2023 House Of Thunder Harley-Davidson Lübeck

Blog - CVO Street Glide and CVO Road Glide 2023

Harley-Davidson announces all information and prices for the new CVO Street Glide and CVO Road Glide models.

My personal impression of the new CVO models

First of all, I am often asked what the abbreviation CVO actually means Harley-Davidson The exact translation of CVO is Custom Vehicle Operation. These are the TOP versions from Harley-Davidson. Limited, exclusive equipment and high-quality paintwork adorn the CVO models, which were previously called Screamin ' Eagle

On June 7th, Harley-Davidson revealed the particularly well-kept secret about the expected price of the new 2023 Harley-Davidson CVO models , which was a hot topic!

Now it's certain, the price starts at €45,495 ex works, yes of course, it still has to go to Europe and to the dealer, in the end we end up at €46,382.25 if the Dark Platinum color is enough, otherwise it's still €7500 for the elaborate Whiskey Neat – Raven Metallic paint job on top.

The Whiskey Neat paintwork with airbrushed accents certainly looks very good in person. It will be necessary to look into the background of the paintwork in order to be able to understand how the extra charge is justified and ultimately you will find some reason if you really want the paint set.

What's new about the CVO models?

The CVO Road Glide now has a 19 inch wheel at the front, where a 21 inch wheel was otherwise installed. But they probably thought to move away from the bagger style, because the cases now close over the exhaust tailpipes, but you can see the complete exhaust, which looks pretty good if you leave it on, otherwise you have to see what the relevant suppliers have will be pulled out of your sleeve.

The new CVO lighting design

Now comes the farewell to the traditional light bulbs in the turn signals

The new lighting design is strikingly new on both CVO models. When it comes to the Road Glide, however, we hear from the community that the design is too similar to Indian models. Personally, I really like the design, which scares me in a certain way. On the Street Glide, the headlight with the LED strips is supposed to represent the wings of the eagle. Well, if you explain that to you, you'll see the intended T-design, but I'm actually more in favor of the CVO Road Glide.

The indicators are now integrated, moving away from the historical light bulbs, a lot is possible with LED lights today, you have to let it work for you. Especially with the Road Glide, the LED Daymaker reflectors on the current model are a real additional safety factor. I'm much less likely to be given the right of way when driving the Road Glide. At first glance, I don't see any major changes to the brake/light combination at the rear. The lighting design appears to have been changed slightly.

The new suitcase design

The new cases have become more angular and no longer surround the exhaust. In the photo it looks as if the entire system is styled in a scorched chrome finish. We've already seen this style on the 2022 CVO Road Glide model in Blue Steel, which looks really great. Many people prefer the deep-drawn cases, which we find on the special models, for example.

The new design will have to be accepted as is and the well-known exhaust manufacturers will have to pay attention not only to the sound but also to the appearance of the system so that the design line is retained. The new cases should have more space, the amplifier from the music system is normally housed there, let's see if they left it there.

The new Showa chassis

They have finally addressed the issue of the chassis, there is now a Showa upside-down fork at the front. As a rule, it should be stiffer than the conventional fork. There is an adjustment wheel at the back to hydraulically adjust the strength of the suspension; a 40% longer suspension travel should ensure more comfort. In any case, this is a topic that needs to be looked at more closely. A lot can probably be adjusted, otherwise Wilbers or Öhlins are certainly available as alternatives.

Skyline OS - Weatherproof TFT color touchscreen

The new and modern Skyline OS control center of the two CVO models

Harley-Davidson is not necessarily known as a trendsetter, you could say that they sometimes give us a little more time so that we can get used to the new modern world. From now on there is WLAN on board the CVOs and a multifunctional cockpit where all information and navigation are integrated.

There will be the option to put together the template, i.e. the view, yourself and yes, there will even be widgets that you can display in certain places.

What were widgets again? These are small applications that can, for example, show you the temperature or display messages. It depends on how advanced the system is at Harley and what widgets are included, we'll have to wait and see.

