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2010–2011 · Cruiser · Buyer's Guide
Factory Chopper, No Apologies
The Wide Glide is the chopper of the Dyna family, and this generation wears the look without apology. The fork is raked out to 34 degrees. A skinny 80/90-21 front and a fat 180/60-17 rear stretch the bike across a 68.3 in (1735 mm) wheelbase, and the seat sits just 25.5 in (648 mm) off the ground. Power comes from the air-cooled, rubber-mounted Twin Cam 96, a 1584 cc 45° V-twin rated at 77 hp and 92 lb-ft, sent through a 6-speed gearbox and a belt. It's a Dyna built to chopper proportions. Pure stance!
On paper, this hardware is built for long, unhurried highway runs and a slow roll down the boulevard afterward. Drag bars pull you forward into a stretched, fists-forward posture. The long wheelbase and raked-out front end point to a bike that stays settled at speed, and 666 lb (302 kg) wet adds to that planted stance. That's the deal: lots of metal, a low seat, big torque. ABS is an available option, not standard. It points to a rider who buys a Harley for presence and style first and sees the steel double-cradle frame as a starting point for making it their own. A blank canvas.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 77 hp (57 kW) |
|---|---|
| Torque | 92 lb-ft (125 Nm) |
| Displacement | 1584 cc |
| Engine | 45° V-twinMotorcycles With V-Twin Engines → |
| Cooling | Air-cooled |
| Gearbox | 6-speed |
| Final drive | BeltMotorcycles With Belt Drive → |
| Fork | Telescopic |
| Front tire | 80/90-21 |
| Rear tire | 180/60-17 |
| Wheelbase | 68.3 in (1735 mm) |
| Seat height | 25.5 in (648 mm)Motorcycles With a Seat Height Under 30 Inches → |
| Wet weight | 666 lb (302 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 4.7 gal (17.8 L) |
Equipment check
Safety
Nothing here comes from a press kit. This is what has come back to me over years of listening: paddock conversations, owners talking at club nights, and the messages riders send me directly. On the Wide Glide that chatter lines up unusually well, with the praise pointed at the engine and the look, and the complaints clustered below walking pace.
The Twin Cam gets the most consistent praise. Riders describe strong pull off the line and a flat spread of torque that makes town work easy and highway passing an afterthought. Just as consistently they call the ride comfortable and settled at cruising speed, with vibration kept down in a way they say rigid-mounted cruisers rarely manage. Owners keep coming back to the look too: black and chrome, unmistakably its own bike in the Dyna lineup.
The recurring complaint is low speed. Owners say the front end wanders in parking lots and tight U-turns and never quite lets them relax. Some mention the shake at idle, heavy through the bars and pegs and stronger than what they felt on Softails. A few shorter riders say the reach to the forward controls leaves them overextended and sore on longer days.
Valve train top-end noise
Some owners report audible valve-train clatter, especially when cold; this is considered a normal operating characteristic of the Twin Cam engine and does not indicate a mechanical fault.
Where this Harley-Davidson Dyna Wide Glide FXDWG 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 Dyna Wide Glide FXDWG is actually built for.
If your year revolves around Sturgis and Daytona, this is the best fit here: an air-cooled Twin Cam V-twin, a raked-out chopper stance and a 25.5 in seat. Pure Harley identity.
Made for Florida State Road A1A · Black Hills · Main Street, Daytona Beach
A strong match for slow-rhythm runs through small towns and along historic routes. The retro, purist styling suits you, though the stretched drag-bar posture leans more chopper than classic.
Made for Park Loop Road · Handbuilt Motorcycle Show · Blue Ridge Parkway
A partial fit at best. The long wheelbase points to settled highway manners, but a 4.7 gal tank and a stretched, fists-forward stance aren't built around loaded two-up touring.
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 · 2005
Factory Chopper, Zero Compromises
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 Dyna Wide Glide FXDWG. “cheaper/pricier” is what that bike costs second-hand, not how worn it is.
Successor · 2012–2017
Factory Chopper, Street Legal
Competitor · 2010–2011
Disc Wheels, Genuine American Thunder
~$2,300 pricier used than this bike at 16 yr
Same Platform · 2009–2010
Factory Custom, Full Swagger
Compare it with every bike that shares the same spec or equipment.