I have a 96 harley davidson ultra classic Electra glide flhtcui and I've got a problem with the oil from the primary being sucked into the crankcase. I took it to my mechanic. He's a good mechanic. Working on Harleys for Over 20 years. His thought was probably a cracked case and his recommendation was to replace the motor. I bought a motor from fallen cycles in Daytona. He installed it. The odometer on the donor bike read 4,370 miles. The motor sounds and runs great. It cost me 4 grand to get it done but I figured it would be worth it in the long run. The problem is it didn't fix the issue! It's still pulling oil from the primary into the crankcase! Running the bike at 60 makes the oil cap pop off and blows oil all down the side of the bike and coats the rear brake. I am at a loss. 4 grand to fix a problem that didn't fix the problem. Anyone have any idea what the heck is happening?

 

I'm sorry to say, you got ripped off.

You only needed a seal, bearing spacer and primary cover gasket to fix your other engine as well as fix the one you have.

'88-90 could have a crack as you mentioned but '91 - on was a solid cast case. The main engine seal is the only place it can leak, suck fluid into the engine.

Hope you saved your original engine...

 

Ouch.

 

We tried the seal and the primary cover. It didn't work.

 

Are you sure that the new motor is sucking primary lube? I mean you are checking the primary level to know this?

Is the motor you purchased a head breather motor?

 

I didn't get "ripped off" either. The engine that I replaced was having ussues. The new engine runs beautifully. Anyway that old engine was given to the shop guy because I don't have storage where I live. I'm dealing with the oil issue now Anyway. Nobody seems to know why oil is being pulled into the crankcase. We replaced the seal in the old engine and it didn't fix anything..so now I've got a much newer engine that runs a whole lot better. So instead of criticizing me for replacing an engine that was probably on its way out anyway, I really need suggestions to relay to my mechanic. That would be appreciated. Any ideas and I'll even say PLEASE. Thanks.

 

You tried a different engine, and that didn`t work either.

Now it is time to try a new mechanic, maybe he will check the screws holding the stator wires.

 

We already checked the screws that hold the stator wire. That's not it either. Nothing wrong with the mechanic either. He knows what he's doing. I need mechanical reasons why this is happening. He spoke to other mechanics also and they all said replace the motor so that is what we did. I am not a motorcycle mechanic. I can work, or used to be able to work on cars but that part of my life is over. Any physical activity causes me extreme pain. Pain as in It feels like I'm being stabbed to death kind of pain so I, myself , am unable to do the repairs. I must rely on others for this repair to my beloved motorcycle. That's why I'm on this board. Hoping someone can give me some hope as to why this oil issue is happening.

 

Yes I am checking the primary oil and the crankcase oil. The primary goes down and the crankcase oil goes up. 2+2 still equals four. The transmission oil is unaffected.

 

Even if you did need to replace the motor, a proper diagnosis would have prevented the ongoing problem. I'm sorry your mechanic didn't do a good job.