HARLEY-DAVIDSON FAT BOB FXFB (2018 - on) Review

Brakes are effective in dry conditions. I don't ride in the wet so unable to offer an opinion on how well it stops in the rain. This bike is very heavy which means it does not stop as smartly as a sport bike. This was another reason we had to part company. It's a difficult feeling to describe. I always felt 'in control' in the twisties but I was always aware of the undeniable fact this bike is a heavy beast which would be extremely difficult to lift off your leg if you got it wrong & ended up in a ditch. Ride quality (seat & suspension) are good. I could ride this bike for several hours in comfort.

Immensely powerful engine which delivers eagerly. No complaints re the power. It's not the same acceleration as a sport bike - but the engine has all the grunt you're ever going to need for overtaking & then some. Unfortunately I really disliked the clunky box. It prob came straight off a WW2 truck.

Harley Davidsons are expensive. I was disappointed with the build quality. I sold it because the bike was just starting to show signs of corrosion in the places where you might expect it. It's possible that stone damage could have started the paint flaking off the underside of the engine casing but at this price point (£17k) it shouldn't be happening. Other places where corrosion was evident included the nuts securing the mirror arms to the handlebars & on the exhaust. There were no breakdowns in my ownership of 12 months.

Service costs were about what I'd expect to pay (£300). Oil change, belt check & new tyres after 2500 miles.

Standout positive feature was the sound this monster makes. No need for a horn. Just blip the engine. It's louder. The one feature I really missed from other bikes - no heated grips on the Bob. For the price HD charge for these bikes you'd think this would be included as standard.

One of the few soft-tails with twin discs up front - this should be a must Harley Ride was ok but dangerous dunlops had to go awful when damp - a poor choice of tyre - replaced with cruisetecs they changed the bike

114 motor needs improvement- had a 117 conversion but it needs more

Not the best build quality as the paintwork on the tank was poor .Spots of corrosion appeared in the first 12months . Switchgear failure (right side controls) was the main reason to get rid off - no replacement available for 4months - come on Harley get your act together as if you don’t someone will get hurt . Condensation in the clock - local dealer refused to do anything about it - that’s normal was the reply Brake pedal was on order for 12 months never got it

Average but when work was carried out some parts/rates were unreasonable

Very basic - had to retrofit cruise control and heated grips - no electronics or aids apart from ABS (basic) but Harley doesn’t do modern technology they always get it wrong

It's alright.....again. Brakes are adequate....just, but I am used to the modern Japanese anchors. Strangely, the rear brake actually does something, not a lot, but something. It is a relatively stiff ride, even with the preload on zero (6'3" 14 stone), but not jarringly so. Whack the preload up and your dental bills will exceed your Harley parts bill. For no great gain. I would never call it a tourer. An hour and I want to have a rest. Most surprising thing? This beast actually handles and well. Yes, it weighs about the same as a house, but the new design frame makes for assured cornering (on Cobra Chromes, junk the OEM tyres) and your bottle will probably go before you run out of ground clearance. And no feeling of a frame with a hinge in the middle. One thing, tyre pressures need to be spot on or it can get a bit wayward.

Archaic tractor bought into the 21st century. It goes quite well. If you want to pull 3G on takeoff, look elsewhere. But for everyday usage, it is tractable, responds well and gives about 44mpg. 94bhp is less than a half decent 600 these days and although the torque is good, it is no more than many other well sorted Japanese bikes at half the capacity. Definitely a stick some highway pegs on, riser bars and lope along at 1800rpm is the order of the day. And it will do that in spades.

Rattling gas cap. Ten minute DIY fix. Fogging and wonky clock. Ten minute DIY fix. Lopsided mudguard. You guessed it, ten minute DIY fix. Wonky handlebars. About an hour and new polyurethane riser bushes at £100. Gaping hole under seat. Twenty minute fix and £15 parts. So, an hour or fairly easy spanner work and £200 and it is where it should be. This should be a part of any dealers PDI. So, if you are a modern TFT screen techy rider who is "everything is the dealer", this bike is probably not for you. If you can do the basic checks such as oil, air, stick it on an Optimate every time and some routine spannering to tighten a few things up now and again, or maybe fit a screen or something of that nature, the Harley might surprise you with its competence.

Everything is expensive if you need parts. Fortunately, the M8 softails seem to be fairly robust, so routine servicing seems to be the main thing if you look after it and do your routine checks. Everyone has a bad insurance story, but the HD insurance is not badly priced. HOWEVER, you do need to factor in the extra bits and bobs they throw into the cover. Once you load up the other well known providers with those add ons, they are much of a muchness on price. And you can get agreed value on the HD insurance at no extra charge.

