Engine heat?
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 2,325
Likes: 7
From: SE Illinois
I have a 2012 Super Glide & never had a heat issue, but by removing the stock mufflers w/cats in them & replacing with V&H slip-ons, adding SE air cleaner & dyno tune with SE race tuner, it runs much cooler yet & runs 100 times better than stock.
I don't understand why you would want to leave it bone stock? They don't even sound like a Harley should and the intake & exhaust are so restricted to comply with EPA regs that it's starving the motor. IMO, if you're going to spend $14,000 on a new bike, why not spend another few hundred more and let it breath and sound right. It can be done cheap....SE breather + slip-ons + XiEDs would be the cheapest route & would only run you about $500-$600 for all 3. Money well spent in my opinion, but hey it's your bike & up to you...just giving my input.
As far as heat issues stock...I don't hear too many Dyna owners complaining about it, but I don't know very many either that haven't at least done a stage 1.
Complaints of heat issues mostly come from the touring guys.
Good luck if you decide to get a new one...they're great bikes right out of the box. The only complaint I had about mine was how quiet it was and how it felt starved for air, which I obviously fixed with the stage 1 & tune.
I don't understand why you would want to leave it bone stock? They don't even sound like a Harley should and the intake & exhaust are so restricted to comply with EPA regs that it's starving the motor. IMO, if you're going to spend $14,000 on a new bike, why not spend another few hundred more and let it breath and sound right. It can be done cheap....SE breather + slip-ons + XiEDs would be the cheapest route & would only run you about $500-$600 for all 3. Money well spent in my opinion, but hey it's your bike & up to you...just giving my input.
As far as heat issues stock...I don't hear too many Dyna owners complaining about it, but I don't know very many either that haven't at least done a stage 1.
Complaints of heat issues mostly come from the touring guys.
Good luck if you decide to get a new one...they're great bikes right out of the box. The only complaint I had about mine was how quiet it was and how it felt starved for air, which I obviously fixed with the stage 1 & tune.
Last edited by Sharkman73; Jul 13, 2012 at 02:06 PM.
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Elite HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 4,867
Likes: 267
From: People's Republic of Boulder Colorado
I have a 2012 Super Glide & never had a heat issue, but by removing the stock mufflers w/cats in them & replacing with V&H slip-ons, adding SE air cleaner & dyno tune with SE race tuner, it runs much cooler yet & runs 100 times better than stock.
I don't understand why you would want to leave it bone stock? They don't even sound like a Harley should and the intake & exhaust are so restricted to comply with EPA regs that it's starving the motor. IMO, if you're going to spend $14,000 on a new bike, why not spend another few hundred more and let it breath and sound right. It can be done cheap....SE breather + slip-ons + XiEDs would be the cheapest route & would only run you about $500-$600 for all 3. Money well spent in my opinion.
I don't understand why you would want to leave it bone stock? They don't even sound like a Harley should and the intake & exhaust are so restricted to comply with EPA regs that it's starving the motor. IMO, if you're going to spend $14,000 on a new bike, why not spend another few hundred more and let it breath and sound right. It can be done cheap....SE breather + slip-ons + XiEDs would be the cheapest route & would only run you about $500-$600 for all 3. Money well spent in my opinion.
Every bike I've ever owned has been left in, or returned to, factory stock configuration. That's just me though, to each his own.
Thanks for the reply and ride safe.
Elite HDF Member
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 4,046
Likes: 398
From: sugar land, gulf coast, tx
Like as been stated before, it's the EPA regs not MOCO's poor engineering that is the heat culprit. My Dyna doesn't put out near the heat that I had on previously owned touring models. You need to also remember that the engines are air cooled only and it is designed to run correctly at a given temp, which is normally higher than water cooled bikes. The worst bike I ever owned for excessive heat was a Triumph 1050 ST. With all the tupperware and under seat exhaust, warm weather riding was torture. Folks on Triumph forums complained about it too, but little could be done, like can be for our bikes. Just saying...tomp dd50
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 2,325
Likes: 7
From: SE Illinois
That's just it. If I spend $14,000 on ANYTHING I'm not gonna spend a penny more to make it do what it's supposed to do in the first place. Everybody has their own way of doing things and I respect that, but as far as I'm concerned - screw putting any more money into a vehicle that isn't ride-able (if that's in fact the case). If the MOCO can't build a bike that doesn't cook parts of your body, then I'm not going to spend any extra money to do it for them.
