Harley-Davidson launched its Milwaukee-Eight engine motorcycles, in addition to all-new front and rear suspension for its 2017 touring motorcycle model line-up.
“These are the most powerful, most responsive, and most comfortable touring motorcycles ever offered by Harley-Davidson,” said Scott Miller, Harley-Davidson’s vice president for styling and product development strategy. “The unmistakable look, sound, and feel of Harley-Davidson touring motorcycles rise to even greater heights with the improvements we have made this year. You truly have to ride one to feel the difference─so we’re inviting all riders to visit a Harley-Davidson dealer and take a test ride.”
Milwaukee-Eight’s new engine, the ninth Big Twin in the company’s history, is a completely new design that combines the classic look, sound, and feel of Harley-Davidson Big Twin engines with improvements in performance, comfort, and control.
“The Milwaukee-Eight engine carries the legacy of Harley-Davidson Big Twins in the future,” said chief powertrain engineer Alex Bozmoski. “While respecting the essential Big Twin character, we have created an all-new motor. Every aspect of performance, durability, and styling has been improved as a direct response to the voice of Harley-Davidson customers around the world.”
Milwaukee-Eight produces a 10% stronger torque compared to previous models, and features four-valve cylinder heads that offer 50% more intake and exhaust flow. The new engine is counter-balanced to cancel 75% of primary vibration at idle, retaining the classic feel of a Harley V-Twin engine, while being very smooth at highway speeds. This is in addition to a new heat management strategy which improves rider and passenger comfort. In spite of the engine’s enhanced strength, it has improvement in fuel consumption.
Milwaukee-Eight engines are offered in two displacements: the Milwaukee-Eight 107 (107 CID/1750cc) and Twin-Cooled Milwaukee-Eight 107 (107 CID/1750cc) for standard motorcycle models, and the Twin-Cooled Milwaukee-Eight 114 (114 CID/1870cc) for Harley-Davidson Custom Vehicle Operations (CVO) motorcycle models.
