Unreliable.

[Dredger]

Re: Unreliable.

On my CVO 110 springer the battery never seems to last more than two years. I use an optimate for most of the year, and even have tried removing the battery from the bike during the winter months and charge it on the bench, but no matter what they still do not last.
I think the batteries are good quality, but the grunt needed to start these larger engines is too much, causing the batteries to fail. when the voltage drops too low then the current and heat builds in the starter windings causing that to over heat which means a new starter eventually.
The next failure could be the charging reg having to work overtime to keep up. Hey ho, its only money after all.

 

[Fast Lane]

Re: Unreliable.

are we on about a couple of bikes that have failed or are we discussing something on a bigger scale that affects numerous or all of the M8s so are we suggesting that the M8 has been built with major problems due to inept engineering

There is an issue with the transmission fluid migrating into the primary cavity through the hollow mainshaft. Numerous instances have been recorded that seem to occur faster when the motor is regularly operated at above 3500 RPM which is nothing for the so called performance capability of the M8. It isn't obvious and usually goes unnoticed as it's not an external oil leak. Have a look at your transmission fluid level and advise your mates to check also. If it's low then you'll find it in the primary - this is possibly the only time when HD's recommended SYN3 in both holes could be justified ha ha! The way you'll know this is happening is that the transmission will start whining, it'll gradually become harder to find neutral and the clutch may start to slip. I haven't heard of any permanent damage occurring but still it's a fault that needs to be rectified. HD released a document TA0022 on September 27th last year about this but so far there's been no further info, just their acknowledgement of the problem.

Then there's the ongoing oil pump revisions due to poor scavenging which leads to sumping and overheating ...

Then there's the loose fit exhaust valve seats causing 25% leakdown ...

 

[Army]

Re: Unreliable.

cheers for the heads up the only issue that I had heard about is the tensioner on the primary not releasing so any slack that appears on the primary the play was not corrected by the adjuster but this is supposed to be a quick fix that only required the adjuster to be moved on the 10k service so that it will release.

 

[mightytharg]

Re: Unreliable.

There is an issue with the transmission fluid migrating into the primary cavity through the hollow mainshaft. Numerous instances have been recorded that seem to occur faster when the motor is regularly operated at above 3500 RPM which is nothing for the so called performance capability of the M8. It isn't obvious and usually goes unnoticed as it's not an external oil leak. Have a look at your transmission fluid level and advise your mates to check also. If it's low then you'll find it in the primary - this is possibly the only time when HD's recommended SYN3 in both holes could be justified ha ha! The way you'll know this is happening is that the transmission will start whining, it'll gradually become harder to find neutral and the clutch may start to slip. I haven't heard of any permanent damage occurring but still it's a fault that needs to be rectified. HD released a document TA0022 on September 27th last year about this but so far there's been no further info, just their acknowledgement of the problem.

Then there's the ongoing oil pump revisions due to poor scavenging which leads to sumping and overheating ...

Then there's the loose fit exhaust valve seats causing 25% leakdown ...

Quite a bit of chat about the exhaust valves and sumping on the CVO Harley forums.

Enough to dissuade me from even considering a M8 motor at the moment.

To be fair there may be many happy M8 owners out there and it's not as if my current bike has succumbed to any of the known twin cam weaknesses just yet, but still, I wouldn't be clamouring to upgrade to a Milwaukee 8 right now. It appears that HD is still scratching it's head over some of the sumping issues and the aftermarket hasn't come to the rescue yet.