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Harley-Davidson Introduces 2017 Road King Special

American bike maker Harley-Davidson just upgraded its 2017 range with yet another cool model that keeps on with the tradition but adds a dash of modern style. We’re talking about the Road King Special, which is now darker and meaner than before.
2017 Harley-Davidson Road King Special 14 photos
Photo: Harley-Davidson
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Starting with the heart of the cruiser, the Road King Special is powered by the new Milwaukee-Eight V-twin engine. You should also note this is the first Harley-Davidson model to come with a blacked-out engine.

And that’s not everything that is black on the bike, as the new Road King Special ditched all chrome parts and trimmings in favor of matte black or gray, making it look more supple and meaner.

As H-D describes “you can see it coming from a mile away. Big and dramatic like a locomotive rolling through a train yard at midnight. Blacked-out from its headlight nacelle front forks and new wheels to its powerful Milwaukee-Eight engine, headers and exhaust.”

The bike comes with a low-profile fender, low-mount license plate, and trim-fitting saddlebags. It also sits a bit lower than the standard model with the seat height measuring 26.4 inches, compared to 28.2 inches from before, and is 10 pounds lighter.

“The Road King is our biggest bike without a fairing, and it’s a really unique riding experience,” said Brad Richards, successor to Willie G. Davidson and head of styling and design. “You kind of feel like you’re on a locomotive with that big nacelle kind of haunching out over the front wheel. The visceral experience of riding the bike is really unique, and it’s pure Road King. Through redesigning the bike we got invigorated about the Road King again and we wanted to strip FL back down to its essence.”

The launch color of the new Road Kind Special is an interesting Olive Gold shade that perfectly matches the dark appearance of the bike. In this configuration, you have to fork out $22,449. You will pay the same on the Charcoal Denim, while the Vivid Black costs $21,999 and the Hard Candy Custom Hot Rod Flake is $21,399.
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