I've now had my Road Glide for about a month. First off, I still absolutely love it. There are a few things that could be improved, and there are a few repairs that should probably happen, but there are no major issues. The bike starts everytime, it has plenty of power, and the problems I'm pointing out below are part of the tradeoff for getting a killer deal on a used bike rather than shelling out for a brand new one. So I'm not complaining, just looking for some advice:
Mechanical: Everything seems to work, but I am noticing a slight burnt-oil smell when the bike is warm. I don't see any visible leaks, nor any blue smoke from the exhaust, but it SMELLS like a little oil is being burned...somewhere. I'd appreciate advice on where to look
Brake fluid: I had my mechanic look over this motorcycle before I bought it, and the first thing he advised me to do was to change the brake fluid. Is this a reasonably easy DIY job?
Compensator: This is the second thing my mechanic suggested would need changing eventually. On an engine with 70K miles, should I just have this done and get it over with? Replacement Harley part or aftermarket?
Exhaust pops: I really like the sound of the Rinehart slip-ons my bike came with, but there is a little bit of popping on downshifts. I've read that the fix for this is a tune, even though conventional wisdom is that with slip-ons as the only modification, a tune isn't necessary. (I'm not looking for additional power; I'm quite happy with what I'm getting from the stock 103.)
Infotainment: I rented a 2022 Road Glide from Eagle Rider this summer, and other than less vibration at idle (not a concern,) the biggest difference I noticed is the vastly improved Infotainment. In particular, I'd like to have navigation via CarPlay. There seem to be several more-or-less plug-and-play head units on the market for this, but I'd like to hear about experiences anyone here on the forum have had. I'd want something that can be installed non-destructively so that I can reinstall the factory head unit in the future.
Seat: I'm 6'2", and the stock saddle is too low to the ground for me. I'd like to find a saddle that is either taller, further back or both for better legroom. I see Harley has some options, but they seem pricey. Any recommendations for aftermarket? 1Up is fine; I don't plan on carrying passengers.
Grips: My bike came with aftermarket handlebars that are pretty comfortable, but the grips are the stock foam grips and are a pretty worn. I'd like to find some grips that look a little nicer while being similar in size and comfort to the stock grips. Or perhaps just a replacement set of stock grips.
Battery charger: I found an outlet towards the rear of the saddle on the right side of the bike that looks like it would hook up to a battery charger, but I'm not measuring any voltage from it, so it seems appearances can be deceiving. Can I simply add leads to a maintenance charger plug directly from the battery terminals, or are there any gotchas?
Taillights: This bike has the clear taillights with red LEDs inside. Is that stock, or did the stock ones have a red lens? I'm not a huge fan of the "clear" look.
I realize I'm asking a lot of questions that have probably been asked before, and I promise I'll be searching the forum for threads on this. Absolutely feel free to link me to old threads. But I wanted to do a writeup of the things I'd like to do to the bike.
Mechanical: Everything seems to work, but I am noticing a slight burnt-oil smell when the bike is warm. I don't see any visible leaks, nor any blue smoke from the exhaust, but it SMELLS like a little oil is being burned...somewhere. I'd appreciate advice on where to look
Brake fluid: I had my mechanic look over this motorcycle before I bought it, and the first thing he advised me to do was to change the brake fluid. Is this a reasonably easy DIY job?
Compensator: This is the second thing my mechanic suggested would need changing eventually. On an engine with 70K miles, should I just have this done and get it over with? Replacement Harley part or aftermarket?
Exhaust pops: I really like the sound of the Rinehart slip-ons my bike came with, but there is a little bit of popping on downshifts. I've read that the fix for this is a tune, even though conventional wisdom is that with slip-ons as the only modification, a tune isn't necessary. (I'm not looking for additional power; I'm quite happy with what I'm getting from the stock 103.)
Infotainment: I rented a 2022 Road Glide from Eagle Rider this summer, and other than less vibration at idle (not a concern,) the biggest difference I noticed is the vastly improved Infotainment. In particular, I'd like to have navigation via CarPlay. There seem to be several more-or-less plug-and-play head units on the market for this, but I'd like to hear about experiences anyone here on the forum have had. I'd want something that can be installed non-destructively so that I can reinstall the factory head unit in the future.
Seat: I'm 6'2", and the stock saddle is too low to the ground for me. I'd like to find a saddle that is either taller, further back or both for better legroom. I see Harley has some options, but they seem pricey. Any recommendations for aftermarket? 1Up is fine; I don't plan on carrying passengers.
Grips: My bike came with aftermarket handlebars that are pretty comfortable, but the grips are the stock foam grips and are a pretty worn. I'd like to find some grips that look a little nicer while being similar in size and comfort to the stock grips. Or perhaps just a replacement set of stock grips.
Battery charger: I found an outlet towards the rear of the saddle on the right side of the bike that looks like it would hook up to a battery charger, but I'm not measuring any voltage from it, so it seems appearances can be deceiving. Can I simply add leads to a maintenance charger plug directly from the battery terminals, or are there any gotchas?
Taillights: This bike has the clear taillights with red LEDs inside. Is that stock, or did the stock ones have a red lens? I'm not a huge fan of the "clear" look.
I realize I'm asking a lot of questions that have probably been asked before, and I promise I'll be searching the forum for threads on this. Absolutely feel free to link me to old threads. But I wanted to do a writeup of the things I'd like to do to the bike.