New to me 1996 Electra Glide 69,xxx miles
Thread Starter
|
3rd Gear
Joined: Jan 2020
Posts: 7
Likes: 1
From: virginia
New to me 1996 Electra Glide 69,xxx miles
Hello brethren, I recently picked up a 1996 Electra Glide with 69,000 miles, for an extremely reasonable price($2200). My first BIG bike. Its already been parking lot dropped and shows it with small damage to the right side fairing and crash bar. It runs and rides great. Mechanicals seem to have been well looked after. Just wondering what you out there with older, high mile bikes pay particular attention too? Recommended maintenance items?
Thanks in advance
Thanks in advance
Road Master
Joined: Nov 2018
Posts: 920
Likes: 897
From: Upstate NY
Get yourself a service manual and find out whats involved in a 10K mile service interval. Its literally a list of every nut, bolt and misc item to be checked and serviced. Its an extensive check and will take you some time to go over it all.
DO NOT take the previous owners explanation of a 'parking lot' drop as gospel. When I was young, I bought an old Suzuki that had a dent in the tank. Owner said it had been knocked over in a parking lot. He gave me a GREAT price and I happily trucked the bike home. Once I got it home I found the entire swing arm was bent. The bike had obviously been 'pushed over.....but probably by a car at highway speeds. I founf more hidden damage and spent the entire winter replacing very hard to find parts. The moral of the story......buy the bike, not the story. Good luck with your new ride. The Evo isnt the fastest engine out there but its easy to work on and fairly bullet proof.
DO NOT take the previous owners explanation of a 'parking lot' drop as gospel. When I was young, I bought an old Suzuki that had a dent in the tank. Owner said it had been knocked over in a parking lot. He gave me a GREAT price and I happily trucked the bike home. Once I got it home I found the entire swing arm was bent. The bike had obviously been 'pushed over.....but probably by a car at highway speeds. I founf more hidden damage and spent the entire winter replacing very hard to find parts. The moral of the story......buy the bike, not the story. Good luck with your new ride. The Evo isnt the fastest engine out there but its easy to work on and fairly bullet proof.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2019
Posts: 10,751
Likes: 7,375
From: OH
Evo
Hello brethren, I recently picked up a 1996 Electra Glide with 69,000 miles, for an extremely reasonable price($2200). My first BIG bike. Its already been parking lot dropped and shows it with small damage to the right side fairing and crash bar. It runs and rides great. Mechanicals seem to have been well looked after. Just wondering what you out there with older, high mile bikes pay particular attention too? Recommended maintenance items?
Thanks in advance
Thanks in advance
the evo was a great engine
congratulations
Thread Starter
|
3rd Gear
Joined: Jan 2020
Posts: 7
Likes: 1
From: virginia
Get yourself a service manual and find out whats involved in a 10K mile service interval. Its literally a list of every nut, bolt and misc item to be checked and serviced. Its an extensive check and will take you some time to go over it all.
DO NOT take the previous owners explanation of a 'parking lot' drop as gospel. When I was young, I bought an old Suzuki that had a dent in the tank. Owner said it had been knocked over in a parking lot. He gave me a GREAT price and I happily trucked the bike home. Once I got it home I found the entire swing arm was bent. The bike had obviously been 'pushed over.....but probably by a car at highway speeds. I founf more hidden damage and spent the entire winter replacing very hard to find parts. The moral of the story......buy the bike, not the story. Good luck with your new ride. The Evo isnt the fastest engine out there but its easy to work on and fairly bullet proof.
DO NOT take the previous owners explanation of a 'parking lot' drop as gospel. When I was young, I bought an old Suzuki that had a dent in the tank. Owner said it had been knocked over in a parking lot. He gave me a GREAT price and I happily trucked the bike home. Once I got it home I found the entire swing arm was bent. The bike had obviously been 'pushed over.....but probably by a car at highway speeds. I founf more hidden damage and spent the entire winter replacing very hard to find parts. The moral of the story......buy the bike, not the story. Good luck with your new ride. The Evo isnt the fastest engine out there but its easy to work on and fairly bullet proof.
