Harley engines, junk or paranoia
Extreme HDF Member
Joined: Nov 2006
Posts: 13,389
Likes: 26
From: Windham,Maine
The way I see it is if you want to believe they are junk,no way am I going to try and convince you otherwise.Personally Harleys are so important to me anything anyone says about them to the negative means nothing.These people should be riding cross the pond bikes.Bought my first Harley in 62 a 1937 80" flat head,and since then loved every one after that.Never remember any issues.The people that complain do it with everything they own.
Road Master
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 1,001
Likes: 1
From: Pirmasens Germany
Lets face it boys and girls, if you buy a Harley and put a lot of miles on it (at least 15k a year) you are going to have some engine problems. A good many of the problems that will manifest themselves will not surface until after the initial 24 month warranty has expired. Most people will have more problems with their motorcycle, especially if they ride much, than they will have with their automobiles. The Harley motorcycle has been improved upon drastically from what it was when AMF had the reins in their hands. But...it could still use some quality control and engineering improvements. Over the last few years I have noticed quite a few basic engineering flaws that were incurred due to cost cutting. The most glaring being the increasing of the "acceptable crank runout specs". Instead of fixing the problem they just raise the specs so they don't have to warrant many. That just ain't right! So ya, you can tell I ain't married to Harley, although I do ride one. Over the last 50 years I have owned many different brands of bikes, although the Harley is the most expensive to own and operate that I can remember. If a person only rides 3-4 thousand miles a year they are not even aware of many of the problems that will eventually crop up. The days of the air cooled motorcycle engine are coming to an end. Harley is the last of the big bikes to rely upon the wind to cool its engines. In order to pass EPA testing and acceptance water jackets will have to be embraced by the MOCO. They know it and have been quietly working on addressing the problem for years. The point of this is that I shudder to think of all the engineering problems that owners will have to endure before it is perfected in the touring bikes. Like it or not, Harley does use it's customer base as guinea pigs.
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 6,932
Likes: 4
From: 46th State, USA
Speaking of stock engines only, Harley has a good dependable engine if you aren't expecting a lot of power. If you've never ridden a Harley after getting off of a stock metric that has 117 + hp, it can be a big let-down. If you're not a hot-dog and don't mind riding a cruiser, then you may be satisfied with a stock Harley.
The biggest problems that I've experienced are the support systems on Harley's ain't the greatest in the world. The electronics’ suck big time.
In 44 years of riding motorcycles I've found, the more someone jacks with an engine or ride-ability of a bike, the more potential problems they are going to have. If you're prepared to deal with those kind of issues, then so be it.
The biggest problems that I've experienced are the support systems on Harley's ain't the greatest in the world. The electronics’ suck big time.
In 44 years of riding motorcycles I've found, the more someone jacks with an engine or ride-ability of a bike, the more potential problems they are going to have. If you're prepared to deal with those kind of issues, then so be it.
Last edited by shortride; Nov 2, 2010 at 07:21 AM.
Road Warrior
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 1,291
Likes: 69
From: michigan
My 2001 FLHT has 70,000 miles on it. It has never left me on the side of the road nor has it ever failed to start. I've had to replace 2 front motor mounts and replaced the cam chain tensioners once. It is now, though, developing a fuel injection issue. I'm not surprised, because with this many miles on it, I have to expect that things will need to be rebuilt and things will need to be replaced. If you take care of your Harley- Davidson motorcycle, it will outlive you.
Road Warrior
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 1,916
Likes: 0
From: San Antonio, Texas
I've put 80,000 miles between an '88 and a '96 and never had a single issue with a motor. I take care of them with regular maintenance and don't hammer on them. As someone here said once: forums are a collection of posts from people who mainly have problems with their ride and are looking for advice. If I would have read all the posts about the problems the '07 EG's had, I never would have bought one. I've never had a single issue with mine...hope I just didn't jinx myself.
Banned
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 20,823
Likes: 1,506
From: Nowhere
Just rolled 42k on my '09 EGC and no major problems. Any problems that I have had were taken care of at regular maintenance intervals and were covered by my warranty.
I looked into a few other touring bikes (Victory, Kawasaki, Yamaha, and BMW) and you hear the same horror stories with them. The benefit of the Harley is that it is low tech and has a lot less stuff to break down.
What sold me though were the shootouts and the Harley continues to be the baseline against which all other touring bikes are compared.
I looked into a few other touring bikes (Victory, Kawasaki, Yamaha, and BMW) and you hear the same horror stories with them. The benefit of the Harley is that it is low tech and has a lot less stuff to break down.
What sold me though were the shootouts and the Harley continues to be the baseline against which all other touring bikes are compared.
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Road Captain
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 671
Likes: 1
From: Maryland
I just bought a 2010 Ultra limited last March and have over 12k on it now without a problem. My 08 Street Glide has 33k on it without a problem. My 06 fat boy had 22,8k on it with out a problem. And the list goes on and on.
Cruiser
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 163
Likes: 0
From: Bismarck, ND
Actually the truth is, if you go to any forum for any brand motorcycle out there you will see that every bike made has issues. I used to have a Goldwing. Read their forums, holy crap they have problems, yet Goldwing owners will tell you how reliable their bikes are. Read up on BMW's. You can't even wrench on those by yourself. Get ready to spend some service money. They have issues and Mother Honda and Papa BMW don't want to address those issues.
Another funny thing, why is it that nothing I own ever has much for issues? Once in a while I have a repair but I'd ride my Harley anywhere and not even bother with a tool kit that's how much confidence I have in it. Get triple A or have a towing rider put on your insurance and don't worry about it. Change oil. Change oil. Change oil. Keep good rubber on and check the belt. If it works don't fix it.
Another funny thing, why is it that nothing I own ever has much for issues? Once in a while I have a repair but I'd ride my Harley anywhere and not even bother with a tool kit that's how much confidence I have in it. Get triple A or have a towing rider put on your insurance and don't worry about it. Change oil. Change oil. Change oil. Keep good rubber on and check the belt. If it works don't fix it.