Motorcycle.com

Up to this point, the closest thing we had to something like this new crop of performance cruisers is the Yamaha V-Max. The mighty 'Max is still around and features no real changes from that first iteration that sent shockwaves through the industry nearly a decade ago, unless you consider a healthy dose of faux carbon fiber a significant update.

The motor is still as strong as ever and managed to propel the Yamaha to an even quicker 0-60 time than even Harley's new V-Rod. In this group, it's the original power cruiser, and still has the meanest motor. Long live V-boost! But, as we all know, motor alone does not make a winning cruiser. "Yes, the Max has an ass-kicking motor," spouts Minime, "but its chassis is a little bit too easy to fault. The 'Max isn't really a cruiser, and not much of a sport bike either.

It's been overlooked by quite a few buyers who thought it was just too different, and I tend to agree with them -- the riding position and styling are just too weird for me to like. I'll grant you the fact that it is ringer of a boulevard bike that'll smoke any 600cc sportbike and almost all of the 750s and 1000s out there, but if I want speed, I'll get it wrapped in a more-sporting package." Heck, it even looks different than the rest. It's not a traditional cruiser by any means, though the 'Max has a lot of cruiser-esque traits. If it ain't black, it's chromed or carbon-fibered, and there's a very boulevard bruiser look to it that the angry people in black leather seem to dig. So you should too, presumably. In this bunch, it stood out as the odd ball while parked, making a number of testers prefer something more traditional in style.

Once on board the 'Max, however, a rider was blown away by the power, but most were less than overjoyed by the seating position -- this seems to be the caveat with the Max, either the seating position fits you and you dig the styling, in which case you're fiercely loyal to the machine and its strange identity, or you absolutely hate it. The placement of the bars and pegs in relationship to the seat makes the Yamaha's pilot feel a bit, well, cramped and geeky. Beyond the typical sit-up-and-beg riding position some cruisers and standards place you in, the V-Max wants you to keep your feet rather high and not neither forward nor back, placing a 90-degree bend of schoolhouse chair nature into your aging knees.

In the twisty bits, the bike's suspension is rather soft, though it does a good job of keeping the bumpies at bay on the superslab. In the twisty bits, larger or more aggressive riders wished for a bit more spring front and rear and had trouble managing shaft-driven squatting/lurching in the rear. But twisties are, of course, not the forte' of any of these bikes, and the smaller, lighter and smoother style of other riders worked surprisingly well on the Max. Of special consideration to our married/cohabitating readers is that the V-Max was, by far, the best ride with a passenger on the back.

Second Place: Harley V-Rod
Quicklook: {MSRP $16,695 || 107.8 bhp || 74.0 lbs/ft}

Earlier this year, Harley-Davidson did the unthinkable and unleased on the world a water-cooled sledgehammer they called the V-Rod. And, aside from the odd-ball V-Max, about the only bike here that has any hopes of beating the VTX in the power game is the new Harley-Davidson VRSCA V-Rod. Yes, a Harley. Who thought we'd ever say that?

With a wheelbase as long as its name and a water-cooled motor that has Motor Company die-hards running scared, the Harley is the only bike here that had sportbike guys falling over themselves.With the most distinctive look since Tiny Tim, the Man-Rod draws stares everwhere. People want to know what it is. Hell, we want to know what it is, too. It's not really a cruiser, though it sure looks like one. It really is, as some disgruntled manufacturers have accused, a sportbike motor in a cruiser chassis. Pulling away from a light, there's definitely no sign of the lumps of torque that squirt the VTX around.

The Harley needs a few more revs before things start to happen, but once the tach clears three thousand, it's a whole new ballgame. As revs spring through five thousand, only the V-Max can reel the silver bullet in. The riding position is very clearly from Milwaukee, placing the rider low in the bike, reclining a bit in the saddle, reaching forward and up a bit to the bars. Around town, the bike's long wheelbase and raked-out forks make it a bit of a chore to weave about, but once traffic clears up, the bike is dead-nuts stable and the chassis design makes sense. It's sprung and damped like a sportbike, making it a bit more jarring on neglected local roads, but the trade-off is unparalleled confidence in the corners. Sure, things will drag (the lower muffler on the right side, for instance) but no sooner than on the other bikes here.

Though the brakes are Harley's best effort, they still fall behind the Kawasaki's binders. The transmission could use a bit of work too, since it's occasionally notchy, though it never caused us to miss a shift. Still, when it was time to ride, the V-rod was the one that everybody was pining for. Calvin says he even saw Minime checking out the latest Harley parts catalog looking for leather and fringe.

First Place: Kawasaki Mean Streak
Quicklook: {MSRP $10,999 || 64.3 bhp || 74.3 lbs/ft}

Brent and Minime to Calvin:

"Dude, you've ruined every test this year!

What is wrong with you?"

Kawasaki's Mean Streak took us by surprise when it showed up. On paper, it doesn't come across as anything special, but after a ride you begin to notice that it does a most admirable job of impersonating a sporty bike in the canyons. Couple this excellent chassis balance with the best brakes of any cruiser ever produced, great looks and ergonomics, and you've got a near-perfect power cruiser. The only thing it's missing is the power.

All 64.3 horses flow to the rear meat as you snick through the clean-shifting transmission, and with every trip through the revs you're left wanting more. The bike has neither the most torque nor is it in possession of the most horsepower here. It's good, yes, and we've heard there's loads of potential inside the mill, but in an otherwise super package, a lack of balls is a glaring omission. What power is available, however, comes on smooth, right from idle. It pulls seamlessly, without any hiccup or spike in the power.

"It's just the good, smooth sort of acceleration so many cruiser enthusiasts look for."

The only fault with the drivetrain is the shaft-drive. Though aesthetically pleasing, the Streak's mechanicals could use a once-over. In on-off throttle situations, the shaft drive has a bit more slack than we tend to like, though it is rather smooth compared to the VTX. This takes some enjoyment out of a bike, especially while lane-splitting during daily commutes, though once in full cruise mode, everything settles into a perfectly harmonious cadence.. Ergonomically, the riding position is definitely more traditional cruiser than the V-Max and right in line with the VTX, though the Kawasaki has a sportier sit-on-top-of-it feel. In all, it's just about the easiest bike of the bunch to ride.

Enlightenment and Justification

When the votes were tallied for this shootout, a few unexpected things happened. For starters, we thought the V-Rod would clean up and garner top spot on everybody's ballot sheet. After all the hype that has been generated by the press (ourselves included), how could it not win?

"In conclusion, it's not just an abundance of either horsepower or torque that make a proper performance cruiser."

It was not in The Motor Company's cards however, as a few people on staff had conclusions that differed wildly from their preconceptions. Brent Plummer still loves his V-Max and voted it first. Even though he insists "real men ride V-Maxes," his beloved Yamaha fails to come out on top yet again. It was the Kawasaki Mean Streak that ended up taking the win by virtue of the fact that it finished either first or second on everybody's ballot card. The V-Rod was close behind, though it managed to finish out of the top two on Blip's tally, nudging the Kawasaki into the winner's circle by a single point.

In conclusion, it's not just an abundance of either horsepower or torque that make a proper performance cruiser. The Mean Streak has the least power of any bike here, but it has more attributes than it has faults, making it a solid choice for the crown. It looks sharp, it has the best brakes, chassis, a low price, a great-sounding stock exhaust system and you'll actually be able to find one at your local dealer.

If you want extremes like power, heft or a high price tag, there are certainly other bikes here that are just what you're looking for. For the majority of people however, the Mean Streak is just about perfect.