V85TT Exhaust Upgrade

[Shorties178]

Hi,
I've just fitted a Dominator (Made in Poland) decat pipe & muffler to my '20 V85TT Travel. I was after a bit nicer sound & the maintenance advantages of the decat. It came with a Decibel Killer installed. Well, the sound was fine... but I seemed to lose a fair bit of low to mid torque & throttle response. It also cackled & backfired like crazy on gear changes and over-run. So, I removed the Db Killer and now I have everything back (and more I think) as well as a deeper sound. Yes, it is fairly loud but nothing like half the Harleys getting around here. Cold start idle is a bit fluctuating, but it soon idles normally. It doesn't backfire as much as before with the Db Killer in. In fact, I'd say it doesn't backfire any more than before the new exhaust... you can just hear it more & it can be mitigated by adjusting my throttle technique. I'm very happy with how the bike is running, however I posted about this on a few F/book pages and got a few comments advising I should not have done this without a remap or fitting plug in foolery... lean running etc etc..
My question is...do I need a remap...is it imperative? I've studied Griso.org's instructions re- installing a new map and it seems pretty straight forward. I've also ordered the required leads to use Guzzidiag.
Can anyone offer advice on what I should be doing? Again, the bike is running great now, but I don't want to cause damage to it and if a new map liberates it a bit more than that would be good too.
regards,
Mick

[Dave Swanson]

Hi,
I've just fitted a Dominator (Made in Poland) decat pipe & muffler to my '20 V85TT Travel. I was after a bit nicer sound & the maintenance advantages of the decat. It came with a Decibel Killer installed. Well, the sound was fine... but I seemed to lose a fair bit of low to mid torque & throttle response. It also cackled & backfired like crazy on gear changes and over-run. So, I removed the Db Killer and now I have everything back (and more I think) as well as a deeper sound. Yes, it is fairly loud but nothing like half the Harleys getting around here. Cold start idle is a bit fluctuating, but it soon idles normally. It doesn't backfire as much as before with the Db Killer in. In fact, I'd say it doesn't backfire any more than before the new exhaust... you can just hear it more & it can be mitigated by adjusting my throttle technique. I'm very happy with how the bike is running, however I posted about this on a few F/book pages and got a few comments advising I should not have done this without a remap or fitting plug in foolery... lean running etc etc..
My question is...do I need a remap...is it imperative? I've studied Griso.org's instructions re- installing a new map and it seems pretty straight forward. I've also ordered the required leads to use Guzzidiag.
Can anyone offer advice on what I should be doing? Again, the bike is running great now, but I don't want to cause damage to it and if a new map liberates it a bit more than that would be good too.
regards,
Mick

Below has been revised as I was able to get info direct from Mark regarding the 2020 V85 with the 7SM ECU. 

First and most importantly, welcome to WG and congratulations on your V85TT Travel purchase. 

The 2020 V85TT has the 7SM ECU which allows the usage of  Beetle maps, which is a great thing.  I have been using Beetle maps on my Griso and my old Norge and V7 with fabulous results.  I highly recommend going down the road as I am sure you will be very pleased.

The mapping process is very straightforward.  The documentation is so complete that I doubt you will have any problems. 

My 2022 with the 11MP ECU is not a candidate for a Beetle map at this time.  Once they have a solution to for the 11MP I will certainly get a map for it. 

[Shorties178]

Thanks for that Dave.

[Larry H]

Hi,
I've just fitted a Dominator (Made in Poland) decat pipe & muffler to my '20 V85TT Travel. I was after a bit nicer sound & the maintenance advantages of the decat. It came with a Decibel Killer installed. Well, the sound was fine... but I seemed to lose a fair bit of low to mid torque & throttle response. It also cackled & backfired like crazy on gear changes and over-run. So, I removed the Db Killer and now I have everything back (and more I think) as well as a deeper sound. Yes, it is fairly loud but nothing like half the Harleys getting around here. Cold start idle is a bit fluctuating, but it soon idles normally. It doesn't backfire as much as before with the Db Killer in. In fact, I'd say it doesn't backfire any more than before the new exhaust... you can just hear it more & it can be mitigated by adjusting my throttle technique. I'm very happy with how the bike is running, however I posted about this on a few F/book pages and got a few comments advising I should not have done this without a remap or fitting plug in foolery... lean running etc etc..
My question is...do I need a remap...is it imperative? I've studied Griso.org's instructions re- installing a new map and it seems pretty straight forward. I've also ordered the required leads to use Guzzidiag.
Can anyone offer advice on what I should be doing? Again, the bike is running great now, but I don't want to cause damage to it and if a new map liberates it a bit more than that would be good too.
regards,
Mick

