The Best Touring Motorcycles Compared! Pursuit Vs Road Glide Limited

The Road Glide Limited and the Indian Pursuit are the pinnacle motorcycles when it comes to touring. Today we will see which one is the best.

[@mikewillette6383]

With the understanding that your review is purely subjective, I felt compelled to give my comparisons of the two bikes. Coming from a 2018 RGU that I put 30k miles on, to a 2022 Pursuit Darkhorse Premium, I have real world experience. For the record I am 6’ and 220#. I am not bashing Harleys in any way, however the Harley never fit me. The riding triangle on the Harley seems smaller. After changing seats, windshields, relocating the floorboard, changing the shocks, and moving the handle bar’s slightly different I could never get comfortable on the bike. After 50 miles I was wiggling around like a 5 year old on a sugar high. The Pursuit in stock form fit me better and in 7000 miles I haven’t changed a thing. Personally I like the PP108 over the M8 107. It has way more usable power and torque. I have the Bosch IMU and adjustable Fox suspension and that was a game changer for me. The adjustable windshield is a feature I thought was a waste of money, but now that I have one I won’t go back to a static one. The bike handles better then my RGU and my wife likes the plush ride when I adjust the suspension for two up riding. Personally I haven’t noticed any real difference in the storage capacity, however the locking bags are well worth the price of admission. The stock sound system is way better on the Pursuit, although the RideCommand Navigation is so quirky that I have given up using it and just use Google Maps on my phone. Yes the clear coat and paint are not the quality of HD’s but the features my Pursuit has over the RGU for +$5000 less has me overlooking that difference. I can always repaint the bike using the money saved. Again I am not bashing Harley, just giving my real world experience of owning and riding both bikes. Thanks for the video, I’m sure it will help some folks decide which bike is best for them.

[@peterchown1552]

Very fair & well though out response, I also find the power plus to be way way better than the 114 , & the Indian suspension is on a totally different level to the Harley. Yes fit & finish & paint quality isn’t up to Harley standards but that’s trivial really.

[@mcgoo721]

Any issues with heat from the engine, especially on the right side?

[@mikewillette6383]

@@mcgoo721 Not any more then the Harleys I had. They are all bad in stop and go traffic.

[@alanrainey8081]

The Pursuit has more features than the Road Glide Limited. Standard is the adjustable windshield, heated seat (standard) ride modes and you can update the entertainment system at home without a trip to the dealership. Better lean angle for better cornering. As far as upgrades, last I checked you can get load up the Pursuit for less than the Road Glide. The Pursuit has a programmable suspension system that you can dial into the rider, passenger and load (items in trunk, saddle bags) That I haven’t seen available for any Harley-Davidson. Maintenance is another big one. Less seals to leak, one fluid change, (in my opinion) better motor design. That said Harley-Davidson is not a bad bike, and if I’m ride with friends that have them (I’m the only Indian\Victory in the group most of the time. When I go to Daytona for Bike week I ride both brands, and Harley-Davidson is making improvements on their bikes, but for me. Indian is what I will buy again.

[@tax905972]

Go look up the recalls, for Indians. Most involve those electrical systems.

[@DJGENOTYPE]

@@tax905972the only recalls are for the ride commands Apple CarPlay. That’s it!

[@Mayjay87]

Funny thing about the gas tank on the Pursuit, it and the Scout tank resemble each other, and I love it.

[@alp3781]

100% Indian for me. Hands down! On All levels.

[@josephroberson9823]

Fit and finish, paint quality....dealership locations around the country...trade value... these are very important issues no one seems to address...as it's often said, you get what you pay for...

[@izzojoseph2]

Def cooler choices on the paint and more choices on location but do you think it’s worth that much more?

[@thomasreyes2857]

There's no comparison the Indians is a lot better motorcycle all the way around no matter how you look at it and you get a lot more for your money.

[@sixshooter4570]

I own a 2013 Victory Cross Country Tour in Boardwalk Blue Metallic and drove it to Iowa and had Rylan install Lloydz highway cams, filter, ¼ turn throttle, timing wheel and install Atom Bomb exhausts.He also raised the rev. limiter by 500 rpms. He tuned it to 110/110 and I went from 36 mph to 48 mph when it was a few weeks old. Of course driving it spirtedly I will get about 42 - 44 mph. 130 mph is my top speed and it still runs great today at 39,xxx miles. The tune help diminish the heat felt on the right side considerably. Rylan now tunes Indians, great guy and great customer service. Prior to my purchase, I test drove the Harley Ultra Glide limited and it just didn't fit me as good as the Victory, smaller foot boards, seating position, etc. I also liked the fact of much fewer seals/gaskets and easy maintenance on oil/belt change.

