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'08 Rod feels like it's missing

3K views 16 replies 10 participants last post by  marwelljim 
#1 ·
I just purchased an '08 Rod from a dealer after riding a '91 sporter for 21 years. The bike seems to be in excellent shape only 4200 miles on it and man is it fast. However, the longer I ride her the more it seems that it's not running exactly right ie; slight bucking and occasional popping from the exhaust. I'm running 93 octane and was wondering if the fuel map was off a little for the Vance and Hines 2 into 1 exhaust. It also seems to enjoy large amounts of fuel even without seriously twisting the throttle.

Anyone know if this is a common occurence and how is it fixed.
 
#4 ·
I took the bike back to the dealer as the salesman told me if I had any problems that he would take care of it. Well guess what, I was told that there is nothing wrong with the bike and that the mechanic who test drove it said it ran fine. I was told there were no mapping issues and then I was questioned or rather insulted as to how I was riding her, when was I shifting and stupid questions like that.
Anyway I invested in a V&H Fuelpak based on the fact that I was running their exhaust and figured it would cure my problems. Well it helped a little but I still feel a miss when riding in a lower gear 2nd or 3rd running at a steady 3000 or 4000 RPM and of course the popping through the exhaust.
I'm about to take the bike back to the dealer and tell them where they can put it, I haven't even made the first payment yet.
Any help would be appreciated.
 
#5 ·
I can understand your frustration with dealers. They go into denial anytime V-rods show up or are mentioned.

These things run lean as stock and more so with the fitting of aftermarket exhausts. There's alot of guys around that have favorite brands of fuel mapping devices but the important thing is to get advice or help from someone knowledgeable with the particular combination of pipe and mapper you have. Do some research and inquiry here in the EFI section. Find an independent shop that will perform a Dyno tune locally, if one exists. Often this is the only cure.
 
#6 ·
I've got a 2007 VRSCX with the V&H 2-1. I just purchased it from a private seller about a month ago. The more I ride it, the more I feel the same thing is happening as you describe. I don't have gauges so I'm not sure about the speed/RPM, but I can say it idles fine and runs nice and smooth on the highway in 5th above ~65mph. However, at the bottom end of each gear i.e. 2nd & ~20mph, 3rd & ~35mph, engine seems to be missing and I get the popping noise as well. If I shift down it sounds like the engine RPM is much too high. If you didn't return the bike and discovered the problem please let me know!
 
#7 ·
I will also add that these bikes are very air intake restricted. If you don't have a K&N or UNI air filter you should get one. The airbox top also restricts intake air via the small snorkle. So after you install the new air filter try taking off the top of the airbox (just lay the IAT sensor that's clipped onto the airbox top in the bottom of the airbox while test riding). Taking the top of the airbox off will make the bike much louder, but you will notice a huge improvement in accelleration and it may help your problems and help gas mileage as well.
Good luck!
 
#8 ·
I would look at your map values for Idle. The decel pop is when you are reverting idle from high rpm. If you give it a little bit of gas on decel and no more pop, then you need to add more fuel into your idle value mix..
 
#9 ·
After the stealer told me nothing was wrong with the bike I purchased a V&H fuelpak, real ez install but it didn't help. Wrote H-D a letter told em I owned H-D's for 25 years and was a share holder too and was insulted by the service mgr.
Service mgr is no longer there and I was asked to bring the bike back as it should have come with the Screamin Eagle power commander. Anyway they worked on the bike and yes it was never setup right so they tweaked it which made some great improvements BUT it still pops and misses as you described. I dropped the bike back off at the dealer and they are now going to Dyno tune it at their expense. I realize I didn't really answer your question but if you are not sure if the bike was setup right for the exhaust system I have a like new V&H Fuelpak I can make you a deal on.
 
#10 ·
A couple of issues with your second post (and Im not defending the dealers, my bike has never been back there) but you cannot ride/shift a Vrod like a Sportster. The Vrod runs better on higher rpm's. Two, changing to a V and H fuel pack doesnt make a big diffrence, its the map thats loaded that determines how it will run. Without someone putting it on a dyno and tunning it, you wont know. Before you blow up in the dealership and go ranting spend a little time here and learn about the bike.....good luck
 
#11 ·
Sorry it was your third post I was responding to. Also if you have a V and H Comp exhaust, they are a short pipe, without an expert tune they will pop a little. I have one, I know. The longer the pipe and the better the tune, the least amount of decel pop...
 
#14 ·
The V-Rod engine is a racing engine. It was designed to run at higher rpm's Running it below 4K rpm's will result in some lugging and poor performance. Popping is the results of lack of detonization of the fuel in the combustion chamber by,more than likely, incorrect fuel mixture.
I am a very conservative rider but I know enough to not give it large amounts of gas if in a higher gear at low rpm's. Keep the revs up and you will be happy.
 
#15 ·
IMHO having any bike tuned at a H-D Dealer is not a good idea. In talks with a dealer I frequent the dealers are required to tune to EPA specifications which results in poor performance on the V-Rod. Best to find a real good independant and have them tune it for performance running.
 
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