Haha. One clock, a rev counter dial and a digital speedo (plus fuel, odo, neutral light all in one). Cable clutch. Self cancelling indicators. ABS. That is about it. But if you are of an age when you can't see the tiny writing on the TFT screens on the Yamaguchi 900, a single rev and speed clock works surprisingly well. It is all you actually NEED.

Brilliant bike for full day riding. Round trips from West Yorkshire to North Queensferry in day is no problem at all. Diabetic testing/Petrol stops force you to take breaks, 54+ mpg, unless playing around which is still high 40's. Catches other riders by surprise with how quick it actually is for a large bike. Good for two up too, still handles really well.

Engine is brilliant, but could do with a slipper clutch when down shifting when playing.

Pretty well built, but digital has a tendancy to get covered up by condensation, common problem with Fat Bob's, but Harley Davidson think it's not their fault!!!!

Don't use Harley Davidson dealer, use local specialist who doesn't want arm and a leg for decent service. I can't understand why servicing is only every 5000miles, bit poor in this day and age.

Seat and riding position are spot on. Need to get rid of the original tractor tyres and fit Pirelli Night Dragons or Metzellers. You also have to be careful with rear tyres when getting close to 5000miles, starts to rip tread off with torque.

Sporty feel for a Harley. Brakes are okay for the weight.

Plenty of power and torque, traction control would make this a safer bike.

No real issues, noisy engine, they told me was normal. But mine is louder than any others.

I do regular maintenance, Harley cost is way to high.

Aftermarket anything, Harley is to expensive.

Live the the Fat Bob, can ride to North Queensferry, in Scotland, and back to Yorkshire in day with no problem 👍

Tyres are poor, and paintwork not brilliant

Original tyres are too noisy and are poor☹️

It's a big heavy bike and ride it as such and it can be fun. The front brake is good enough with decent feel, but you need to give it a handful to stop in a hurry. Rear brake is a bit wooden though. OE Dunlop tyres are utterly lethal in the wet and shouldn't be on the bike. Change them! I'm six foot three and long legged and I'm ok for a tank of petrol, around 120 miles, before needing a break. No worse than any other bike for my skinny backside! Pillion comfort with the wider seat is ok too. Longest ride I've done is 250 miles on a mix of A and twisty B roads. I've got a HD screen on mine, which I'd recommend.

Engine is good. Plenty of pulling power for heavy bike and 15 stone rider. Luggage or pillion isn't a problem either. If you want a missile look elsewhere though, or be up for spending up to around four grand on performance mods.

I clean it with Muc-off after every ride and garage it, and it's off the road over winter but still some of the engine fasteners have corroded. Why they have some in stainless and some in cheap alloy crap I don't know. Speedo mists up, same problem as my previous HD, a 2000 year Dyna Lowrider. The paint on the tank is crap, so if you buy one make sure to get some Turtlewax scratch removal polish.

Usual expensive HD hourly rate. At Edinburgh HD you're well looked after though.

ABS, that's about it for standard kit, although there is a usb socket and a lead for a battery maintainer, which you need as the standard alarm is a real drain. The HD seat £350 and screen £370 I've fitted are premium priced but are good quality to be fair. As already mentioned the OE tyres are extermely bad in the wet. I take my other bike out if there's a hint of rain for that reason. Next service I'll be getting Metzeler Cruisetecs fitted. I had those on my last HD and they were superb.

Stock tyres are shocking. Change them as soon as you can, changes the bike massively and its a joy to ride after. Go for the 200 rear as well as it fits straight on.

Very torque and fast enough. Add a nose fairing helps deflect the wind a bit.

Paint came off mirror within a week. Indicator lense just fell off. Speedo glass fogs over when damp and you can't see the info.

Great for country ride outs

no sign of corrosion unfortunately the speedo mists up ( a common fault ) which HD doesn't accept responsibility for ??

HD prices are high but as a uncomplicated machine running costs are reasonable

riding position is great, standard tyres not great in wet . a screen is well worth it

comfortable to ride brakes are good not great

Servicing is fine , insurance however is not

the engine is why I bought it , great up to legalish motorway speed's its not a race bike

After 1 hour of continued riding I need a rest especially for my bum lol

Does what it should pulls like a train even two up you wouldn't notice a passenger on the back

For a Harley this is superb, it is vastly improved by ditching the original Teflon Dunlop tyres and fitting something that actually sticks!

