I have a Stage 1 HD air cleaner (air cleaner is round) installed on my '11 Ultra Glide. I check the air cleaner periodically and have noticed that there is a very small amount of oil that puddles around the bottom of the air cleaner. I was wondering if this is normal. If it's not what could be causing the oil to leak out to this area?

Thanks!

RLJ

 

It's normal. The vent system from blowby from the rings pressurize the crankcase and at the higher RPM, drags some oil past the baffle and mesh vent system. It falls out in the hose long before the actual openings in the filter body. When it sets, it collects and drains down into the filter cavity. It's way too heavy to be pulled into the engine by the incoming air charge being pushed into the throttle body when the vacuum created by the downward travel of the piston is filled by the 15 or so lbs of atmospheric pressure .

 

It is normal, and it is not good. It is an epa requirement that the hot oily crankcase air be recycled back into the air cleaner...resulting in gumming up the throttle body and building carbon deposits on the pistons.

Also, engines run better with cool oxygen rich air and gasoline...had hot oxygen depleted air along with oil into the mix and performance drops.

You might want to consider an air cleaner that actually only lets clean dry air into the engine....or modify your existing one so that the hot oily air is vented externally.

Here's a LINK to see some options.