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Author Topic: V-ROD PROJECT  (Read 10118 times)

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Pufahl

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    • CVO2: 2009 V-ROD Muscle
V-ROD PROJECT
« on: August 31, 2009, 11:33:43 PM »

For those of you considering the few after market upgrades available for the V-ROD Muscle, I have my recent experience to pass on.  First let me thank my good friend Henry Labiche who provided the HD expertise that few rarely posses. He was there and helped through tasks that I would have screwed up if it not for his keen eye for detail and persistence for perfection.  Oh…he also provided his garage and free cold beer during this project.

Henry and I discussed all the aftermarket upgrades available and what ones were worth their cost.  After a few weeks we made a down selection and ordered the following items; Power Commander V, Auto Tuner, TAB Performance slip on mufflers, Jet-Hot treated OEM headers, and converting to a “topless” air filter system with a K&M filter. Below is a brief summary of our experience installing these upgrades.  This project took the two of us about 8 hrs to complete. Had I been by myself it would of taken me 16 hrs or longer considering I have never done this before.

If you plan on installing the Power Commander V you will need to order the extension cable for the Auto Tuner. You will need this in order to position the Auto Tuner modules under the seat area as recommend in the instructions.  This is a separate cable that Power Commander sells (~$19.00). Without this extension you will not have enough cable to properly install the modules under the seat as recommended. Also, Power Commander has several MAPs available. Installation of the Power Commander was relatively easy, but took us about 3hr since the V-ROD Muscle has no free space in the frame and  routing of the wires took additional attention to detail to get it perfect.

The next item was the installation of my headers that were heat treated by Jet-Hot. You will need to order replacement gaskets for the exhaust ports and the crossover tube. The original gaskets were not useable after we removed them no matter how careful we were. I planned for this since Henry made sure I ordered all the replacement gaskets before we started this project. Don't forget to freeze the gaskets in your freezer before install them. This will ensure they go in the exhaust ports easy and reduce the chance of damaging them. I think the replacement gaskets for the exhaust ports and crossover tube and TORCA clamp cost me ~$45. Installation of the newly heat treated headers took about 2hr to complete.

The next item was the TAB Performance slip-on mufflers manufactured by TAB Performance. I was very impressed with the quality of these mufflers, and I'm not easy to impress. They installed in 45 minutes using the OEM mounting hardware. I was very concerned about the mufflers not fitting properly or requiring modification to get them on. These fit like they were custom made for my bike, quality of the material and the craftsmanship that went into making these mufflers was superb.

The last item was to convert my air-box into a topless system. Henry had already done significant research prior to the start of this project and completed this in 30 minutes. You will need to be sure you relocate the Inlet Air Temperature (IAT) sensor located on the top section near the air filter. We did this by using double sided adhesive tape to secure the IAT to the inside of the bottom half of the air box and installed the K&M air filter.

Henry down loaded the MAP for my bike and configuration from the Power Commander website and rechecked everything before starting my machine.  We started this project after work on a Friday so it was getting late, but could not resist hearing the results so we started the engine and with no problems. The sound was as close to the traditional HD sound as you can get considering the V-ROD is a short stroke engine. It has a very nice deep throaty tone when  idling. But when you snap the throttle, it will let everyone know you are coming.  It does not sound like the high pitched metric machines and has a very distinctive tone, but still identifiable as a HD.  I had a little de-cell pop between 3000 and 400 RPM, but that was tuned out when I took it to Rod’s Performance to have it fine tuned on the dyno. 

I have a total of ~$1500 into this project and it was well worth the results. My throttle is extremely responsive and a noticeable increase in torque and horse power. The engine is noticeably cooler and the electric fans do not run near as much as they use to.  I credit this to the improved air flow of the Jet-Hot treated headers and the reduced back pressure of the TAB Performance mufflers.  There might me some benefit of the improve fuel mixture as well. The OEM configuration resulted in white exhaust pipes which leads me to suspect the engine was running hot and very lean on fuel.  With the new upgrades my machine is now running a perfect fuel/air ratio for optimum performance. 

Over all I’m completely happy with the results of all the upgrades.  I need to give Power Commander, TAB Performance and Jet-Hot my appreciation for answering all my questions before and after my purchase. I could not be happier with my experience and the results. Special thanks to Stan Lass at Power Commander Tech Support, Todd at TAB Performance, and  Jeff at Jet-Hot Inc. I would highly recommend these upgrades to anyone looking for improved performance and looks. Lastly, thank you to my good friend Henry for providing his time, expertise and technical support during this project.

I have attached my dyno print out for those of you interested in the results. You will need to install the Run Viewer 7 file and rename the my dyno sheet as a .drf file to view it.  Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, I will be glad to help in any way.

Live to ride….ride to live!
Dale Pufahl
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REGGAB

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Re: V-ROD PROJECT
« Reply #1 on: September 02, 2009, 09:28:02 PM »

Dale,
How's that garage door opener workin' out for ya?

I REALLY need to install an XMTR on the Purple Bike.  Either that, or I need to get a louder horn that Renea can hear, so she can open the garage door for me.   :huepfenlol2:

Take it easy on that 2 wheel missile.  That thing'll hurt ya quick, fast, and in a real big hurry.  It was quick before the mods.  Now.....it's just plain sick quick!   :2vrolijk_21:

Henry
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Hoist!

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Re: V-ROD PROJECT
« Reply #2 on: September 02, 2009, 09:35:25 PM »

Very cool story and a great read Dale! And that Henry sure is somethin, huh?!!! Glad to hear it went so smoothly! Every bike these days NEEDS those 3 things at a bare minimim to be healthy! Glad she's runnin like a champ! Enjoy man! :2vrolijk_21: :2vrolijk_21: :2vrolijk_21:

Hoist! :coolblue:
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