Victory Vision Review: The Best Non-Harley Bagger of Its Time

We are unsure whether the touring bikes were inspired by cars or large vehicles. However, there was one motorcycle that was most likely inspired by a spaceship. Yes, it is the Victory Vision Tour.

The Victory Vision Tour was one of the biggest motorcycle projects. As you can see from its size, it is huge and heavy. It is one of the heaviest motorcycles ever produced by a motorcycle manufacturer.

You must be a bodybuilder or large enough if you want to ride the Victory Vision. The best part about this bike is that it did not mimic Harley-Davidson touring bikes. Instead, the Victory Vision was made from scratch.

It surprised the whole motorcycling industry when it hit the roads. Though the company had to shut down its operations in 2017, Victory Vision is still among the top U.S. baggers. Those who own this bike still take pride in riding one of the original American touring bikes.

Continue reading this article to learn more about this giant touring bike, the Victory Vision Tour. It was indeed among the best non-Harley Bagger of its time.

It was not long ago when Victory motorcycles were a thing. They were one of the most common American motorcycles seen everywhere on roads. Victory was one of those brands that succeeded in no time. These bikes had so many good qualities that made them memorable.

According to the resources, the company did not want to disclose the project initially while it was in the testing phase. The road tests were performed with fake names and emblems on the prototype so that people couldn’t know the real motorcycle project.

However, they made a mistake, which caused people to learn it was a Victory motorcycle. The truck that used to carry the prototype had a big Victory logo painted on it.

The Victory Vision was one of Victory's biggest motorcycle projects. According to the sources, the American company spent approximately 25 million dollars to develop this bike.

The Victory aimed to develop something big and luxurious at that time. Considering the technology at that time, the Victory Vision was a big deal.

The Victory Vision was introduced in 2007. However, the engineers at Victory Motorcycles were working on the concept bike long ago, known as the Victory Visteon Vision. Due to having common roots, the Victory Visteon Vision looked somehow similar to the current Indian Roadmaster.

The collaboration was meant to build something extraordinary and luxurious with several technically advanced features. When the Victory Vision came out, it didn’t have most of the features the company planned to integrate with the concept bike.

Nonetheless, the Victory Vision was an excellent large touring bike overall. Victory Motorcycles achieved a great milestone. It was ready to compete with top contenders in the touring bike market, including Harley-Davidson, Honda, and BMW.

The company couldn’t replicate the concept bike it was planning to launch. However, the 2007 Victory Vision was a great step forward. It received good reviews and attention from all over the motorcycling world. Also, it provided tough competition to one of the most notable ultimate touring bikes of that time, including:

• Honda Gold Wing

• Harley-Davidson Ultra Limited

• BMW K1200 LT

The Victory Vision had everything you could find on the BMW K1200 LT. On top of that, it was better than the K1200 LT in terms of comfort and ergonomics. The Victory Vision made the rider sit in a very comfortable and relaxed position. It was as comfortable as the H-D Ultra Limited.

The Victory Vision was a bigger bike than the Ultra Limited, so it was better suited for taller and bigger riders.

Despite being bigger, the Victory Vision Tour was lighter than the Honda Gold Wing, making it better for handling and maneuverability. It was a great ultra-touring bike with superior performance in almost every department, including comfort, handling, and engine performance.

The Victory Vision was unique in every sense. It was one of the most unusual motorcycle designs at its introduction. It took riders some time to adapt to this style of motorcycle.

This bike had an amazing road presence. You would surely get noticed on the road if you were riding the Victory Vision. It was huge and intimidating. The size of this bike can make you step back from riding it if you are a beginner or even an intermediate rider.

You will most likely drop this bike if you haven’t ridden anything this heavy. This bike can be a nightmare if you are not used to riding a touring bike with saddlebags, fairings, and a rear trunk.

The Victory Vision Tour was not the traditional bagger or touring bike. The company was very clear about not making anything like a Harley-Davidson. Victory Motorcycles aimed to design and build something non-Harley.

This bike aimed to compete with the Honda Gold Wing or BMW K1200LT. It also had a close resemblance with the Honda NM-4.

Despite having a distinctive touring bike design, it still gave the true Victory motorcycle vibe. The overall design was smooth and aerodynamic.

The Victory Vision was no less than a car, considering its size and stature. It was obvious that this bike was not built for everybody. You need to have an excellent riding experience to ride this bike.

The Victory Vision received a full front fairing, and the overall design resembles a V-shape. The dashboard was quite wide and huge, thanks to the fairing-mounted adjustable side mirrors.

