2015–2016 · Tourer · Buyer's Guide
The Fully Loaded Mile Eater
The Ultra Classic is Harley's fully-dressed touring flagship, and it wears every bit of that role. The air-cooled 45° V-twin runs 1,690 cc and hands you 105 lb-ft at just 3,750 rpm, so forward motion arrives early and stays lazy. Peak power sits at 86 hp, but the number tells you little; this bike moves on torque and a long 64.0-inch wheelbase that plants it dead-straight at highway speed. Add the Boom! Box 4.3 infotainment, the batwing fairing, deep floorboards, and a full luggage set, and you have a machine built to swallow states, not corners.
It rides like it looks: heavy, planted, and happiest holding a steady line for hours. At 913 lb wet it takes intent to move at walking pace, and the low 29.1-inch seat helps more than the mass suggests. Build quality is solid and belt final drive keeps the upkeep simple, so these age well when maintained. This is a two-up, long-haul tourer for riders who measure a good day in fuel stops. The honest caveat: two safety recalls apply to this run, covering the clutch master cylinder and the saddlebag mounts, so confirm both were addressed before you buy.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 86 hp (64 kW) |
|---|---|
| Torque | 105 lb-ft (142 Nm) @ 3,750 rpm |
| Displacement | 1690 cc |
| Engine | 45° V-twin |
| Cooling | Air-cooled |
| Gearbox | 6-speed |
| Final drive | Belt |
| Fork | Telescopic |
| Front brake | 300 mm |
| Front tire | 130/80B17 |
| Rear tire | 180/65B16 |
| Wheelbase | 64.0 in (1625 mm) |
| Seat height | 29.1 in (739 mm) |
| Wet weight | 913 lb (414 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 6.0 gal (22.7 L) |
Equipment check
Chassis
Comfort
Connectivity
Lighting
Safety
Thumb the starter and the V-twin settles into that unmistakable off-beat idle you feel through the floorboards before you hear it. Roll away and the fairing does its job, pushing wind up over your chest and leaving a calm pocket behind the batwing. The seat is broad and supportive, the bars fall to hand with your back upright, and the floorboards let you move your feet around on a long day. There's a low-frequency shake at idle and low revs that eases off once you're rolling, and by highway pace the whole bike goes quiet and steady. The Boom! Box controls sit easy to reach and read. What stays with you is the sense of all that mass working for you, holding a lane against crosswinds without ever wandering.
None of this comes off a press kit. It's the picture that builds up over years of paddock talk, unhurried conversations with owners, club-night back-and-forth, and the notes riders drop straight into my inbox. For this Ultra Classic the feedback settles somewhere clear: strong love for how it covers distance, weighed against a short, familiar list of gripes.
The motor is where owners agree most freely. What they return to is the low-rpm torque, a willing tug from a standstill that suits an unhurried pace. The steering earns the next round of approval: plenty expected a barge and found instead something they could point through a corner and thread through a tight lot with confidence. The seat and roomy footwells collect their own quiet praise for how they treat two people across a full day.
Low-speed handling draws the sharpest words. Owners are blunt that at a crawl the sheer heft has to be worked by hand, and a U-turn rewards balance and strong legs. Close behind come the brakes, which by most accounts need a firm, deliberate pull and hand back little feel, more so with a passenger and gear aboard. A steadier undertone concerns air off the fairing, with buffeting reaching the helmet quickly enough to wear on a long stint.
Clutch master cylinder may fail to disengage (safety recall)
On affected 2014-2015 FLHTCU models the clutch master cylinder may lose the ability to disengage the clutch, especially after the motorcycle has sat for an extended period, letting it creep forward in gear with the lever pulled. Dealers flush the clutch system and rebuild the master cylinder free of charge. NHTSA recall 15V216000.
Saddlebag mounting receptacles may not secure saddlebags (safety recall)
Affected 2014-2015 touring models (incl. FLHTCU) have saddlebag mounting receptacles that may not adequately secure the saddlebags; a bag may separate while riding. Dealers replace the receptacles free of charge. NHTSA recall 15V427000.
Where this Harley-Davidson Electra Glide Ultra Classic FLHTCU 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 Electra Glide Ultra Classic FLHTCU is actually built for.
If Sturgis and Daytona sit on your calendar and you ride for the sound and the culture, this Ultra Classic gives you the presence, the voice, and the full-dress look you came for.
Made for A1A — Florida Atlantic Coast · Black Hills / Sturgis Rally Hub · Daytona Main Street / Bike Week
Loaded two-up for Going-to-the-Sun or Beartooth, this bike is in its element: steady at speed, comfortable for hours, and packed with the luggage a long season on the road demands.
Made for Beartooth Highway · Blue Ridge Parkway · Going-to-the-Sun Road
You'll love the comfort and the highway calm on Blue Ridge or Highway 1, but at 913 lb this is a cruiser at heart, not the quick-steering sport-tourer for tight, busy days.
Made for Black Hills · Blue Ridge Parkway · Cherohala Skyway
If you're cross-shopping the older generation, here's what changed.
Previous generation · 2011–2016
Fully Loaded American Long Hauler
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 Electra Glide Ultra Classic FLHTCU. “cheaper/pricier” is what that bike costs second-hand, not how worn it is.
