2015–2016 · Tourer · Buyer's Guide
Factory Custom, Wired for Miles
CVO was Harley's top shelf, and the Road Glide Ultra FLTRUSE is the full expression of it: the 1801 cc Screamin' Eagle Twin-Cooled V-twin, 97 hp, and 115 lb-ft at 3,750 rpm turning a belt through six speeds. The frame-mounted sharknose fairing is the defining piece, with its splitstream vents and a tall touring windshield doing the work most fairings only promise. Add the heated dual-control seat, keyless ignition, backlit switches, ABS, hard luggage sized for two people's gear, and paint you won't see coming the other way, and you have a 961 lb (436 kg) flagship built to swallow a continent.
On the road it behaves the way the numbers suggest it will. A 64.2 in (1,631 mm) wheelbase, that mass low in the frame, and torque that arrives right where you actually ride mean it tracks straight and carries a passenger plus full bags without complaint. The 29.7 in (754 mm) seat and floorboards give most riders a flat foot and room to move. This is a bike for people who ride states rather than corners, and who want the Harley presence while doing it. The honest caveats: parking-lot speeds ask real effort, the fork takes no adjustment at all, and the Twin Cam 110 wants an owner who listens to it.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 97 hp (72 kW) |
|---|---|
| Torque | 115 lb-ft (156 Nm) @ 3,750 rpm |
| Displacement | 1801 cc |
| Engine | 45° V-twin |
| Cooling | Air/liquid-cooled |
| Gearbox | 6-speed |
| Final drive | Belt |
| Fork | Telescopic |
| Front brake | 300 mm |
| Front tire | 130/80B17 |
| Rear tire | 180/65B16 |
| Wheelbase | 64.2 in (1631 mm) |
| Seat height | 29.7 in (754 mm) |
| Wet weight | 961 lb (436 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 6.0 gal (22.7 L) |
Equipment check
Chassis
Comfort
Connectivity
Lighting
Safety
Thumb the starter and the whole bike rocks once, then settles into a long-stroke lope you feel through the floorboards as much as you hear it. Pull away and the pulse spreads out. By 60 mph it has gone to a low background thrum, the belt is silent, and most of what reaches you is exhaust note from behind. The riding position is wide and open: the bars come to you, the floorboards let you move your feet around instead of locking them in one spot, and the seat holds you in place rather than sliding you forward. Behind that fairing your helmet sits in still air, quiet enough to talk at highway speed. Two things register the moment you stop: the right leg picks up real heat at a light, and 961 lb makes itself known every time you back it out of a space.
None of this is my own mileage. It's what riders have told me across twenty-odd years: paddock talk, conversations with owners at rallies and dealers, and the messages that reach my inbox. For this CVO the reports land in two piles: broad praise for how it carries a rider, and unease about the motor over the long run.
Comfort leads. Riders point to the heated seat, the bar reach and the floorboard room as a combination that keeps them fresh through a full day, and they say the fairing and its shield hold the helmet in still air, passenger included. The engine earns the same tone. Pull comes from just above idle, smooth enough that a two-up pass needs nothing dramatic. The stereo gets credit for staying clear at highway speed.
The valvetrain is where the worry sits. Owners describe a chirp arriving on the 110, and a number of those stories end in costly engine damage before 30,000 miles. Pump trouble on the liquid-cooled heads comes up less often, on a similar clock. Heat on the right leg in slow traffic is a steady refrain. So is the effort tight turns and the sidestand demand.
Hydraulic clutch master cylinder recall
The clutch master cylinder may lose the ability to generate sufficient lift to disengage the clutch, especially after extended parking; if the engine is running and in gear, the motorcycle may move unexpectedly.
Twin Cam 110 engine lifter failure
The aggressive cam lobes and heavy valve springs accelerate lifter wear, often resulting in a chirping noise around 25,000-30,000 miles; if ignored, can cause cam lobe damage and metal debris in the oil system.
Water pump failure on Twin-Cooled models
The electric water pump circulating coolant through the cylinder heads can fail prematurely, leading to overheating warnings. Some failures occur before 30,000 miles and require pump replacement at owner expense if out of warranty.
Excessive catalytic converter heat
In slow traffic or stopped conditions, the catalytic converter in the right-side header radiates intense heat onto the rider's right leg; this is exacerbated by the lean factory tune. Aftermarket de-catted header and tuning are common owner fixes.
Where this Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide Ultra FLTRUSE 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 Road Glide Ultra FLTRUSE is actually built for.
Sturgis, Daytona, the run down A1A: this is exactly the machine that scene reads instantly. The sound, paint, and presence are all there, and unlike most show bikes it carries you home in real comfort.
Made for A1A — Florida Atlantic Coast · Black Hills / Sturgis Rally Hub · Daytona Main Street / Bike Week
Beartooth, Going-to-the-Sun, long days two-up with the bags full: the fairing, luggage, and stability all hold up. Plan fuel stops around 6.0 gal and budget for the engine's known wear points.
Made for Beartooth Highway · Blue Ridge Parkway · Going-to-the-Sun Road
You get the comfort and the scenery, but not the lightness. On a tight 200 to 400 mile day this 961 lb bagger asks more physical work from you than you may want to hand over.
Made for Black Hills · Blue Ridge Parkway · Cherohala Skyway
If you're cross-shopping the older generation, here's what changed.
Previous generation · 2011–2013
Factory Custom, Mile-Devouring Torque
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 Road Glide Ultra FLTRUSE. “cheaper/pricier” is what that bike costs second-hand, not how worn it is.
