FLH Model Instrument Repairs
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FLH Model Instrument Repairs
HARLEY DAVIDSON FLHT
INSTRUMENT REPAIRS
Have your bagger instruments started to go haywire after a year or so of use? On some FLH they have been having problems after just 10,000 miles. If you live on a bumpy washboard road ,maybe that's why they failed so soon, but I've heard other owners talk about lights, fuel gauges, and speedometers that malfunction at similar times with just highway use. The good news is that troubleshooting them yourself is possible and many of the repairs can be done with a few simple hand tools instead of spending big bucks at the dealer.
The most common complaint is that the dash light bulb in one of the gauges has gone out. My voltage gauge lamp went out first, then my fuel gauge lamp. Replacing these is not hard and requires only a torx head driver ( a special star shaped allen wrench) that is available from any Auto Zone. Get a set of them so you will be sure to have the right size. You need to remove the 7 screws that hold on the front panel of the fairing, they are located along the top just under the windshield and on the back of the fairing on either side and a few more near the bottom inside. Be careful to remove the windshield first after removing the top screws so it doesn't fall off. If you have ever wanted to replace the windshield with a custom shorty one like the 6" Black Chrome Drag Specialties replacement, now would be a good time. After you have the front panel off, locate the gauge, speedo, or tach that has the light out and you will see the white socket with the bulb inserted into the back. Remove the socket/bulb assembly and take it to the auto parts store to get an exact replacement dash light bulb. A pack of 2 will be about 2 bucks. Note that there is a rubber cap that diffuses the light that can be transferred to the new lamps. You can also get colored red, green, or blue lamps for a nice custom touch. If your bike has high miles you might want to just replace all of the lamps to avoid having to do this job repeatedly.
If you have a gauge that is malfunctioning it is easy to remove the gauge now. On a friends bike the fuel gauge began acting strangely and jumping around like the needle dampner had failed. When he applied the brakes the needle would swing wildly like it was showing the gas sloshing in the tank, though at speed it settled down and was probably accurate. He got a good used gauge from a friend who had converted an FLT to a Road King and it worked fine. A new gauge from the dealer is the alternative and they probably run about $60.
The last thing he has had is problems with was the electroninc speedo. It worked fine up to about 20K miles and then began jumping around and eventually the needle fell to zero. The odometer also stopped working but the light stayed on indicating it still had power. It seemed to me there was a loose wire or plug so while the fairing was apart I popped the plug out of the back, cleaned it with contact spray and re-inserted it firmly. The speedo now worked for a few miles and then began acting up again. The cure for this was removing the speedometer sending unit and cleaning it off. The sending unit is a magnetic pickup that is inserted into the top of the trans just above where the kickstart used to be. There is a single screw holding it in and you can wiggle it out without removing the vent hose. The magnetic tip of the sender will collect bits of metal filings from the tranny and eventually these filings keep it from sensing the gear teeth below it properly and can do so intermittantly as the oil turbulence causes them to shift around. I had a nice glob of metal filings on mine and wiped them off with a rag dipped in solvent. After re-inserting the sender the speedo has worked fine ever since, it's not uncommon for it to fail completely shortly after a cleaning requiring replacement. A new speedo may be the only cure for some failures, but at $250+ and another few hundr
INSTRUMENT REPAIRS
Have your bagger instruments started to go haywire after a year or so of use? On some FLH they have been having problems after just 10,000 miles. If you live on a bumpy washboard road ,maybe that's why they failed so soon, but I've heard other owners talk about lights, fuel gauges, and speedometers that malfunction at similar times with just highway use. The good news is that troubleshooting them yourself is possible and many of the repairs can be done with a few simple hand tools instead of spending big bucks at the dealer.
The most common complaint is that the dash light bulb in one of the gauges has gone out. My voltage gauge lamp went out first, then my fuel gauge lamp. Replacing these is not hard and requires only a torx head driver ( a special star shaped allen wrench) that is available from any Auto Zone. Get a set of them so you will be sure to have the right size. You need to remove the 7 screws that hold on the front panel of the fairing, they are located along the top just under the windshield and on the back of the fairing on either side and a few more near the bottom inside. Be careful to remove the windshield first after removing the top screws so it doesn't fall off. If you have ever wanted to replace the windshield with a custom shorty one like the 6" Black Chrome Drag Specialties replacement, now would be a good time. After you have the front panel off, locate the gauge, speedo, or tach that has the light out and you will see the white socket with the bulb inserted into the back. Remove the socket/bulb assembly and take it to the auto parts store to get an exact replacement dash light bulb. A pack of 2 will be about 2 bucks. Note that there is a rubber cap that diffuses the light that can be transferred to the new lamps. You can also get colored red, green, or blue lamps for a nice custom touch. If your bike has high miles you might want to just replace all of the lamps to avoid having to do this job repeatedly.
If you have a gauge that is malfunctioning it is easy to remove the gauge now. On a friends bike the fuel gauge began acting strangely and jumping around like the needle dampner had failed. When he applied the brakes the needle would swing wildly like it was showing the gas sloshing in the tank, though at speed it settled down and was probably accurate. He got a good used gauge from a friend who had converted an FLT to a Road King and it worked fine. A new gauge from the dealer is the alternative and they probably run about $60.
The last thing he has had is problems with was the electroninc speedo. It worked fine up to about 20K miles and then began jumping around and eventually the needle fell to zero. The odometer also stopped working but the light stayed on indicating it still had power. It seemed to me there was a loose wire or plug so while the fairing was apart I popped the plug out of the back, cleaned it with contact spray and re-inserted it firmly. The speedo now worked for a few miles and then began acting up again. The cure for this was removing the speedometer sending unit and cleaning it off. The sending unit is a magnetic pickup that is inserted into the top of the trans just above where the kickstart used to be. There is a single screw holding it in and you can wiggle it out without removing the vent hose. The magnetic tip of the sender will collect bits of metal filings from the tranny and eventually these filings keep it from sensing the gear teeth below it properly and can do so intermittantly as the oil turbulence causes them to shift around. I had a nice glob of metal filings on mine and wiped them off with a rag dipped in solvent. After re-inserting the sender the speedo has worked fine ever since, it's not uncommon for it to fail completely shortly after a cleaning requiring replacement. A new speedo may be the only cure for some failures, but at $250+ and another few hundr
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