Have a friend who's gonna do stage one at dealer. Pipes, high flo, SE tuner, and dyno. Quoted near 2k. He's really new to HD and is only really concerned about making it sound like a harley. Is this overkill? Maybe dealer talking him into spending coin? I doubt he'll ever do motor work. I think he would be better off buying own parts and doing it himself. Are the gains from a dyno worth the money? Flame away.

 

Dealers are in business to make money...period. If he can do it all himself, he should do it. Or get an indie shop to do it. It'd be a lot less than a dealership.

 

Like any business, dealers are out to make a profit. Labor is expensive, and there is a mark up on parts. If your friend has mechanical skills he can save a bit of money by doing it himself, it's not that hard. You didn't mention what bike, but the later models run much hotter than older ones due to EPA emission controls. A tuner will help with that on even a stock bike. Non cat headpipe, mufflers, and high flow intake can be had for about $1000 depending on which brand he gets. Amazon has lots of stuff, I got plenty of parts there and it's much more affordable than HD stuff. The average tuner will allow maps to be downloaded, so if he doesn't like one he can try another. Xieds are another option. Many do not get a dyno tune, but that the only way to know for sure what the bike is doing. $2000 isn't out of line for the dealer to install genuine HD parts. I think the closest dealer to me wants $95 an hour for labor.

 

If his just interested in the sound tell him to buy some pipes, an ac and set of Xied's. Bike will sound and run better than stock and he can probably save about a grand.

 

If he is only looking for sound, go to Ebay and grab a pair of Rinehart or similar slip ons. $400 and DONE! If he wanted, he could grab a used power commander for $150 as well which would help keep the bike a bit cooler

 

I found some great deals on the internet for pipes, tuner and A/C that my do it myself cost is $700 for my complete stage one upgrade


V&H complete BSS $400
V&H Naked air cleaner kit $120
Superchip Vigilate tuner $162 W/shipping (Forum discount)
Exhaust gaskets $12
Under $700

 

Python slip-ons $250
SE stage 1 air cleaner $150
V&H Fuelpak FP3 $350

Total cost $750 and you'll have a much better tune than the dealer can give you. With the FP3 you can re-tune as many times as you want, including going back to stock configuration. Installation and tuning couldn't be simpler. Pythons will make it sound like a Harley from a mile away.

 

Unless your friend is planning on doing some engine work down the road a bit, the SE tuner and Dyno IS overkill. He can simply have the dealer or Independent Shop install a download to the ECU or use a simple Fuelpak or Xieds that will suffice for his"stage 1".

 

Agreed.

 

$2000? Ouch. Buying parts and having the dealer do the labor is probably the MOST expensive way to do it. Do some searching online and find an independent to do the work. I'll bet you can cut at least 25% off of that total. I did A bassani header, SE Pro Tuner and Dyno for under $1200.

Good luck.