[@richardpace2484]

The Pursuit has plenty of room in the trunk, I do wish the bags sat back a little more or a little lower, and also that trunk could move back a couple inches. I have ridden my Pursuit over 7.200 miles and love every minute of it. Stock its a beautiful beast, that has plenty of storage for me on trips. I can get 2 full face helmets in the trunk without a problem. Paint is an issue on the Indian that does not seem to have a good enough clear on it and scratches pretty easy. I did get a Premium Dark horse.

[@marcusturner5291]

Nice video keep up the good work fella

[@fredcailloux2526]

Why no one mantion this? The Indian is lighter and handle better because he share the same aluminum frame as the Challenger. HD need a touring bike with an aluminum frame and a liquid cooled engine like the Revolution Max but bigger and tuned for more low end torque like the Indian P+ ASAP.

[@dennismims2999]

I commented on your Pursuit review but forgot a couple of things. I saw you putting your helmet in the trunk with the front of the helmet facing the back of the bike. I put my full face modular in with the front facing forward and into the outside corner. I'm not sure if that would help or not as I see that you've got a GoPro mount on yours. Even though I've not had a passenger on mine yet, I did notice how little room there seemed to be for the passenger so I installed a Rivco trunk relocation kit and it moved the trunk back 2". I do agree with you about trying to get the RG up off of the kickstand. It's always been one of my pet peeves. Anyhow, I do find your videos informative, and hopefully, you'll continue for a long time.

[@HegshotRides]

Thanks man

[@neverendingsavagery8753]

Of course the windshield is too high on the pursuit for him, he is only 5’7”. For someone 6’ and taller, it is great.

[@timedwardscustomknives5773]

i went with a klockwerks 8" flared tinted one and its great but im 5-9

[@HDR20]

The RGL weighs 932 not 972. The pursuit weighs 912 so 20 lbs difference. These numbers are straight from each manufacturer's website smdh

[@rivirme]

Yep

[@tax905972]

Did it tell you why ? probably for those potholes. Lighter bike, easier to get thrown off if you hit a bump in the road.

[@davidvaughn7778]

I was gonna say that 972 lbs would be an insane wet weight.

[@donfousek379]

What is the cost of ownership difference? That is a big question.

[@PDawgWms101]

I haven’t ridden the Pursuit, but on the Roadmaster and Chieftain, they both give out lots of heat on the right side near the cat. I think this is an engineering problem that I hope Indian has addressed. I owned a Victory in the past so I know that Polaris can make a great bike. I still love my Ultra more than the Indian due to aftermarket accessories and upgrades. This is a great video for the comparison. In the end, just keep the shiny side up and the rubber side down and ride ‘em like you stole ‘em!

[@timedwardscustomknives5773]

cat delete and heat goes away.

[@mtlvlgmnfishing]

I just bought a road glide limited the Indian with an even option

[@sirhc7938]

Most Polaris owners continuously justify why they like their bikes. Typically comes across as wishing they’d stayed with an HD.

[@SCFoster]

The nearest Indian dealerships to me are 41 miles, 56 miles and 72 miles respectively. For Harley the closest three are 7 miles, 13 miles and 28 miles. In fact there are 7 Harley dealerships closer to me than the closest Indian dealership and I'm in the middle of the North East which is very densely populated. So whether or not the Indian is better has to be weighed against the lack of dealerships. Dealt with this for BMWs, Ducati and KTM. Was a royal pain in the ass.

[@Prometheus1979]

I like the looks of the Indian. But I do prefer the looks of Harley. The Indian to me is too boxy looking and to much plastic looking as well. I hate the plastic on the side of the bags on the Indian, I feel like it cheapens the look of the bike. I would love to own one one day, but for now i love my Harleys. The look of the motor, sound, feel, paint job and customization is what keeps me with them.

[@Audi59]

Indian takes the win ..price , comfortable, performance, every way , Harley is just an over priced … shaker

[@bobmartin7409]

Good review. Remember, Victory motorcycles had a lot of the same features and much of the same hype that they were "better" than Harleys, etc... Believe me, I fell for it and got screwed. I looked at the Indians but couldn't get past what Victory had left me with. I test drove a Road Glide and several other Harley's and settled on the Limited. The Indians are beautiful bikes and I'm not hating on them... but the Harley Community is something to behold. There is also an endless amount of upgrades that you can do with a Harley, from dealer parts, to aftermarket parts, to shops that only work on Harleys. The Indians are just not at that level yet and their future is sketchy (in my opinion). To each his own but I'm now going with the brand that's been around for 120 years.

[@user-tm9ho3bm4v]

Indian is here to stay. Victory never had a global market. Indian does.

