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[GMR-PERFORMANCE]

I am in agreement on having the numbers...You can plan for the worst case.  I still have an  pit in my an uneasy feeling in stomach as to if and when my new 110 engine will fail.  Don't me wrong - I am all in HD.  Just want a solid solution for what "we" paid or are paying for...

Swap the cams and lifters tune the bike and that will prevent many of the issues that you happen. Valve guide piston issues are all about heat, the cam and tune will correct that lifters well no big deal.  Cam, lifters, quick install push-rods all the gaskets and inner bearings  are $750 approx and a tune you are 1200 invested. But you would know that the problem has been taken care of.  Beyond that I would not be worried as the money to run down crank is over the top.   

You get a cooler running bike that makes more power and has no valve train noise

[bjspearman04]

Thanks for the information.  Truly appreciate the come back.    Will follow the recommendation once the two year warranty is up. 

[GMR-PERFORMANCE]

Well swapping lifters is not going to void the warranty. And you can wait and see how the sage plays out from your local dealer. Read a few posts here from guys that lost the engine on trips and dealing with the new engine time off the bike

[Skipper]

Thanks for the information.  Truly appreciate the come back.    Will follow the recommendation once the two year warranty is up.

Put the date on calendar!!! Mine was destroyed by lifter two weeks after warranty was up. No new engine. Just new cam chest as good will. What a shame. Kick out 110" POS, and put S&S 124"!

Skipper

[hdaliaconis]

 

I am in agreement on having the numbers...You can plan for the worst case.  I still have an  pit in my an uneasy feeling in stomach as to if and when my new 110 engine will fail.  Don't me wrong - I am all in HD.  Just want a solid solution for what "we" paid or are paying for...

[hdguy1]

I wish I could get that much satisfaction. I'm here at the Laughlin River Run with my Softail instead of my SESG. A cylinder stud pulled out a few days before we left for here and am still waiting to see what will happen. It only has 28,000 km on it in total. It was rebuilt at 8,000 km and had the crank replaced.  Harley sent a warranty inspector to the dealer ship to look at it. Dealer says it looks like all but the crank will be replaced. Could be 6 to 8 weeks. Arggggggggg!

I will be making a call to Harley when I know exactly what is happening. This bike has been one big heart break.

[hdaliaconis]

Once again, do all the 110's fail?  What is the ratio of failures to motors produced?  Not sure that the solution is to automatically swap out the lifters and cams if all is well.  JMO

[Beak Boater]

I got 2 110's, 2010 CVO ultra with 16000 miles, and a 2010 CVO Street Glide with 32000 miles both have no cats, exhaust changes, the Street Glide has aftermarket cams and tuned by Doc's Performance. I just change the fluids and ride. Never had a problem, so the answer to your question is NO not all, just most of the ones on the internet.

[sadunbar]

Once again, do all the 110's fail?  What is the ratio of failures to motors produced?  Not sure that the solution is to automatically swap out the lifters and cams if all is well.  JMO

Of course, all 110's don't fail, but some, or some would say, many 110's do fail.  The trick is in knowing which 110's will fail, to which there is no definitive answer.  So it comes down to whether you feel lucky, or confident, that your particular 110 will fail or will not fail.  And then it becomes a personal decision as to whether it's a good investment (as with insurance) to proactively swap out your lifters - or not.  Personally, I chose to use our frigid winters to inspect my cam chest and then decide what, if any, preventative maintenance is necessary.  That said, without fail, I change lifters every 10,000 miles.  Given that most of my riding consists of multi thousand mile trips, I consider this a mind soothing investment.  Others with different riding habits, or more confidence in the MOCO's product than I, may be perfectly comfortable to leave things alone while all is well... 

[grc]

I love the "wise" comments from some folks about how the only bad Harley's are the ones you hear about on the internet forums.  I'm sure the same is true about those defective ignition switches over at GM; it's really just a tiny percentage being blown out of proportion by those grieving family members running their mouths on the TV news shows.  There is absolutely nothing for those other millions of folks with the same switch to worry about, right?  To paraphrase the title of a fine Bobby McFerrin song, "don't worry, be a mushroom".

No, not every 110 has failed.  Not every Yugo fell apart either, but the percentage was more than a tad higher than for other brands.  It doesn't require a 100% failure rate for discerning individuals to declare a product to be flawed and substandard.  If you trust the MoCo to never sell chit, and to always do the right thing, then by all means don't take any precautions.  Tell them to keep their factory warranty, you're sure you won't need it.  Forget the ESP as well, why waste money buying repair insurance for a perfect product?  Don't spend a few hundred bucks to replace a part that even Harley has chosen to replace in production on the 2013 and 2014 models.  I'm sure the same folks at Harley who cheapened every other part of the bikes in recent years just decided to spend more on lifters for the hell of it, and not because the failures were costing them big bucks in warranty expense.

ANY major engine failure is unacceptable, and even if you only count the failures we have heard about on this one forum the percentage is unacceptable.  Period.  If you don't want to take the issue seriously, then don't.  It's no skin off the noses of those of us who have recommended people take action to protect themselves.  We aren't trying to sell anything, most of us aren't even in the business of selling parts or services.  If you don't want our advice, then feel free to ignore it.  Trust me, it won't hurt my feelings if you blow off any advice I may offer.  I don't have a crystal ball, and I can't say your particular bike is destined to fail.  Of course the opposite is also true, you don't have a crystal ball and you have no clue if your Harley is going to fail tomorrow, next month, next year, or maybe never. 

Jerry 

[Rooster]

Not every 110 motor will scissor the flywheels. Thankfully the aftermarket has come to our rescue with stuff like welded wheels and Timken bearing conversions, and many other things. I don't think many would put up with the stuff we all have without the aftermarket to go to as the Moco doesn't care about giving us a strong enough platform to start with. one would think the Moco would offer the same service but that would be admitting their failures so as to why that has never happened.

[FlaHeatWave]

'Owning (6) Harleys since '76, my (only) 110 has failed 2x in 22k, the other 5 have given much better service. (didn't see any of that on the net...)

[FlaHeatWave]

Put the date on calendar!!! Mine was destroyed by lifter two weeks after warranty was up. No new engine. Just new cam chest as good will. What a shame. Kick out 110" POS, and put S&S 124"!

Skipper

S&S 124

[Rooster]

 

Seems to be one of the best answers. To bad we can't just order the bike without the motor then put in what you want and reliability goes way up. Pretty sad but most keep going back hoping for the good one.

[grc]

Seems to be one of the best answers. To bad we can't just order the bike without the motor then put in what you want and reliability goes way up. Pretty sad but most keep going back hoping for the good one.

Have you ever heard the one about doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results?  That's what I think about when I read comments from some people who have had several Harley's that had significant problems, got less than stellar customer service from the MoCo, and then went right back and bought another one.

The single thing that helps Harley's reliability statistics is the fact that so many people bought, and still buy, Harley's just to be part of the crowd and then park them, only bringing them out a few times a year for the "let's meet at the bar and show off our ride" events.  Those folks often don't put enough miles on a bike to experience many of the failures the more serious riders experience.

I like the idea of selling the bike without the powertrain and letting the customer supply their own engine and trans.  Or at least offering the customer the option of several different choices from the factory, kind of like the heavy truck industry where you can choose engines, transmissions, and axles when you order your truck.  I wonder how many knowledgeable people would opt for the Harley engine and trans if they could order the bike with an S&S engine and Baker trans straight from the factory?

Jerry