Every bike I've ever owned has been left in, or returned to, factory stock configuration. That's just me though, to each his own.
Thanks for the reply and ride safe.
Every bike I've ever owned has been left in, or returned to, factory stock configuration. That's just me though, to each his own.
Thanks for the reply and ride safe.
The EPA forces the MOCO to build them to meet emissions standards and to limit noise emitted from the bike. It's not any different than buying a new car. A new car or truck is great, but could it be better from a performance perspective if manufacturers didn't have to adhere to strict EPA regs...of course. Same thing with bikes....difference is most people don't dick with the emission systems on their brand new cars or modify their exhaust or intake systems. Most Harley owners choose to do so because there are tons of aftermarket parts to do it, and it's relatively cheap compared to what it would cost to do the same thing to say a new car or truck.
I think it goes back to old school...before the EPA started forcing motorcycle manufacturers to adhere to emission and noise standards, and most Harley riders want their bikes to run and sound like they use to & should.
Anyway, I think you would be happy with a new bike...like I said, they're great right out of the box & you don't need to do anything but ride them if you choose not to.
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Elite HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2007
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From: People's Republic of Boulder Colorado
It's absolutely ride-able bone stock & there's nothing you need to change, it's just personal preference. It's a great bike completely stock.
The EPA forces the MOCO to build them to meet emissions standards and to limit noise emitted from the bike. It's not any different than buying a new car. A new car or truck is great, but could it be better from a performance perspective if manufacturers didn't have to adhere to strict EPA regs...of course. Same thing with bikes....difference is most people don't dick with the emission systems on their brand new cars or modify their exhaust or intake systems. Most Harley owners choose to do so because there are tons of aftermarket parts to do it, and it's relatively cheap compared to what it would cost to do the same thing to say a new car or truck.
I think it goes back to old school...before the EPA started forcing motorcycle manufacturers to adhere to emission and noise standards, and most Harley riders want their bikes to run and sound like they use to & should.
Anyway, I think you would be happy with a new bike...like I said, they're great right out of the box & you don't need to do anything but ride them if you choose not to.
The EPA forces the MOCO to build them to meet emissions standards and to limit noise emitted from the bike. It's not any different than buying a new car. A new car or truck is great, but could it be better from a performance perspective if manufacturers didn't have to adhere to strict EPA regs...of course. Same thing with bikes....difference is most people don't dick with the emission systems on their brand new cars or modify their exhaust or intake systems. Most Harley owners choose to do so because there are tons of aftermarket parts to do it, and it's relatively cheap compared to what it would cost to do the same thing to say a new car or truck.
I think it goes back to old school...before the EPA started forcing motorcycle manufacturers to adhere to emission and noise standards, and most Harley riders want their bikes to run and sound like they use to & should.
Anyway, I think you would be happy with a new bike...like I said, they're great right out of the box & you don't need to do anything but ride them if you choose not to.
Yeah, if people start screwing around with their emissions systems on their cars, then they wouldn't pass inspection in the states and counties that require them (more and more every year) and they'd have to put it all back on anyway.
That's something I've never understood about H-D dealerships and indy shops putting aftermarket parts on these bikes that violate EPA regs. From what I understand, there are federal rules against doing that. If I bought a new car and asked the dealer to take the cat off of it and to hop it up a little and put a chip in it to richen up the mixture and maybe a muffler that's nice & loud, they would think I was crazy and they certainly wouldn't do it.
I sometimes wonder about what will happen when the EPA finally mandates emissions and noise-level testing on bikes. It seems to me that nearly every Harley owner in the US will be totally screwed at that point.
For the record, I am in no way a fan of the EPA and that is not why I leave all my bikes bone-stock, but it's something I wonder about occasionally.
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