I was recently in another forum and I noticed that, if I’m understanding correctly that Harley on the 2020 models changed the transmission top cover to allow for engine case breathing? Or something of that effect. Anybody out there got a 2020 touring model that can chime in?

 

The inner primary cover has a breather tube, not exactly sure when that was added but i believe in 19 or 20. Mine had popped out and was leaking is how I found that out. Warranty covered. The tranny plate does not. Either need to add a vented dip stick or trask plate etc. I added the Trask plate to mine. No sumping issues.

 

Yeah, just vented my trans cover….. caught crap from my Harley mechanic. He said that the Trask checkm8 was bunk….. time to find another mechanic I think. Funny thing, Harley employees all say stay away from the internet and forums…. I think they might just learn something if they spent a bit of time there themselves.

 

Tell him to pound sand. Your bike, do what you want.

 

Alot of people have their opinions on the trask kit. Alot of talk on here about if it works or not. I personally like the part and think it works. I have the trask clear intake as well. Prior to the checkm8 I would get a little remanence of blowback on the inside of the intake window, after install it doesnt happen anymore.

 

The Trask absolutely keeps oil out of the intake, no question about it. Folks can talk about its cost or if they need such a thing or not, but it still works for its intended purpose.

• Reduce or even eliminate the oil coming from the head breathers on your M8.

 

That is incorrect... the Harley Twin Cam & M8 transmission have always had a vent, from the factory..

In 2020ish, Harley's 8th (maybe 9th) oil pump change was declared by them to be the fix for sumping and put on all production models... The vent Harley added to the inner primary case, at about the same time frame, to production models, had to do with fixing the fluid transfer between the transmission and the primary cases.

It sounds to me like you are confusing two different issues and their reported "fixes" from the MoCo and the aftermarket... I'll try to briefly explain the differences..

First, there is the transmission fluid transfer to the primary case issue..... The Twin Cam and the M8 transmission covers are vented from the factory. IT USED TO BE that the primary also vented through the transmission vent, via the hollow input shaft where the clutch release pushrod operates between the clutch in the primary and through the trap door (clutch actuator) on the opposite side of the transmission ...

There are various theories why the M8 primary doesn't vent properly like the twin cams did, that led to fluid transfer between the trans and primary of the M8 engines. Putting an additional vent in the inner primary case itself, was the "fix" HD came up with that prevents the fluid transfer in the vast majority of cases.. The only aftermarket fixes that worked had to do with the size/dimensions of the clutch release pushrod. There were no aftermarket fixes that had anything to do with adding another vent to the trans.. although increasing the size and/or pathway of the OEM trans vent has been discussed.

Second there is the engine sumping issue. Again, many theories exist that focus on either the affect of crank case pressure interfering with the scavenging of the oil pump and/or the inability of the oil pump to scavenge properly... which then leads to sumping.

How you got the transmission confused into this equation, is because on the touring bikes, the engine oil pan is shared with (part of) the transmission case. It resides on the bottom of the transmission case. There are absolutely no passageways between the oil pan and the transmission, even though they share the same case. Venting the transmission will have no affect on engine crank case pressure...

Harley focused their "fix" for sumping on changing the oil pump so it is not interfered with by crank case pressure while scavenging oil. Many aftermarket "fixes" for the sumping issue say the oil pump fix by HD is a band-aide, and the true cause lies with the fixing the crank case pressures. The aftermarket introduced a way to vent the oil pan, not the transmission, to relieve crank case pressure. They do that by adding a vent to the dip stick to reduce crank case pressure, or by putting a vent in the throat of the dip stick passageway to the oil pan, NOT the transmission, to relieve crank case pressure....

Obviously, HD has put their $$$ on the oil pump "fix" to stop sumping and it, albeit like their 8th oil pump change, seems to work in the vast majority of cases. Of course they will be training their employees that their fix is the proper "engineering" answer to sumping....

As you can see, some people in the aftermarket world disagree. Some of them are really smart problem solvers, and some are trying to cash in on the "sumping fear" that has been generated by the sumping issues..

The HD employees see the aftermarket fixes as people trying to make money from "snake oil" fixes, and the aftermarket sees HD as finding the most cost effective fix, for the MoCo, not the bike owner. Obviously, both side are vested in their beliefs and passionate about their opinions...

IMHO... both theories have some merit, yet both fall short in some instances... Which "fix" is the best for most cases, is hotly debated by people much smarter than me..... There is no cut & dried answer to this one ...

I hope this brief summary helps your understanding of the two issues and their reported "fixes"....


PS- I just looked up the Trask solution for venting the oil pan.... If I had an M8, and wanted to vent the oil pan, I would use the Trask part, long before using the modified oil dipsticks or drilling a vent in the case at the throat of the dipstick passageway... That Trask unit looks slick...

 

Watch this video:

Forward to install portion. an do it yourself tansmission vent for a liitle money. Trask part over priced, T- Man just came out with their own transmission vent.

Also check out this video
It's about softail M8's , but Ron has several video's with lots of info including a parts list.

Maybe I'm cheap, but I also like doing DIY. Doing the DIY method today.

Eddie

 

so watched the above video. gotta wonder, what would the end result be if you poked a hole in that top cover gasket, and drilled a hole in the rib on the top cover that separates the 2 chambers and instead of drilling a hole in the top cover and adding the filter, let it vent through the original vent tube?

 

Like I say, the proof is always in the pudding.