I have spoken to three different dealerships in the Northern Virginia area and they refuse to install any fuel management system other than the Harley Davidson race tuner. Each one told me horror stories about Power Commander, Fuel Pak, etc.., on Harelys. A couple of them even sold Power Commanders but refused to install them. Is this their way of trying to get me to buy Harley product or is this a realistic situation? I have read a lot of posts on this forum from people who have installed Power Commander III on their bikes and have reported no problems. Is it because my bike, an '07 Road King Classic, is newer?

Also, one guy told me that it would not make since to just install a Harley Race Tuner without putting on newpipes. He said that I would not really see any benefit in doing so. My goal is to eventually get to a complete STAGE1 but I want to do it in steps. I have to take my bike in for the one thousand mile maintenance this week and I figured I would spring for the fuel management system now and maybe install a set of aftermarket pipes in a couple of months or so. Is this a illogical way to go? I was also told that if I do install the Harely race tuner now without pipes that I would have to have it dyno'ed because there are no maps to download to it for stock pipes. Is this true? I know I read that a few people here have put on a fuel management system on a fully stock bike! What gives? Any thoughts and suggestions are greatly appreciated.

 

My local dealers don't install them either. They give differnt excuses depending on who you ask.

Get a PCIII from fuelmoto and have Jamie put a stock map on it, when you get pipes and intake he will email a new map.
That's what I did and I am very happy with it.

 

HD service depts are notorious for bad-mouthing anything other than their race tuner. Yes the SERT is a good unit, but it is also a cash cow for HD dealers in that all the one's I've talked with say they need about 4 hours dyno time to "tune it it".... that's about another $300-$400 dollars in dyno time, and not certain it'll be done right. That dyno time will also be needed as you add on goodies (in your case pipes, cams, A/C, BB kit, etc.). I had a PC IIIr on my 02 RK and it never gave me a problem. Dyno didn't do much more than the downloaded map from their website. Having said all that, I am opting for a Thndermax w/auto tune (I just know that would p&#s off my dealer (if I ever went there for anything other than oil filters!!!).
PC 3, DDT, Fuel Pak, any of 'em are good, dealers just try to intimate you.... BTW, PC3 is really easy to install and downloads are even easier (I'm NOT a 'puter guy in any sense, but even I could do it ... I did call their support center a couple of times though, lol)....

 

I was at a dealer last week that want install aSERT said they where to much trouble and costly to get set up, said all they dealt with was the PC. This was from a dealer whos' owner races H-D.

 

Most Dealers have always BAD MOUTHED anything they didn't sell... And with EPA coming down on most of them they are doing it even more...

 

I'm in No Va and can guess who you went to, no surprise. I did mine with the help of a friend. Was a breeze except for getting the connector pass my cruise control module, so a second set of hands came in handy. Where in No Va are you, I can show you you mine if you'd like.

 

So does it make sense for me to do this now and then do the pipes later if I cannot afford to do both now? If I am understanding correctly, I will not have to have my bike put on the dyno if I do the PCIII myself? One of the main reasons I am thinking of adding a PCIII now, other than spreading out the cost of a complete stage 1, is to cool down the bike a little. Should I expect a noticeable difference after installing the PCIII? Lastly, which PCIII do I need for my '07 Road King Classic? I read about a new PCIII EX model. Is this the one I should go with?

 

I am sure you can probably guess. Alhtough, I did call the three dealerships that are sort of local. The closest one to me is in Fairfax. Was that the one you were thinking of?

I live in Alexandria. It would be cool to check out your Power Commander and tell me a littl emore about them. I will PM you with my contact information.

 

Is the Harley race tuner better than the PCIII? It sounds to me like the PCIII offers more options and is easier to install. Are the maps for the '07 Harleys as good as the maps offered for the Harely race tuner?

 

Rider X

The beauty of buying a Power Commander from Jamie at Fuel Moto, is that you can start with a "stock" map preloaded. Later (just like I did) you can then ask for a map when you add a SE Air cleaner, then your pipes, etc, etc. I did this after 500 mi on my new 07 Ultra. I moved my PC III USB from my older bike and had to buy the O2 Sensor elimnators (approx $40 from Fuel Moto), but the PCIII Ex is designed to work with the O2 sensors on the 07s.

Welcome to the wonderful world of Northern VA Dealer Roulette!

Good luck