Vance & Hines Dual Exhaust Install
Unplugging the Softail Slim
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
Anytime you can free up the stock exhaust on your late-model Harley it is going to be a good thing. Not only does your scooter go from sounding like a sewing machine to a real-deal Harley-Davidson, but it is one of the first steps in gaining more horsepower. We teamed up with Vance & Hines on our project 2016 Softail Slim to get it breathing and looking better. We used a set of Vance & Hines Softail Duals pipes for that classic two-pipe look. We are also employing a Vance & Hines FP3 tuner to make sure the air/fuel ratio is correctly adjusted after the exhaust upgrade. Although this tech could easily be handled at home with a few hand tools, we decided to let our pal Scotty Speed Metal do all the work. Here’s how it went.
Here’s the Vance & Hines Softail Duals exhaust fresh from the factory.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
This is the Vance & Hines FP3 tuner still in its box.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
Scotty starts the upgrade by removing the stock heavy and choked-up exhaust that came on the bike from the factory.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
The right- and left-side muffler brackets were then installed onto the Softail’s frame.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
The right- and left-side muffler brackets were then installed onto the Softail’s frame.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
The right-side pipe was fitted to the front head of the Slim’s engine.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
The left-side exhaust uses this S-bend pipe on the rear head of the engine.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
The downpipe of the left side of the exhaust was then mounted to the S-bend pipe.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
The left-side Vance & Hines muffler was mounted to the downpipe and muffler bracket.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
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The right side of the exhaust also had the muffler mounted as well as the O2 sensors.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
Next, the Fuelpak FP3 was attached to the bike’s data port and permanently left under the seat of the Softail Slim.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
The software app was downloaded onto the Android-operated smartphone (there is also an app for iPhones), and the correct map was found. The bike was pulled off the lift and ridden a few miles to make sure everything was mounted correctly and that the FP3 map was uploaded to the unit and worked properly. And we were done!
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
Here’s the before…
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
…and here’s the after.
Words and Photos: Jeff Leighton
