I have an '07 Ultra that I purchased in 2012 with 19K miles. It had a stage 1 with factory download, SE air cleaner (round one, not the cone), original headers and Rinehart slip-ons. Occasionally I would have problems with the bike where it would sometimes hesitate off the line and occasional idle issues. Turned out to be a cracked head-pipe, at the Y, where I found out it was fairly common.

I decided to replace the headers with V&H True Duals and keep the Rineharts. That setup was okay but and I seemed to have some improved performance but I didn't think the tune was right. I decided to put a Power Commander on it, purchased from Fuel Moto and their standard map for my setup. Bike still didn't run like I thought it should (or could). So I then put an Autotune unit on it.

Adding this unit was a real PITA with the V&H Headers. The 02 Sensor for the rear cylinder is positioned so that it was extremely difficult to get it mounted. It is pinned up against the tranny cover and I ended up cross threading the vent port and although it was a very frustrating install, I finally got it mounted and even though I had concerns that the sensor wires were pinned right up against the cover and I thought they might be pinched to the point of where they would not function properly, it seemed I was getting good readings from the sensor.

So I have been running with this setup for a couple of years now, updating the Autotune frequently at first but have not made any changes in quite awhile. BTW the bike now has just over 50K on the clock.

Now my problem is this. The bike will sometimes develop pre-ignition and will ping. Pretty bad at times, under load and gets worse at higher elevations. I try and keep the revs up by gearing down and that helps somewhat but still does not eliminate it. Gas around here is 91 octane tops and I always run the majors, preferably Chevron but sometimes Shell, Mobil or 76. I don't know if the quality of the fuel is the problem as it seems to perform pretty much the same regardless of the brand.

My gut is telling me that my exhaust setup is the majority of the problem. Oh, I also have significant decel pop, in fact it can be near shotgun loud occasionally.

So I want to replace at least the headers, and maybe the whole system but I don't want to get myself into a situation where I am chasing problem after problem.

My preference is performance over sound but I would like to keep the look of the duals, but would consider a 2-1 system if convinced that the performance would be that much improved.

Those of you who have been down this road, if you would please chime in and tell me your experiences and help me avoid a long drawn out process of trial and error. Much thanks!

 

The pre-ignition is almost certainly the tune, combined with carbon build-up on the pistons, courtesy of the EPA.

We see it every week, carbon build-up in the combustion chamber makes the engine run worse, when nothing else has changed.

Get an External Breather System, blow out the carbon in your cylinders, that will take care of part of your problem.

Pictures showing why I wrote the above-






Sometimes Rineharts can be difficult Slip-ons to get a good tune out of. Easy fix is to install some Thunder Torque Inserts. This will increase your low and mid range power (get it running more like you thought it should) and will decrease/eliminate the decel pop....also make your auto-tune work better.

The above, combined, are less than $100, but I think you will end up with a better result than spending upwards of $1000 on a new exhaust system.

If you are set on getting a new exhaust system, I would look at the Fuelmoto 2-1-2 headers, or the V&H Power Duals. Both are great pipes.

Whatever you do, I would install an EBS, and almost every slip-on will produce more power with the TTI's.

 

Kevin,
I am interested in the EBS as well as the TTI's. For the investment, the little bit of research I've done, the EBS sounds like a no-brainer. I don't really want to part with the Rinehart slip-ons but I do think I need another header. I don't like the fact that the CO2 Sensor wires are severely pinched. However, regardless of which way I go, the EBS sounds like a mod that should not be overlooked.

This is my A/C setup. Except I'm running the K&N filter.

Which of the EBS systems do I want?

 

Either one of the DIY Head Breather Systems at this LINK will work with that Air Cleaner.

 

Get rid of those GARBAGE duals and get a D&D with a ghost pipe to retain the dual exhuast look. But personally adding a ghost exhaust just adds weight.

 

I'm betting the problem is with your tune. The little bit of gain you might get by changing the head pipe with a stock engine is negligible. I installed Vance and Hines true duals on my wife's bike with 18mm O2 sensors for a Thunder Max. The wires touch the tranny cover but are not at an angle enough to pinch. I now what you mean about it being a pain to install but the 18mm O2 sensors are a bit of a pain to install in any head pipe. I've had them in D&D and have them in Fuel Moto headers as well.

 

If you're convinced that you need to ditch the head pipe then look at the S&S/Khrome Werks duals. They look like a true dual off a newer bike but have an equalising chamber to perform more like a 2-1-2


The Power Duals and FM 2-1-2 won't fit your bike without changing to a new style oil pan.

 

Now that you have the autotune for the PC-V ,,,you might want to get the Pod 300 to mount on the handlebars ...this will let you see the AFR'S throttle position and RPM ...because you need to find the T/P and RPM where the pinging is and retard the timing at least 2 degrees to start with ....that is more important than the exhaust pipe ,,,no matter what pipe you put on it ...if the timing is not right and it's pinging ...there will be no performance increase's of any kind !!! ...,then look at the Fuel moto 2-1-2 ...w/ the 18mm bungs for the 02 sensor's ...we found a used one on ebay ..was the ceramic coated w/o the 18mm bungs ...so we added them ...

oh...they are right ...the FM 2-1-2 will not fit ...i was thinking 2012 ...you had ...

the pinging is from the screw up ethanol gas JUNK gas now-a-days ...try a little octane booster or may need to add more fuel in that map area where you find the pining ....can test all this by finding some PURE gas ...100% gas and run at least 2 tanks ...but you may have water in the tank now if running ethanol in the past ...we all end up w/ some of it traveling, you just need to be able to combat the results of it ...somehow !!!


hope this helps ....

 

If you do change head pipes, I agree that you should look at Khrome Werks or S&S.