Agree 100% on the owner mod problem with the HD's. I have never been able to connect to the mentality of trying to eek a dozen more horsepower out of an Evo or a Twin Cam. I'm perfectly happy with the stock performance of my '94 Evolution engine. When you really like to ride, reliability is everything. If it's about horsepower and speed there are other platforms which are much sturdier to go from. Wrenching up a 65 horsepower engine to try to get it to make 90 hp seems pointless when a 650 Suzuki is still going to clean your clock. My opinion.
But the V-Rod engine is really coming into its own on the drag strip these days. It would seem that the 4 cylinder Japanese bike afficianados have something to bawl about. I read an article in (Cycle World?) recently, and watched some 1/4 mile drag races on the tube the other day. The V-Rod is actually
outrunning the 4 cylinder ricers. Amazing. And this in spite of a weight handicap placed on the Harley due to its "inherent torque advantage." It'll be interesting to see how the Japanese 4 cylinder guys respond to all of this!
Back on oil.
I of course can't say that the Mobil 1 had anything at all to do with that squeak I was hearing. Probably just guilt by association, which we can all play into from time to time. You mention that you've seen no oil related failures on the HD engines. That's also what I've heard from other HD wrenches--that
obvious oil related engine failure is practically non-existent. So in a certain circle, or "clique", it would be easy enough for one guy to tell another and so on, that "Castrol 20W50 GTX is the best oil for your Harley." And that's just what has happened in the county next to mine. The main mechanic on HD's in that area has been recommending Castrol 20W50 dino for years. (I saw him riding through town last summer with a whole case of it bungee corded to the luggage rack on his Wide Glide--a true biker it would seem!). He still tells his customers that synthetic oil causes bearing skate. He's old school, but his methods work--so who can argue?
Any half decent oil will get the job done, and any half decent oil has a half decent chance of developing a "following," I would say--given the right set of circumstances.
The reverse can happen also. Take one "go to" guy in an HD circle. Say he's the epitome of Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda rolled up into one loveable little fuzzball (little Rush Limbaugh lingo there
). If this "go to" guy had a wrenched up engine fail on him not long after he put Pennzoil 20W50 in the sump, he'll have half the next generation of He11-bound-Easy Riders thinking that Pennzoil screws up engines--even though the real culprit was a mis-matched string of "upgrades."
Anyway, you make good points. I just wanted to share some more of my perspective, for what it's worth.
Dan
