overheating 883 xl

[crash vector]

Hi to all ; I'm new to this forum and bin looking around a little to see if any of you have had a problem with overheating on a sportster xl 883, 04. I bought the bike new and it ran hot from the get go. Back to the dealer three (3) times for the same problem, even after the 1000 mile service. The sales person told me don't worry about it, it has unlimited milage two year waranty on the engine, so ride I did! After 21000 miles in 18 mounths it went in for a rebuild. The head service guy said, "We can't waranty this, it's been overheated." Needless to say they did rebuild it, however it still runs hot and now it has air bubbles in the oil tank after about three minutes run time. Back in the shop they said the bike was normal, hot engine noisey engine and all. It has 31K on it now and sounds worse than it ever did, like it's ready to blow, and hotter than ever. Anyone else have a problem like this? Thanks to any and all that answer. P S I've been riding bikes since 1958, 6 years old, my first ride was my dads 1947 James. crash vector

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[XL OCD]

Lots of little normal suggestions - get an oil temp guage so you can get the temp and record it and compare it to others, oil cooler, different oil - syn,etc. I doubt you'd have a timing issue, but lots of things would affect temp such as jetting, etc. Also - fill in your profile info so people can see where you're at and maybe give you a recommendation as to where might be a good shop around you.

[Flatlander]

xl ocd hit most of the common problems associated with overheating. One I will mention that is rather common is a lean running bike. They are jetted from the factory lean to help with emissions. well lean=hot, which is another reason that stage 1 upgrade is very common, they change out the jets and adjust air/fuel and idle. Also a too slow idle can result in overheating if stopped for a period of time. Alot of people slow their idle down to get that lopey sound, sometimes they slow it down a little too much.

[drum412]

get an oil temp gauge and see what the actual oil temp is. On my bike if I remember had an average oil temp around 195-200 degreas. I run mobil 1 v-twin 20-50 synthetic. Oil that's a little bubbly looking is pretty normal if you check it with the engine running, or just after running........but if it's foamy looking, that's another story. If you haven't tried synthetic oil I highy suggest the mobil 1, for me it lowered oil temp by about 10 degrees and also silenced a lot of the engine clatter, and my bike has about 45,000 miles and never had any engine work. Anyhow, I was curious, how are you judging how hot your engine is???? Is it smokking, glowing exhaust headers, or what??? These engines definately get hot and can't be judged simply by feel or sound, plus if it was overheating badly, I would imagine you'd see signs of lost compression, and possible staling or poor throttle response. Hope you get it figured out.

[1200c]

First, what temperature is the oil reaching?
Second, when the engine was rebuilt what was damaged and what parts were replaced during the warranty?
Third, how did you know to take the bike in for a rebuild? What were the symptoms?

[SportyPig]

I had a few problems with overheating, mostly in Parade situations with lots of throttle bumping, and very slow speed. Installing a freer flowing air cleaner and rejetting the carb cooled my bike down significantly. Mine now normally runs around 180 - 200degrees.

[bigtop1]

Are you allowing free air to flow around the head fins? Do you run it with enough oil in it? My pipes blued very quickly before I did the carb changes along with the exhaust. A too slow an idle will not allow the oil to circulate fully through the oilcase and pump. Static timing may be an issue here as well.

[crash vector]

Sorry I couln't get back sooner. Thanks to all who replied! I'll start with trying to cure the problem by way of jetting and air flow.
I replaced the air cleaner, breather assembly with the screaming eagle stage II, and also the jet kit and pipes the harley shop said
should help. At the first service check they replaced all oils with synthetic harley davidson syntek, synthetic sport tec transmition
oil. That was right before I went on a 1200 mile trip to Gatlinberg Tn. That was the first time it overseated so bad it died and wouldn't
restart until I let it set to cool for about 2.5 hrs. Thats when the dealer told me not to worry about it.
When the mechanic took the engine apart he said he thought that it had a tight rod on the crank end. They replaced the crank, rods,
pistons ,oversize .010, bored the cyls., new valve guides, and new crank bearings. It sounded good for about 1000 miles but still was hot and was starting to get noisier like before, and now I'm getting the air bubbles in the oil. I'm going to take it apart myself this time
as I have no warranty left. I personally think oil is not going through the engine properly. Maby a cloged oil passage or a gasket not properly installed. In any case I think the oil temp gage is a good idea after I rebuild it. I'll hang around on the forum and let everyone
know what I find out. Thanks again to all!!
crash vector

[1200c]

I have no warranty left. I personally think oil is not going through the engine properly. Maby a cloged oil passage or a gasket not properly installed. In any case I think the oil temp gage is a good idea after I rebuild it. I'll hang around on the forum and let everyone
know what I find out. Thanks again to all!!

Do you have any chance to buying an extended warranty? A stage 1 will cool down the bike some, but if it's getting so hot to shut down, then it won't solve your overheating problem.

[SportyPig]

Wow, that sounds like a real problem. Let us know what you discover.