[@FacetiousUniqueness]

This video should have been the Pursuit vs CVO not the Unltd. The Pursuit mops this Unltd. My opinion. That “ fraction of a hair” you mentioned is that HD bias. 😂 Good review.

[@stephen3727]

I appreciate Your honest opinion on both bikes of course you are a Harley Davidson owner, so I feel there may be just a little bit of bias

[@RobertoBren]

At 1:19 you referred to the Indian Pursuit as the Callenger which is a completely different bike. Good review, solidifies my choice to be a member of the Tribe.

[@brucelee8951]

Of course Harley looks so well they take five years to give you one new thing whether tech or a new line on the body

[@lorib4407]

I sold my 2019 Street Glide Special that I dumped thousands into for a 2016 Roadmaster and I have only spent

[@TheYowzerr78]

Would be good to have someone that is not a HD fanboy to do a comparison

[@MaxJW-ln4xm]

You may call it small, but I think it's major, you can close the vents in the Indian fairing with a lever. You cannot close the Harley's. Spend & 1100 to 1500 to be able to take off that H-D tour pack when on every big Indian, you can take off a tour pack, stock/no extra charge from the factory.....

[@jimrhoads9075]

Indian doesn't offer android auto, deal breaker there.

[@phillippugh2161]

Ikr

[@davidvaughn7778]

Maybe I don't know how to use Android Auto correctly, but I've never liked using it.

[@airtexaco]

Man, you put the lloydz tune on the Challenger/Pursuit and you will never ride anything else. OK, I will never ride anything else!!

[@douglashawkins4402]

HD does a great job with style. Indian does a great job with performance. For what you have to spend for either, you should get both. Neither is worth the price. Find a used one and enjoy someone else's upgrades. haha

[@user-tm9ho3bm4v]

Goldwing. Years ahead of both harley and Indian. But the American brands have a certain charm to them

[@DurhamCorner]

The weight makes a big difference to me, as well as the torque and horsepower. The Challenger/Pursuit beats the crap out of the Road Glide.

[@mrdude3540]

Question....how much did harley pay you guys? Haha.

[@danman5857]

I am surprised one on from the far left has attempted to boycott to name Indian. Syrup apparently was an issue.

[@bradwilliams4921]

I ride a Softail but I think the RGL would have a more visceral feel than the Pursuit. I like to simplify things so to me it’s like comparing a Zippo lighter to a disposable BIC.

[@user-tm9ho3bm4v]

Have you had any issues with the softail? Been considering one for some time now

[@bradwilliams4921]

@@user-tm9ho3bm4v Hi. I have been riding my Softail (Fatboy) for 22 years now and it has been great. However I am confident that a newer Softail would ride better than mine as the frame was improved several years ago. I would highly recommend a Softail if you are looking to ride around town or maybe around the region but if you are looking to do some distance or overnight traveling then I would recommend a Touring model. I hope this helps.

[@user-tm9ho3bm4v]

​@@bradwilliams4921Thanks for the reply, harley has so many options that often times leaves me lost lol. I think a road king/fatboy is what I'm looking for, a daily that i can tour on holidays and weekends.

[@bradwilliams4921]

@@user-tm9ho3bm4v From my experience I would say that a Road King is a MUCH smoother ride. However keep in mind that Road Kings of the twin cam engine era have rubber mounted motors which make them shake when idling while Softail bikes have counter balanced motors which make them idle smoothly. Newer Road Kings with the M8 have counter balanced motors as well. I have never ridden a Touring bike with an M8 but I am sure that they are very smooth even at idle. You can put bags on a Fatboy but a Road King comes standard with locking saddle bags. So if you plan on traveling overnight and on Holidays I would probably go with the Road King. I wish you the best in your decision.

[@user-tm9ho3bm4v]

@@bradwilliams4921 thank you very much brother, ride on!

[@bigmike6853]

Harley fan boy 👦

[@mikerutt4476]

you are obviously Indian friendly..... Talk about riding 2 up.........

[@bobhartman2571]

Yeah, I'm still a Harley guy.

[@mrwhite2628]

I've had the Harleys. I'll take the Indian! It's a better bike.

[@user-yu1sw3lm8p]

Please give it up!

[@sixshooter4570]

I own a 2013 Victory Cross Country Tour in Boardwalk Blue Metallic and drove it to Iowa and had Rylan install Lloydz highway cams, filter, ¼ turn throttle, timing wheel and install Atom Bomb exhausts.He also raised the rev. limiter by 500 rpms. He tuned it to 110/110 and I went from 36 mph to 48 mph when it was a few weeks old. Of course driving it spirtedly I will get about 42 - 44 mph. 130 mph is my top speed and it still runs great today at 39,xxx miles. The tune help diminish the heat felt on the right side considerably. Rylan now tunes Indians, great guy and great customer service.