Hi Mick,
I have just joined the Wildguzzi forum and and saw your post re the Dominator exhaust. Hope you do not mind if I ask some questions about it as I been thinking of getting one for my V85TT 2022, at least the muffler as they don't seem to have the exhaust pipes for the Euro 5 model.
Are you still happy with it ?
Is the material and fit quality OK ?
Did you need to disconnect the lambda sensors ?

Another question, can you run your bike on 95 RON or E10 ? Mine must run on 98 RON otherwise it pings too easily when the ambient temperature is above 28 degrees Celsius or so. The idle is fluctuating, not only when cold.
I should probably also get an aftermarket remap to try to get rid of the pinging.

Cheers,
Larry

[JStorm]

Mick, I agree that you will want to explore the methods for remapping to suit your exhaust change. It feels like it's running great but it definitely is running leaner. Leaner means higher operating temps. That can be problematic over the long term. Dangerous in high ambient temps with high load.

At the very least, I would inspect the plugs after some spirited riding. This will tell you if you are OK or not.

I also have a 2020 V85 Travel. Really like the bike but am awaiting LonElec leads to pull the map and send to Mark for revision. Only then will I carry out the decatting. It has enough power for me but on hot days she pings more than I'd like if I happen to be lugging under 4000 rpm in too high of gear.

Best wishes,
Jay

[NWrider]

If you're getting pigging with your 2020 model, check the intake connections from the airbox to the manifolds for an air leak.  My 2020 with decat but with the stock muffler doesn't ping at all and pulls from about 3200 rpm without complaint.   And, the sound is wonderful.

[Shorties178]

Hi Mick,
I have just joined the Wildguzzi forum and and saw your post re the Dominator exhaust. Hope you do not mind if I ask some questions about it as I been thinking of getting one for my V85TT 2022, at least the muffler as they don't seem to have the exhaust pipes for the Euro 5 model.
Are you still happy with it ?
Is the material and fit quality OK ?
Did you need to disconnect the lambda sensors ?

Another question, can you run your bike on 95 RON or E10 ? Mine must run on 98 RON otherwise it pings too easily when the ambient temperature is above 28 degrees Celsius or so. The idle is fluctuating, not only when cold.
I should probably also get an aftermarket remap to try to get rid of the pinging.

Cheers,
Larry

Hi Larry,
Sorry for the slow reply, I haven't checked in for a while.
Yes, I am happy with the Y-pipe & silencer. I can't compare to the 'name' brands because I've never owned anything else. I am a mechanical tradesman though, & cannot fault the workmanship, materials or fit-up.
I would have thought the y-pipe would fit yours as you are only removing the Cat, not the headers (or are the later models one-piece headers/Cat?). My Lambda sensors stayed put.
I have put 95 RON in it with no issues when I couldn't get 98. It has pinged once or twice only not long into its first summer, but I make sure I don't lug the motor. It's never been an issue & I'm two-up most of the time.
Idle always fluctuated when cold but soon evened out.
I didn't really want a muffler so loud as this one. It didnt run so well with the db killer fitted. Great without & I dont think it was much louder. I wear earplugs for wind noise so it doesn't bother me when underway. The Wife doesn't & says it doesn't bother her either. It is a nice sounding silencer. If you left your Cat installed I reckon it would quieten things down a bit compared to mine.
I did end up installing a Beetle map which was a fairly easy process to do if you have a laptop. I'm on version 3 at the moment. I send Mark photo's of the plugs after a few thousand km's... they've been showing a bit rich & fuel consumption has taken a bit of a hit... & Mark sends me a tweaked map in very short time. But, each version has shown improvement & I think we're pretty close. I'll be interested to see how they look when I pull them in a few thousand k's. Marks' after sale service is second to none & a big thankyou to him.
Still get a little backfiring even though I installed the secondary air delete kit. Any comments about the sound are positive.
Hope this helps make up your mind Larry either way. Any more questions... fire away.
regards,
Mick