You may have already made a purchase, but I have to give you my two cents worth! I live in NH and just test rode about every Harley 2008 has to offer, including an Ultra Screamin' Eagle! Which was one AWESOME ride! I purchased a 2007 Fat Boy last year one week after the Laconia Rally! I'll tell ya, there's a Victory dealer four miles from my house, and now I've tried and ridden nearly every Harley and I am SO GLAD I have my FAT BOY!!! Yes I did test ride a couple of Victory's, they are nice don't get me wrong, but in my mind there is NO OTHER BIKE: Victory or another Harley Model that is better than the Fat Boy!!! I will qualify this statement to say that I do NOT require a Touring bike. If I did I would surely pick the Ultra Clasic over any other touring bike out there. However I do not, Therefore The FAT BOY RULES!!!! You won't be dissapointed, I promise!  

Seems like a lot of guys have gone thru the same thing.  I thought I was the only one.  Anyway - - I bought a Kingpin.  Its a great bike, for all the reasons you see here, - - power, brakes, styling, comfort, reliability, plus maybe a few more.  (1) I think its got a better engine design.  I like having the oil cooler, my oil temp stays about 150 - 160 most of the time.  The OHC motor is a more efficient design.  I weight over 220 lbs, and have never bottomed the rear suspension.  When I change the oil, I dont get oil running down the front of the motor.  Go take a look where the HD oil filter is.  (2) It was important to me to support American manufacturing. So, it had to be either HD or a Vic.  HD's are great bikes, no question.  I've owned them, and have friends who will ride nothing else.  They have great aftermarket support.  (3) I don't see Vic's at every stoplight, and I like that too.  

It's simple.  What's important to you, purchasing a "lifestyle" or purchasing the best built/performing machine.    HD's resale is nowhere close to what it you to be due to simple supply/demand.  Just take a look at the classifieds, tons of HD's, some still trying to get close to new prices, but they are not the one's selling.  I've ridden both, neither are my choice but the Vegas I rode was a far better performing motorcycle.  When your in an emergency position you'll appreciate performance, not numbers of chrome parts.  Go Ride!  

I have ridden harleys all my life. I sold my roadking and bought a Kingpin. Don't get me wrong but I love the Kingpin and the performance is so much better than the harley when you compare stock bike to stock bike.

The victory is the most american bike made in stock production beating harley by some 40%. Yes that is correct.

The victory rides and handles great but the best thing of all is that I no longer have to put up with Arrogant Harley Dealers.

You will save yourself thousands on a victory and get more bike for the money  

Harley or Victory? I am sure you have some reason for "limiting" your selection to these 2 brands. I work and ride with folks who own Harley, Victory, Kawasaki, Suzuki & Star (I own a Stratoliner). My friends let me ride their Harley Classic, Fatboy, & Road King, and the Victory folks let me ride the Vegas, Kingpin & Vision. All very nice bikes.

What you get with a new bike is similar to what you geet with a new car - if the dealer and service department still treats you well after your purchase, you are doing well. Make sure you investigate how your local dealers rate (JD Powers, BBB, etc) and talk to you local riders. Where you buy is as important as what you buy.
FYI - I am very happy with my 113ci Stratoliner!
However, if I decide to get a FULL TOURING bike, I would buy the Victory Vision - I have ridden this bike and read the reviews (compared to HArley FLHTC) it is hands down the best ride full tourer available.....  

I've owned a Heritage for 12 years. The first engine blew but the reman has run like a charm for the past 35k miles. I am now ready to move up to a touring model and have looked at the Ultraglide and the Vision.

I test rode both and, in my opinion, the Vision was a  nicer ride and handled on the highway and curves much better. While I know they wanted to stand apart from HD, I think they went too far with the George Jetson look.

I like both of these bikes. If they toned down the gawdy curve lines on the Vision and redesigned the side bags, I would buy it in a minute. As for the resale, Harley still does well, but nothing like 5-10 yrs ago. There are a glut of used HDs on the market right now and the new ones aren't selling either. Good luck on your choice.  

Seems a much more common "dilemma" than I had thought.  From reading the responses to your post it seems like you are making a decision between two quality machines, lots of pros & cons for each.  
There are quite a few factors to sort out.  Which bike fits your physique, what's your riding "style" or preference, will most of your miles be one-up or with a passenger?  Overnight or day trips?  What's the budget, ease of dealing with your local dealership?  
Ironically for me the decision boiled down to less about the bike and more about the other factors.  The attitude of many Harley riders nearly drove me away.  For several months I tried very hard to purchase a Kingpin.  The difficulty I experienced in trying to purchase the Victory drove me back into the waiting arms of a very customer oriented Harley dealer.  I'm certain that I could experience the freedom of the road on either machine, but in my case the decision came out in Harley's favor.  I bought a motorcycle, I didn't join a cult.  I've been very pleased with my '07 Dyna Wide Glide.  Your situation may take you in another direction, regardless, by all means, do it and do it soon!  Good Luck!  