According to Harley-Davidson, the multifunctional information system is weatherproof, but I assume that you shouldn't hold the steam jet on it, especially because most devices have a coating. There will certainly be special protective films available soon.

The new driving modes

The new driving modes are interesting, Rain, Sport and Road, plus two self-configurable setting options. Discovering the character of the new engine will certainly be interesting.

Thanks to the variable valve control, the almost 2 liter V2 engine, with its approx. 180 Nm, will deliver a lot of punch at the bottom and still have plenty of air at the top to turn with power. You can now set it the way you want it to be, either a little more relaxed on long journeys, or if you're going through the curves in a sporty way, in sport mode.

Personally, I have learned to appreciate the rain mode, no matter how wet the road is, it really gives you a very safe feeling, which is already there on the current tourers from 2020, or even on the Pan America, with its 152 hp ,

The new switches

Now I'm not really sure whether I really like the new arrangement of the switches. The cruise control is now up, which is somehow nothing. If you drive a lot, fiddling around with your index finger up there, which may still be in a thick rain glove, it's nothing. Operation with the thumb was perfect. I mean, previously there was only one joystick switch responsible for all those arrows in the middle, but that's now completely overloaded. At least I can still see the indicator switch positioned on the left and right.

Blog - CVO Street Glide and CVO Road Glide 2023 1

I really wonder who comes up with such ideas to make five switches out of a joystick. A good thing would be if the switches were at least illuminated, we don't know anything about that yet. Although that is always a purely personal feeling.

Incidentally, USB-C has now also found its way into the CVO. How much voltage will come out there remains to be seen. There are additional connections for heated clothing under the seat.

Is the disc adjustable or not?!

Is the windscreen an underestimated topic at Harley-Davidson?

I mean, yes, I know of some people who have to deal with strong turbulence in their helmets on a long tour, it can be really annoying. That's why someone sometimes collects various windows in their garage to get to grips with it.

I only had this in the first 500 kilometers when I started riding the tourers. For me it was neither the helmet nor the windshield, I was simply sitting on it incorrectly and the ride with the running boards was real unusual for me, today I wouldn't want to be without it and I don't have any problems with turbulence on either the current Road or Street Glide. But the problem cannot be discussed, others have it.

Now the question is, is the disc adjustable and if not, why not?

Especially with the CVO, this would be a good idea to provide a little more comfort. It would be nice if you could drive it a little higher in bad weather, but it shouldn't be too dark, the CVO is also about long-distance comfort, then the weather can't be your friend. We don't all live in Florida.

Basically, it looks like there is plenty of air coming through the front, the flap under the window could be infinitely adjustable, perhaps turbulence can be prevented in this way, they will then have tested it in the air duct. In the end, only a test drive will be able to answer the question. It will be available from us in small quantities from August 2023.

I will probably be able to clarify many of the remaining questions myself in July. If there is something missing that you are particularly interested in, you can send email or a message via social media

CONCLUSION:

I'm surprised that it ended up under 50,000 euros, but the quoted price is still a lot of money. But if you are already in this range and are trading in your old CVO or selling it yourself, switching to the new CVO era is certainly attractive.

The day after: Opinions from the Harleysite Facebook Community!

On the first day of the premiere, the price and the design proximity to Indian were the topics, on the second day it was more about the technology and there were significantly more comments with interesting opinions. But what wasn't even an issue was where do the new CVO models come from? Will it stay with the USA, or perhaps they will also come from Thailand in the future.

According to my information, it is possible that some models will be assembled in Thailand depending on the workload. The real joke is that the Thais work more precisely, you can see that especially with the wiring harnesses and when it comes to assembly in general, at least that's what I heard from various mechanics at Harley. In times of globalization it's probably no longer an issue anyway, which is why no one talks about it anymore.

Here is an excerpt from various comments, from the Harleysite Facebook page .