leg than with the Nomad but it wasn't anything to complain about.

The stock suspension on the RK was a little softer than what I am used to on the Nomad. It tamed the road bumps very nicely. I think I will back off on my Nomad's adjustable shocks a little to soften the ride.

The RK would pop on deceleration. Even with the mods I mentioned above the Nomad has no popping.

Well, that's what I can remember. It was interesting to ride a different bike. I thought I should share my notes in case anyone was ever wondering about those two bikes. I'll write-up whatever I get to ride next.

[DS06Nomad]

BA,
That was a really good comparison/commentary. You spoke to issues that really matter to real riders. Usually, we have to rely on articles from magazines and those articles are likely influenced by how much $$$ the manufacturer being scrutinized kicks down to the magazine.

Hopefully, Kawi will get the hint about the cruise control and the 6th gear.

I was surprised that the HD wasn't noticeably more torquey than the Nad though. HD boasts quite a bit more ft.lbs of torque for essentially the same size motor (why can't the Kawi engineers match the HD spec's??? and mpg???).

So, all said-and-done... are you going to the dark side or keeping your Nad?

Daryl

on edit: oh yeah, and the seat issue. there's $600 bucks (for a Mustang or a Corbin) on a Kawi that you don't have to spend with the HD RK. But then again the RK is $5k more base.

[Old Gray Beard]

The Harley is a pushrod engine therefore the deeper grunt
Yeah harleys trasmissions are a bit clunky.
Yes the windshield design on the harley does give less turbulence
Many years went into that design.
Pushrods and and the rubber isolated engine will shake more at idle.
Harley's rear cylinders run real hot cause they are so leaned out for Mr. EPA but there are some good mid frame heat shields for that.
Love the turn signal controls on the Harley.
I have both a Mean Streak and the RK's big Bro Electra Glide
and love em both for different reasons.
Wish my '06 glide had the 6th gear sometimes.
Oh, yeah for what ever reason the Harley rear brakes do wear faster I'll have to see if the new pads are any better.
Thanks for not bashing

[BassAddict]

So, all said-and-done... are you going to the dark side or keeping your Nad?

Yes, I am keeping my Nomad. My wife and I will be riding out west later this year and will have to rent bikes. HD is about the only place to rent and we want to check out a couple of models. We plan to be familiar with what we ride on those new (to us) roads. It removes some of the risk.

[RichLockyer]

HD boasts quite a bit more ft.lbs of torque for essentially the same size motor (why can't the Kawi engineers match the HD spec's??? and mpg???).

Throttle body vs direct port fuel injection.

I got my butt kicked on MPG by the Electra Glides on the Zion trip.

[RichLockyer]

Pushrods and and the rubber isolated engine will shake more at idle.

I wish Harley would use the same engine in the FLH as they do the FST line. Even with rubber mounting, a counterbalancer would really smooth them out at idle... but that is something that Harley customers want, so they hardmount the FST with a counterbalancer, and softmount the FLH without and it just sits there a rockin' and a rollin' at idle.


Oh ya... not sure about the RK, but on the Road Glide and Electra Glides, for 2008... 6 gallon tank!

[Utah Motorcyclist]

Thanks for the write-up. My brother will be coming out this summer and will be renting a harley. I hope that he gets a RK and that I'll get a chance to take it for a ride. They sound like awesome machines.

[captain Rando]

I rode an Electra Glide Ultra recently and I too felt cramped. My 1600 Classic felt so much smoother and bigger.

[RichLockyer]

Agreed on the ergos.

THOUGH... one of the nicest bikes I've checked out belongs to a guy in my club. Electra Glide Classic, with a "lowboy" seat that moves the rider down and back a bit, and forward extensions on the floorboards. It really feels a lot like the 1600 now.

[BassAddict]

I was surprised that the HD wasn't noticeably more torquey than the Nad though.

DS, after riding both some, and really testing the throttle on the RK, more I had to go back and edit my original post. There is definitely more pull with the RK.

[Hogbreath]

DS, after riding both some, and really testing the throttle on the RK, more I had to go back and edit my original post. There is definitely more pull with the RK.

Cam timing is why HD's pull so good on the bottom, early intake valve opening and short duration, basically a motorhome cam. I suppose the overhead valve mindset just likes more rpm, but I bet with different cam timing the Kawi would pull as hard and as soon!

