Harley experience

My Harley experience started right before my 31st birthday. I bought a brand new 2002 Road King Classic (leather bags, fuel injection etc.). The bike was perfect in every way, however 10 days later I dropped it off at my dealer to have a big bore Stage II kit installed. 95 cu. in. (up from 88), performance cams, air cleaner, fuel injection remapping. The catalog said this was supposed to increase my horsepower from 62 to 78 and my torque from 78 to 93 ft.lbs. I was initially disappointed that the bike didn't really feel faster than before but it ran great. 3 months later at its 5000 mile check-up I had the bike dyno'ed. I had 60 horsepower and 78 ft.lbs of torque. I was at a different dealer at the time because my dealer didn't have a dyno and I always got my bike back filthy after service. This dealer Scanalyzed my bike and discovered I had the wrong fuel injection mapping in the bike. Fixed at no charge. Still pissed off about the lousy power and $2500 worth of apparently useless upgrades. Did I mention the backfiring through the exhaust? Like a shotgun.

Fast forward 6 more months. The bike has never failed me and never leaked a drop of oil. I ride this bike hard and constantly find myself hitting the rev limiter. I pack up for a 1000 mile ride to Arizona. Did that in 2 days. Thank God for windshields! In Arizona I notice an annoying problem. I was in an area of 5000 foot elevation and the bike would sometimes ran poorly (like on one cylinder) at engine speeds above 4500 rpm. To make a long story short a local non-dealer mechanic diagnosed an intake vacuum leak that's probably been there since my big-bore kit was installed. At my 10k service in Arizona the dealer fixed the intake leak. Cost $3 dollars for parts (new intake seal, fixed under warranty). Bike runs MUCH better now. I haven't dyno'ed it yet but will soon.

Rode back to California in mid June. Bike ran perfect. Lessons learned from the past 15 months that I've owned the bike:

• There are good dealers and salesmen that will sell you the bike at retail or less and give you a generous discount off the accesories.
• Those same dealers will have crappy service departments with "parts replacers" that will leave you unhappy, so shop around.
• The catalog cannot be trusted!
• Maintenance costs will burn a hole through your wallet faster than a blow torch.
• This Road King will do 110 mph even with an intake leak and a barn door for a windshield!
• The only things wrong with the bike are things the dealer screwed up.
• Find yourself a good independent shop and work with them. Better yet, learn how to wrench on your own ride.

This bike is comfortable and no problems after 15000 miles. I regularly ride 70-80 mph and the only non-scheduled maintenance I've had to pay for was a worn out rear tire at 12000 miles.

Overall I'm very happy with my Harley!