Custom Vehicle Operations is Harley-Davidson’s skunkworks, the division where new designs, features, paint schemes and accessories are conceived and implemented on limited-edition models. Each year, H-D unveils four CVO models about a month before it pulls the covers off the rest of its model-year lineup.
For 2013 it unveiled the CVO Breakout, a “super premium long custom” built on the Softail platform featuring all-new Turbine wheels, rotors and sprocket, with a 21-inch front wheel with a 130mm tire and an 18-inch rear wheel with a 240mm tire. The CVO Breakout has a leather seat accented with hornback gator pattern, a detachable pillion, a single-rib chrome oil tank and one of three stunning, one-of-a-kind paint jobs, two with hand-polished tanks and a third with a hand-applied lace pattern.
At this year’s Daytona Bike Week, Harley-Davidson pulled the covers off an original-equipment version of the Breakout.
“With Breakout we got down to motorcycle essentials, which means emphasizing the powertrain and the wheels,” says Harley-Davidson Styling Manager Kirk Rasmussen. “The black and chrome engine visually pops out of the center the bike, and then to maximize the impact of the tires, the fenders are chopped. We wanted a lot of rubber showing to give the Breakout a tough, muscular look.”
The Gasser wheels are new and specific to the Breakout, according to Rasmussen.
“We’ve always loved the gasser-style drag racing wheels from the 1960s and ‘70s,” says Rasmussen. “Our wheels are loosely inspired by those classics. Each wheel has 10 half-round spokes. The gloss-black powdercoat is machined away on alternating spokes and the rim edge to expose the aluminum under the paint.”
A gloss-black finish is also applied to the new cast aluminum oil tank, as well as fork lowers, brake rotors, muffler shields and the handlebar.
“To lower Breakout’s overall profile, we placed the speedometer on the handlebar riser,” says Rasmussen, “and topped the fuel tank with a black leather strip that covers the seam, and a chrome-plated pod that’s just high enough to conceal necessary wiring and vent lines. The handlebar is a new curved drag bend that which I think feels aggressive when you ride.”
The Softail chassis has the clean lines of a hardtail frame, but utilizes rear suspension control provided by coil-over shock absorbers mounted horizontally and out of sight within the frame rails. The Breakout is available with ABS (Anti-Lock Braking System) and the Harley-Davidson security system as a factory-installed option.
Key Breakout Features
- The Twin Cam 103B™ engine with 103-cid (1690cc), counter-balanced and rigid-mounted within the frame, is rated at 95.5 ft. lbs. of torque at 3000 rpm. The engine is equipped with Electronic Sequential Port Fuel Injection (ESPFI), and Automatic Compression Release (ACR), and is mated to a 6-speed Cruise Drive transmission.
- The powertrain is finished in black powdercoat with chrome covers and gloss-black shields over chrome dual-staggered mufflers.
- Gasser-style 10-spoke cast aluminum wheels are finished in gloss-black powdercoat with machined highlights; 8 by 18-inch rear and 3.5 by 21-inch front.
- Floating front and rear brake rotors have gloss-black carriers.
- Front and rear fenders are chopped. The front fender location and bracket are specific to the Breakout. The rear fender is shaped and positioned to fit close to the 240mm tire. One-piece forged aluminum rear fender supports are highly polished.
- The front end spreads 49mm forks approximately 1.75-inches wider than previous FX Softail models to allow fitment of a 130mm front tire. The fork lowers and headlight bucket are finished in gloss black.
- New Single-Rib Cast Aluminum Oil Tank is finished in gloss black.
- A five-gallon fuel tank is topped with a black molded-leather strip and a low-profile chrome cover.
- The two-piece seat features a passenger pillion that may be removed without tools for solo riding and to fully expose the rear fender. Laden seat height is 24.7 inches.
- An all-new wide drag-style handlebar is finished in gloss black. The speedometer is mounted on the chrome pull-back handlebar riser.
- The side-mounted license plate and combination stop/turn/tail lights leave the wide rear fender uncluttered.
- The glass-filled fuel tank medallions and graphics are exclusive to the Breakout.
- Available solid colors include Vivid Black, Big Blue Pearl and Ember Red Sunglo.
