BHP vs Harleys

Wow. I was comparing BHP on a Road King to my little 650. With a 1450cc it shows 67 bhp @ 5400rpm. When new mine was 64bhp@8500rpm. And I've got about 300 lbs lighter.

I've had this bike about a year, and all the time I was thinking it was kind of slow. But based on this I'd smoke a Harley. What's your experience? Stories are good

You might want to look at torque output before you bet the farm on a race. Basically, torque = acceleration, horsepower = top speed.

Harley has the torque. Top end he would most likely walk on you. Harley BHP is honest. Kawasaki BHP is BS. Put both on a Dyno and you will see. Your stock 650 would read about 45BHP at the rear wheel on a Dyno. The 83 GPz1100 which is advertised at about 120 BHP is about 80-85 on the Dyno.

TexasKZ wrote:

You might want to look at torque output before you bet the farm on a race. Basically, torque = acceleration, horsepower = top speed.

What He Said. :ohmy:

I ride frequently with an 09 Harley Iron 883 Sportster. It has 67hp and weighs in the 500lb range. I think the acceleration is about equal but we never drag raced. The kawa has much better handling mostly because of how low the harley is. I would be sad if my bike couldn't outrun a roadking. They are long distance touring bikes. It's got 6 gears and I am sure it would leave a KZ in the dust after 100mph though. I think the sportster is a cool bike and has a lot of potential but it's not really my style. There is a company in the uk that makes off the shelf sportster cafe racers. They look awesome, but I think am partial to the fourstroke four.

Holler black,
David

having both mentioned bikes, well not a road king but an electra glide, the 650 will walk all over a HD closest thing would be a 400/440 or a poor running 550 maybe as far as acceleration would be concerned. the 650 is in the mid 30's for max torque where the 1450 HD will be in the mid 80's. what this means when i ride my bagger is i shift at 3500 rpms cause it really does no good to twist it past that, get to 5th as soon as i can and leave it there and get an honest 49mpg running at 75mph. my HD "feels" the same whether i am solo or two up with a weeks worth of crap. and that would be slow, but ohh so comfy.
and the top end for a stockish FLH is about 110/115 mph or so thats at redline (5500) in 5th the new 6 speed one might be a bit more, but i think that a good running 650 will still out run one

Then there is gearing, and a stock geared 650 is very short next to a v twin cruiser. Look this is an apples to oranges comparison. The kz650, 750, and 900 are the birth of the the crotch rockets the first step to the GPZ's which lead to the Ninja's and the rest is history. The HD is just that, a Harley and does what Harleys do... cruise. I have smoked 130 cubic inch S&S motor with a late model tuned Suzuki 650, but I wouldn'd ride that bike for any long distance. That is what the HD is for. My brother has some shovel heads that were built to go down the strip, and any well set up modern sport bike can give them a run for thier money. V twin engines are antiquated technology, and suffer from an out dated and limiting design. V-twins have sound, and feel, and good torque, 4 cylinder engines have so many performance advantages it's not even a fair comparison. Back when that 650 was made it was state of the art, and though is may be 30 years old today it's engine is light years ahead of a v-twin design.

civilengr3:

TexasKZ is right about the torque. The Harley has a much wider spread of torque through its RPM range, pulling strong from say 1,500 to 5,500 RPM. The KZ is low on torque until the RPMs are on up fairly high - say 5,000 to 9,000 RPM. But once the KZ gets wound up, it really shines. Also 300 pounds is a tremendous weight advantage for the KZ.

Let's say that both bikes are rolling along side by side, in 2nd gear, at a low RPM. As the race begins, the Harley will likely pull ahead, but as the KZs RPM builds, it will run stronger and stronger, gaining back the lost ground, and soon out accelerating the Harley. Then with the KZs RPMs up high, as he shifts to the next gear, the RPM will stay in the power band, leaving the Harley in the dust.

WABBMW wrote:

civilengr3:


Let's say that both bikes are rolling along side by side, in 2nd gear, at a low RPM. As the race begins, the Harley will likely pull ahead, but as the KZs RPM builds, it will run stronger and stronger, gaining back the lost ground, and soon out accelerating the Harley. Then with the KZs RPMs up high, as he shifts to the next gear, the RPM will stay in the power band, leaving the Harley in the dust.

Thats exactly what I have seen. Not with a kz but and old GS.

Don't it kinda depend on how many skulls and flames the Hurley has on it? :blink:

Yea tyler is right, ive lined up with a couple harleys on my 550 and they always get me off the line, but once up around 5 or 6 grand the power band kicks in and leaves them behind me..... I have to admit though, it feels good! my 1000 dollar 38 year old bike will kick the snot out of a new 20,000 dollar harley.

I especially like racing the guys that are decked out in all black and orange harley gear, hahaha. Some of them get pissed! when i look back and wave. im respectful though.

My dad has a 2001 1600cc yamaha roadstar with some porting and a big bore kit... nice bike. But he cant keep up either....

I love my little kz.

:side:

Eat some harley davidson jerky! ayyy!

Here is a modern bike shoot out. What looks like a built HD drag bike against a ZX-10R. The ZX got a late start but still ran down that v-twin beast. At Brainered MN, I saw some built v-rods get toased by Ducati's, Honda's and Suzukis that cost half as much. It's just the way it is...
I would still love to own a V-rod night special, damn sexy bike if you ask me.

www.youtube.com/v/yPojN2Mmuqo&hl=en&fs=1