Yeah, I've been burned like that too in the past. Im older now and hopefully wiser(my wife would disagree)... I feel like I've done my due diligence but still completely going over the bike.
Road Master
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 1,071
Likes: 109
From: LA - (Lower Alabama)
Great bike. I friend of mine’s first HD was a 1996 Ultra Classic. Had about 75k when he bought it and he put another $12k on it before upgrading to a 2008 RK. Good advice on here by making sure it is caught up on service with a 10k mile service interval checkup.
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Road Warrior
Joined: May 2013
Posts: 1,486
Likes: 619
From: North Dakota & Minnesota
Good advice on getting a service manual and posting in the Evo Forum.
The Evo was a great motor but here are a few tips:
Don't use synthetic oils unless you love leaks and weeping. Quite normal for an old Evo to weep oil at the cylinder base gaskets.
Lifters on Evos are a maintenance item and wear out every 50,000 miles or so.
96' Evos had a substandard Ina cam bearing. Mine was fine at 70,000 miles but it's a good idea to swap in a Torrington if you are ever inside the cam chest.
Do you know if the lifters and cam bearing have been addressed?
Also check the date of the tires. Behind the DOT logo there should be a 4 digit number. First two digits are the week and the second two are the year of manufacture. If the number is a three digit number the tires were made before 2000. Don't ride on old tires.
The Evo was a great motor but here are a few tips:
Don't use synthetic oils unless you love leaks and weeping. Quite normal for an old Evo to weep oil at the cylinder base gaskets.
Lifters on Evos are a maintenance item and wear out every 50,000 miles or so.
96' Evos had a substandard Ina cam bearing. Mine was fine at 70,000 miles but it's a good idea to swap in a Torrington if you are ever inside the cam chest.
Do you know if the lifters and cam bearing have been addressed?
Also check the date of the tires. Behind the DOT logo there should be a 4 digit number. First two digits are the week and the second two are the year of manufacture. If the number is a three digit number the tires were made before 2000. Don't ride on old tires.
Last edited by ieatchickens; Jan 13, 2020 at 10:06 PM.
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Cruiser
Joined: May 2019
Posts: 169
Likes: 59
From: Knoxville Tennessee
Service manual.
me and my 96 ultra have a love hate.. I ride everyday 100+Mph wide open in the left lane and she always needs something. I have a primary noise rn.. hoping its just the inner primary berring...
also dont over tighten the primary derby cover or it will leak... the 3 hole primary covers are prone to warp. The primary drain plug is not to be reused or it will leak. SAE 50 oil does my engine best. In 50k miles its been solid just berrings, tires, cables, brake lines, pads, fluids, filters, drive belt, battery and stator. Dont be scared to ride it 3-4K rpms.. evos love to rev high. 6500rpm every day after its good and warm. They are very solid bikes and I enjoy this bike more than my recently totaled 2019 Roadglide M8.
only real con of this bike is its not as good of a corner machine as the newer bikes.
me and my 96 ultra have a love hate.. I ride everyday 100+Mph wide open in the left lane and she always needs something. I have a primary noise rn.. hoping its just the inner primary berring...
also dont over tighten the primary derby cover or it will leak... the 3 hole primary covers are prone to warp. The primary drain plug is not to be reused or it will leak. SAE 50 oil does my engine best. In 50k miles its been solid just berrings, tires, cables, brake lines, pads, fluids, filters, drive belt, battery and stator. Dont be scared to ride it 3-4K rpms.. evos love to rev high. 6500rpm every day after its good and warm. They are very solid bikes and I enjoy this bike more than my recently totaled 2019 Roadglide M8.
only real con of this bike is its not as good of a corner machine as the newer bikes.
Last edited by SJT; Jan 14, 2020 at 12:08 AM.
Club Member
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 45,429
Likes: 2,897
From: Bedford UK
Welcome to Evo ownership. I strongly recommend you take a look over in the Evo section, where you will find other fellow owners, along with plenty of help and support. The genuine FSM is still available from your local friendly dealer.
