Young people at Sturgis are rare. Crocker motorcycles are rarer still. Even rarer are Harley‑Davidson press launches held at a racetrack, but here we are riding the new CVO Road Glide ST at a roadracing circuit in Las Vegas.
The MoCo certainly has evolved a long way from the Evo! This Harley has Track modes programmed into its high‑tech suite of electronics that includes IMU‑based traction control and cornering ABS.
King Of The Baggers | Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide ST
Kyle Wyman is the most successful racer in the four‑year history of King Of The Baggers, the racing series in which V‑Twin baggers from Harley and Indian duke it out on roadracing cicuits around the country. Wyman, the 2021 KOTB champ and H‑D factory rider, played a role in developing the Road Glide ST, the latest addition to Harley’s upscale CVO lineup.
Find all of American Rider‘s racing coverage here
The speedy Mr. Wyman was at the launch of the CVO ST, giving us advice on how to ride the bikes on track – hopefully without wadding them into lustrous balls of steel, aluminum, titanium, and carbon fiber. The day was a family affair, with Kyle joined by brothers (and fellow racers) Travis and Cody.
Tying this new CVO hot rod into the successful KOTB series isn’t just a shrewd marketing move. Some lessons learned in racing have trickled down to the Road Glide ST.
When Harley’s factory race team was struggling to reduce cylinder‑head temperatures, it implemented a liquid‑cooling system to the heads based on the Twin‑Cooled motors from H‑D’s Touring line. But rather than routing coolant to the front cylinder first, as on the streetbike, the Screamin’ Eagle team directed coolant to the rear cylinder for more effective cooling of the hotter‑running jug before it flows to the front. This new tactic has been adopted in the CVO ST.
Motor Co. | Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide ST
You might recognize the 121ci lump powering the ST, as it’s similar to the 121 VVT seen in the 2023 CVO Glides we reviewed last year. But the Milwaukee‑Eight 121 High Output doesn’t have the VVT’s variable valve timing and is a hot‑rodded evolution of that motor.
Related: 2023 Harley-Davidson CVO Glides Review | First Ride
“I love VVT,” chief engineer Scott Nash told us, describing how it broadens power curves. “But for this bike, we went all in for performance.” He said they traded a bit of low‑end torque for a stronger top‑end surge, and removing the VVT system shaved off about 2 lb.
A new intake flows 26% more air than the VVT airbox, and the engine’s rev limit has been boosted 400 revs to 5,900 rpm for a revvier character. An 11.4:1 compression ratio requires premium fuel. Relative to the VVT, the 1,977cc “H.O.” mill boasts 12 extra horsepower, now up to 127 hp at 4,900 rpm. Peak torque is bumped by 6 lb‑ft to a twisted 145 lb‑ft at 4,000 rpm.
“Just Add Lightness” | Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide ST
The subhead above is a famous quote from Colin Chapman, the founder of Lotus, the car brand with a revered racing pedigree. It stands to reason that if you can reduce mass from a vehicle, it automatically improves its power‑to‑weight ratio.
To that end, a smattering of carbon fiber and a few strips of titanium have been thrown at this ST. Harley says it’s 60 lb lighter than the CVO Road Glide from 2022 and 25 lb lighter than the overhauled 2023 CVO.
Forged carbon fiber is used for the front fender, tank console, and the seat cowl. Unlike traditional carbon fiber, which looks like a consistent weave, the forged (formed under pressure) carbon has a random pattern. The dual mufflers have titanium shells finished with forged carbon caps. New cast‑aluminum wheels shave off a few ounces. It all adds up to 838 lb with its 6‑gallon tank full.
Running Gear | Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide ST
A hi‑po motor demands performance‑oriented suspension and brakes, and this new ST delivers with the best components ever fitted to a bagger. Up front sits a 47mm inverted Showa fork that has its slider tubes coated with a Diamond‑Like Carbon finish to minimize stiction so it can be responsive to bumps large or small. It’s adjustable for spring preload and damping in both directions (compression and rebound) and has 4.6 inches of travel.
The dual Showa shocks are also fully adjustable and have trendy remote reservoirs mounted atop the rear fender. Preload is adjusted via traditional locking rings on the right shock and hydraulic preload for fine‑tuning the left shock. They have 3 inches of travel, the same as last year’s ST.
Braking is provided by radially mounted Brembo 4‑piston monoblock calipers biting on new 320mm wave‑style rotors. Radial‑mount binders flex less and offer greater braking precision than axial‑mount calipers. At the rear is a 4‑piston Brembo caliper with a 300mm disc. Cornering ABS is part of the package.
GEAR UP
- Helmet: SMK Retro Seven
- Jacket: Alpinestars Hoxton V2
- Gloves: Alpinestars GPX V2
- Boots: Highway 21 Journeyman
Electronica | Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide ST
There was an era, seemingly not long ago, when a motorcycle’s most complicated electronic thing to figure out was how to reset a tripmeter. Much has changed since then, but the electronics suite in the CVOs is relatively easy to navigate despite its complexity. It’s also much more informative and readable than previous generations.
All the high‑tech gadgetry of the 2023 CVOs makes its way to this new ST, including its stunning 12.3‑inch TFT display, which has 400% more screen area than the former 6.5‑inch Boom! Box GTS screen. The infotainment system can be operated by touchscreen controls or the array of switchgear buttons on the handlebar, which debuted on the 2023 CVOs and are a nice upgrade from H‑D’s older switches.