Nice and grunty, sounds superb with a set of cans and a Vance and Hines FP3 sorts out all the issues.

The downside with this bike is the paint. I have made plastic models with better quality of paint than this. It has Lancia quality finish, definitely bio degradable!

Service costs depends on mileage. I like to use my bikes so it does soon add up. It is not bad on petrol hitting high 40's if you don't drive it like you stole it.

ABS...............that it!

takes a while to embed in but strong performance

lazy and lumpy :)

no issues after 2 years

awesome servicing at reading

Clearer dispalys would be good

Early days no issues as yet. Rides nice and smooth with no vibration. Front a little soft.

Great performance and torque. Takes a while to get the hang of which gear when slow cornering. I found first a little harsh and better to keep it in second and slip the clutch slightly otherwise your hands are removed from the bars.

Great no keys and better view of cluster

Surprisingly usable motorcycle. Not for two up touring but pillion seat OK for my daughter on short trips. All day comfy ride below motorway speeds so best suited for A/B road cruising. The bike handles surprisingly well for it's size and the suspension is pretty good. Only adjustable for preload at the rear and at 80kg I need the shock wound right out or it's too harsh. The brakes are excellent.

It's a Harley and a unique experience. Cruising along a favourite road on a sunny day and it makes a lot of sense. Try and push on and you'll soon find it's limitations.

How long have you got? Battery drain overnight. Faulty fuel cap. Faulty preload adjuster. Condensation in clock. Wonky handlebar and clock. Thin paint easily scratched on both matt and lacquered finishes. Paint rubbing off. Corrosion issues and paint flaking off all over the bike i.e. Forks, regulator, indicators, bolts and fixings, etc. I'm too scared to look underneath now. Some issues fixed but most blamed on "poor maintenance and environmental issues."

Considering the bike cost over £16k I expect better so it's overpriced. Most H-D dealerships are around £100ph now. £300 for the annual oil change. Parts are ludicrously expensive. However, the engines are basic so If you can service it yourself or know a decent independent mechanic then they are relatively cheap to run. High insurance cost though.

ABS is your lot in terms of rider aids. It has keyless ignition and a factory fitted alarm which I can't help thinking will cause me issues in the future. OE tyres look the part and are fine in the warm but hopeless in the cold and/or wet. S&S slip ons improve the sound without being obnoxious.

First off the brakes are excellent, some of the best I've used recently. The bike is comfortable and the stock suspension is pretty good for UK B roads, just make sure that you adjust the shock with the remote pre-load adjuster. Handling is good as long as you remember what you are riding, it takes a good old push of counter steer to turn in the front wheel but it holds a very stable line. I personally don't find it particularly comfortable on the motorway above 70 but that may be the fact that I don't exclusively ride in the cruiser position, I would rather travel distances on my XSR, but cruising on the back roads at 60 it's all day comfy. The pillion seat is fine for my 7 yo daughter, but not a grown up size.

I have to love the engine. Yes it's under powered for it's size but it is a nice place to be with it thrumming away. The sheer weight of the motorcycle means that you're never going to win many races but it's nice riding the torque out of corners. Very smooth for the capacity too. I was specifically looking for a bike to cruise on as I own other sports bikes so in this market with the likes of the V7, Speedmaster, CB1100 etc, the Harley engine just has a lot more of the 'C' word than all of those other bikes so it's the one I'm happier to potter along on and not be frustrated by the traffic or get impatient.

After less than a year with 2500 dry miles the cracks are showing. Excessively vibrating (non locking) fuel cap replaced, pre-load adjuster stiff and a software patch after an overnight battery drain. However, the condensation in the clock and all the paint peeling off the regulator has been blamed on 'cosmetic and environmental issues'. Harley have not been empathic about these issues despite my assurances that I haven't taken it green laning... I'll admit that I don't have high expectations for the long term reliability of the bike and with hindsight I probably wouldn't have bought it. I expect better on a £16k+ bike.

Considering the apparent lack of build quality then the purchase price seems more than excessive. Palatable if you want the 'lifestyle' though which appeals to some. Harley dealers by me tend to be around £100-110 per hour but thankfully there are some very good independents locally. Parts and accessories are as expensive as you would expect.

Some slip-on's make it sound just right, not too obnoxious. The stock tyres look the part but they are terrible in the winter and only slightly better in the wet, I may swap them for some Cruisetecs. Non-locking fuel cap and a ridiculously placed speedo are impractical and the keyless ignition/alarm comes standard but I would rather not have them. I would recommend putting on an oil cooler guard ASAP.