Tourers Motorcycles

Honda shows its commitment to continual improvement with its 2022 array of top-shelf, tour-tastic Gold Wing models. The Gold Wing range received a handful of improvements to include reworked heads and cylinders that reduce the weight of the drivetrain plus stock foglights and revised ergonomics to boost performance, safety, and comfort across the boards. Of course, this comes on top of the speed and handling for which the Gold Wings have long been famous to make it a serious competitor in the U.S. touring market.

Indian rolls out its MY22 Super Chief Limited in the 2021 season to add a nostalgic note to the new Super Chief platform. Powered by a Thunderstroke 116 plant, the “SCL” bundles modern performance and electronics with old school custom looks that hail all the way back to the years immediately after the end of WWII. Chrome and blackout combine to complete the homegrown panache that the SCL wears so well.

Indian Motorcycle rolled into MY2020 with a net-new bagger family powered by an all-new powerplant with some serious ride-quality and safety features as the icing on the cake. The “Challenger” range marks a new era for America’s oldest motorcycle manufacturer with impressive power numbers and a look that’s borrows from the past even while it reaches for new territory and, I’m sure the factory hopes, an expanded buyer base. Fixed fairings, new electronics, and a powerful engine are the hallmarks of this machine, and it’ll be interesting to see how it performs in the market against its longtime domestic foe, Harley-Davidson.

Kawasaki leaps ahead to its 2022 model-year lineup with a new KLR 650 family. The base model comes with a number of improvements to the engine and electronics, all wrapped up under new bodywork. Fuel injection replaces the carburetor this year to modernize the powerplant along with a new instrument panel and updated lighting that does the same for the rest of the bike. If the base model isn’t exactly as adventure-tastic as you’d like, the factory put together an “Adventure” accessory pack and a touring “Traveler” trim package for a pair of bona fide adventure bikes that are good to go right off the showroom floor.

Kawasaki’s Vulcan 1700 line is well established with the Vaquero and the Voyager — a bagger and full dresser, respectively — both come with ABS and, as the name suggests, the 1700 cc engine in the V-twin configuration with liquid cooling and a six-speed transmission. Ready for a cruise around town or hitting the open road, the Vulcan 1700s are well fitted and all-around solid.

Indian Motorcycle rolled into MY2020 with an all-new model family – the Challenger – that comes complete with a new look, powerful 122-horsepower PowerPlus engine and improved safety equipment to keep America’s oldest bike builder competitive against challengers domestic and abroad. The inaugural year sees a trio of packages ready for public consumption, but it’s the sinister, boulevard-bruiser blackout Dark Horse version we’re going to look at today. Like the rest of the Dark Horse category, it makes a visceral connection to the custom-life underbelly of American motorcycling and brings a showroom-custom vibe to the new Challenger line.

No doubt about it, Indian Motorcycle entered a new chapter with its all-new Challenger line and PowerPlus engine, and so far, the toppest-shelfest example of that combination is the Challenger Limited. It has that custom bagger style that Americans like so much along with a host of electronic goodies that improve safety and comfort over the long haul. Of course, the 120-plus pound-feet of torque it brings to the table doesn’t hurt at all, neither does all the historical Easter eggs the factory scattered about to tie into its own storied history.

It was more a question of “when” rather than “if” BMW was going to branch out with its retro-styled R 18 family tree, and it seems the factory opted for sooner rather than later with the release of the new-for-2022 Bagger “B” and Transcontinental. The classically-designed platform carries touring-minded bodywork up front along with 27-liter hard bags out back, and together cover the touring market as well as the boulevard bruiser segment. Power comes from the most powerful Boxer Twin to ever come from Beemer, and they carry an electronics suite that is frankly surprising, even from a marque so well known for its technological prowess..

Harley-Davidson rebrands its tourbike line under the “Grand American Touring” banner in 2021, and the American marque marks the occasion with the all-new Electra Glide Revival. This bike is a bona fide rolling tribute that brings classic design elements together with top-shelf electronics and a large powerful engine, all of a more recent vintage to make this a thoroughly modern ride.

Indian Motorcycle made a number of changes to its touring lineup ahead of MY2020 including a new powerplant for its full-dress Roadmaster. The base-model Roadmaster hits important historical high notes and maintains the full-size front fairing, but the real news here is the addition of the new Thunder Stroke 116 engine that toes the family line and pumps out over 120 pounds of stump-pulling torque. Comfort and luxury for the every-rider are the hallmarks of the Roadmaster, and it delivers with its usual style and aplomb.

America’s oldest motorcycle manufacturer rolls into model-year 2022 with a new platform that pulls double duty as a celebration of the Chief’s 100th anniversary; the Indian Super Chief. Old-school bagger style and homegrown custom details join to set this new machine apart from the pack. Available with and without ABS, the Super Chief is powered by the proven Thunder Stroke 111 plant. It comes shot in monochromatic paint schemes on the sheet metal with liberal blackout treatment everywhere else. The Super Chief is a rolling history lesson, and class is in.

BMW’s tradition of large, beautifully-built and brilliant touring bikes continues with the 2021 R1250RT. More power from the 1254cc engine, more comfort, more electronics and more ability add up to a motorcycle that is possibly the best touring bike on the market today.

Yamaha took a little hiatus from the full-dresser market to the tune of almost a half-decade, but the Tuning Fork Company broke its fast in 2018 with the release of the all-new Star Venture. This ride clearly comes geared to take on Harley-Davidson’s touring line in general, and the Road Glide Ultra specifically. Ambitious? You betcha, but Yamaha did its homework and put together a machine that brings a torquey, big-inch, V-twin to the U.S. market in a rather tour-tastic package with over 37 gallons of dry storage across the two hard bags and trunk box.

BMW heads into MY2021 with a significant facelift and upgrade package for its bagger-tastic R 1250 RT. A nip here and tuck there presents a new face to the world with equally-new instrumentation and a revised windscreen to complete the package. As a showroom bagger, it rolls with rider comfort as a front-burner item and comes stock with panniers for immediate utility as a tour bike, commuter, or grocery-getter. The cherry on top is the Active Cruise Control feature that uses radar technology to bring a level of safety to the motorcycle market that has mainly been restricted to use on vehicles with four wheels or more.