Excerpt from HD factory service manual:

SPEEDOMETER: XL 883C/XL 1200
The speedometer has a backlight bulb that cannot be replaced.
If the bulb fails, replace the entire unit.


Really???? replace the whole speedo for one bulb? WTF....

No wonder nobody wants to own one of these things

 

Startin' off on the right foot, eh?
BTW, the bulbs are LED, they should NEVER burn out.

 

... I never say never ... LED's last long sure, but do go out.

 

My oil pressure gauge bulb has burned out. I get around to replacing it or the unit one of these days...

 

What year bike? Older Harleys do have serviceable incandescent bulbs.

 

Just wondering, but what year/model Harley do you have? Might have an older one that can be changed.

 

I don't know the specs on the LED Harley puts in the speedo, but Sylvania makes an 8-watt LED bulb that's probably very similar. It costs about $40, and has a life expectancy of 25,000 hours. Using this example as a guide, and assuming you average about 60 mph for most of your miles, that means you might have to worry about it when you hit around 250,000 miles. I see Sportster speedo's on ebay going for under $100, so you wouldn't be saving much by changing just the bulb.

Honestly though, how many people really put 250,000 miles on a Sportster? And by the time you do get there, this will be one of the least expensive and perhaps easiest maintenance you have to worry about. All that said, it seems like a very trivial thing to get hung up on. Just get out there and ride, and perhaps the Sportster or even Harleys in general aren't right for you if you're concerned about costs for parts. I'll be the first to tell you that HD parts are anything but cheap.

 

Nobody wants to own what? A Harley? More people in America own them, and buy new ones every year, than any other brand of motorcycle ever made.

As for the bulb, complain when it burns out, if ever (even then, so what? It's a light ion a spoeedometer).

 

Dr V Twin can change the lights in a speedo

He does it and changes the color if you want
Check with him

 

its not that old. 2009 Ultra Classic