Polaris Victory Review

Overall Rating

Looks, Power, Acceeration, Highway Handling

Balance, City Handling, Brakes, Gauges, Transmission, Price

Took a couple of Polaris Victory's out for a test drive. I don't mind the looks compared to some other bikes on the road. Though I do prefer the 70-80's classic look (if it's been long enough to call it that). I found that the power was smooth during acceleration, though the transmission made a bad clunking sound when changing gears with the clutch fully engaged, I didn't even try to quick shift it. The gearing also felt sloppy, mainly in the lower gears. As for the gauges I didn't like that there is no taco, had to decide when to switch based on the sound, sounded winey in 3rd went to 4th and it felt like I shifted too early. I know the bikes rev limited, but the sound was making me think it might not have been working. This is a fairly heavy bike, not the heaviest I've driven but larger then I drive on a daily basis. I found that the brakes have a hard time slowing you down, I don't expect it to act like a smaller bike but I had to really hammer on them to slow down, past the point when my daily ride would have locked the tires. With the weight of the bike one of the most important things is handling. I found the bikes to be pigs at slow speeds, I've driven raked out customs that were easier to maneuver. At highway speeds is where the bikes shine, loved the handling on the highway. In a related topic balance, I found the bikes pull to the right. The dealer told me the bikes were perfectly balanced. It wasn't bad while accelerating on right turns (actually helped), it was horrible when stopping or making left turns. It could be that I € m "used to my unbalanced bike" as the dealer said but I think I'll stick with what I like. I don't like fighting a bike to lean left, forget the "you don't even have to put a leg down at a light" as the dealer also said. I'm sure I could get used to it if I drove one daily, I just know I won't be doing that. Now the price speaks for itself. A so-so bike with an overly large price tag. They should spend more time on the ride and less on the looks. I rode a couple of different bikes and the feel was different with each bike. What I'm reporting here is what I think of when thinking of the day's rides. Some issues were more apparent on one bike or another. Though the scary thing is that all the bikes fit into this in one degree or another, there wasn't one that I loved the feel of. It's all about compromises, handling vs. brakes vs. acceleration. I rode the Kingpin Tour, the Hammer and the Vegas Low. I preferred the Vegas Low though my legs felt too long, the regular Vegas might have been better. The Hammer is my second and the Kingpin Tour was last. I'm just glad I didn't have a passenger with me today.