Culture
Myths: “Not an FXR”
Famous bikes that people call FXRs but are not, and a few FXR stories that do not hold up.
Common mix-ups
“The Terminator 2 bike is an FXR”
It is a Fat Boy. The hero bike in Terminator 2 (1991) is a Softail FLSTF Fat Boy. IMCDb does list a background FXR in the film, but it is not the famous bike.
Sources: Jalopnik, famous movie Harleys; Sound Harley, Harleys in movies
“Sons of Anarchy riders ride FXRs”
They ride Dynas. Jax Teller's bike is a Dyna Super Glide Sport, an FXDX. The letters look alike, but FXD is the Dyna family, not the FXR. The club bikes were mostly Dynas. Actor Chuck Zito's personal FXR (see Pop Culture) is a separate bike.
Sources: Bobber Brothers, Sons of Anarchy bikes; American Legend Rider, Jax Teller bike; SlashGear, Jax Teller's Harley
“The Marlboro Man bike is an FXRT”
It is a heavily customized 1989 FXR. Some blogs call Mickey Rourke's bike an FXRT Sport Glide. Builder accounts describe customized 1989 FXRs with no fairing, nothing like a stock FXRT.
Sources: RB Racing, Marlboro Man bike; Bobber Brothers, Marlboro Man bike
“Harley built the CVO FXRs to use up a pile of old frames”
Harley says no. Jim Hoffman told Cycle World's Big Twin, "We didn't find 1800 old frames in a warehouse"; the frame went back into production. Bob LeRoy told Hot Bike the tooling was on hand.
Sources: Cycle World's Big Twin, 1999 (via Hot Bike); Hot Bike, "The Saga of the FXR"
“An Evo FXR makes 64 hp and 67 lb-ft”
Those look like Shovelhead numbers. Cycle World printed a claimed 65 bhp and 67 lb-ft for the 1983 Shovelhead FXRT. Harley's claims for the Evolution were 71.5 to 72 bhp and 82 to 82.5 lb-ft. Stock rear-wheel numbers are lower again.
Sources: Cycle World, Aug 1983; Cycle World, Nov 1983; Cycle World, Jan 1987
“Deacon's bike in Days Gone is an FXR”
It is a custom game design. The developer describes Deacon's Drifter bike as its own design, not a licensed Harley FXR.
Sources: PlayStation Blog, Deacon's bike
“Lucifer's Hammer was an FXR”
It is an XR-based race bike. Harley's Battle of the Twins racer was built around XR engines, not the FXR street chassis. Erik Buell worked on both the FXR and his own XR1000-powered racer, which may be where the mix-up comes from.
“Race Across America has an FXR”
No FXR in the lineup. The licensed Harley racing game uses Dyna, Softail, Sportster and Road King models. For an FXR-family bike in a game, see Sega's L.A. Riders (Probable) on the Pop Culture page.
“There are die-cast FXR toys”
None verified. We found Fat Boy, Softail and Dyna models from the big die-cast makers but no verified FXR. Losi's "Promoto-MX FXR" is a radio-control product name, not a Harley.
Sources: Hot Wheels Wiki, Fat Boy
“The FXR was Harley's first rubber-mounted bike”
No. The 1980 FLT Tour Glide came first. The FLT Tour Glide, introduced for 1980, was the first modern Harley with a rubber-mounted powertrain: an 80 ci Shovelhead joined to a new five-speed gearbox, carried on three elastomer mounts. The FXR was designed around that same powertrain and mounting system, but in a new, lighter and stiffer FX-style frame. When it arrived for 1982 it was sold alongside the rigid-mount, four-speed FX models, so it was the first rubber-mounted FX-style bike, not the first rubber-mounted Harley.
Sources: Hot Bike, "Separating the Men From the Boys"; Rider, Sep 2017
“A Dyna is just a newer FXR”
Different frame, different mounts. The Dyna, from 1991, uses two rubber mounts instead of three and hides the triangulated rear frame tubes that FXRs show. Its battery box is exposed. The two were built side by side until 1994.
Sources: Hot Bike, "The Saga of the FXR"; Wikipedia, "Harley-Davidson Super Glide"
“FXR stands for Forever Excellent Roadster”
A joke. Rider's Kip Woodring opens his FXR history with that line, then gives the real meaning: F for Big Twin, X for the Sportster-derived front end, R for the rubber mounts.
Sources: Rider, Sep 2017
How to tell an FXR
- The engine sits on rubber mounts with two stabilizer links, one in front and one on top (Rider, Sep 2017).
- You can see triangulated frame tubes at the rear, under the seat. Dynas hide them (Hot Bike, "The Saga of the FXR").
- The oil tank and battery sit under a flip-up seat. On a Dyna the battery box is exposed (Hot Bike, "The Saga of the FXR").
- All FXRs have a five-speed gearbox (Wikipedia, "Harley-Davidson Super Glide").
- On a 1982 to 1994 bike, VIN positions 5 and 6 read E plus a letter from A to M (Rider, Sep 2017).
Sources
- Cycle World, "Harley-Davidson FXRT" road test, August 1983. Link
- Cycle World, "Harley-Davidson FLHTC" road test (first Evolution engine claims), November 1983. Link
- Cycle World, "Harley-Davidson Low Rider Custom FXLR" road test, January 1987. Link
- Brian Blades, FXR2/FXR3 story, Cycle World's Big Twin, April/May 1999, republished by Hot Bike as "Back When the Harley-Davidson FXR Made Its Return". Link
- Hot Bike, "Separating the Men From the Boys: The History of the FXR" (photos from the Harley-Davidson Archives; interviews Bob LeRoy). Link
- Hot Bike, "The Saga of the FXR" (includes an interview with Erik Buell). Link
- Kip Woodring, "Motorhead Memo: The Gentleman's Express", Rider Magazine, September 20, 2017 (year-by-year FXR history and VIN model codes). Link
- Wikipedia, "Harley-Davidson Super Glide" (FXR section), and the sources it cites, including Andy Hornsby, "A Potted History of Harley-Davidson", American-V. Link
- Jalopnik, famous Harley-Davidson motorcycles on the big screen (Terminator 2 Fat Boy). Link
- Sound Harley-Davidson, "Harley-Davidson Motorcycles in Movies". Link
- Bobber Brothers, "Sons of Anarchy Motorcycles: Jax's Bike". Link
- American Legend Rider, "Jax Teller Bike: The Exact Harley-Davidson Dyna in Sons of Anarchy". Link
- SlashGear, "What Kind Of Harley-Davidson Did Jax Teller Ride?" Link
- RB Racing, Mickey Rourke / Marlboro Man bike page. Link
- Bobber Brothers, "The Harley-Davidson and the Marlboro Man Bike". Link
- PlayStation Blog, "Building Deacon's Bike in Days Gone", April 23, 2019. Link
- HD Forums, "Lucifer's Hammer: Battle of the Twins Champion Race Bike". Link
- Cycle World, "1986 Buell RR1000", April 1986. Link
- Wikipedia, "Harley-Davidson: Race Across America". Link
- GameSpot, "Harley-Davidson: Race Across America" review. Link
- Hot Wheels Wiki, "Harley-Davidson Fat Boy". Link
Full bibliography and image credits: Sources & Credits. Magazine pages are linked, never copied or hosted here. Spot an error? Tell us.