The engine was highly p[protected as it was installed deep inside the body. The engine guard protected the engine from any damage if the rider dropped the bike.

Suppose you look at the Victory Vision. It was much wider from the front, and as you move towards the seat, it gets slimmer, making it comfortable for the rider. Then again, it gets wider as you move towards the rear end.

Both the head and tail lights were designed in a V-shape to denote the Victory Vision.

As a rider, you may develop a perception of the Victory Vision before you ride this bike. It looks intimidating to move out of the parking or ride. However, if you are capable enough, you will love to ride this bike.

The Victory Vision feels perfect to ride thanks to the Air/Oil-Cooled 106 cu in (1,731 cc) Freedom 106 V-Twin four-stroke engine. The 50° Freedom 106 engine was capable of producing 104 hp of horsepower at 8,000 rpm and a decent torque of 103.1 Nm at 6,000 rpm.

Considering the huge size, this bike feels smooth as you start riding. The clutch pull also feels considerably lighter if you are cruising. The good thing is that it doesn’t stall even in stop-and-go traffic. It may look a bit difficult to move this bike around in busy traffic.

However, the torque and horsepower delivery are spot on. The engine provides enough pull to keep the bike accelerating to avoid stalling in stop-and-go traffic.

Engine stalling can be a bigger problem, especially when turning a huge bike like the Victory Vision. If you are unsure about the clutch and throttle control, you can stall or stop the bike, especially during the slow-speed turns.

Despite being one of the bulkiest touring bikes ever produced, it is quite confident and inspiring. The throttle feels so responsive. The power delivery is readily available as you open the throttle. This is good about all the Victory motorcycles: the throttle response is quite generous.

The engine is the best part of this bike. Firstly, it looks great and amplifies the overall look of this bike. Secondly, it will make you love this bike. Though not built for high-speed performance, the Freedom 106 engine offers top acceleration and pull. It will keep you moving throughout the ride at a decent pace without letting you down.

The low-end torque and power delivery are what make the Victory Vision stunning. On this bike, you can smoothly cruise on highways at 70-80 mph without the engine getting breathless.

Today's touring bikes may have more powerful and torquey engines than the Victory Vision. However, you will be satisfied with its performance and will not want more.

Considering the Victory Vision is a relatively older bike and has older technology, the gear shifts sound a bit clunky. However, clutch operation and gear shifting don’t seem to be difficult tasks unless you are not riding during busy hours.

In stop-and-go traffic, it may be a bit tiring for riders to keep shifting gears and engaging the clutch. Nevertheless, the Victory Vision is not built for this type of riding. It is designed for highway cruising and long-haul journeys on open roads.

Lifting this bike from the kickstand and taking it out on the road can be daunting. It can be a nightmare if you have never dealt with anything so big.

However, as soon as you start riding it, it feels balanced, upright, and smooth. On top of its remarkably smooth and interesting engine performance, the handling is also great, considering the huge size of the bike.

It performs flawlessly on straight roads. There is nothing you need to worry about when you are riding on straight open roads. The wet weight of 408 kg (900 lbs) will not be a problem if you are riding straight.

Surprisingly, the Victory Vision is equally smooth and perfect while turning corners. This bike handles perfectly well. Do you want to know how well this bike turns corners? You can comfortably take this bike for canyon carving. It is that good through the turns.

Don’t get intimidated by its size; this bike offers light steering. What makes the steering light and easy? The large and wide full fairing is attached to the frame, not the handlebar, making steering easy. It may not be effortless, but handling and maneuvering this bike in different situations is easier than handling other touring bikes of this size.

You can also confidently lean on this bike to turn corners. However, you will need to get used to it a bit.

Undoubtedly, Victory Vision doesn’t lag in any performance department. It turned out to be a successful touring bike of its time that had no major flaws. It fulfilled the purpose as well.

The rider must be familiar with the intent and purpose of this bike. It was designed for freeway cruising and long-mile touring. It was adequately powerful, comfortable, decently nimble (considering the type of bike it was), and much more.

Despite being a heavyweight tourer, the Victory Vision had superior handling and cornering capabilities. It made turning corners look super easy and comfortable on a bike like this.

However, one major issue we can point out with this bike was the Dunlop Elite III tires it came with. The rubbers were unsuitable for anything other than ideal riding situations.

