been hanging around for awhile,thought I would finally post. My 1994 electraglide has 90k miles top end has been done. just wondering when major engine failure,or ignition, failure is likely? all my friends are riding twin cams,but I like the old glide,has character.

 

Two things will help you decide when Evogeddon is imminent.

1. Excess oil consumption
2. Metal filings in your oil filter (cut them open when you change the oil and look for lots of shiny particles)

Evo bottom end can go 200K if you are nice to it so I wouldn't lose sleep, just keep an eye on things.

 

Ignition failure is impossible to predict...unless using an Ultima coil, then it is imminent...

 

spanner,thanks for the info.I am going to start cutting the filters now. I realize ignition type failures are hard to predict.I am from the old school,when shovels and iron heads broke down on most trips. I just thought if at 110k or ? coils seem to fail,or modules. I would replace it now.All the twin cams I ride with,I think the most miles has 15,000. Bertha just keeps going! cant afford a $25 thousand dollar bike!! not sure I want one.if it breaks,off to the dealer.I can still wrench on mine.

 

One thing I would change out at 35k increments is the lifters.I had one spit the rollers out at 49,925. So that's why I'm a bit gun shy with old lifters.,,

 

Is this "the" Bertha, the one Traildog sold when he thought he was poor???

There is no pattern to electrical failure, I have seen modules and coils go 20+ years and I've seen them fail within weeks.

 

Your bike is 20 years old, that is long enough for all manner of things to go wrong - or none at all. You've asked an open question to which there really is no answer! Some Evos have done enormous mileages with little trouble. If you have done the top end and put it back onto a 90k bottom end, then there is a possibility that will go next, especially if you now ride it hard.

Look after it, service it well and enjoy the ride! Stop worrying about something that may never happen. We'll be here if it does.......

 

There is a guy here that put well over 400,000 miles on his EVO. He used Fram filers and non-HD oil. My indie guy said that the only time anyone had been in his engine was for a cam bearing. The story goes that the MoCo took his bike in trade for a brand new bike. Apparently they wanted to tear it down to see what was going on in there. His bike was stock or nearly so. It was an FLHTC. I wish I could remember the guys name. When I do I'll add a link to the web page for him. His bike was named "Charlie". I also seem to remember that it was a 1986 or 1987. My indie guy says that the less performance modification you do the farther it will go without breaking something.

For example, he says that if you want to go the maximum distance on your bike leave the stock cams alone. He says that the hotter cams create more stress on the entire drive train. That stress adds up over the years. Not that he is downing hot rodding your Harley. Not at all. He loves a hotrod like the next guy. But, he says a stock Harley (most of them) will go a long, long way with little repair. On mine I tossed the butterfly carb and added a Killer CV, SE air cleaner and mufflers. He said that that would give me more power without having much impact on the longivity of the drivetrain. Since I want to ride as many trouble free years as possible I'm stopping there.

My engine was refurbished at the MoCo in 2004-05 (winter). The refurb has about 30,000-ish on it and the rest of the bike is getting pretty close to 100,000 miles. I plan to ride it into the distant future. The only thing I'm not clear on is the drive belt. They replaced the swing arm bushings in 04-05 so I assume that they would replace the belt.

 

All good advice above. Evos are a great, dependable motor. I would use winters to make sure your bearings are in good order, greased, and changed as necessary (wheel, neck, and swingarm). If you have never changed out the cam bearing, it would be a great project to do as you are replacing the lifters (if those lifters are stock, GREAT, but I would be swapping them to avoid a failure taking out any major parts). At that age and miles, the heat has started to harden up and melt away some of the electrical wires and connections. Keep an eye on all that you can visibly see and replace connectors, wires, etc. when necessary. It's not hard, and can save you from sitting on the side of the road on a hot summer day. Also might want to take a look at how much slack you have on the primary chain (I think most Evos usually like around 5/8") and adjust as necessary, and while you're in there take a look at the primary chain adjustment shoe. Sometimes they wear out (kinda like Twinkie cam tensioners, only not near as bad or near as quickly) and need replaced.

Other than things like above and others have mentioned, keep up with the regular maintenance and keep riding the old girl! Love to see Evos and Shovels still pounding the pavement!

 

I have about 91,000 miles on my current motor. All stock inside (Mikuni carb and modded exhaust). Bike still has good compression, no more oil consumption than it ever did. I do change the lifters and inner cam bearing at 40K intervals, because a failed lifter cost me the first motor.

I had and oil analysis done at the end of last season, and everything was in the nominal range for a much younger motor. How much longer will it run? I have no idea.