Ok.....
I'm also 5'4" and have a sportster (2013 xl1200ca). This has the larger tank (around 18L / 4 Gallon). This gets me between 250 and 300 km, though could probably go a bit further if you ride it gently enough.
Yes, it scrapes a bit - it aint a sports bike ! However, nowhere near as much as a lot of other cruisers. Mine has stock mid controls as opposed to forward controls, and I think they make a difference - preferred mids to forwards on the ones I test rode.
Mods:
Seat - stock seat is ok for the rider, but pillion seat will have a passenger squirming after 20 minutes, if they're not already crying in agony - it'll almost cut them in half !. I have a Mustang solo seat that is very comfy, but for 2-up I have a Haley Sundowner touring seat, which is very comfy for both rider and pillion. Bought 2nd hand off trademe - never buy new, they're fucking expensive (pay for the name!!)
Tuner - I have a Powervision tuner fitted (made by Dynojet, of power commander fame) well worth the money spent - has autotune feature that allows exhaust/air filter mods without a dyno. Lots of other benefits too - worth googling and reading up.
Suspension:
The best mod you could do would be suspension - the stock suspension is pretty rubbish. It does the job, but if you want to push it a bit this is where your greatest gain will be inititially. I guess it comes down to how hard you wanna go, of if you're just happy cruising ;-)
No choking up - mine seems to be happy chuffing around town, and on day rides. More than capable of a tour - I've lapped the South Island (criss-cross wise) twice on mine without a problem, as well as a few Welly to Aucks 'commutes' to visit the kids. Was definitely a much happier camper as an allrounder once the Powervision Tuner was fitted, though.
It's happy carving up the twin-cams on the twisties, and beats most of them in a short drag race - which surprises most, and really ticks them off !
It is what it is. Like all bikes there are horses for courses. Anyone on a Jap sports bike (even a small one) would smash me over the hill (Rimutaka) in a closed road contest (
) - but that aint why I ride, and aint why I own a sporty.
Hope this helps !
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