The screen display can be altered by choosing Cruise, Sport, or Tour, each of which prioritizes readouts based on what sort of riding you’re doing. Similarly, pilots have the option of selecting ride modes – Rain, Road, Sport, Track, and Track Plus, plus customization options – that affect throttle response, engine braking, traction control, and cornering ABS, all informed by a 6‑axis Inertial Measurement Unit that monitors lean angles and how the bike is being ridden.
Track Mode! | Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide ST
We were anxious to twist the ST’s tail after H‑D’s presentation. Brad Richards, the MoCo’s VP of design and creative director, described it as “the most exciting motorcycle I’ve ever done.”
The jonesing we felt increased when we arrived at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for a day of hot laps. Cody Wyman noted that the biggest cause of single‑vehicle motorcycle accidents is running wide in a corner, so he advised us to fine‑tune our braking. Kyle Wyman added that the best method is to load the front tire gradually while braking, not simply grabbing at the lever.
Related: 2024 Harley-Davidson Glide Models Review | First Ride
And then we were sent out for hot laps on this hot‑rod bagger, led by KOTB racers Travis Wyman and James “Hogspoli” Rispoli, who will ride alongside Kyle Wyman on H‑D’s Screamin’ Eagle factory team in 2024. The track’s longest straightaway was coned off for a double U‑turn section to keep speeds from getting out of hand and to let us sample the bike’s low‑speed maneuverability.
Firing up the ST is accompanied by Harley’s famous potato‑potato soundtrack, and the lumpy 45‑degree V‑Twin cadence sounds burly through the ti‑and‑carbon mufflers. The handlebar has a flatter bend to suit its performance‑bagger role, and its 6‑inch riser makes the bar 2.2 inches higher than the former OE Road Glide’s. The ST’s compact footboards are from H‑D’s Switchback Collection of billet foot and hand controls.
A twist of the throttle unleashes serious grunt from the aptly named 121 High Output motor. Although Harley says a bit of low‑end torque was sacrificed in the H.O.’s new tuning, it’s certainly torquier than 117ci M‑8s. Torque multiplication has been amplified by a lower final‑drive ratio provided by an output sprocket with two fewer teeth.
The ST’s engine really shines when it’s revved out. It pulls through a meaty midrange to a newfound surge to redline that’s perfect for this hot rod. Extending the redline by 400 rpm doesn’t sound like much, but having those extra revs to play with really enhances the sporting character of this motor.
I sampled Rain mode first and found its soft throttle response incongruous to the dry racetrack, so I toggled over to Road mode and was happier with its power delivery, an emotion that was multiplied when I switched to Sport mode, which feels very snappy and would be ideal for street use.
But, hey, we’re on a racetrack, so I spent most of the day in Track mode, which delivers sharper responses and disables rear‑to‑front linked braking, along with reducing ABS and traction‑control intervention. Track Plus mode disables all linked braking and has even looser parameters for ABS and TC intrusion.
In terms of handling, the ST feels similar to the heavily updated CVOs we rode last summer. It tips into corners briskly for a bike of its size, aided by the ample leverage provided by the high and wide handlebar. The chassis feels so planted that we couldn’t help but wish for more cornering clearance before the “hero blobs” under the footboards begin to scuff the pavement. The left side drags at 32 degrees; the right side at 33.
I’ll assume the ST’s fully adjustable suspension is an improvement from the non‑ST CVOs, but the smooth racetrack we rode on lacked opportunities to truly test it. I can say that it was fully up to the task of supporting both ends of the bike while leaned over and during acceleration and braking. Judging the brakes is a similar story. The only alteration from last year’s CVO Glides is the change to wave‑style discs on the ST, and the difference was imperceptible. The Brembos offered a firm lever and plenty of bite.
ST: Speed Track | Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide ST
In the motorcycle world, ST nomenclature typically refers to Sport Touring. Sure, you could fill the CVO ST’s saddlebags with whatever you need for a weekend road trip in the mountains, but this ST is more than that. It brings legitimate sporting credentials to Harley’s lineup of baggers, with robust performance from its engine and a chassis and brakes that can back it up.
This is a bagger of a different breed, one that exemplifies the evolution of this type of bike into something akin to a muscle car – a machine that will blow the virtual doors off any production bagger. Kyle Wyman approves, and so do we.
2024 Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide ST Specifications
- Base Price: $42,999
- Website: H‑D.com
- Warranty: 2 yrs., unltd. miles
- Engine Type: Air‑cooled 45‑degree V‑Twin, OHV w/ 4 valves per cyl.
- Displacement: 1,977cc
- Bore x Stroke: 4.075 x 4.625 in.
- Horsepower: 127 @ 4,900 rpm (factory claim)
- Torque: 145 lb‑ft @ 4,000 rpm (factory claim)
- Transmission: 6‑speed, cable‑actuated wet clutch
- Final Drive: Belt
- Rake/Trail: 26.0 degrees/6.7 in.
- Wheelbase: 64.0 in.
- Suspension, front: Showa 47mm inverted fork; fully adjustable; 4.6 in. travel
- Suspension, rear: Dual shocks w/ remote reservoirs; fully adjustable; 3.0 in. travel
- Brakes, front: Dual 320mm wave‑style discs w/ Brembo 4‑piston radial‑mount calipers
- Brakes, rear: 300mm disc w/ Brembo 4‑piston axial‑mount caliper
- Tires F/R: 130/60B‑19, 180/55B‑18
- Seat Height: 26.7 in. (laden)
- Fuel Capacity: 6.0 gal.
- Wet Weight: 838 lb (factory claim)
