It is an upgrade if you keep the word in perspective.

A person with a 750 GSXR certainly would not think the Speedmaster is an upgrade. They like quick and agile. We brag about our bikes but we brag about their lean clearance. The 750 GSXR same grade of rider will eat a Speedmaster alive on twisties and straight line. A person with a Goldwing would think the same. They would not drive a Speedmaster on a 1000 mile ride. Its not heavy enough for them and does not have the HP they want for highway hauling, passing, and cruising.

The Thunderbird is a cruiser. The America and Speedmaster are in the cruiser class. They surely are not high performance cruisers. They are very good functional motorcycles. You can drive them across country. You cannot use them in the MotoGP. lol. They are not tourers but you can tour with them. So, if we agree they are a cruiser.

The Thunderbird maintains a constant temperature with liquid cooling and has a very quiet belt drive eliminating lash and chain wash noises. It is a heavy well planted bike that takes road blemishes (bumps) very well. It has nearly twice the horsepower and more than twice the torque of a Speedmaster or America.

A Chevy Aveo owner can park that sucker anywhere! So I guess they would be upset if somebody was upgrading them to the Impala.

I have noticed that the bikes the board seems to drool over are the Ducati type bikes, Nortons, racing bars, rear set controls etc. In the same thought we seem to not like chopper types very much. Cafe racers and bobbers are about as cool as it gets. Just teasing a little there are exceptions.

I like long, low, forward controls, laid back riding. I really like my America. The Thunderbird to me, is my America with a crap load of torque and smoothness. I say its an upgrade in the cruiser class. It is not a cafe racer. Neither is a Speedmaster.

The idea that a Speedmaster will eat the Thunderbird up in the mountain turns has absolutely no bearing on the quality of the bike. Its a cruiser! In its class its better.

Disclaimer: I have not bought one and don't plan on it. There are much better cruisers out there than the Thunderbird IMHO>

I try to aggravate one person a day. Today may be your day.