Hi all, I'm new here but I have something to add here. If you already want a Harley, and are willing to commute on it, then the cost savings coupled with the fact that you want the bike anyway will theoretically save money. Another way to view this is how much would your Harley cost you, not being used and parked in your garage.
I disagree with maintenance cost with the Harley. We are institutionalized to those cost. We all care about our bikes and maintain them more than is really practical. Harley does not require 3000 mile oil change, they recommend 5000, I don't change tires until I have to, in Texas that is when the inspection is due. If I get through inspection with a tire you can bet that it will last to the next inspection or until it gets dangerous. I don't consider the tire spent until the tread is gone and a MC tire will go from having some tread to none in just a couple of weeks, so you will know. Tread does nothing but channel water, when your tire is low on tread it has more tire against the pavement. Avoid inclement weather when pushing your tires. When you have to replace them shop them, you will be amazed how cheaply you can get a set. Stay out of the Harley shop for maintenance. Harley shops are for buying MCs, apparel, and gear. If it aint warranty work you don't need to be there. other than tires and oil, what maintenance are you looking at. I already talked about tires so lets go to the oil thing. Air-cooled cylinder walls are what causes the breakdown of oil. No other thing in the crank case can harm oil unless you have a unthinkable problem. Dino oil will easily go beyond any engine manufacturer recommended oil change, Harley wants you to change dino oil every 5000. Under normal driving conditions, hwy and expressway or minimum start stop you can easily push that oil out to 7500. If you are uncomfortable with that then you can go with numerous synthetic oils that will do that plus more. Amsoil for example will handle it. No matter what oil change interval you are comfortable with, you should be running synthetic in all your vehicles. I run synthetic and change at 7500 miles, I try to time my oil changes to where i get a new oil change in May so that I'm running new oil all summer. There will be many winter days when I'm not going to ride the bike then I get it out in the spring. In May I will change the oil either because it is a year old or has over 7500 miles on it. Timing is everything here. Do not change the oil in the in the transmission or chain case until it is required. We Harley drivers tend to want to change all fluids at one time because it's easy to do. Just not necessary. So the oil change is really fairly cheap if you think about it a little, 3.5 quarts of the best oil you can buy is about $27.00. Don't buy 15.00 oil filters, get a Wix for $5.50. Get a K&N air filter and keep it clean and I'm sure there are aftermarket fuel filters. Soooooo tires and fluids and great milage and the best ride you can have. what's the problem? Premium fuel is not necessary unless you are riding in extremely hot conditions. Always use premium for parade duty. Hopes this helps.
