Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Phantom309]

I noticed mine is a tad fast, but I'm not bitching ... kinda gives you a little safety cushion on getting a ticket. I compared mine against a couple of those flashing speedo signs you see set up locally or in some construction zones. Mine seemed to be about 2-3 mph or so faster than the signs which is fine with me. I don't feel the need to break out the micrometer to make sure mine is 100% accurate.

I always do at least 5 mph over the limit and can get away without even looking for cops. So actually I know I can really do almost 10 over and not worry. Most of the cops I've talked to won't even think about pulling you over unless you're at least 10-15 mph over ... but, that sometimes depends on whether they got their donut or got any from the old lady before work.   

[BigLew55]

Through 2014, the discrepancy is known.   For some it's a blessing. For me, I prefer accuracy.  I'm really curious about 2015 owners, and what they are noticing.

[kiro]

I compared mine against a couple of those flashing speedo signs you see set up locally or in some construction zones.

I noticed the same thing. If the construction zone sign read-out is correct my speedo is a bit slow. GPS appears to agree with the flashing sign. 

[skratch]

I noticed the same thing. If the construction zone sign read-out is correct my speedo is a bit slow. GPS appears to agree with the flashing sign.

you mean your speedo is reading less than what you are traveling?  if so, yours is the first one that i've seen read off that way.  usually, it reads higher than what you're traveling.

[hogwild11]

Harleys have had this problem for a few years.  The numbers you cited are just about what everyone else it getting. 

[Wild Hog 4]

Your right, and therefore a nice card will be sent to HD thanking them for saving me all that money I would've spent on traffic fines 

Correct!
No ones mentioned tyre pressures ! This also have a bearing on the rolling race of a vehicles tyre diameter, this can vary the diameter more than the wear on the tyres,2psi extra pressure may not seem a lot but can increase the size by a few thou.
As far as gps speed readings go I always take these with a pinch of salt, some satalite data takes split times and give you more of an average speed over time, I personally like the old fashioned mechanically fixed speedo that is on my bike that I kinda trust as opposed to some satalite system that supposed to tell you everything but nothing well!

If your not sure just split the difference between the two, but to be honest as you say big deal if the harley speedo runs a bit fast it's only to take into account all of these variables and best to be safe than sorry I say!
Oh and I will thank Mr Harley for saving me money on speeding fines just when he's skinning me alive with the prices they charge for servicing,parts,upgrades etc.........
  

[TXGator]

Maybe it will keep me on the right side of the speed limit...

[Quantumracer]

So I've riden mine three or four times, and noticed this almost immediately.  Here's the problem I have with it.  If the odometer is racking up miles based on my speed divided by time traveled my odometer is going to read higher than my actual mileage....this is no bueno!

Question:  I have a Mac....any tuners available for Mac users?  I found the TT, but only for windows.  Help!

Thanks,
Dan

[grc]

So I've riden mine three or four times, and noticed this almost immediately.  Here's the problem I have with it.  If the odometer is racking up miles based on my speed divided by time traveled my odometer is going to read higher than my actual mileage....this is no bueno!

Question:  I have a Mac....any tuners available for Mac users?  I found the TT, but only for windows.  Help!

Thanks,
Dan

The speedometer percent error will likely vary depending on various factors like tire wear and manufacturing tolerances, but if your bike is like many of the others being reported, it's probably about 4 mph fast at 70 mph indicated, or 5.7% fast.  If the odometer is off by an equal percentage, we could surmise that the odometer will record 1057 miles actual with an indicated 1000 miles.  While not the kind of accuracy one might prefer, it's not exactly earth shaking.  Since the warranty is strictly based on time, the odometer accuracy won't affect it.  If worried about resale value taking a hit due to high mileage, the odometer would only be off about 2900 miles at 50k actual.  The mileage tables aren't that precise.  What other reason is there to worry about this?

I'm not a Mac guy, but I believe there is a way to run Windows programs on a Mac using third party software.  I'm sure some of the Mac guys around here will chime in.

Jerry

[14theroad]

Made a run yesterday from the house to Florida and back... Here are my results
Odometer reading for the trip was 1,171 miles
Google maps and my handheld GPS showed 1,066 miles
A difference of 105 miles or roughly 10%

[srnoyes]

Two thoughts and both made my brain hurt! 

1) Harley is just putting in a fudge factor at the direction of their lawyers. Our litigious society has all manufacture running scared to the side of cautious!

2) Maybe Harley is doing it to get to the other side of warranties faster. The quicker your warranty is out the fewer things they have to fix or replace!

Just a theory mind you. Something to stir the pot.

[grc]

Two thoughts and both made my brain hurt! 

1) Harley is just putting in a fudge factor at the direction of their lawyers. Our litigious society has all manufacture running scared to the side of cautious!

2) Maybe Harley is doing it to get to the other side of warranties faster. The quicker your warranty is out the fewer things they have to fix or replace!

Just a theory mind you. Something to stir the pot.

#2, as I stated earlier, there is no mileage limitation on the factory two year warranty, so it doesn't matter if your odometer is accurate or not for warranty purposes.

#1, all vehicle manufacturers skew the tolerance of the speed measuring system (there's more involved than just the speedometer itself) toward the high side to protect from having the system read low enough to cause you to get a speeding ticket.  The company I worked for had a tolerance of plus 5 to minus 1 mph at an indicated 60 mph for instance.  Actual was much better than that once the systems went to all electronics versus the old cables, but due to manufacturing tolerances of all the parts involved, it's never going to be 100% accurate.  As the tires wear, that alone will create a difference.

Jerry

[srnoyes]

I should have done a better job of indicating that I was joking.

[RonandJanet]

After the new gauge was put in mine the speedo is pretty close.  The GPS speed seems to be spot on with any digital speed signs that we have around telling us how fast we are going. So all in all it is close enough that I don't worry about it. I was way off before my dealer replaced the speedo for me.  FYI - My speedo would reflect about 4 or 5 MPH when it was stopped and of course was off by at least that amount.