2017–2020 · Tourer · Buyer's Guide
No Fairing, No Apologies
The Road King FLHR is the classic American bagger stripped to its essentials. At its heart sits the 1745 cc Milwaukee-Eight 107, a 45° air/oil-cooled V-twin making 88 hp and a thick 111 lb-ft of torque at just 3,250 rpm, fed through a six-speed box. There's no fairing and no infotainment screen, just analog gauges, a quick-release windshield, and hard saddlebags on a long, comfortable touring chassis. ABS comes standard. This is the purest reading of the Road King idea: a big, honest highway machine built around the feel of the open road rather than the tech stack bolted to it.
On the road it rides like what it is, a heavy, planted cruiser that rewards a relaxed pace and long, straight horizons. Build quality feels genuinely solid, and the near-limitless aftermarket means you can shape it to your taste over years of ownership. The honest caveat sits with the early engines. Some 2017-2018 Milwaukee-Eight 107 units had oil pump and sumping trouble, and there were recalls on this run, so buy with the service history in hand. Get a sorted example and it ages into an old friend. It's for the rider who wants presence and feel first, gadgets a distant second.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 88 hp (65 kW) |
|---|---|
| Torque | 111 lb-ft (150 Nm) @ 3,250 rpm |
| Displacement | 1745 cc |
| Engine | 45° V-twin |
| Cooling | Air/oil-cooled |
| Gearbox | 6-speed |
| Fork | Telescopic |
| Front tire | 130/80B17 65H |
| Rear tire | 180/65B16 81H |
| Wheelbase | 64.0 in (1626 mm) |
| Seat height | 28.2 in (716 mm) |
| Wet weight | 836 lb (379 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 6.0 gal (22.7 L) |
Equipment check
Chassis
Connectivity
Lighting
Safety
Swing a leg over and the 28.2-inch seat drops you low and settled, feet flat, the whole 836-pound machine feeling planted before you've moved. Thumb the starter and the V-twin shakes the bars for a beat, then smooths into a steady, low-frequency thrum you feel more than fight. At a highway roll the quick-release shield pushes the worst of the blast up over your chest, and the hard bags sit quiet behind you. What stays with you is composure. Cross an open, wind-raked stretch and the Road King tracks dead straight, unbothered by gusts or passing rigs. Your hands stay loose, your back stays comfortable, and the miles pile up without the low-grade fatigue that wears you down on lesser tourers. This is a bike that asks very little of your body.
This isn't my own test ride. It's what I've gathered over years of listening to Road King owners: talk in the paddock, conversations at club nights, and the steady stream of messages riders send me directly. For this FLHR, one pattern keeps surfacing.
Two things dominate the good reports: comfort and the engine. Owners keep coming back to how far this bike carries them without leaving them stiff or drained, holding a steady line down the interstate. The low-end pull earns its own appreciation, making town speeds and passing feel unhurried. There's real affection too for the stripped, honest styling with nothing bolted on for show, plus the quick trick of pulling the shield and bags to ride it bare.
The complaints repeat with the same regularity. Skip the fairing and you catch everything the weather throws at you, and a full day in that blast wears on some riders. Slow-speed handling is the other constant, the bulk asking for a firm hand when you maneuver or turn around in tight space. A handful also wish for more electronic backup, since there's no traction control or selectable riding modes here.
Secondary clutch actuator may leak internally
Recall for 2017-2018 models: the secondary clutch actuator cylinder may leak fluid, leading to clutch disengagement failure and loss of control.
Early M8 oil pump and sumping issues
Some early Milwaukee-Eight 107 engines (2017-2018) experienced oil pump failures leading to sumping (crankcase filling with oil), causing high oil consumption and potential engine damage. A redesigned oil pump was introduced mid-2019.
Missing primary vent recall
Early production 2017 models lacked a vent in the primary drive, which could cause pressure buildup. A recall (campaign 18V734000) was issued to install a vent.
Where this Harley-Davidson Touring Road King FLHR 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 Touring Road King FLHR is actually built for.
This is your bike. The sound, the presence, and the bottomless parts catalog are exactly what makes a Sturgis or Daytona run feel like a statement. It looks and sounds the part every mile.
Made for A1A — Florida Atlantic Coast · Black Hills / Sturgis Rally Hub · Daytona Main Street / Bike Week
It'll cover the big routes in real comfort and stay rock-steady loaded or two-up. Just know the quick-release shield is your only weather cover, so pack for wind and rain on the long hauls.
Made for Beartooth Highway · Blue Ridge Parkway · Going-to-the-Sun Road
Straight talk: at 836 pounds this Road King isn't built for tight, technical twisties. It'll manage a Blue Ridge cruise, but for real corner work you want something far lighter.
Made for Back of the Dragon · Blue Ridge Parkway · Cherohala Skyway
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 Touring Road King FLHR. “cheaper/pricier” is what that bike costs second-hand, not how worn it is.
