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I am a new Harley owner from Denmark and I just bought a 1991 Electra Glide with the Evo engine. It starts and runs fine, but I have an issue where it starts smoking at idle after about 10 seconds,
when the engine is at operating temperature.
I have read that these engines can be sensitive to overfilled oil tanks. I think my bike has an aftermarket dipstick and I do not trust the markings. On the attached photo you can see my dipstick with a ruler. The mark in the middle is at 3.5 inches and the total length is 5.7 inches.
Right now, when the engine is hot after a ride and leaning on the jiffy stand, the oil level is exactly at the 3.5 inch mark. Can anyone confirm if this is a normal and acceptable oil level for this bike? I want to rule out overfilling before looking into other causes for the smoke at idle.
1) Welcome to the forum. A lot of good people here (except me, I have a horrible sense of humor)
2) I have a 1992 FLHS. Service manual says 4 quarts of oil. If you're worried about overfill then 3.5 quarts is more than sufficient.
3) What kind of smoke??? I may be wrong and someone can correct me if I am . . .
a) black smoke is running rich, too much gas. Check that your enrichener (choke) is clean and properly seating.
b) white/blueish smoke means your burning oil.
I think I got that right. One of the more intelligent members should verify
1) Welcome to the forum. A lot of good people here (except me, I have a horrible sense of humor)
2) I have a 1992 FLHS. Service manual says 4 quarts of oil. If you're worried about overfill then 3.5 quarts is more than sufficient.
3) What kind of smoke??? I may be wrong and someone can correct me if I am . . .
a) black smoke is running rich, too much gas. Check that your enrichener (choke) is clean and properly seating.
b) white/blueish smoke means your burning oil.
I think I got that right. One of the more intelligent members should verify
Thanks for the welcome and the advice.
The smoke is definitely bluish, so it points toward burning oil rather than a rich fuel mixture, but I will check the enrichener cable and adjustment just to be sure.
I suspect it might be the umbrella valves in the rocker boxes. What puzzles me is that it doesn't start with a puff of smoke, but instead the smoke builds up gradually after sitting at idle for about 5-10 seconds, like when waiting at a red light.
I am trying to rule out everything else, including the oil level, before I start taking the top end apart to replace the umbrella valves and seals. If anyone has experienced this specific delayed smoking at idle, I would love to hear your thoughts.
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1991 Electra Glide Evo smoking at idle
