Do I really need exhaust????
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Road Master
Joined: Apr 2012
Posts: 1,229
Likes: 240
From: On 2 rails...
Do I really need exhaust????
I have a local indy who is a one man show, with a longstanding reputation of being a great dyno guy and a strait-shooter, who has treated me very well over the years.
He knows explicitly I do not want a loud bike, but is strongly recomending a tuner and a more free flowing exhaust for my Road-King. I strongly believe it's not a sales pitch, and he states that a tuner, a tune, a more free flowing air filter, headpipes and mufflers will make a different bike.
So here's my hesitation, the bike rides well, has more than enough acceleration to keep me happy, gets well over 40MPG and on the Hottest days in traffic oil temp rests comfortably below 240 degrees on a 90 degree day in traffic.
I have yet to meet a car I couldn't outrun from a stoplight if I needed to OR wanted to.
I have paid the harley initiation dues in the past and other than loud and obnoxious it changed nothing for me. He states these new Twin-Cams are a whole different animal....opinions, comments are welcome.
He knows explicitly I do not want a loud bike, but is strongly recomending a tuner and a more free flowing exhaust for my Road-King. I strongly believe it's not a sales pitch, and he states that a tuner, a tune, a more free flowing air filter, headpipes and mufflers will make a different bike.
So here's my hesitation, the bike rides well, has more than enough acceleration to keep me happy, gets well over 40MPG and on the Hottest days in traffic oil temp rests comfortably below 240 degrees on a 90 degree day in traffic.
I have yet to meet a car I couldn't outrun from a stoplight if I needed to OR wanted to.
I have paid the harley initiation dues in the past and other than loud and obnoxious it changed nothing for me. He states these new Twin-Cams are a whole different animal....opinions, comments are welcome.
Last edited by bobg03; Jun 22, 2014 at 08:01 AM.
Road Master
Joined: Jun 2009
Posts: 932
Likes: 14
From: CENTRAL IL
better flow doesn't mean loud, or at least obnoxiously so, shop around find one that you like the sound of. The tuner will help all around on the bike , but then again if your happy with the way the bike performs leave it as is.
Road Captain
Joined: Jan 2012
Posts: 663
Likes: 2
From: ...
To me it's sounds like you don't want or need " a whole different animal" so no need to do anything. He's probably just used to everyone wanting more power etc.. Plus even though he may be a straight shooter he still has a business and needs to make money so he's trying to make some.
Road Warrior
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 1,991
Likes: 9
From: washington
for me the whole idea of a air box and tuner is to free up the motor, i do like a deep sounding bike but not one thats way loud... i will admit that i dont mind if my exhaust barks when i get on it, but i do like to be-able to talk to people when just idling... another thing is the fuel injected bike need to breath a bit more then stock so they can get the best out of the motor and run free
Grand HDF Member
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 3,932
Likes: 882
From: SOON TO BE A SAFE AMERICA
If you are happy don't do a thing!
If the "more power bug" tickles your fancy, Fullsac or Fuel Moto would be your next step in my opinion.
Caution: the "more power bug" will go as big as your wallet is deep.
YB
If the "more power bug" tickles your fancy, Fullsac or Fuel Moto would be your next step in my opinion.
Caution: the "more power bug" will go as big as your wallet is deep.
YB
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 157,524
Likes: 57,080
From: Michigan 15 Minutes East Of Hell
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Cruiser
Joined: Aug 2013
Posts: 152
Likes: 0
From: St Johns
If your happy with what you have then I think you would be very disappointed in spending 2k plus in a quality exhaust, tuner and air intake system. If your wallet is burning a hole in your pocket I would start out with slip ons and have the dealer remap your ECM. They may be enough to satisfy you for a while without having to go spend the dollars for a full system.
I opted for a set of slip ons last year from Rush. Bike was still quiet and had no problems hearing the stereo at highway speeds. Barked when I wanted it to, noticed a pretty good performance increase overall. It basically just seemed like the throttle response was crisper and was not lugging when in the passing lane.
June 2014 I have now invested 2k plus in a Vance & Hines power duals with the Carbon Fiber High Output slip ons and added a Cobra Fi2000 tuner. Screaming Eagle air intake should be here this week. I installed all of this myself and my first response so far is it's a whole lot of money for what it is. I was very happy with the Rush slip ons and so far with only 30 miles into it I can say not really worth the coin spent. Yes there is a improvement but 2k worth of it ? Probably not!
Yes I have big cannons sticking out the back now and a bit more chrome but honestly it's probably not worth it if you really do not have the money to just blow. If you do have the extra cash then by all means spend it you will at least have something to show for it.
just my honest opinion here.
I opted for a set of slip ons last year from Rush. Bike was still quiet and had no problems hearing the stereo at highway speeds. Barked when I wanted it to, noticed a pretty good performance increase overall. It basically just seemed like the throttle response was crisper and was not lugging when in the passing lane.
June 2014 I have now invested 2k plus in a Vance & Hines power duals with the Carbon Fiber High Output slip ons and added a Cobra Fi2000 tuner. Screaming Eagle air intake should be here this week. I installed all of this myself and my first response so far is it's a whole lot of money for what it is. I was very happy with the Rush slip ons and so far with only 30 miles into it I can say not really worth the coin spent. Yes there is a improvement but 2k worth of it ? Probably not!
Yes I have big cannons sticking out the back now and a bit more chrome but honestly it's probably not worth it if you really do not have the money to just blow. If you do have the extra cash then by all means spend it you will at least have something to show for it.
just my honest opinion here.
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MODERATOR
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 4,108
Likes: 1,964
From: New England
Generically, the "tune" is nothing more than a set of instructions programmed into the bike's little computer. Those instructions along with some hardware tries to get the bike started, warmed up, idle, into cruise, and then shut down. Yes, there are lots of other things those instructions do but let's just leave it here for now.
Depending on the instructions and hardware, the bike can either not run at all, run poorly, run ok, or run at an optimal level.
A change in the instructions or hardware can have an affect on how the bike runs. That change can be better or it can be worse. But it will, mostly likely, be different.
Now you'll have to decide what shade of different you want...if any.
