I have a friend who is very old school. He has several old Harleys from the 40's thru the 90's. He has been riding a 1990 FLHTCU and last week the stock EVO motor blew up on a trip. He is thinking of going with a S&S 113" as a replacement. He says he will never travel on a fuel injected bike for maintenance reasons.
Will the 113" EVO S&S bolt up to his 90 Harley frame? What kind of fuel milage and power can he expect? Will there be problems with belts wearing, transmission reliability or some other unforeseen issues? If anyone has ever made a similar swap, I would love to know how it worked out for you. Thanks.

04Ultra

 

The old motor lasted for 18 years, and now he's looking to spend a ton on a freakin' S&S? Tell him to be smart and send his motor back to the MOCO to be remanufactured, and he'll be good to go for another 18 years.

 

I agree with xcelr8 100%!

 

Or even an EVO crate motor, less than $2500.

 

I put 119,000+ on my 2000 RG before it started knockin. Sent the eng. in for the factory reman. & have been very pleased with the results. Have approx. 3,500 miles on it already and have no complaints. Also the addition of the S/E 6spd.makes for a much more enjoyable ride too.

 

Depends what he's looking for out of the mtr/bike. I know several guys with S&S mtrs in their older FLH frames and they love them, one in particular with a "mild" 124", and it performs effortlessly. Of course several other components need an upgrade but that's to be expected. Were I in his position and wanted to keep the bike, and cash wasn't a major concern, I would without a doubt consider several engine options. If cash is a concern then I would go with remanufactured HD mtr as it's probably the cheapest alternative. Not taking anything away from the HD mtr, haven't heard anything but good about them, just depends on what he's looking for and budget.

 

I keep looking at HSE's (Hay Seed Engineering)120. I haven't contacted them yet, but HSE North is about 40 miles from me....tempting, very tempting.
Theres a good article about it in Sept/Oct Iron Works magazine. Page 76. Not cheap, but all the best pieces, and not much more than the S&S.

 

I had nothing but problems with my S&S, and zero problems with the 2 HD motors I have had. Why look for trouble?

 

Thanks for the replies.
My friend (Johnny) has probably 300,000 miles on this old scoot. He rides all over the country pulling a trailer from swap meet to swap meet. He uses his bike as a utility vehicle rather than driving a car or truck. That is the reason he was thinking of a higher HP motor, to better pull across the country at 80mph. He has had to rebuild the old motor several times over the years. He is more concerned with fuel mileage and reliability than having a show bike loaded with shiny chrome, yet he wants enough power to pull his trailer loaded with parts. Johnny thinks nothing of riding across the country just for the hell of it. This summer, he rode out west from Kentucky by himself on a 4 week trip. As I said, he is very old school and wants nothing to do with an ECM or fuel injection. Any more advice you guys can offer knowing these facts?

Thanks,
04Ultra

 

Had the eng. reman. & the S/E 6 spd. installed (labor included) for a price comparable to just the cost of the s&s without installation. For my needs it gave me the best bang for the buck!