Hello all, new to the site. I'm hoping you guys can help me make a decision. I have a chance to buy a Cobalt Blue Street Glide carborated. Should I wait on the fuel injected model?

I've read on here about people having all kinds of problems with the HD remaps and they end up spending all kinds of money on PC3s and whatnot just to get it right. All I really want to do is put a set of pipes on there and not much else. Of course I don't want loss of power or a bunch of decel pop or anything, but I'm not looking to make a hot rod out of my Harley.

What, if any, effects will it have on the resale (your thoughts). And what about over all maintenance. I'm not stupid, but I'm not real mechanic smart either. I just want to enjoy my bike and I don't know whether to jump on this one or wait for a FI model.

Please give me guidance.

Thanks in advance.

 

Great question! The reason I say that is because I was about to ask almost the same question. LOL! We are going to buy a new bike in the next couple months and have got it down to one of two bikes. Either the Road King Custom or the Street Glide. Not sure if we should get a carb bike or an EFI. Probably going to go with Rinehart pipes (for sure if we get the RK Custom). If we get the Rineharts I guess we need to get the Stage 1 upgrade and the Race Tuner. But not sure. I was reading an article in the November issue of American Iron Magazine (page 22) written by Stephanie Feld. In the article she says such things as, "Carburetors seldom mess up." and "EFI is the best friend of motorcycle towing services everywhere." Plus a alot more against EFI.

To EFI or not to EFI? That is the question!

 

Here's what I know and hardly scientific ...

A couple years ago I had a VTX 1800 with EFI. Decent enough bike, too much plastic, but it started and ran pretty reliably while I had it. Only one time I had to use rodaside assistance was due to an issue with the EFI. I now have an '04 FLHR with a carb and my father-in-law has an '05 Softail Deluxe with a carb. We love our bikes, and since we do a lot of wrenching on our own, a carb is easier to dial in since we don't have local access to a dyno.

My buddy has an '03 Low Rider with a carb and this summer won an '06 Softail Deluxe with EFI. He likes the fact that with the new Deluxe he can start the bike and within minutes be on the road without having to fuss with a choke, but he likes his carb'd Low Rider better 'cuz of the same reasoning stated in that American Iron article you referenced.

All three of us agree that with a carb you can usually get a bike to limp to the nearest dealership, repair shop, or home. If EFI breaks it usually means you're definitely waiting for that tow truck.

- KB

 

I think it's more of a personal choice. I would think for better resale value EFI would be the way to go. The younger crowds buying the Harley's for the most part aren't mechanically inclined enough to mess with Carbs, plus with EFI the owner can if he wants to save money just download a generic program and be done or if he decides to change the exhaust install another program.

Now as far as any problems with the '06 that is because as stated HD hasn't put out the new programs or well i think if i remember reading they FINALLY did.

As I have stated time and time again, EVERY bike is different and if you want the most/best from your bike you will have it dyno tuned instead of using a generic map. I don't see why people spend upwards of $20 grand only to skimp in the performance of a bike???

As stated about the No Choke issue.. I love my EFI and have had 4 other EFI bikes and never had a problem. Would I ever go without EFI?? NO

 

Personally I like EFI and have been working with system both OEM and aftermarket for 20 years plus. They are reliable!
Yes carbs do have there good points in some cases. It is also true that Carbs are vanishing from the earth.
I dissagreed with Stephanie Feld as soon as I read that article mostly because some poeple will read it at take it as gospel becuause someone has actually printed someones opinion.

