Test rode Harley Livewire

Let me say it makes me really appreciate the Silverwing!

It's a neat bike, mechanically similar to anything you would expect any major manufacturer to have on the showroom floor - it's polished and works well.

My biggest complaint was it was way too cramped. I've gotten used to the relaxed posture on the Wing. I suspect they were trying to fit everyone on the bike, and some people are shorter than me. I have a particularly short inseam but long torso, and flatfooting the bike was no issue, so it's a short seat.

I also had less feedback from the road - I felt it was hard for the bike to tell me what was going on, a problem I don't have on the Wing. Maybe that's just because I have all of 10 minutes on Harely's bike!

Having the power at the wheel the instant you turn the throttle is cool. I've never been in a vehicle that is that responsive - I imagine that's something common to all electric bikes. When you roll off the throttle, the bike is basically braking - you barely ever hit the brakes on this thing, except maybe for panic stops and that type of thing. Your brake shoes would last the life of the bike. That would take some getting used to. I rode it in "sport" mode after hearing warnings that we should only put it in sport mode if we're pretty comfortable with power being transferred instantly and such, so some of the riding quality may have been as a result of that. You get around 30 miles range in sport mode.

All in all, it's a neat bike, and I'm thrilled that Harley is playing with new technology. I want them to succeed. But it's not a Wing replacement, nor would I trade my Wing for one at this point. I'm sure some people will love it, but I'll keep my Wing.

30 miles range may be great for Harley posers, but come on.

Yes, exactly. I'm not interested in an electric until it has > 100 mile range (preferably 200) and takes just as long to recharge as it takes me to fill my gas tank today.