2007 Harley Davidson Custom Vehicles Operations (CVO) Dyna

The CVO Dyna was another bike I tested during the launch of the four new Custom Vehicles Operations Harley Davidsons, and it was the bike I was least comfortable on. I am not too fond of sticking my feet out front to ride, and, even at a hair under six feet, the reach to the Dyna’s foot controls was quite a stretch. Twist the throttle hard, get into some challenging riding, and this is quickly forgotten, as it is the best handling of the group, and the most exiting. The CVO Dyna is also without a doubt also the most aggressive Harley Davidson produced, V-Rod excluded, and feels like a high-class street fighter. Whack an extra front disc on this thing, a racing master cylinder, some suspension work and stickier tires, and the Dyna would develop a seriously nasty attitude. While the brakes and the suspension were getting tweaked, it would be the perfect time to slip on a set of Screamin Eagle mufflers, or a set of Eagle II race mufflers, to let the engine breath and give some more audio.

Visually, the Dyna is a very distinctive looking machine, and from the saddle the view of the chrome gauges, triple trees, and headlight is extremely clean. Like the Springer, it sits low, but without a fairing still gets breezy at speed on the highway. This isn’t a big problem though, as the wind hits you square on and doesn’t push you around. Inspired by the pro-street scene, which would explain its low, lean aggressive nature, it is the first air-cooled Harley I have seen to use inverted forks. These work well, giving a smooth ride with no drastic dive during braking. The straight-cut mufflers seem to give the most sound of the four models on test, and the Electronic Sequential Port Fuel Injection (ESPFI) like all the other CVO models, is just superb.

This is an area Harley has gotten just right, and along with the Screamin Eagle performance upgrades, one that is responsible for the strong build up of power as the rpm rise. With a pair of four-inch pistons slugging it out below, you would think the engine would give a lot of vibration. But, with all the models on test here, the Road King excluded, this is not the case, and this increase in bore size nets a healthy 20 per cent increase in torque over last year’s 103 cubic inch CVO power plant. The Harley engineers were totally tight lipped about horsepower figures, stating HD doesn’t give them out for their big twins, but there were very forthcoming about the 105 ft. lbs of torque that arrives at 3000 rpm for Dyna.

This is a lower figure than the 115 made by the Ultra Classic and the Road King. From the way the bike makes its power, as there are no published numbers, I would say the Dyna uses a higher compression ratio. With its lower torque figure, and appetite for revs over the touring rigs, it is probably producing a few more horses. It defiantly feels a lot faster and sportier when you twist the throttle.

As with the other CVO modes, it comes with three traffic stopping paint schemes: Inferno red and desert black, silver rush and midnight black, and twilight blue and granite with ice blue pearl. Looking like you could put your swimsuit on and dive in, the paint is so deep people are going to be asking you for the name of your painter when you park. Interestingly, among the multitude of custom parts assaulting the senses, while I was looking at the gas tank I noticed a flush mount cap. As an item taken straight from the world of custom bike building, I mentioned it to Team Manager Randy Riley. All part of the philosophy at the Custom Vehicles Operations headquarters, to find the coolest, trickest components to ensure CVO Dyna is one of the most comprehensive customs on the road.

Coming to a Harley dealer near you at $24,995 ($25,095 in California) it is in the same price bracket as the Springer. This is nine grand more than the stock Dyna Low Rider, but adding up all the engine work, extra chrome, paint and accessories, it is a great deal. Especially when it comes with a full factory warranty, and you can still run it by your local dealer for servicing.