Speedometer Accuracy
Thread Starter
|
Intermediate
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 46
Likes: 2
From: St. Paul, MN
Speedometer Accuracy
A couple of weeks ago, a friend of mine rode behind me in his '01 Chevy Trailblazer when I had the cruise control engaged on my '06 Ultra at 70mph and at 55mph. He stated that he had to set his cruise control at 67mph and 53mph respectively. Then, last weekend, I encountered one of those radar speed signs which was dead-on with my speedometer.
Does anyone have any knowledge of reported variance with HD speedometers?
Does anyone have any knowledge of reported variance with HD speedometers?
Tourer
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 270
Likes: 0
From: Dunstable, MA
There is usually a 0-3% factor of error in all non-certified speedo's, usually only police cars/bikes are certified to be accurate. But it sounds like your speedo is right on the money.
There are multiple factor that could cause incorrect speedo (i.e. improper tire size, tire wear (very minimal), and improper inflation)
There are multiple factor that could cause incorrect speedo (i.e. improper tire size, tire wear (very minimal), and improper inflation)
Stellar HDF Member
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 2,588
Likes: 9
From: Sunny Southern California
My speedo is 5mph+ over what my GPS says. Just returned from a ride to Reno, NV. with a buddy on his 06 SG & his speedo was dead on to his GPS (he has aftermarket 18" wheels/tires). What I thought really sucks is my odometer was also off +5 mile per hunderd vs. his!
I did get better gas milage than him! LOL!!
I did get better gas milage than him! LOL!!
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 3,140
Likes: 17
From: Wisconsin
A couple of weeks ago, a friend of mine rode behind me in his '01 Chevy Trailblazer when I had the cruise control engaged on my '06 Ultra at 70mph and at 55mph. He stated that he had to set his cruise control at 67mph and 53mph respectively. Then, last weekend, I encountered one of those radar speed signs which was dead-on with my speedometer.
Does anyone have any knowledge of reported variance with HD speedometers?
Does anyone have any knowledge of reported variance with HD speedometers?
Cruiser
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 107
Likes: 4
Can't speak to the speed, but my odometer seems to be off on the '10 LTD. All my vehicles always register 2.7 miles from the gas station to my house (including the '01 Deuce) but the LTD = 2.8. I lent the Deuce to a friend and both bikes were reset, at the end of the ride the Deuce had 126.9 and the LTD had 129.9 we were elbow to elbow the entire ride. I know not much, don't snivel about it, I'm not -just sayin' that's all.
Speedometer issues are driving me crazy! When I got my 07 Heritage, I was outrunning everyone in the family. I have one on an 07 Honda Aero, one on an 05 Suzuki Burgman, and one on an 07 Yamaha Majesty. I cannot get any of them to go over 50 mph on any open hwy.
I asked and they all claim to be running 55, SO I wanted to check and see if my HD was off. I checked with two different GPS units that I had mounted to my handlebars, at a speedomete reading of 60 my GPS reads 59 on both units. SO I conclude that the HD speedo is approximately 1 mph slow and the Honda, Suzuki, and Yamaha are all at least 6 MPH slow at 60.
I wondered about this when riding in groups and some of the Jap riders were complaining that the HD riders in front were running 70. Not so!
I have heard that the metric bikes are set low to keep insurance rates low, has anyone else had this experience?
I asked and they all claim to be running 55, SO I wanted to check and see if my HD was off. I checked with two different GPS units that I had mounted to my handlebars, at a speedomete reading of 60 my GPS reads 59 on both units. SO I conclude that the HD speedo is approximately 1 mph slow and the Honda, Suzuki, and Yamaha are all at least 6 MPH slow at 60.
I wondered about this when riding in groups and some of the Jap riders were complaining that the HD riders in front were running 70. Not so!
I have heard that the metric bikes are set low to keep insurance rates low, has anyone else had this experience?
Trending Topics
Road Captain
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 516
Likes: 29
From: Fenton, MO
I have a Garmin Zumo 550 on my '09 EGC. I also use the Garmin in my '08 car. When in the car the Garmin matches the car in speed and odometer on level ground but when on the bike it is a different story. The Garmin will indicate 68 when the bike says 70 (about a 3% error) and the odometer will be off by the same amount.
Looks like Harley decided to error on the slow side by a pretty good amount!
Looks like Harley decided to error on the slow side by a pretty good amount!
HD Forum Stories
The Best of Harley-Davidson for Lifelong Riders
8 Best Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Worst Harley-Davidson Motorcycles Ever
Pouria Savadkouei
Killer Custom's Jail Break Is The Breakout That Refused to Blend In
Verdad Gallardo
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Verdad Gallardo
Harley-Davidson Reveals Super Cool Cafe Racer Concept
Verdad Gallardo
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Verdad Gallardo
10 Motorcycles You Should Never Buy
Joe Kucinski
10 Things Harley-Davidson Needs to Fix in 2026
Verdad Gallardo
Southpaw Super Glide: A Left-Hand-Drive 1979 Harley FXE Built to Fit the Rider
Verdad Gallardo
Elite HDF Member
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 4,516
Likes: 103
From: Massachusetts (NE)
Mine too is off by 3% +- vs Garmin GPS
Maybe MoCo never cared to recalibrate each bike model when many bikes have different size stock tires -
a MoCo El Cheepo engineering decision is my guess
Maybe MoCo never cared to recalibrate each bike model when many bikes have different size stock tires -
a MoCo El Cheepo engineering decision is my guess
