Do Sportsters run as hot as the "Big Twins"?

[atadaskew]

My Dyna with the 96 cube motor ran hot until I made the necessary adjustments (FI, filter kit, slip ons).  Then it was perfect.
I know the tourers run hot too.

Butt what about Sportsters?  Does the XR1200R run hot too?  See now, I don't really want to go messing with a new bike to make it run cooler anymore, as the solution nearly always involves creating more noise.

Just musing to myself..

[falconati]

When I test rode one, I got a little bit of heat and it was a really cold day. I would imagine the rear cylinder gets hot, but somebody else should confirm that - I know there are a few owners on the board.

[Nodaclu]

I had a temp gauge in the oil tank of my 2006 883 Sportster. It normally ran about 240 degrees. (This was in Vegas.) Most Sportster riders didn't worry about their temps until the readings got up over 280-290 for an extended period of time.

One trip my buddy and I foolishly took in July, we spent over 2 hours in the St. George, UT area, At one point on I-15, I look over at a bank thermometer, and the temp read 114 degrees. I had an air temp gauge on my handlebars, and it was pinned at 120 degrees. Say what you want, but it was H-O-T.

We pulled over at one point, as my buddy was about to pass out from the heat, so I took a moment to check the oil temp gauge.

The reading? 240 degrees. Solid as a rock.

On top of that, the general consensus from forum members who had owned both Sportsters and Big Twins were that the Sportster temps were much cooler, and much more stable, than the Big Twins.

[atadaskew]

On top of that, the general consensus from forum members who had owned both Sportsters and Big Twins were that the Sportster temps were much cooler, and much more stable, than the Big Twins.

Thanks for the info.  I wonder why the Sportsters are cooler.  Is it just a matter of having less cc's compared to cooling fin area?
The XR comes with an oil cooler, something that can also be added to the other bikes I'm sure.

[fastdadio]

I can't speak for the big twins as I never owned one. I have a 99 1200s. Dual plug heads. The harley tax is paid. V&H header, K&N air filter. Jetted and dyno checked for proper fuel mix from idle all the way to red line. Runs a little lean on the top end and thats OK with me as I spend very little time there. Temp guage dip stick in the oil tank runs a consistant 70 degrees over ambient. Which is about where it should be. This is with the oil cooler installed. I have never seen my oil temp approach 200deg. as others have. I installed the oil cooler after a serious over heating in a stop and go city traffic situation. That was a learning experience, afterall the bike is air cooled, so I just dont ride in the city any more. IMHO, all these bikes need or can benefit from a oil cooler. To sum this up, it's not the actual oil temp so much as how much over ambient temp you're running. This will show how much heat the oil/engine is retaining. The 70deg. over ambient target temp was taken from a tech article I read by Donny Peterson and published in Hot XL magazine about 10 years ago.

[chornbe]

My Dyna with the 96 cube motor ran hot until I made the necessary adjustments (FI, filter kit, slip ons).  Then it was perfect.
I know the tourers run hot too.

Butt what about Sportsters?  Does the XR1200R run hot too?  See now, I don't really want to go messing with a new bike to make it run cooler anymore, as the solution nearly always involves creating more noise.

Just musing to myself..

The Sportster I had never felt "hot" in any conditions, any weather. Riding that was just pure joy.  

[chornbe]

Thanks for the info.  I wonder why the Sportsters are cooler.  Is it just a matter of having less cc's compared to cooling fin area?
The XR comes with an oil cooler, something that can also be added to the other bikes I'm sure.

Also lower compression, IIRC.

[fastdadio]

When mine over heated it was under extreme conditions. 90 deg. stuck in traffic at idle for over an hour. Crawling. It never felt hot, if you could even tell in that circumstance. It began to idle lower, and lower, and lower... I shut it off and when traffic began to move, it didn't want to start. This bike is running 10;1 comp. so that is higher than other models. I finally pushed it onto the sidewalk and let it sit. And, I was so pissed off by that time that I rode it down the sidewalk to get out of there.

[Geoff]

Sportsters do not run as hot as big twins.

[Prubert]

My XR1200 doesn't run that hot...my triumph ST ran hotter.

I'm riding a Ultra Classic with the 103 in motor, and it was hot in stop and go traffic.  The XR is not that hot in stop and go traffic.

You should be good....

[atadaskew]

My XR1200 doesn't run that hot...my triumph ST ran hotter.

I'm riding a Ultra Classic with the 103 in motor, and it was hot in stop and go traffic.  The XR is not that hot in stop and go traffic.

You should be good....

Sweet