When looking for performance upgrades, the first choice is usually pipes and some sort of fuel management. It may be just for the sound and elimination of dead spots under acceleration. When a 2008 Road Glide wound up on our doorstep needing some sound and vision upgrades, we gave Vance & Hines a call and snatched up a set of their Big Shot Duals in black and one of their Fuelpak devices. The V&H Big Shot Duals have a sleek, understated look and a great tone that informs everyone within earshot that you are no doubt riding a Harley-Davidson. The pipes themselves are not black but have wraparound heat shields, which themselves are satin black ceramic-coated. We chose a True Dual system for its symmetry under each of the bags as well as for the decrease in temperature over the stock H-D pipes. Installation of the pipes was easy enough for a mechanical novice, and the supplied directions were simple and easy to follow.
(1.)We started by pulling off the pipes from our otherwise stock 2008 Road Glide.
Then it came time to install the Fuelpak. The reason we are installing the Fuelpak after a pipe and intake change is that the bike's ECU computer self-adjusts for factors such as temperature and altitude changes, but it can't adjust itself for mechanical changes like performance parts. To properly tune your new pipe and intake, you need a fuel management system that adjusts your air/fuel ratio to match the upgrades, so since we are using Vance & Hines pipes, we figured we would also use their A/F management system as well. Installation and setup of the Fuelpak was a straight plug-in and program affair. Within the directions, there are certain setting parameters that are designated with numerical values that are manually fed into the unit during setup. These can be found either in the supplied setup directions or on the Fuelpak website. The unit is neatly hidden underneath the right sidecover out of sight.
During the install of the pipes and Fuelpak, we decided to upgrade the intake as well with a Screamin' Eagle unit to make sure that the bike could suck the proper amount of air for the new free-flowing exhaust and fuel management.
Once all the parameters were set and approved by the unit, the bike was fired up and ridden. With the combination of the Big Shot Duals, Screamin' Eagle intake and Fuelpak, it was evident with our trusty butt dyno that acceleration was smoother as well as quicker and the dead spots were gone. B
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(2.)Then we pulled off the O2 sensors from the OE Harley-Davidson pipes and installed them
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(3.)The Vance & Hines pipes come with a specific transmission mount to be used with their
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(4.)There is also a proprietary rear pipe mount that Vance & Hines uses to attach the back
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(5.)This clamp mates the left side of the dual pipe to the frame.
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(6.)It's a good idea to have two people, one on each side of the bike, to make sure both p
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(7.)Here's a shot of the pipes installed before the bags go back on. Good looking, huh?
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(8.)Here is the Fuelpak out of its box before installation.
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(9.)Once the seat is off the bike, unplug the ECU from its wiring loom.
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(10.)Plug in the Fuelpak unit between the ECU and the wiring loom, then lock it down with
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(11.)Using the supplied Velcro tape, attach the Fuelpak to the side of the battery box and
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(12.)Following the supplied instructions, deduce what code is needed to be manually entere
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(13.)Once the Fuelpak reads the supplied information and gives you the OK code, you are fr
Parts:
Big Shot Duals in black
(PN 47925, MSRP $795)
Fuelpak
(PN 61009, MSRP $279)