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14 Limited with 115k, the twin cam reads engine temp on the front cylinder instead of the M8 rear, big difference in normal operating temps due to where those sensors are located. We rode through Death Valley in July 119 deg on a 8100 mile roadtrip, pulled an oil sample when I got home and changed it, Blackstone Labs Report says oil was in great condition, extend it to 10,000 next time. Still change it around the 5000-7000 mile mark. Highest engine temps I've seen on the 14 is 235. Haven't hooked my Powervision to the bars on my 22 Limited yet to see what it runs at. I saw my 09 Ultra Classic as high 275 deg, twin cooling makes a big difference. 144,000 troublefree miles when I traded that in.
right! I'm not one of those guys but it's cool to see when yyou're stuck in standstill traffic and you look down and see coolant temp dropping like a rock because the fans kicked on
Hi OP,
I actually think it was a good question. Many trolls and those that look for typos. i knew what you meant.
I have the V&H FP3 tuner. from time to time I do have it turned on, on my phone app, and do look at the different temps. I kinda make a mental note of it. If its running good, I just note it.
I have a 2107 that now has 50K miles, I put 49K on since 2021.
Plus you'll know if your legs or jewels are on fire if its too hot.
I can understand curiosity. The OP can buy a remote thermometer and see what various components show after a ride and make note. It being an air cooled engine, other than keeping the exterior clean (primarily the cooling fins) there isn't much that can be done to control the heat. He already has a tuner so a mixture change is possible for him.
Liquid cooled engines are different. A thermostat can fail either open or closed. Radiators can become blocked, saw one covered in layers of cotton wood seeds. Cleaned that, and overheating went away. Scale can reduce heat transfer in the radiator and/or the engine itself.
Years ago I read that Harley tests the engines under difficult conditions. With an ambient temperature over 100 degrees F, they put a machine inside a walled enclosure to minimize air flow, and let it idle for hours. They ran them on tracks all day , also at over 100 degrees, and verified cooling was adequate. With the two year, unlimited mileage warrantee, I assume they still do that. Having had to replace head gaskets, I can understand the OP's concern, but other than parking the machine for a few hours during the heat of the day, there isn't anything that can be done to control the heat. I am another one who doesn't worry about it.
Wonder if he knows about EITMS. I don't like it and don't use it.
The M8 engine temperature, as measured by the factory sensor & then displayed by the PV as "ET" can be 260* F everyday warm weather riding, with no more than 270* F in extreme circumstances.
At 270* F you may feel the sluggishness in power, and accelerated engine wear begins, which is when riders typically start looking into Heat Reduction Mods.
I have a 21 107 milwaukee-eight, stage 1 with a se cam and a Powervision tune. My temp have hit the 360 range on a hot humid Iowa day. This was after the ride at home, just before I shut the bike off. I need a dyno tune, the custom email tune just doesn't cut it for Temps and proper performance.
2019 road king special thinderheader and air filter with tuner. Ok so Ive been looking forever and can’t seem to find any real info on what the actual running engine temp for the m8 motors are. They say 230-260. I have always had the oil temp dipstick but that is a different temp than engine temp. I never worried as it never hit 200. After getting a pv2 runner and deciding to leave it on the bike for more gauges on my road king I have noticed standard running down the road temps to be 270. If it’s hot out or I am sitting in traffic on a 70-80 day I can see it go as high as 315. Bike doesn’t seem to be any hotter than it ever ran before. At what point is the temperature an actual concern. So many people say oh my bike runs cool at 210 but are going off oil temp not engine temp. Being unless you run a runner that gives you an actual engine temp reading most have no clue what the bike runs at.
Hey Bro, been having the same problems with my 2017 Road King Special Oil and Air cooled and I can give you some idea's what i have done to cool the cylinder head down (The front right is my problem) and my oil. and I got the same questions and answers as you do regarding high temps and i have done a lot of stuff that has changed my temps. I've contacted Vance and Hines about the maps I have flashed from the FP3 and they don't know **** about temps, but their so called service techs keep giving me maps that make my engine run hot with maps that have the air/fuel ratio all wrong causing the front O2 sensor to act funky and give high temp readings .and I just figured that out. First the standard stuff a Arlean Ness Naked Air Sucker that I added a External Air Breather Kit , I put on a dip stick with a breather mod to help relieve Crank case pressure, I didn't see much difference in oil temps. I have read about Trask Crankcase vent mod and it could be helpful, but a little overpriced in my opinion. I replaced the oil pump for Harleys upgraded oil pump for the earlier M8's and got cornholed on the labor charges., but it put to ease concerns I had on a common problem of Oil Sumping on these bikes. Next I added Harleys Oil cooler fan assist, as these bikes don't have a stock fan for the oil cooler and the fan was another trip down to Harley to get cornholed again to have them flash the fan to the ECU. I was not happy with oil temps and Cylinder heads at this point. I even melted all the gaskets on my new Air Sucker so I purchased a Ultra Cool Oil Cooler with Dual Fans and a Ultra Cool Lifetime oil filter and finally I see results and oil temps are running nice and cool, but heads are still up in the 350-450 on front of cylinder and the Ultra Cool doesn't coexist with added fan on the stock oil cooler so I run the Ultra Cool cooler and Dual fans with a test plug and wire a toggle switch so I can run it with the stock cooler and oil is running around 240-260. I put on one inch tank risers two and three inch risers were too much and looked goofy. One inch looks good and brought cylinder head temp down about 40-50 degrees. Cylinder head can still get to 450 easily ,but the temp seems to be the hottest at the first bend in Vance and Hines Dual Dressers Front pipe not the cylinder giving pipes external heat felt on legs. I can live with that. I did remove the cat from header pipes and baffles from slip on's. I only solved half the problem of the cylinder heat with all this bullshit and will probably go to Harley and get cornholed again for some head work as I search for the perfect cylinder head temps.
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