[Grumbler]

Differences I noticed:

Last summer my bud and his wife, who own a '01 Suzuki 1500LC, rode 2-up on a Road King Classic rental with me on the Lowman Loop (Eagle to Banks to Lowman to Idaho City to Boise).

They noticed more low-end grunt as well. The FLHRC handled so much better than their 1500LC in the twisties. It has a lower COG, shorter wheelbase, and less rake as well as narrower tires.

They felt cramped on the HD compared to their 1500LC, and didn't like the engine heat nor the motor bouncing around at idle. The Road King Classic is a beauty with superb paint, chrome, and detailing. They loved looking at it, but didn't like riding it anywhere near as much as their 1500LC.

I might rent the FLHTCU or FLSTC late this summer for a day:
Idaho Motorcycles-Authorized Dealer of Harley-Davidson & Buell Sales & Rentals-Hight Desert and Birds of Prey in Boise, Idaho and Caldwell, Idaho

[Ruger]

I have never ridden the Nomad, but I ride a RK Police a lot. When we got the new 08's with the 6 speed, I found shifting much smoother than the old 5 speed box. Now that we have some miles on them, I have noticed that the loud "thunk" is back when shifting. The single seat that comes on the Police model is VERY nice. The only thing I don't like about it is that it is very high and there is no way to lower it. I can tell you that when working traffic on a RK they get VERY VERY HOT! After a few hours of stop and go and idling you have to take it out on a little steady run and let it cool down or you start to notice the engine fading, hard starting, etc. We have ABS on the 08's and that takes some getting used to. The rear brake feels very spongy, but the front twins will put you over the windshield if you grab them too hard. As for torque, the RK has it, lots of it on the bottom end. One thing that still bugs me is the "fly by wire" throttle. I am reading more and more about problems with the electronic throttle.

[skewterdewd]

How did you like it in the corners? Every time I see one of those bikes from behind, it looks like it tracks beautifully and effortlessly.

[Aifwikir]

I was seriously looking at the 'Dyna Low' as my next bike but HD quit making them for '08. Thanks for the review.


Aif

[Old Gray Beard]

As far as torque and pulling power go and of course having both a hd (glide) and Kawasaki (meanie)
The Harley does tend to have more instant torque when you hit the throttle,
but I can ride my meanie at 25mph in 5th gear can't do that with my glide.
(or 4th for that matter) same on a Fatboy which is closer in weight to the meanie.
and the lag in torque on the meanie isn't that great just.1

[Surftechuser]

Thanks for the review!

[Slow Ride]

I like to go back and read these reviews once in a while so here is a bump.

[KindredSpirit]

The bike I owned prior to my '08 1500 Classic was an '08 ElectraGlide. I ended up selling the EG to a private party because compared to the '03 Harley I used to own I thought the '08 suffered significantly in terms of low end grunt, throttle response and mileage. After an expensive stage one upgrade with all HD parts to exhaust, air cleaner and fuel map, my mileage dropped to 32 while performance barely improved. I decided I might as well have bought a car for this money and mileage combo. I will say that selling the EG was really easy, but I still lost money. Anyway, I went shopping with expanded horizons for all makes and really evaluated an example of every V-twin cruiser on the market before buying. I even test rode a Road King just to see if my EG was the norm or an exception. It came down to the Classic because of comfort, style, price, the single crank pin engine, and equal or better performance. Now after an exhaust upgrade and Cobra fuel processor I have more performance, 48 mpg (!), and at about 40% of the investment. My thought after all this was said and done was that the required EPA setup on Harley's air cooled engines has really hurt, especially on California models.

[lh4x4]

I had a 07 Nomad and it was a great machine. The 09 Road King is a vastly improved machine. It now rides and handles far better than the previous bike. The engine is still rubber mounted but secured at four points in stead of three. the heat issue was due to exhaust pipe routing on the 08's and before. This has been corrected.

But the 010 Nomad has been greatly improved also. Belt drive with six speed and 104 cu. in. motor. It should be a better choice than a Road King still.

I went to our local Kawasaki dealer to look at one and they said they had one and it was still in the box. I suggested that the season was half over and the 010's will be out soon that maybe they should set it up and put it on the floor.