Cruiser motorcycles take their design from the American classic Indian and Harley-Davidson bikes. They have a “laid-back” feet-forward, high or neutral handlebar design making them suitable for the casual renegade rider. Some cruisers are adapted to distance touring. The 2004 Harley-Davidson Softail Standard, Softail Night Train, Softail Fat Boy, Softail Springer Softtail, Softail Deuce, and Softail Heritage Softball Classic are “Made In USA.” They compete with the Kawasaki Vulcan; Honda Valkyrie, Shadow, and VTX; and Yamaha V Star and Road Star cruiser models.
The 2004 Softail Fat Boy has an overall five-star user rating and is ranked second of 65 comparable touring cruiser models ranked in Motorcycle.com. It earns five stars in performance, quality and reliability, ride and comfort, and value. The Softail Deuce rates 4.5 stars in all categories, and the Heritage Softail Classic has an overall 4.5-star rating. It rates five stars for its performance, quality and reliability, and ride and comfort. Value only gets four stars.
The 2004 Softail models have a standard length of 95 inches. The dry weight of the Softail Standard is 629 pounds, 630 pounds for the Night Train, 666 pounds for the Fat Boy, 653 pounds for the Springer Softail, 645 pounds for the Deuce, and 696 pounds for the Heritage Softail Classic.
Most of the Softail cruisers have a ground clearance of 5.6 inches. The Softail Fat Boy has a 5.1-inch ground clearance. The Springer Softail has a ground clearance of 5.4 inches.
The Softail comes equipped with aluminum, 21-inch front and 16-inch back wheels along with a 65.4- to 66.9-inch wheelbase.
The 2004 Softail cruiser uses a steel-frame construction with engine case guard and tank divider. Models come standard with a 1442cc, air-cooled, V-Twin engine and a five-speed manual transmission.
The Softail Standard engine displacement to weight is 2.29 cc with 86 lb-ft of torque. The Night Train’s engine displacement is 2.29 cc with 85 lb-ft of torque. The Fat Boy’s engine displacement is 2.17 cc with 85 lb-ft of torque. The Softail Deuce’s engine displacement is 2.24 cc with 85 lb-ft of torque. The Softail Heritage Softail Classic’s engine displacement is 2.07 cc with 85 lb-ft of torque.
The Softail digital instrumentation is standard and includes a speedometer, fuel level gauge and temperature warning light, trip odometer, and service reminder. A navigation system, GPS, tachometer, lap timer, oil pressure gauge, trip computer, and shift light are not standard equipment on Softail models.
A front fender, rear fender, fender rail, exterior covers, driver and passenger foot pegs, hand grips, and a kick stand are standard features. Front fender rails, lower and upper fairings, skid plates, and turn signal visors are not available on the Softail cruiser. Side bags and storage are also not available.