Harley’s Most Underrated Bike Just Proved Everyone Wrong

Cycle World

The 2025 Harley-Davidson Heritage 117 brings classic Softail styling together with the power of Harley’s Milwaukee-Eight 117 engine, creating a cruiser that blends nostalgia with modern performance. In this review, Cycle World takes a deep dive into what makes the Heritage stand out in Harley’s lineup, from its relaxed ergonomics and clean analog cockpit to its timeless design that favors feel over tech. Compared with the popular Low Rider ST, the Heritage 117 proves that simplicity, comfort, and real-world versatility still matter. Whether you’re cruising city streets or logging highway miles, this bike reminds you why Harley’s old-school DNA still hits hard today.  Become a Channel Partner: https://octanemedia.co/home/become-an-advertiser/ Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6CLI74xvMBFLDOC1tQaCOQ Read more from Cycle World: https://www.cycleworld.com/ Buy Cycle World Merch: https://teespring.com/stores/cycleworld

Transcript

00:00Harley-Davidson's Lowrider ST has seen massive popularity since its launch, and all for good

00:05reasons.

00:06It's fun to ride, it's versatile with wind management and saddlebags, and it's perfectly

00:10on trend with West Coast and club-style aesthetics.

00:13But could there be a downside to that popularity, and is there a bike that might be able to do

00:18more for less?

00:20Maybe a bike that looks a lot like this?

00:24Meet the Heritage Softail.

00:26Again.

00:30Harley-Davidson introduced the Softail line in 1984, and the Heritage was introduced

00:47shortly thereafter in 1986.

00:49It was then made consistently until 1999.

00:53After that, it sort of came and went from the Harley-Davidson lineup until it was reintroduced

00:57on the new Softail platform in 2017.

01:00Recently we see the Heritage updated from a 114 cubic inch engine to this 117 cubic inch

01:06Milwaukee 8.

01:07Like many Harley-Davidson models, the components that are on this define what the bike is, how

01:12it looks, and how it sort of wants to be ridden.

01:14You see Mini-Ap handlebars, floorboards, a removable two-tone windshield, and these leather

01:20saddlebags that are hard-cased inside.

01:22There's sort of a 1950s silhouette, there's minimal tech, it's a big engine focused on

01:27the ride, the feel, and experience of the road.

01:30On a bike like this that's so based in heritage, it's important what's not on the bike as much

01:36as it is what's on the bike.

01:37There's clean lines at the handlebars, you don't have Bluetooth control or media control

01:41for a screen that doesn't display your media or speakers that aren't there.

01:46There's no extra buttons for heated seat and grips that don't exist.

01:49It's just clean and simple.

01:54At low speeds you can still really feel the weight of the Heritage, but it's also easy

01:58to just throw around.

01:59It's got a low center of gravity and very good clutch and throttle feel.

02:03Managing those at low speeds is easy and it's easy to feel very in control of the bike.

02:09High speed handling feels really good.

02:11The bike feels stable.

02:12The chassis doesn't flex or rock too much for you.

02:15You can run out of rear shock pretty quickly.

02:17There's not a ton of travel there, so it is possible to bottom out.

02:20You know, if you're really sending it, you will hit scrape points.

02:24And the ergonomics aren't completely conducive for very aggressive riding, but it will surprise

02:30you how hard you can push this bike and how much you can get out of it if you want to

02:34go and hoon a little bit.

02:36Like on a lot of cruisers, with the Heritage you have to sort of use a full hand grab on that

02:40front lever to get good brake performance.

02:43It's a single disc.

02:44I do wish there was a little bit more bite.

02:46I wish it was a little bit more reactive, but it's plenty adequate in practice.

02:50Rear brake is the same.

02:52You know, not a lot of feel to the lever, but it's adequate, works pretty well.

03:02On this model, we do have the Mini Ape handlebars, which gives you a wide range of adjustments.

03:06So when I got the bike, I loosened up the risers and pushed those forward just a little bit,

03:10giving me a little bit more range.

03:12And I like how it lines up with the forks.

03:14If you are a little shorter stature, you can do the opposite, pull it back to you, and that's

03:19just a quick, free, easy adjustment.

03:23So when you pull the bike out first thing in the morning, you know, and you wheel it back

03:27down the driveway and you shift it from neutral to first, there's always this little bit of

03:30a clunk into gear.

