Cool Victory Kingpin Motorcycle DesignThis isn't to say the Kingpin is a replacement for the strong-selling Vegas. The Kingpin is instead an alternative take on the Vegas concept, reworked with a few choice chassis and styling mods to move Victory beyond the "custom-cruiser" niche the Vegas occupies and into the more traditional, "fat-fendered" category now dominated by various Fat Boys and the odd Road Star or Vulcan. The fact that the Kingpin actually works better on the road than the Vegas is but a happy coincidence.
Although the Kingpin's 1507cc displacement might seem meager compared with this year's crop of mega-motored competition, it offers plenty of poke (70.9 horsepower and 93.1 foot-pounds of torque when we dynoed our last Vegas), and our recent ride confirms that power delivery is as burly and broad as before. The Freedom engine is virtually vibe-free; still, Victory added a new, rubber-mounted handlebar and rubber-mounted floorboards to the Kingpin. Also new is a dual-density saddle that is significantly more supportive than last season's too-soft perch. Many tiny details have also been tightened up on the Kingpin. Last year's droopy-drawers turn signals are jettisoned in favor of stiffer—and shinier—chrome bits, though the stamped-steel license-plate bracket looks like something stolen from the undercarriage of an ATV—and then chromed.
Let the style-meisters in the chopper crowd viva las Vegas—if you want a cruiser that really rides, or if you just prefer more traditional fat-fendered lines, the Kingpin is the bike that should be at your side.
SPECIFICATIONS
MSRP: $14,999
Engine type: l-c 50-deg. V-twin
Valve arrangement: sohc, 8v
Displacement: 1507cc
Transmission: 5-speed
Weight: 639 lb. (claimed dry)
Fuel capacity: 4.5 gal.
Wheelbase: 66.5 in. (1690mm)
Seat height: 26.5 in. (673mm)
Although the Kingpin's 1507cc displacement might seem meager compared with this year's crop of mega-motored competition, it offers plenty of poke (70.9 horsepower and 93.1 foot-pounds of torque when we dynoed our last Vegas), and our recent ride confirms that power delivery is as burly and broad as before. The Freedom engine is virtually vibe-free; still, Victory added a new, rubber-mounted handlebar and rubber-mounted floorboards to the Kingpin. Also new is a dual-density saddle that is significantly more supportive than last season's too-soft perch. Many tiny details have also been tightened up on the Kingpin. Last year's droopy-drawers turn signals are jettisoned in favor of stiffer—and shinier—chrome bits, though the stamped-steel license-plate bracket looks like something stolen from the undercarriage of an ATV—and then chromed.
Let the style-meisters in the chopper crowd viva las Vegas—if you want a cruiser that really rides, or if you just prefer more traditional fat-fendered lines, the Kingpin is the bike that should be at your side.
SPECIFICATIONS
MSRP: $14,999
Engine type: l-c 50-deg. V-twin
Valve arrangement: sohc, 8v
Displacement: 1507cc
Transmission: 5-speed
Weight: 639 lb. (claimed dry)
Fuel capacity: 4.5 gal.
Wheelbase: 66.5 in. (1690mm)
Seat height: 26.5 in. (673mm)
