One of the most common modifications a new Harley owner does when they buy a new Harley Davidson is a Stage 1 upgrade. If you aren't familiar with what that is, it's basically a couple of modifications designed to help your Harley breathe better. A motorcycle that breathes better will produce more power and in most cases you can expect around a 5 to 8 hp gain and about 10 ft/lbs of torque give or take for your bike. These numbers are just ballpark and are meant as a rough guide.
You may be thinking what's 5 hp or 10 ft/lbs of torque? Big deal...but these numbers are enough that you will clearly feel the difference in the way your motorcycle pulls, especially if it's a heavy bike or you are riding double. We are going to install a Dynojet PCV on my 2009 Street Glide. I have already installed Bub 7 Slip Ons and an Arlen Ness Big Sucker air cleaner, so now I am pumping a lot more air through the motor than before, and I need to add fuel to match.
The tuner that I am using is a Dynojet PCV and I got it from FuelMotoUSA. They are known to have great MAPS and they pre-load the right MAP for your combination when you order it from them. This saves you a step and gives you access to their MAP database and tech support line if you should ever need it. The installation is really quite simple and I've tried to provide very detailed pictures to show how simple it is.
DynoJet PCV Installation
This Is Your Starting Point. Pay Attention to Those Little Tabs that I have Arrows Pointing At. Makes getting the ECM out MUCH Easier! Your Bike MAY be different than this but the general concept is the same and DynoJet includes detailed directions. This Mod is a SNAP for even a moderate DIY'er.
The First thing you need to do is remove the ECM from it's cradle. Do not disconnect anything yet, just slide these tabs outwards on each side and lift the ECM up and Out. Leave it dangling on the side but make sure that it does not contact your paint job.
You can Now Clearly See the Top of Your Battery Box Cover. The Directions tell you to disconnect the battery power and this is a GOOD idea when working around electronics. You can get at your terminal connections easily enough and it only takes a few minutes. Once You Have disconnected the battery disconnect the ECM and set aside for a minute while you get the harness hooked up.
I do not have any pictures detailing the MAP upload as my PCV came from Fuel Moto USA and they will "preload" whatever MAP works best for your combination. I highly recommend FuelMoto as they are a great supplier and it saves you the step of having to install the MAP. If you get yours somewhere else, never fear, installing the MAP is simple with the Dynojet software and as long as you are at least moderately ok with a computer then you will have no problem with this step.
The PCV comes with a Y-Shape harness that basically "splices" into the stock harness. It is VERY self explanatory how this works when looking at it but pay attention to the image above and make sure when connecting that you line up the blue tabs on each end of the connector. Once you have the new unit spliced in you can reconnect your battery.
Re-install the ECM into the cradles by simply pushing the tabs outward again and sliding the ECM into it's cradle. The PCV box should be hanging by the harness still and pay attention to the big open gap because you need a place to tuck the HUGE connectors that are involved here.
Almost Home. You can see where we tucked the giant connector into the opening pointed at with our large white arrow. The PCV unit itself is simply held to the top of the ECM via strips of Velcro. Double Check the wiring and routing and make sure that nothing is pinched or in the way of reinstalling the seat.
One Last Step and it's time to fire it up. You need to locate each O2 sensor and trace the wire back to where it plugs into the factory wiring harness. Once you locate it, unplug the O2 sensor and plug in one of the supplied O2 Sim Plugs. These plugs essentially remove the O2 sensors from the equation and the bike will run purely off the MAP that is in the PCV. At this point, your O2 sensors will still be in their factory location in the exhaust pipe, but they aren't hooked up to anything. Just make sure you tuck the pigtail out of the way and blend it in with the rest of the wiring. Once you have completed this step, then you are ready to button it back up and fire it up to see how it runs!
On my 2009 Street Glide, installation was literally about a 30 minute affair. Different models will have different steps but the concept is the same and Dynojet provides very clear directions.
Time To Fire
Once you have buttoned it back up, it's time to fire and see how it runs. My particular combination is a 2009 Street Glide with a Stage 1 upgrade. I am running an Arlen Ness Big Sucker air cleaner and Bub 7 Slip On mufflers. Pretty standard setup.
My bike started on the first rotation and proceeded to idle very smoothly. Jamie and the team at FuelMoto get rave reviews for how good their MAPS are compared to stock and other vendors and I can see why now. The bike ran better than stock and has no sign of DECEL popping or surging of any kind. It runs through the gears nicely and simply runs GREAT.
I have run a number of other tuners in the past and this topic always produces heated debates in the forum as to which is best and why. I am now a big fan of the Dynojet PCV module as it is just super low maintenance. I had it installed in 30 minutes and haven't touched it since. The bike runs great, I don't need to adjust anything or tweak it or take it to the dyno to work out the decel pops or anything of the sort. If I choose to mod the bike more in the future then I have the Autotune as an option but for now this PCV fits my needs perfectly.
I also understand the "tweaker" mentality as some guys LOVE to tinker with the tune and the PCV is not as good of a choice as say a TTS Mastertune. So it boils down to what you are looking to get out of your tuner, if you want to plug and play and forget it then the Dynojet PCV is a perfect choice in my opinion. I recommend you buy it from FuelMoto as they have a great selection of MAPS and they're just a darn good vendor.
If you use the PCV currently then let us all know what you think about it in the comments.
