Harley-Davidson® Introduced the Road Glide back in 1998 as a replacement for the Tour Glide, which was released in 1979 as part of the 1980 line-up. With its frame-mounted fairing that provided exceptional wind coverage and its incredible handling, the Road Glide quickly became one of Harley’s most popular bikes. The Road Glide saw many updates over the years and in 2016, Harley introduced the Milwaukee-Eight Engine to all their touring models, including the beloved Road Glide and inspired seasoned Harley veterans as well as a whole new generation of riders to add a bagger to their quiver.
What made the Milwaukee-Eight so special? Well, the Harley-Davidson® Milwaukee-Eight engine is the ninth generation of "big twin" engines developed by the company, but only Harley's fourth all-new Big Twin in 80 years, first introduced in 2016. These engines differ from the traditional Harley Big Twin engines in that there are four valves per cylinder, totaling eight valves, hence the name. It also marked a return to the single-camshaft configuration as used on previous Harley Big Twin Engines from 1936 to 1999. In addition, the engines all have internal counterbalancers, whereas Twin Cams were counterbalanced only on Softail models, where the engine was rigidly mounted. With increased torque and fuel efficiency, it came as an easy decision to get the M8 on Harley’s Touring Models.
We have been riding the M8 version of the Road Glide for years, with thousands of miles clocked in all around the country. From Sturgis to the Drag Strip with Nitrous, and a few jumps along the way, we have made sure to put our 2020 and 2022 Road Glides to the test and they have held up to everything we could throw at them. Coming in to 2024, we all heard rumors of a new iteration of the Road Glide being introduced. But what could Harley do to make this already incredible platform any better?
Well, they made them lighter, gave them more power, and made sure they handled like a dream. With the base model now being equipped with a 117” M8 (opposed to the 107” M8 seen on the previous model’s “standard” model), Harley was able to produce 22% more horsepower and 19% more peak torque. Overall, the bike remains fairly similar to its older brother, however. So, this leads to one important question. Is the 2024 Road Glide worth the investment? Or should you just invest in upgrading your current Road Glide?
The answer to those questions is more subjective from rider to rider which is why we decided to break down the key differences between these bikes in this video and give you our honest feedback on whether you should keep your current M8 Road Glide or upgrade to the all-new 2024 Harley-Davidson® Road Glide. Hit play and learn a thing or two about these bikes!