The tires were made to last longer, but they couldn’t handle wet conditions. Unless you are a trained rider with years of experience riding a touring bike, you may safely ride this bike in the rain. Otherwise, you are most likely to drop this bike while riding in the rain. It is better to stay at home and not take this bike out for a ride if it is raining outside.

The seat installed on the Victory Vision doesn’t seem super soft and well-cushioned. However, it was not too hard either. The seat was perfect for long-distance riding.

The seat design also helped the rider to stay firm while riding this bike. It also had adequate lower-back support.

On the other hand, if you are riding the Victory Vision Tour, you have a large rear trunk, along with a comfortable passenger backrest. Both rider and passenger can place their feet comfortably, thanks to the large floorboards.

The Victory Vision Tour was one of the most comfortable touring bikes for highway cruising. This was the type of motorcycle that you could use for cross-country rides. It was designed for ideal touring comfort thanks to adequate wind protection, ideal seat comfort, and superior engine performance.

The windshield installed on this bike is electronically adjustable. It allows for two different heights, and you can switch heights easily with the push of a button.

The low windscreen setting allows for a better view and is ideal for urban traveling on this bike. Meanwhile, the high windscreen setting is perfect for highway cruising as it ensures adequate wind protection. You will not feel any wind buffeting.

This bike is undoubtedly among the most comfortable ultra-touring bikes ever produced. It offers a laid-back riding stance thanks to the pulled-back handlebars. You may not find such a large pulled-back angle on any touring bike ever produced.

The rider doesn’t need to make any effort to reach the bars. It makes you sit in a relaxed riding position. However, it can make it a bit difficult for you to have a clear view of the dashboard as it is too far away from the rider.

You can keep your back straight while riding this bike to help you avoid back pain on long tours.

The legroom is also very spacious on the Victory Vision. The rider has enough room to sit comfortably for continuous long rides. Such features make this ideal for taller and bigger riders.

Though the Victory Vision Tour is known for its superior comfort on long motorcycle tours, it also offers many features. Due to its being discontinued in 2017, as the company winded down its operation, you cannot compare the equipment with those of the latest touring bikes in the market.

However, the Victory Vision Tour features a semi-linked ABS braking system on top of reliable dual brakes in the front and a single disc in the rear. Stopping this heavyweight touring monster was not an intimidating task, thanks to the superior braking system.

It also received a standard cruise control feature for easy cruising on motorways and open roads. For a more premium experience, the Victory Vision Tour also featured luxury equipment, including heated seats, heated grips, huge storage capacity, reverse gear, and a power windshield. The rider can easily store two helmets inside the rear trunk.

The Victory Vision also came with a large six-gal fuel capacity to encourage riders to take this bike as far as they can on long tours.

Considering it was a humungous touring bike, the Victory Vision had the reverse gear. To engage the reverse gear, the rider was expected to engage the lever on the left side and press the starter button. It was a great feature on such a heavyweight motorcycle like this.

The Victory Vision Tour was a big touring bike, enough to intimidate a beginner or even intermediate rider. This bike had 65.7 inches of wheelbase and an overall length of 106.4 inches.

Victory motorcycles were made by the same parent company, Polaris Inc., that owned Indian as well. This is why you can find several similarities between Indian and Victory motorcycles.

Polaris had to shut down Victory Motorcycles because the company wanted to focus on India as its sole motorcycling brand.

The 2017 Victory Octane was the lightest of all Victory models. It was introduced in 2017, and unfortunately, the company had to shut down its operations in the same year.

The Victory Octane was a sports-style cruiser, weighing only 249 kg (548 lbs). On top of being the lightest, it was also the quickest Victory motorcycle.

The Victory Octane was equipped with a liquid-cooled 1,179 cc V-Twin engine, producing a generous 104 hp of peak power at 8,000 rpm and an impressive torque of 107 Nm at 6,000 rpm.

The Victory Octane was able to complete the quarter-mile sprint in only 12 seconds.

It is unfortunate for the motorcycling industry that Victory Motorcycles are no more. Polaris Inc. discontinued Victory Motorcycles in 2017 to focus more on selling Indian motorcycles and making them better.

The news made all the Victory Motorcycles fans depressed. The American motorcycling industry, mainly the cruisers and touring markets, observed a huge gap after Victory winded down its operations.

Victory Motorcycles became a sensation shortly after its introduction in 1997. The company successfully produced the Victory Vision in the ultimate touring bike category.

The Victory Vision Tour couldn’t manage to sell well in great numbers. However, it is still in the hearts of millions of people. It was among the most comfortable, well-engineered, and smoothly-running large American touring bikes.