Man, I JUST went through this whole scenario.

When my wife & I went to look at bikes weeks before I went back to buy, we spoke at great length to the GM of the dealership. During that conversation, I can remember him telling me they liked to use the Pro Tuner in the shop. Fast forward past me buying the bike and to setting up an appointment for the 1K service, and also asking about mufflers (SE Street Cannons), a SE Stage I air filter, and the tune. The Service Advisor encouraged me to go with the SE Pro Tuner, not the Street Tuner & not the "standard" HD map. We talked at some length; both at this time & when I dropped the bike off the next day. Also talked with one of the Master Technicans, along with my salesperson. They all told me the same thing: as long as they did the work, there should not be any warranty issue. I specifically asked about touring, being 1000 miles from home & having an issue & was advised it should not be. The Master Technician explained it this way: the HD map is designed to bring all bikes within a set of parameters - but that all bikes are just a little different & the Pro Tuner allows them more latitude to make specific settings for my particular bike.

In the end, I went the extra distance - and money - and bought the Pro Tuner. No, I did not ask anyone to sign a document stating they guaranteed my warranty was intact. First, I don't believe it would make any difference but mainly it says "I don't believe you", & that is not the relationship I want with these guys. If they aren't trustworthy, I'll move on. They came highly recommended by some folks I know that have purchased bikes there, & I decided to believe them & let them use the tools they wanted to tune my bike.

I will tell you, that there are very good intentioned people on this website that advised me in no uncertain terms to walk away from this. I appreciated every one of their opinions too. But there was one thing I didn't receive & that was a first hand account of someone who had their warranty claim denied because a Harley dealer used a Pro Tuner on their bike with only a muffler & air filter swap. I have no intention of pulling my CAT, swapping out cams, etc. I hope I never have to test the warranty out.

As for the bike; well I've only put about 75 miles on it since the work was done but there is a differrence. There seems to be less flat spots in the throttle, I'm not getting much popping through the exhaust, & while maybe a little louder than what I expected I do like the sound. Good luck with your decision!

 

Many of us are running Stage 1's which cost under $500.


Some are at $2000+ for the dealer drop off and full retail everything.


The results will be about the same. A stage 1 is generally good for 7 to 10 horsepower from the higher air flow into the motor, tuning compensation and higher flow out of the motor.

A header with low restriction is a must for these results. The cat is a restriction to flow and will also greatly effect the harmonic pulses which may give power gains due to scavenging

mike

 

Interesting topic, does sound like depends on the dealer and/or the warranty guy.
I have had the SEPST tuner for a while when the tranny went south. No issue getting new tranny on factory warranty.

 

It was noted by the mid-90's that some dealer techs were logging mods into the HDMC database.

Would/could this affect a warranty claim?

I look at it like this- if the owner is able to modify the motor and take control over the rev limit, spark timing and the fuel delivery - then the owner should be responsible for any problems resulting- whether a hole burned through a piston from lean mixture, a scissored crank from too advanced spark timing or a burned clutch from a monster motor and stock clutch setup.

mike

 

Well, I'm getting a healthy discount on parts right now because I recently bought my bike there, but even with the discount the Street Cannons, the tips, & the Stage I AC cost more than $500 - & that's before the SESPT. But I'm nowhere near $2k. I think the CAT will be staying in there, at least as far as I can see now.

 

In case you haven't seen it there are warranty and EPA legal stage 4's now. They have some on new bikes on the floor. Kit has CNC heads, new pistons, 58 mm Throttle body, 259e cams, clutch spring, catless head pipe, and mufflers with small cat in them. Notice no tuner as harley has a download for it. Worked fine. Not as well as a full blown stage 4 with a total catless system and tuner. The mufflers have a certain number of plates on them and they put security torx screws in them as if that would stop me. Got a set of those torx bits already. Been around dealership for long time and have never seen anyone denied warranty for any reason except out of date. They will even do warranty work on bikes from other dealerships with mods and never bat an eye. May take them few days to get it in shop if they live here and bought it somewhere else. That may be my imagination!

 

I think HD will use any excuse to get out of warranty coverage. Not an engine/tuner example but I had Wild One 12.5" apes, HD braided cables and levers done at my local dealer. Within two months the second layer of sheathing on the cable (where it goes through the cable guide left fork leg on RK) was all rolled up and the guide was wearing through the stainless braid. Service writer checked and said "it's a Harley cable, bring the bike in and we'll change it". I picked the bike up yesterday and was told sorry Deeley Canada denied warranty because you installed non Harley bars and you have to pay for cable and labour. WTF! He did waive the labour and gave me a case # if I wanted to complain to HD. I sent an email to the service and general manager of the dealership (who strangely weren't there on Saturday) politely stating my case and saying if HD wouldn't cover it that they should do the right thing and cover it, after all how can those bars possibly cause cable failure. I'll see what happens.


I wonder if I have wheel bearing failure they will deny it because I don't have the stock Dunlops on it?

 

There are tuners out there that save the stock map, and leave no footprint.

Not the SE tuners, of course...

I have all stock parts in a box.
.................................................. ...
Deleted the rest.

Y'all have a great Sunday!

 

I would recommend reading the entirety...
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/search/page...rue&ycord=2817

Or here: a bit easier to read..

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/chapter-50

 

That sounds nice...but Harley knows few people if any have the time, money, or desire to fight a warranty claim. Therefore it is like free money for them...and they know this well. I have a young friend that owns a dealership...he has always told his customers to beware of changing anything on the bike until the warranty has expired, and that implied approval for performance upgrades are very dubious.