THE MESSAGE:
April Fools Day 2008, got a call, stating that a 2008 Anniversary FLHTCUSE3 had arrived;
I said, "OK, stop fooling around, who's this?";
They said, "This is your local Harley Dealer. Are you interested?";
I replied, "So, an Eagle has landed? Well, I've got a nesting place place for it at Tranquility Base!".
.......
THE SALE AND PURCHASE:
* traded-in the Autumn Haze 2006 FLHTCUSE, at a loss; it was having issues: leaks, wobble, tranny; retailing at another Dealer for $26.5;
* picked-up the Crystal Copper 2008 FLHTCUSE3 Anniversary Edition; #1097 of 1800; paint is way different than the Duracell color;
* got a great deal: bike was free! but the Serialized ornament was $35.5K; JUST KIDDING!
* felt lucky to pay MSRP, based on my shopping experiences at 5 Dealers. Paid $480 for 6 hours of Dealer prep at $80 per. Plus $400 shipping. Still cheaper than 4 Dealers. Everyone pays 6.5% sales tax (after minusing trade-in amount). YIPES!
* took the 7 year Extended Warranty with Tire and Wheel Option, $1859. Considered it a plus for resale and cheap insurance, based on previous experiences with H-D bikes: wheel separation, broken spokes, tensioners, oil pump, cams, gaskets, leaks and wobble issues.
* have Foremost MC Insurance, $100/$300, $500 acv ded, 2k ann mileage, $3.5k acc, total repl cost, $502 py. That's with a $63 premium discount for Rider Safety Course ($85, all day on your bike, HOG rebates $50) and $24 premium discount for belonging to HOG;
.......
THE RIDE:
* smooth and comfortable!;
* no wobble at 80 mph!;
* rear ABS works nicely; but can't detect front ABS when stopping hard; gotta try harder;
* real easy for a 230 lb rider to scrape this bike when leaning into turns, either side; rear shocks were at 10 lbs, tried 20 lbs, seems better;
.......
THE BIKE:
* sticky throttle (dealer fixed next day);
* sounds way different when not wearing a helmet, like when shifting 1st-2nd or 2nd-3rd, hear 2 sounds, a little clunk, then the normal big CLUNK;
* GPS is a PITA and very distracting; but like her voice: "get ready", "go straight", "turn around"; OH YES, YES! ANYTHING YOU SAY!
* like to bottle that new bike smell; only lasted a few dozen miles; DANG!
* Dealer provided full tank of gas; 1st tank used 4.77 gallons at 164 miles; only 34 mpg; YUCK!
.......
THE FUTURE:
* no major mods; maybe open air cleaner; for sure a taller windshield with chrome faring strip;
* like to get Bluetooth, but not at $500 a chip, $90 for a harness, plus installation;
* 3M Paint Protection Film very interesting; $700 full kit installed by a pro, in town; HMMM?
.......
OTHER EAGLES:
* saw new Anniv SE3 with Rinehart TDs being Dyno'd; sounded friggin great!; they were revving the snot out of it; was breaking up at 5k rpm; thought you're supposed to baby it for 1st 1k miles?;
.......
more later...
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Topic: The Eagle has Landed in it's Nesting Place at Tranquility Base. (Read 2428 times)