A Brief Illustrated History of the Harley-Davidson Road King FLHR

I am proud of my 2008 Road King, which I custom-ordered from the factory in York, PA while deployed to Iraq. My cycle was waiting for me at Patriot Harley-Davidson in Fairfax, VA, when I returned from Baghdad.

The Road King, aka FLHR, is a popular model with a proud history. Introduced in 1994, the Road King has roots going all the way back to the first FL model in 1941.

The very first Harley-Davidsons crafted in 1903 resemble motorized bicycles. As the Motor Company developed larger engines, designers built specialized frames for track racing, off-road racing, climbing, or hauling. The modern Road King is a highly refined touring machine that evolved from the big frame bikes that hogged the American roads in the 1940s.

Since its inception in 1994, the Road King has come in different variants, including the Classic, the Special, and the CVO. Each variant has its own unique model code, such as FLHR, FLHRC, FLHRS. FLHRSE6, and so on. We'll explore the variants as well.


Following is an illustrated history of the undisputed "King of the Road"--Harley-Davidson's Road King.

Year	Event
1940	Big frame bikes included EL, U, UL, UH, and ULH
1941	FL is introduced with 74 cu in Knucklehead, the same frame as EL, U, and UL. FL replaced UH and ULH.
1948	FL gets a 74 cu in Panhead. U and UL with Flathead discontinued, leaving FL and EL as the only two large-frame bikes.
1949	FL gets new front suspension, hydraulically damped telescopic forks, and  a new name, "Hydra-Glide." The "Glide" name was applied to other bikes,  leading to some confusion.
1952	FL gets a new transmission (hand clutch and foot shift). The EL with its old  trans and 61 cu in Panhead is discontinued, leaving the FL as the only large-frame bike.
1955	FLH gets a high compression, highly tuned engine and the 3d letter, 'H'.
1958	FLH gets a new frame with a rear swingarm with coil-over-shock suspension  and a new name, "Duo-Glide."
1965	FLH gets an electric starter and a new name: "Electra-Glide."
1966 1969-'81	FLH gets the Shovelhead and a removable, fork-mounted Batwing fairing. Later, when the instruments were moved to the fairing it became permanent. Note: AMF (American Machinery and Foundry) bought Harley-Davidson in 1969, rescuing it from bankruptcy, and sold it in 1981 to a group of thirteen investors led by Vaughn Beals and Willie G. Davidson for $80 million. The AMF years coincided with a difficult period in American manufacturing owing in part to the Oil Embargo impacts.
1972	FLs (H & T) get front disc brakes.
1977	An unfaired FLH is available called FLHS Electra-Glide Sport. Discontinued in 1982.
1978	An optional 80 cu. in. engine is offered; becomes standard in 1981.
1983	FLH gets a new frame. FLHT is an Electra Glide on the larger FLT Tour Glide  frame. Comes with Batwing fairing instead of the Tour Glide's frame-mounted Sharknose fairing.
1984	All FLs get the rubber-mounted Evolution engine and 5-speed transmission
1987	After a 5-year hiatus, an unfaired FLHT is offered under the revised FLHS Electra-Glide Sport name.
1994 1995-2007	The new FLHR Road King replaces the twice-discontinued FLHS. Starting in 1995, the company introduced Electronic Fuel Injection (EFI) as an option for the 30th anniversary edition Electra Glide. The following year it was an option on all touring models. Harley-Davidson offered both the FLHR and FLHRI, the “I” indicating fuel injection. They continued using the problematic Magnetti-Marelli system up until 2001, when they switched to Delphi. FI became an option on all models except Sporties. With the introduction of the 2007 product line, EFI came standard on all Harley-Davidson motorcycles, including Sportsters.
1999 2002 2003	FLHR gets the Twin Cam 88. Harley-Davidson launched the Custom Vehicle Operations (CVO) line in 1999. Each year since its inception the Motor Company has selected a couple lucky models for a factory custom make-over. It was the Road King's turn in 2002 and the result: FLHRSEI, or FLHR + Screaming Eagle (as in racing parts) + I (as in fuel injection, to distinguish from carbureted bikes). For the second year in a row, the Motor Company selected the Road King for factory-installed upgrades in the CVO program. This is the FLHRSE2, which was also briefly known as FLHRSEI^2. In the early 2000's the letter 'I' was used to distinguish fuel-injected bikes from carbureted ones. As the motor company adopted fuel injection across the fleet, they dropped the unnecessary 'I'.
2007 2007	FLHR gets the Twin Cam 96. FLHRSE3 comes with a Twin Cam 110 cubic inch (1800cc) black and chrome engine, 6-speed Cruise Drive transmission, a new 18-inch x 3.5-inch chrome Road Winder forged aluminum front wheel, a new 17-inch x 4.5-inch chrome Road Winder forged aluminum rear wheel, and radial tires 130mm x 18-inch front and 170mm x 17-inch rear.
2008 2008	FLHR gets a new, longer frame, a 6-gallon fuel tank, a 6-speed transmission, antilock brakes, and throttle-by-wire. The picture shown is a poster I made to celebrate the joy of riding my Road King. The 4th CVO Road King FLHRSE4 is a beauty!
2009	FLHR gets a new chassis
2010	FLHR gets a new helical-cut 5th gear for improved transmission sound (this gear noise is one of the biggest complaints I have about my 2008).
2011	FLHR gets a new security package option including factory-installed  Harley-Davidson® Smart Security System with hands-free fob and Anti-lock  Braking System (ABS).
2012	FLHR gets a new rubber-mounted Twin Cam 103™ V-Twin engine with Electronic Sequential Port Fuel Injection (ESPFI),  with heated O2 sensors  and Electronic Throttle Control (ETC), new tubeless chrome aluminum  profile laced wheel option, and new paint color options.
2013 2013	The standard FLHR is essentially unchanged from the previous year's model, but H-D's 110th Anniversary edition (shown) features a new tank badge and bronze & black paint scheme. The popular Classic edition returns with leather bags and wide white walls. The fifth CVO Road King edition (FLHRSE5) features these Road King firsts: factory-installed audio, fairing lowers, and a split windscreen.
2014 2014	The 20th Anniversary of the FLHR Road King passed with little fanfare. Media attention was directed to the roll-out of Project RUSHMORE, the Motor Company's top-secret remodeling effort--a response to customer feedback and market pressure from competitors like Indian and Victory.  Pressure makes diamonds. Enhanced by Project RUSHMORE, the 2014 Harley-Davidson Road King includes the more powerful High Output Twin Cam 103, brighter Dual Halogen headlamp and halogen fog lamps, new Impeller wheels, restyled hard saddlebags and a new easier-to-read speedometer. Reflex™ Linked Brakes with ABS are a new option for the Road King.  Behold the beautiful FLHRSE6, the sixth CVO Road King, and one of the most beautiful machines I have ever laid eyes on! The lines are gorgeous. The split screen introduced with the SE5 is still the boss, but this model's blacked-out engine guard and racing air filter enhance the smooth, elegant, powerful look of the SE6. Thank you for reading and sharing your comments. In this post, we covered the mighty Road King FLHR, from its predecessor big-framed bikes through the first 20 years of this iconic model's production (1994-2014). What does Milwaukee have in store for Road King fans? I can hardly wait!