Anyway I have to go to work for some Sunday double time pay, to do what you may wonder? Run Engines. Why? because they are carburetors (long story)

This thread could get good.
Rich

 

I have had the 92 Softail Custom with an S&S Super E carb and my 04 Ultra which of course is EFI and I like the dependability of the EFI. You can look at the cost of the EFI upgrades as the same as upgrading to another carb. The stock Harley carb is not much to deal with. Most carb owners talk about the Mikuni carb as the carb of choice on motorcycles. They are expensive. I went with the Power Commander III usb and Vance and Hines Oval Slip Ons and the SE Stage I breather. I have just a little decell popping, but not enough to bother me. I might in the winter, take it to the dyno shop and let them tune the bike and then all of the decel pops will go away. I don't mess with fouled plugs or chokes any longer and the only drawback to the EFI on the harley is you don't have a mechanical reserve petcock on the bike. All you have is a low fuel light and that gives you just .9 gallons of gas. Not much if you are on the highway.

You are going to have just decide what beast you want to contend with. If you upgrade the pipes and breather on a carburated bike, you still have to rejet it and dyno tune it as well, so you won't be avoiding the dyno if that's what your looking for.

Good luck in your search.



[IMG]local://upfiles/494/8F4129CC1A0D4FFA9D7A2717C5D86483.jpg[/IMG]

 

I have an 06 street glide, and an 03 fat boy that are EFI and love it. A buddy of mine has an 05 deluxe that is carb'd, when we went to reno for street vibes we had to pull over twice so he could fuss with his carb to get it running right. We live down in the valley so going up an over the pass I was all over it, still had all the power and everything, while he was lagging along. He would get tired of it, we would pull over, he would fuss, I would sit on my RUNNING bike waiting. I live about an hour from the mountains, the ocean or just plain old open road, I like to ride not mess with my bike on the side of the road. I personally like the EFI for this reason, but like many have said there are pro's and cons to both. No matter which one you get you will love it I am sure of that.

KB

 

I've had zero problems with the carb on my '97 softail. And I live in an area with mountain grades up to 7000 feet. When I start it, I choke it for approximately 20-30 seconds and then put the throttle lock on at a higher idle for about 2-3 minutes.
Bike pulls strong in elevations with a passenger and I've never had to pull over and fuss with the carb. And having a reserve is a plus.
I'm waiting on an '06 Road Glide to come in, and given a choice, I'd go with the carb after everything I've read here regarding EFI issues and cost.

And I don't necessarily agree that a carb'd bike has to dyno'd to run good. I dyno'd my bike once at an event ($20) just to see what kind of hp and tq it was making. Now having said that, I do agree that to squeeze the most hp/tq out of any given setup, a good dyno tech will get the most out of a bike, and it will run better. But mine runs just fine for me and I'm not a hot rodder.

But I will add that a bud of mine kept his '01 RG in my garage for a year, and I was kind of envious of how easily it would start, idle down by itself, and he could jump on and go in a matter of a couple of minutes.

Well, I'm gonna find out soon enough what EFI on a bike is all about. My '95 Cherokee with 121k miles sure runs well enough...

 

fuel injection is great when it working like it suppost to, plugs last a very long time and gas milage is usually better......when things go wrong, i wish i had a carb!! then when i get it fixed every thing is good...........life is good right now!

 

Wow! Alot of great responses! Thank you.

Basically, I think I'm feeling like I was before I started this post. I like the convenience of EFI and I am familiar with Power Commanders and actually messing around tuning them on a laptop myself. Ofcourse I hardly know what I'm doing. But carbs, I know nothing about.

I was really trying to avoid the high cost of pipes, power commander, and a tune.

I agree with what someone said earlier about why someone would be willing to spend 20k on a bike and not be willing to pay for it to run right. But, I'm in a situation where I can afford to put a big down payment (in the form of a trade-in) and take on another monthly payment. But coming out of pocket for an extra $1k + in a month or two will hurt me abit. So, yes, I was asking also what would be the cheapest.....and also that carbed model sitting at the dealer is calling my name so loud I can hear it in my sleep. I have no patience.

Also, I know the carbed version has the mirror defect, and the EFI version that's due in a couple of weeks should have been built after they fixed it.

I think I'll wait......hell, I dunno.

fatguy