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[electra88]

Hey Guys... just wondering...  I have a 2001 Electra glide classic that spits oil out of the bottom of the air cleaner.  I notice it happens most Often when I push the bike hard (go up to or at 80mph).  It drips all over my pipes and on my chrome engine bits. 

Sunday I bought a 2006 SE ultra and right under the air cleaner I noticed a oil stain. I asked the previous owner and he said all Harleys spit oil out of the air cleaner.  My buddy also has a 04 SE electra glide and has the same problem.  Is this normal?? It kind of sucks b/c the enigine and pipes get all dirty with oil.. I ran my finger by the bottom of the air cleaner on my new 06 and my fingers were black. 

Should I be concerned?

Thanks
Michael

[hard10]

I've never had oil spew from either one of my bikes. The SEUC2 has over 3k on it now and no oil.

[harlez4me]

I have not had this problem on my 03 RK, but a buddy of mine has. I have read posts on this topic before. Some guys are saying they have to leave the bike oil level down a 1/2Q and it is solved. Is your oil level a bit over full?
Is it possible your new bike just had the A/C just serviced and there is some K&N oil residue?

Hope this helps
JD

[greglyon]

The phenomena is called "blow by" and there are several fixes. I haven't seen it discussed here for awhile but if you google the topic you should find some after market parts that will fix the problem.  I had it only once on my 103 inch when I was riding it hard and the engine was a bit cool.  It's more of a nuisance than a mechanical concern.  I am sure others more knowledgeable than I will comment.

[mr_magoo]

Sounds like maybe one of the breather vents in the air cleaner came off.  Quick check remove the cover and the air cleaner they are on the backing plate.

[sooiee]

Hey Guys... just wondering...  I have a 2001 Electra glide classic that spits oil out of the bottom of the air cleaner.  I notice it happens most Often when I push the bike hard (go up to or at 80mph).  It drips all over my pipes and on my chrome engine bits. 

Sunday I bought a 2006 SE ultra and right under the air cleaner I noticed a oil stain. I asked the previous owner and he said all Harleys spit oil out of the air cleaner.  My buddy also has a 04 SE electra glide and has the same problem.  Is this normal?? It kind of sucks b/c the enigine and pipes get all dirty with oil.. I ran my finger by the bottom of the air cleaner on my new 06 and my fingers were black. 

Should I be concerned?

Thanks
Michael

Michael,
On the 2001, do you have the high flow breather on it or is it a stock backplate?  The high flow backplate has been redesigned.  It used to have a crossover tube and some had a hose that was nothing but a snorkel down to the cases.  Then there was a design that brought the hose back into the backplate.  Problem was, the hose was brought back into the backplate for a reason.  It was to bring the oil back into the intake so it could be burned.  Slight issue was the hole was BELOW the intake.  Thus, only some oil would make it's way back up into the intake.  Most would end up all over the pipes.  There is a NEW version of the high flow backplate that has breather tubes that are actually pieces of plastic that snap onto the breather bolts and direct the excess oil into the intake. 

For your 06 You should see very little of it.  Do you have a stock breather or high flow breather?  I've also seen where people that used the oiled element would oil those elements so much...if you have a stock breather, is the element saturated with oil?  It too has breather tubes directing it to the back side of the element.  Everything (even cars) require the blow by to be directed back into the intake for EPA reasons. 

Oil expands when it it hot.  If you fill right up to the top of the mark on the stick, then your'e going to get more blow by.  It also foams up, steams...the vapor carries oil up out of the top of the heads.

Hope you get it figured out. 

[napalm]

I had the same problem with my 2003 Road King with a stroked 103 motor.  Took the air cleaner off and found that the breather tubes were cracked, changed them to the new design, which required a new back plate (chrome of course), new air cleaner and that solved the problem.  I have it happen once in awhile on my 2003 SE Duece, when I push it hard.  More of a nuisance than a problem.

napalm

[electra88]

Thanks for the info guys!!  Very helpful!!

[Midnight Rider]

According to some stuff I've read recently on this subject...a very good article in American Iron...one of the most common causes is too much oil in the crankcase.  The bike's specs say it takes 4 quarts with a filter change, but there's always a bit of oil lurking around in there that doesn't come out, and a lot of bikes just seem to "like" 3.5-3.75 quarts.  Mine seems to be one.  As mentioned above, it's real easy to get too much K&N filter oil on the filter when cleaning and re-oiling, which will make it drip.

[Glide-man]

A friend of mine had a Sporster that would puke oil from the air cleaner. The dealer gave him this tip to help keep the oil from spilling on to the pipes and such. You  need a small thin female PAD/ Napkin that has adhesive strips on the back of it. Place the  pad into the bottom or the air cleaner cover with the adhesive strip holding it in. After a hard day riding or when ever the pad would get too fool of oil , just replace with a new one . Please do not take  the pads  from your female friend or family member with out asking tho. This apparently to the female type is worse than taking the last cold one from the fridge and not running down to the store to buy more.

[ultrafxr]

Some are more prone to do this than others.  Typically the bigger engines are more prone to do this especially when ridden at high speed for extended periods.  Like others have said do a search on this site or a google search for blowby and you'll find more than you probably ever wanted to know.

Unfortunately this is a very common problem with these motors.  If you're sure your air cleaner vent tubes are properly attached then I would consider replacing the umbrella valves that are designed to help control this.  Must remove the rocker boxes to do this but not a terribly big or expensive job and if still under warranty that will cover it.

If it still persists you could investigate some of the aftermarket devices from S&S, Doherty and others.  Never used them, some say they work, others say they don't.  Go figure.

[sooiee]

You  need a small thin female PAD/ Napkin that has adhesive strips on the back of it. Place the  pad into the bottom or the air cleaner cover with the adhesive strip holding it in. After a hard day riding or when ever the pad would get too fool of oil , just replace with a new one

I suppose this could work for one of those "heavy flow days"?   

J

[Midnight Rider]

Here's a link to a page which gives a half-decent explanation of what's happening and a solution with a Doherty product called Mystfree.

http://www.dohertymachine.com/easyriders2006.php?osCsid=e8e00d7416278f3a2c8fd9c2f30b1766

Doherty's PowerPacc Vents, if plumbed to the backplate, CAN also help alleviate the problem of crankcase pressure, which occurs on the downstroke of the piston.

Just two possible solutions...

At least a few of the members here have one or more Doherty products on their bike, with generally good results.

[TimBone]

I had the same problem with my 04 Road King Classic.  4 qts of oil was too much, need only 3.5 and problem solved.
Saved me a few $$ on buying the wife new jeans that kept getting oil stained!

[UglyJohn]

Only had the problem on my RK when pushing hard in the mountain going to Sturgis one year. Didn't happen all the time. I think the reason in my case was just a tad too much oil after doing the oil change getting ready for the trip. Also, on another forum that it  could be the alignment of the oil pump.  UJ