After 6000 miles with the Vision, here are my impressions:

The belt: At about 5,000 miles it began to chirp. Loud enough to be heard over the Stage 1/Level 1 pipes. It always happened when rolling on the throttle, going through the gears. Once up to speed, went away. Usually lasted about 5-10 minutes. Most noticeable when the outside air temp changed dramatically. If the previous day was really cold (30's) and a warm front came through (60's), it would chirp that morning. If it stayed cold or stayed warm, it didn't chirp. When they checked the belt at 6,000, it was 8mm out of tolerance. One full turn to correct. The tolerances are really tight on belt tension and I don't have the tools to check it properly so this is a major reason I check in with my guys on a regular basis. The Vision belt is different than other Victory's and is much stiffer. The suspension on the Vision has a lot more travel also so there is more strain on the belt. I set the rear air shock on the stiff side for a firmer ride.

Tire wear: The tires look to be about ½ worn. I ride about 70 % highway, 30% twisties so the "chicken strip" isn't as pronounced as pure commute/freeway driving. The Dunlop 3's feel great in curves and I rode to work and back (25 miles each way) in a torrential downpour yesterday (both ways) and the tires felt very secure at 65 mph. Should get 10-12,000 out of them no problem. Air pressure is really important on these tires because they are low-profile radials and I never let the pressure get below 40 psi. Makes a huge difference in handling.

Riding in the rain: I've been caught in the rain before on the Vision but yesterday was the first time I went out knowing it would rain all day. (If there are any chinks in the armor, I wanted to know now.) If you are riding along and get caught in a shower while at speed, you will probably not get wet at all. Your visor will get some drops on it but that's about it. If you don't wear riding pants or chaps in the rain, the bottom 8" of your jeans will get wet also. The air bubble around you will keep the rain at bay from about 55 mph and above. Below 55, the bubble weakens and you will start to feel it. I wore a ½ helmet with a flip down visor (Scorpion EXO-100) and my cheeks and chin did not get wet. I'm 6'4" tall and have the tall windshield installed. I ride with the windshield set so that the top is just below the horizon. I can look over it and the wind still goes over me. Rain will roll over the top onto the backside of the windshield, drip down and stop. Those are the only drops that don't move out of the way. After a while they build up and that is why I look over it instead of through it. After letting the bike sit in the rain while I was at work all day, I saddled up and took off for home. At about 20-30 mph water droplets came flying out of the tunnel on either side of the console. They blew right up in my face and I felt ambushed because I was totally prepared for the stuff from above. No factor with a full face helmet, but with the ½ helmet it startled me and made me laugh. Nothing to do but ride faster to blow them away. Lasted maybe 30 seconds.

The ride: I don't have a Utopia backrest…..yet. My biggest day has been 400 miles and although the cushion of the seat is fantastic, the riding position just wears on me after a couple of hours. I've found that I'm a lot more comfortable if I start out with my feet tucked under me and stretch out when I need to rather than riding stretched out all the time. I scoot back as far in the seat as I can and sit really upright. The natural instinct is to go Lazy Boy right off the bat but that wears me out faster. The back rest would promote Lazy Boy all day long.

Engine/Tranny: The first two oil changes made a big difference in the smoothness of the tranny. Everything now feels broken in and runs very smoothly. For you BMW guys out there, pre-loading the shifter works really well on the Vision. I apply just a little bit of upward force on the shifter just prior to bringing in the clutch and it just "snicks" into the next gear as soon as the clutch lever comes back about 1/4 of the way in. I can easily make my bike sound like it has an automatic transmission. If I don't pre-load the shifter, and wait until the clutch lever is all the way in before I shift, it sounds like a totally different bike. If you go Stage 1/Level 1 you will want to take the tips off and put a hi-temp gasket sealer on that joint. Otherwise you will be cleaning soot off the chrome at that joint forever, especially on the right side. Easy fix, do it yourself. It took longer to clean the joint than it did to make the fix. I commute at about 70-75 mph and am getting about 41 mpg. I did a solid day of twisties about a month ago, averaged 50 mph, got 52 mpg.

The lights: I have the premium with the HID running light. I run with the HID on about 50% of the time. Although I can tell that the low beams are obnoxious to oncoming traffic, I've only been flashed one time. Where it really comes into play is when coming up on slower traffic. When I get to within about 4-5 car lengths away I can see them scrunching away from their mirror. If they don't (or can't) move out of the way, they flip the the mirror to night-time mode. If I can't get around them, they start pumping the brakes and put their hand over the mirror. This is agonizing for me because I'm on low beams with the HID turned off. If they really get irate, (only happened twice) and I feel like they are about to get aggressive, I'll turn on the HID and then light them up with the high beams. I immediately go back to low beams only and they slump in their seat, knowing I'm not out to piss them off. For you guys that are thinking of going HID with the headlight, it will be unmerciful. One of the coolest things I've seen from my bike was commuting to work at 4:30 in the morning. I had a 6 lane freeway all to myself for about two miles and turned on my high beams and HID. The street lights on my side of the highway started going out one by one as I went by. I probably turned off 30 lights in that stretch and when I saw cars again, I went back to low beams only and the streetlights stayed on. Ah, the power.

Overall impressions: Everything on my bike works great. The bags originally creaked when I would open them, but that has gone away. Very smooth now. My coldest day of riding was 19 degrees F (for you Canadians!). It really doesn't like to turn over below 25 degrees. As it cranks over it sounds like it is saying "take-the-truck, take-the-truck, take-the-truck". Everyone I work with knows that this bike has raised the bar for motorcycles. I don't know any hard-core BMW types but they are probably (as a group) the only ones who would consistently go out in the weather I have been in this winter. Their bikes have the heated grips/seats and power windshield so comfort wise they are in the same league. Guys who have full heated clothing would also be out but I don't know any personally. A couple of Goldwingers have been pretty tough and one Harley guy will really bundle up in duck hunting coveralls to come in but as a whole, they are all less comfortable than I am. No one else rode in when it rained for two days straight. Ice on the road is my only limitation. The Vision is really easy to clean. The surfaces are big and I can detail my bike in about 10 minutes after a day of dry riding. A lot of other bikes have nooks and crannies everywhere.

Earlier on this site I described the bike as intuitive. It still is but now it has a different slant. The buzzword I hear most often about my bike is graceful. Whether it's in the parking lot, passing a co-worker on the highway, or running through twisties with a buddy, graceful always seems to pop up at some point. If you are used to a sport-touring bike, you will be amazed at how you will be able to take turns on the Vision. If you have only ridden cruisers, it will literally be a whole new world. Goldwingers will be amazed at how much more stable the low center of gravity makes the Vision feel. Harley guys will love the stock power and the roominess. One interesting phenomenon: Every time I start the bike for a Goldwinger or a Harley guy, I always get the same response. The Harley guy grabs the handlebar to check for vibration, then walks around to the back to hear the exhaust. The Winger always listens to the exhaust first, then checks the handlebars. They both nod approvingly. Just something that makes me go "Huh."

Now that riding weather is here, I look forward to really racking up the miles. Absolutely no regrets.