Hi riders,

I know that for being air-cooled, Sportster engines are normally noisier. My 07 1200L has always had a frequent ticking sound (for want of a better way to describe it). However, over the weekend it grew louder. Saturday morning I rode off from Los Angeles to Utah, via Las Vegas and Arizona. Sunday morning I rode back home. By then the noise had become louder. It now sounds like a small metal ball is dancing around in my engine. FWIW it seems the noise is coming from the top, near the front plug.

Any idea what needs to be fixed?

I am going to take the bike in, but before I do that I'd like to have an idea as to what might be wrong, so the stealership doesn't rob me blind.

Thanks!

 

Exhaust leak?

John

 

I sure hope it's just that but wouldn't an exhaust leak sound more like a whistle?

 

Could also be a loose motor mount.

 

You might check your tank mounts as well, mine were loose one time and I thought the top end of my engine was about to come off.


I always thought exhaust leaks made the engine sound harsh. Like old ratty sounding VWs.


John

 

I know from the nuts falling off of my rear pipe the leak sounds like a smacking or rapping sound, it does not sound like a leak. At 22,000 miles mine sounds like it has lots of ***** running around loose in it. It's hard to accept as normal, but it is.

 

My 09 made a similar sound. Traded it in for a FXDX and the mechanic took the sportster for spin and said the horn mount was a loose and that was the sound I was hearing. Then, I said, "What sound?"

 

Sounds like it may be coming from the valve train. How many miles on your bike?

 

Thanx everybody,

When I got that bike I got rid of its pissy horn in favor of a Wolo air horn, so there's no horn mount that could rattle. So then, from your comments the prime suspects are: exhaust, tank mounts, engine mounts.

If it's one or more of the above, then I am relieved because it's probably not an expensive fix, even if done at the dealership.

Ok now, valve train problem sounds ominous. Is that an expensive fix? My bike has 29300+ miles on it, 18k of which are from the past 2 years. I bought it 2 yrs & 4 mths ago, it had some 11k miles.

 

Noises can be notoriously difficult to tie down, especially over the internet! There is no substitute for getting an expert to listen to it in person, like a local indy.