03:33And for me, that's sort of a classic Harley Davidson thing.

03:36It feels nostalgic of, you know, the past bikes I've owned and ridden to someone else

03:40that might feel a little clunky, might feel a little unrefined, but once you are riding

03:45the bike and shifting through the gears, not just out of neutral, it is smooth, it does

03:49feel more refined, and it does feel like a good system.

03:54Harley Davidson always does a really good job of tuning the touch points on a motorcycle differently

03:59for each model, so how much vibration is relayed through the risers to the handlebars, through

04:04your foot pegs or floorboards, really matches the model and the style.

04:09So this one, I do get some feel to the bars, I do get a little bit of vibration through

04:13the floorboards, I do feel the engine and the road in my seat, but I like that.

04:18It makes me feel connected to the bike, it makes me feel connected to the road.

04:22On a model like the Heritage, I want to feel that, I want to feel that connection.

04:26It just all contributes to the authentic feel of the bike.

04:30So the windscreen on this, it's, you know, obviously it's a one size fits all that comes

04:34on this bike, and I'm a bit taller than the average rider, so it does hit me right sort

04:40of middle of the head.

04:41It's nice on the highway, it definitely cuts all the wind off my body, but I do still get

04:47a little bit of buffeting at highway speeds.

04:49So it's adequate, but if this was a bike I was owning or riding longer term, I would probably

04:55get a bit of a taller windshield.

04:58For the average rider, you know, someone under six foot, I imagine that this would be fine.

05:03I don't think that they would see the same issues that I do here.

05:06I do love that you have the analog gauge on the tank here with a little digital output,

05:11it gives you your current gas levels, your gear shift indicator, while keeping things

05:16at the handlebars very clean, and while, you know, not distracting you from anything

05:22while you're riding.

05:23You know, when you look at the bike, it does look sort of low.

05:26You see the floorboards that are sort of like three-quarter forwards, and when you're out

05:30riding it, it's sort of surprising how long it takes to scrape, and how you actually can

05:36throw this thing.

05:38With the Mini Apes, you're not in the most, like, forward, crazy aggressive position to

05:42really get into it, but it surprised me how hard I can ride this bike comfortably.

05:47The Heritage is a great modern one bike.

05:54It's a good grocery getter with the saddlebags, it's a comfortable commuter, it's a great weekend

05:59canyon jammer or, you know, two-up date bike.

06:02It's got all the style, you know, it has that classic sort of 1936 silhouette.

06:08The windshield pops off quickly and easily.

06:11It's got this sort of understated classiness that grows on me the more I look at it.

06:16You know, it's an easy bike to keep coming back to and keep appreciating.

06:23Riding out to Born Free this year, one of my buddies took his Lowrider ST, and we showed

06:27up at the event for him to park in a row of about 20 other black Lowrider STs, only to

06:33then go into the event and see however many custom Lowrider STs inside.

06:38So yeah, it's cool to be a part of the trend and a part of what's happening now.

06:42But also, in our sport that's so heavily rooted in individual style and individuality, I feel

06:48like something is lost when you're just in a row of the same bike.

06:51So, compared to the Lowrider ST, the Heritage is $1200 cheaper at $22,999.

07:03It also has more versatile wind management with this windscreen that pops off in all

07:08but five seconds.

07:09The ergonomics are a little bit more adjustable with the Mini 8th handlebars that you can roll

07:14forward and backwards, and the floorboards down below so you can move your feet around

07:18if you want to.

07:20Storage opens from the top, not clamshell like on the ST.

07:23And it's a little bit more robust, you have a little bit more room in the saddlebags.

07:27The Heritage is a versatile motorcycle, both in style and performance.

07:31It carries the old torch well.

07:33Sure, it doesn't have the modern performance vibe in line with bagger racing and current

07:37trends, but that's sort of the whole point, is how this thing remains unchanged and so effortlessly

07:43cool.

07:45When you're riding this bike, you're connected to the long lineage of Harley-Davidson riders,

07:49back to the silhouette where this started in 1936 and the connection to all the advancements

07:55and custom through the 50s.

07:56This bike feels that, looks that, and carries it through in a really authentic way, while bringing

08:01modern performance and comfort in a way that only a 2025 bike can.

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