glancing. The two large analogue speed and rev counters look good, but I find them too hard to get a quick reference from at any precise moment, mid-corner or pre-corner, or whatever you’ re doing at speed. Having the digital speedo there is a real game changer. Front and rear tyre pressure monitoring is really reassuring. If I’ m on a slippery road or one with a bad surface, sometimes I wonder if I’ ve got a tyre that’ s low, so being able to glance down and see the pressures are still good is a real benefit. All the features of the Ride Command are really good, it even has a compass which can be added to the screen. They use this a lot in the States, but I think there is other more important info than that, so it’ s not something I’ d use.
GRIPES If I wanted to find some things to pick on for the Challenger... I’ d probably say the exhaust could be a little bit noisier, because, after all, it is a V-twin American bagger and I think most owners would want to hear that fantastic motor roar. The other thing I’ d probably want would be a little more ground clearance. I appreciate the need for a low seat height, but more clearance for the more‘ exuberant’ rider would be great. When low-speed manoeuvring, the throttle needs the clutch to be feathered a little or it feels a touch hesitant, as if it might stall; the kind of stuff you learn with each individual machine.
THE SKINNY That 113 cubic-inch motor is fantastic, taking it at full blast through the whole rev range from idle to the top is a blast, I love it. It’ s really comfy to ride, looks great, is surprisingly fast from A to B, there’ s a screen to catch the bugs and keep the wind off, GPS navigation, a loud stereo and two panniers to get all your wet weather and overnight gear in. There’ s not a lot more you actually need from a bike.
90 KIWI RIDER