I've seen this same discussion in regards to trucks recently.  Ford or Chevy?  Victory or Harley?  Honda or Suzuki?

I've had this particular discussion with my fiancee, and we both agreed that it seems you're paying for the HD name more than for the equipment...and that's fine if that's what you choose to do.  I'm actually trying to decide between a Victory and a Vulcan right now, and it's all going to come down to comfort for both me and my passenger in the end.  

I don't know what all these people are talking about as far as the repairs on a Harley and the insurance costs. I had a Roadking for 6 years and 30,000 miles and the only repair it needed was a cracked header pipe at 28K. I have a Ducati 1098S also. The insurance cost on that is quadruple what the Harley is and it had so many issues that the factory replaced it. I have had a Harley Roadglide now for another 6 years and is had needed nothing in the way of repairs. You will always get your money back out of the Harley and if you need to sell it, you will find a buyer much easier than any other brand. Get a Harley and embrace the brotherhood.  

Some issues back Road Bike reported JD Powers quality results for motorcycle companies.  Victory was at the top with Honda and Suzuki, Harley at the bottom. Unfortunately, they did not report model-by-model.

Then Playboy reported extramarital affairs for Harley vs Victory riders, Harley on top, Victory on bottom.

Then Beer Drinkers Monthly reported beer belly size for Harley riders was ten inches higher than all other makes combined.

Okay, just kidding about the last two, but the JD Powers report was real.  

I've had a Harley chopper, two Vulcans (a 800, and a 2007 1600 Nomad), and many other Japanese bikes through the years. The Nomad was charming. I am not into HD anymore because;

1)everyone wants to be (what they think is) a one percent-er. That crowd is way too big. I don't want folks to say to me "ohhh, you ride a Harley!".

and 2)I also am an ex-aircraft mech, and I would rather ride than wait for the upkeep. Sure several of the folks have had few problems with their HDs, but I live next to a HD repair shop. The head HD mech also is Victory certified. He told me that he never works on Vic's for mechanical problems, just ones from incidents and accidents. However he does work on the HDs, the same bikes over and over. He calls them his favorite "clients".

So I took my brand new 1600 Kawasaki NOMAD (which I loved) over to test drive the Victory Vision. Two days later I'd traded. The Nomad was great, but DANG; that Vision handles sooooo good. I've had it since Feb with over 5000 miles, and still am amazed at how it handles. Plus when someone asks if it's a HD, I can honestly say, "Nawwww, It's a Victory, the New American Motorcycle", and it establishes a new kind of respect to the new brand. Plus there's that intrigue of riding something unique plus American made.


Now when folks say, "yeah but it's not a Harley, and it never will be" I don't even have to answer them, (unless I say "duhhhh"). Although I could add: "Sonny Barger says his new Victory Vision is his new favorite ride". If they have to ask who Sonny Barger is, then I don't really care what they think anyway!

My two cents on the "George Jetson look". If Harley hadn't been riding the nostalgia wagon so dang long, bikes might have evolved more aerodynamically anyway. As an aircraft mech years ago I used to always wonder why that wasn't so. Now that the Vision came along I can see what I envisioned years ago. Like the aerodynamic fender skirts on an airplane.

If you want nostalgia go for it. I suppose if nostalgia wasn't cool, the PT Cruiser and Chevy SSR and HHR retro mobiles wouldn’t have come out. But if you notice, they aren’t coming out with a lot more retro mobiles, folks want to move forward. That is why I think Victory has been gaining in popularity. They’re moving ahead, instead of living off of the past.

However, I did enjoy my HD chopper when I had it. I guess now I'm a little older, a little wiser, and more confident of who I really am. I love to ride, that is the main part of my reason for what I ride.

In the end my friend, OPINION.
EdRadio  

VICTORY or HARLEY.....well my friend im sorry to say my answer is neither.and ive owned 3 HDs.91 sportster 1200.85 FLt and 94 ULTRA.i test rode the 08 VICTORY VISIOn.and the 09 Harley Vrod.if i had to choose between the two id take the vision.in my opinion harley needs to build a touring bike with the Vrod engine.i do own 3 motorcycles and average 15K a year.ive got a 97 honda valkyrie with 59K,2000 BMw K1200lt with 23K and 97 triumph 1200 trophy with 20K.about the only thing that prevents me from purchasing the vision is that its not water-cooled and it costs $20000.in looking for a 4th bike im considering another honda valkyrie.