I'll have to give that some thought...nobody's ever asked that here before.

 

carb vs. efi....that is a relatively new debate among harley owners and will probably be as drawn-out as the oil debate (let's not start).

EFI is nice...being able to start up regardless of outside temperature.
Carburation's advantage (in my eyes) is that if the bike breaks down on the side of the road...most of my tools in my bag can fix the problem. EFI....you're screwed...you need a laptop to figure it out and the number of a local tow company. It's personal preference and I like them both for different reasons but nothing sounds better than carburation and be able to tweek it yourself if you have to. Take it for what it's worth.

 

Use the search function (yuo cant use 3 letter words like efi), but try carbs, delphi, etal, there are lots of posts and opinions. If you plan to ride it, maybe add pipes or so, but generally leave the engine alone, get efi. if you want to hop it up, get another 30 hp or so, get carb. The state of efi tuning is such that carbs seem to be cheaper and provide more ultimate power. jmho as well.

 

Hey Lightnin. The newer carb bikes are all computer controlled wether they're efi or carb. Unless your tool kit has a spare ignition in it you're screwed. Also the newer efi bikes have a "limp home mode". Evne if some of the sensors fail, you can still make it home.
Back to the original topic. If you plan on making extensivve engine mods, I would go carb. easier to adjust to any modifications.

 

I have a 2002 deuce with a carb and have had no problems with it, starts up nice, and doesn't spit and sputter like the old evo carbs did until the motor reaches operating tempature. I ride with guys with efi and some of them have regrets with their EFI. Efi has a mind of its own, it has a differant sound on idle` seems like it idles alittle higher than the carbed, my bike has that lope sound like a harley should at the stop light, and its stock other than the vance and hines big shots and the screaming eagle stage one aircleaner which I highly recommend, this is my opinion, but no matter what you decide you will love that deuce, its a great bike.

 

Carb all the way for performance and tweeking!!!

 

I really wanted a carbureted Deuce but I would still be looking for one as all the dealers in my area were only ordering the EFI models, and I didn't want to wait until late summer for a ride. So, I did a lot of asking around this forum and other places and could not find one person that has had a significant problem with the EFI.

Yeah, it does idle a bit higher than a carb'd bike, but what the heck, I ain't complaining. The sucker starts on the first lick and is ready to ride.

 

EFI 0Wnz j00h......................

 

EFI will give give you the best performance since it can be tuned to give you the greatest performance while getting excellent gas mileage. If you can afford the dyno time and having harley dial her in then go for it. Carb is better for people who want something that is simple and easy to fix or cannot afford having the bike on the dyno with every upgrade. If EFI wasn't so great and reliable, GM and Ford would not have put fuel injection on their performance cars and race cars(NASCAR Exluded). If I could find an EFI setup for my bike, I would jump all over it but since it's like a $2000 upgrade, I'm stuck with staying carb on the Sporty.

 

The only way I'd go with EFI was if I was leaving it bone stock.

 

I work for a regional airline that flys Embraer 145 Regional Jets that have what is called FADEC controlled engines. That stands for Full Authority Digital Engine Control. Basically, EFI. The throttles in the cockpit aren't physically connected in any way to the engines. They are wired in to what is basically a rheostat, which is electrically wired to the FADEC. When the pilot moves the throttles forward or aft, it sends a signal to the computer that interprets the movement as "the dummy up front wants to go fast/slow down" and the computer makes the engine power up or down as needed, depending on what the "dummy up front" wants to do. Seems to work pretty well.

On the other side of the coin, everything that the pilots can actually physically control, seems to break fairly frequently. If we can only replace the First Officer with a dog, things would be better. The dogs job would be to bite the hand of the Captain every time he reached out to touch something.

 

I did a little research on this, and the H-D EFI is a "static" EFI program, hence the need for calibration if you modify anything.
Most engine with Oxygen sensors can compensate for rich/lean by meetering the fuel a the injectors with the "pulse width" which is a fancy way of saying how long they leave the fuel injector on for each pulse.
The H-D system does not react to any rich/lean input, as it has no Oxygen sensor. Therefore it cannot compensate rich/lean, or vary the pulse width. This is basically a fancy carburetor...
The EFI Advantage is that the injectors should atomize the fuel better, and with the race tuner, an exhaust analyzer, and a dyno, you should be able to dial in a "theoretically" perfect MAP.
Theroretically it should perform better, and more economical too.

 

I'm having Python III slips and a Power Commander installed today on my FLHTI. Wrench assures me it'll be a screamin' efficient demon when he's done.

Gonna play hooky tomorrow, if I can log some decent saddle time I'll let you folks know what differences, if any, I can detect on how it rides.

 

... you should be able to dial in a "theoretically" perfect MAP.
Theroretically it should perform better, and more economical too.

You'd have to achieve about 2000 mpg before the H-D EFI system could ever be considered more economical than a carb ... you REALLY have to work hard to make up the the higher purchase cost of EFI, and the costs of re-maps and/or a PC EFI programming kit ...

 

The mid-'99 and later Magnetti-Marelli systems are trouble-free and very efficient. the Delphi is currently having it's last tiny bugs removed. The factory remap for your application is about all you'll ever need. Many states charge less to register the EFI models, and this reduces the extra cost considerably. With a loaded down FLHRI, Stage II 95" kit, cams, etc, I'm getting a solid 37 mpg in town stop-and-go and 44 on the open road at 70-80 mph. I like carburators too, but I'm ready to move on...

 

I agree,
The EFI should be a closed loop feed back system, instead of a predetermined "MAP" if it to be more efficient.

 

Once again Harley does an upgrade to their bikes but forgets the simple things like an O2 sensor. Wouldn't take much to do it correctly the first time. I always assumed the engineers were smart enough to create a product fully and not forget simple details like the O2 sensor. Probably wouldn't have taken much for them to even create it! I guess thats what I get for assuming.

 

Psssssssssst. I heard that there are a # of 90 + hp and 100+tq EFI bikes on the road! But I might be only a rumor?

Boris

 

EFI will give give you the best performance since it can be tuned to give you the greatest performance while getting excellent gas mileage. If you can afford the dyno time and having harley dial her in then go for it. Carb is better for people who want something that is simple and easy to fix or cannot afford having the bike on the dyno with every upgrade. If EFI wasn't so great and reliable, GM and Ford would not have put fuel injection on their performance cars and race cars(NASCAR Exluded). If I could find an EFI setup for my bike, I would jump all over it but since it's like a $2000 upgrade, I'm stuck with staying carb on the Sporty.

They only use efi because of CAFE and EPA reg's. If they could get away with a carb they would.

 

I went with the EFI on my electra. Look at the cost for the big bore kit. EFI kit all inclusive for about $900 + labor. With a carb bike, you have to get pistons, jugs, gaskets, cams, carb, etc. seperately. Parts alone are $600 more. Only benefit I could see is more cam selection doing it piece meal. Even the '03 S.E. Road King w/ the 103" stroker is EFI. That has more power than I'll ever build!