It’s July 4th, which means that today at Bike-urious, I’m featuring 3 very different (but All-American) interesting motorcycles. This might be the most special of them all, though it’s going to take a lot of US currency to put it in your garage. Back in 1988, Harley decided to try their hand at knocking off Ducati from their perch atop AMA Superbike. Unfortunately, what would have been top notch technology when the bike was supposed to have been released (in 1991) was well behind the curve when it actually started racing (in 1994). Homologation requirements resulted in the Harley-Davidson VR1000, of which only 50 were sold.
The VR1000 did not take anything from the Harley parts bin – everything was built specifically for the racer. HD outsourced plenty of the components but kept it all within the good ol’ USA. Roush developed the engine, Penske took care of the suspension, and Wilwood handled the brakes. But what was truly unique about this bike was how they handled homologation. AMA rules do not specify where a bike has to be road legal, just that a minimum of 50 copies have to be produced. As American emissions laws were impossibly strict for a true race bike, HD sold all 50 bikes in…Poland. They threw on a headlight, turn signals, and mirrors, and called it a day. For $49,490, Polish riders got a 135 horsepower, 400 pound racebike that had a lovely split-personality paint job. One stripe of white split halves of black and orange. For a lot more information on this interesting story, head on over to OddBike.
This specific VR1000 (VIN: HARLEYVR10001 OF5) has never been started, which is incredibly depressing. It’s a little dusty, and the photos aren’t great, but I have to assume it’d be the perfect example for a museum. Wish someone had put some miles on it, though.
Find this Harley-Davidson VR1000 for sale in Naples, Maine with a BIN of $79,000