·
2011–2012 · Cruiser · Buyer's Guide
CVO Custom With Touring DNA
Harley's Custom Vehicle Operations shop built this one as the range-topping statement of the Softail line, and the party trick sits right in the name. Windshield, saddlebags, pillion pad and backrest all come off on quick-release fasteners, so the same machine goes from dressed tourer to bare solo custom in minutes on the garage floor. Under the hand-finished paint sits an air-cooled 1802 cc 45-degree V-twin making 90 hp and 110 lb-ft at 3,000 rpm, running through a 6-speed box and a belt. ABS is standard. This is the top shelf of the factory custom world, not a volume model.
The numbers tell you what kind of motorcycle this is. At 781 lb (354 kg) wet, with a 64.2 in wheelbase and a 24.4 in seat, your weight sits low and your boots sit forward, and the bike settles into a long, deliberate rhythm instead of a quick one. Top speed is 105 mph, which says plenty about where the engineering effort went. It ages well when the maintenance actually gets done, because paint and chrome at this level reward care and punish neglect. Buy it for presence, ritual and sound. The honest caveat is mass: nothing about 781 lb disappears at walking pace.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 90 hp (67 kW) |
|---|---|
| Torque | 110 lb-ft (149 Nm) @ 3,000 rpm |
| Displacement | 1802 cc |
| Engine | 45° V-twin |
| Cooling | Air-cooled |
| Gearbox | 6-speed |
| Final drive | Belt |
| Fork | Telescopic |
| Front tire | 130/70-18 |
| Rear tire | 200/50-18 |
| Wheelbase | 64.2 in (1631 mm) |
| Seat height | 24.4 in (619 mm) |
| Wet weight | 781 lb (354 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 5.0 gal (18.9 L) |
| Top speed | 105 mph (169 km/h) |
| Fuel economy | 37 mpg (US) |
Equipment check
Chassis
Comfort
Connectivity
Safety
Swinging a leg over is easy at 24.4 in, and the first thing that registers is how much lighter the bike feels upright and rolling than it does on the sidestand. The mini-apes put your hands high and wide, your feet go out front, and your spine lands in that cradled American posture that either clicks with you in the first ten seconds or never will. Thumb the starter and the air-cooled twin shakes the mirrors at idle, then gathers itself as the revs come up. You feel every combustion event through the tank and the floorboards, metered rather than harsh. At a 60 mph cruise the fat 200-section rear and the long wheelbase keep everything calm underneath you. Pulling the screen and bags is a hands-only job in the parking lot, and the bike genuinely feels different afterward: lighter at the bars, louder in your helmet, meaner in the mirror.
None of what follows is mine. It's what riders have said to me over the years, in rally parking lots, at club nights, and in the messages that keep arriving in my inbox. Owners are loudest about how the bike presents itself and how fast it swaps roles, and most of the criticism sits below walking pace.
Styling leads by a distance. Owners describe a machine that arrived finished, with detail work good enough that nobody felt a need to add to it. The role change comes next: hands only, and no brackets left showing once the parts are off. The engine gets less airtime, and when it does the talk is about early torque and the cadence that comes with it.
Mass leads the complaints, and it is mass standing still. Owners want clear floor space before they move it in a garage, and they pick their spot for a U-turn rather than take one on trust. Most add that it settles once rolling. Lean angle follows, with floorboards finding pavement early and earlier still on soft preload. Heat is third, on the legs in stalled traffic.
BCM seal defect may cause electrical short and stalling
On early‑2011 build units, an improperly sealed body control module can allow water ingress, leading to an electrical short that may cause the engine to stall. This was the subject of a factory safety recall (NHTSA campaign 11V037000).
Lifter and camshaft concerns on Twin Cam 110
Across the 110 cu in‑equipped CVO range, owners report premature lifter wear and occasional cam lobe scoring, typically beyond 30,000 km. Proactive replacement of lifters and installation of a high‑flow oil pump is a common preventive measure.
Excessive engine heat in traffic
Riding in dense, slow‑moving city traffic can cause annoying heat from the rear cylinder, especially on summer days. While not a mechanical fault, it is a frequently noted comfort issue.
Sticky throttle grip
Some units exhibit a throttle grip that fails to return crisply to the closed position. The FLSTSE2 runs Electronic Throttle Control and has no throttle cables, so the cause sits in the grip/twist-tube friction or the return-spring assembly, not in cable routing.
Where this Harley-Davidson CVO FLSTSE Softail Convertible pulls ahead of — or falls behind — its rivals on the numbers, and the typical bike in its class on character.
Power
Torque
Displacement
Wet weight
Seat height
Forget spec-sheet bragging. Here's who the CVO FLSTSE Softail Convertible is actually built for.
This is your motorcycle. Bags, screen and pillion pad for the ride out, then ten minutes in the motel lot and it stands on Main Street as a stripped solo custom with the sound to match.
Made for A1A — Florida Atlantic Coast · Black Hills / Sturgis Rally Hub · Daytona Main Street / Bike Week
Good fit for the slow-rhythm road trip. The 105 mph top end is beside the point at your pace, and 5.0 gal at 37 mpg covers the gaps between small towns. Tight switchbacks are not its favorite work.
Made for Acadia National Park · Austin / Handbuilt Motorcycle Show · Blue Ridge Parkway
It will do long two-up days once the screen, bags and backrest go on, but it is a custom first. A 5.0 gal tank and 781 lb of motorcycle mean shorter legs and more planning than a purpose-built tourer.
Made for Beartooth Highway · Blue Ridge Parkway · Going-to-the-Sun Road
If you're cross-shopping the older generation, here's what changed.
Previous generation · 2010
Two Bikes, One Statement
Compare to the previous model →If this one isn't quite the fit, these are the bikes worth riding back-to-back against it.
Any price note compares both bikes at the same age — the youngest age both have on the used market — against this Harley-Davidson CVO FLSTSE Softail Convertible. “cheaper/pricier” is what that bike costs second-hand, not how worn it is.
