Motorcycle Rental: Tips to Rent a Harley-Davidson Cruiser Motorcycle

Table of Contents

1. What Exactly Are Your Plans for it?
2. Elect the Right Model
3. Appraise the Alternatives
4. Considerate the Seat Options
5. Assume the Riding Position
6. Harley-Davidson Braking System
7. Plump for Baggers
8. Beat the Heat
9. Harley-Davidson Rental: How to Rent a Harley-Davidson Motorcycle

9.1 What are the Best Motorcycle Rental Apps and Websites?

You may have been reading a lot about the most beautiful places in the world and listening to stories about the scenic motorcycle roads and destinations from your friends. However, they never get a chance to experience or explore the enchanted beauty of nature. Is it just because you don’t own a motorcycle? Well, that’s lame.

There are numerous reasons to consider renting a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. Maybe you still haven’t ended up deciding what model of Harley-Davidson cruiser will fit your personality and want to try them out by renting them. Is that so? Then don’t worry, we have got you covered and carried all but concise to help you out in making the right choice. And there is also a probability that buying may not be your sole purpose because you only ride often.

However, the best way to make a choice is to try them all because buying them all sounds really costly, right?

Whatever the reason, there is more to riding a Harley than meets the eye, so let’s take a closer look at what makes it such a unique riding experience.

1. What Exactly Are Your Plans for it?

You may find this a silly question, but it’s notably the first thing you need to ask yourself. Whether it’s for pleasure purposes or business use, don’t forget to consider the mileage you intend to incur. Are you riding solo or taking a passenger? Are you heading for the long scenic highways or will you ride in a more urban environment? These considerations will help you decide the type of model that performs best.

2. Elect the Right Model

Harley-Davidson has four general categories streamlined in their production house: Glides, Softails, Dynas, and Sportsters.

Harley Glides: These beauties are designed especially for touring purposes. In its production line, the Road King is the most considerable option, which sometimes comes with saddlebags and a windscreen included in the package. Folks that are serious about covering distance should like to pick the Electra Glide Ultra Classic over any other cruiser motorcycle. It has all the bells and whistles, including extra cargo capacity, a booming stereo, a handlebar-mounted fairing, and GPS on some models.

Also Read: 10 Best Motorcycle GPS Speedometer Apps for Passionate Riders

For the 2018 model year, the Softail line-up was completely overhauled. It basically replaces the twin-shock Dyna line-up. Heritage Classic, Breakout, Fat Boy, and Sport Glide are all part of the Softail line-up. The Fat Bob and the Heritage Classic 114 are two other options. These bikes feature a redesigned single-shock chassis and a 1868cc Milwaukee-Eight V-Twin engine.

Although the Dyna range has been discontinued, thankfully, low-mileage Dynas are still available to rent. You can ride a laid-back chopper-style Street Bob or a switchback with a windscreen. The Sportster line-up is the last but not least. They may be the smallest in terms of engine and chassis size, but don't let anyone tell you that these bad boys aren't capable of racking up the miles. The 883 single-seat is the base model. Folks seeing more powerful bikes can step up to the 1200cc Sportsters.

Therefore, the novice-friendly 500 and 750cc Harley-Davidson Street models are ideal for individuals looking for the easiest Harley-Davidson to ride. These bikes are much lighter than an 883 and are great options for shorter folks.

Also Read: Harley-Davidson Sportster 883 IRON XL883N: All You Need to Know

3. Appraise the Alternatives

In the case of the Street models and Sportster 883, the weight difference is not only a consideration but a real deciding factor. There are many things that you need to take into account, including the weight of the bike, luggage options , a full tank of fuel, and the weight of the passenger, if applicable.

Gravitating towards a particular model is one thing, but being able to take it off its side stand is another. This fact isn’t just a consideration with smaller capacity models either: A Road King is around 70 pounds lighter than an Electra Glide Ultra Classic. Pushing nearly 1000 pounds of steel around takes some extra work.

4. Considerate the Seat Options

Motorcycle seat height is another consideration when you’re renting a motorcycle. Harley motorcycles offer low seats. The A Street Glide is easy to straddle with its low 27-inch saddle as compared to BMW’s R 1200 GS adventure bike. Its seat is much taller, at 33 inches.

5. Assume the Riding Position

Aside from the seat height, the position of the rider’s footrests is also an important consideration. The touring range, together with the Fat Boy, Heritage, and Dyna Switchback, are all for floorboards.

Alternatively, the Softail range uses forward-mount controls, while Sportsters, Street, and the Dyna Street Bob feature mid-position foot controls. It will take a few kilometers to get used to all of these arrangements.

6. Harley-Davidson Braking System

You may have heard horror stories about Harley-braking Davidson's components. I've ridden a lot of Harleys over the years, and the older the model, the worse the braking hardware is.

Sticking to a new bike would be a suitable option, preferably with a twin-front brake setup for the best stopping power. Most new Harleys include an Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS), which is a nice safety feature for those who do not like hard and aggressive braking systems.

However, switching from some Italian, British, and Japanese bikes to Harley-Davidson can cost you a little time to get used to. Let’s suppose you are riding with a passenger and a small load of luggage that collectively weighs over 1,000 pounds. And the bike has a single-piston disc brake to slow it down. All the Harleys come with an advanced double-piston front disc brake. So that’s another consideration that may help you to make your bike choice.

7. Plump for Baggers

Planning a motorcycle camping trip and the carrying capacity of the motorcycle luggage matters, especially if you are riding two-up. Baggers were meant for long tours and big road trips, and the side cases and top box on the Electra Glide Ultra allow for ample storage.

Also Read: Features That Make Sissy Bar Bags Ideal for Family Camping Trips

According to Harley-Davidson’s spec sheet, they claim 4.7 cubic feet of luggage capacity in their Ultra variant, which may not sound like a considerable amount of space. Perhaps the average suitcase is three cubic feet.

Camping tends to mean bulkier items, so you may want to consider a Road King, Street Glide, or Road Glide. They all have the same sized cases as the Ultra but add a fixed storage rack so you can tie down bulkier items like tents or large bags.

Also Read: How to Pack Your Motorcycle Luggage Smartly for a Long Trip

8. Beat the Heat

Last and most importantly, the most important thing to consider before renting a Harley-Davidson is all the models: Softail, Dynas, and Sportsters can throw off a degree of engine and exhaust pipe heat. However, riding with forwarding controls or having both exhaust pipes exiting along one side may not be familiar to you, so there is a high probability that your leg will touch the front exhaust header. Make sure you always ride with proper motorcycle riding gear like pants, jacket, and motorcycle-approved footwear that’s above the ankle.

9. Harley-Davidson Rental: How to Rent a Harley-Davidson Motorcycle

Not all rental companies provide Harley-Davidson rental services. Yet some of the major rental companies are registered:

EagleRider: Motorcycle Rentals
Riders Share: Motorcycle Rentals

These are the two Harley-Davidson motorcycle rentals that rent all models of Harley-Davidson motorcycles. Moreover, you can make your motorcycle ride exquisite with the Harley-Davidson app .