The Best True Dual Exhausts For Harley Davidson Motorcycles

Nothing beats a cross country tour with a Harley and what better way to improve the ride and top speed than a true dual exhaust, here’s our buying guide on the best true dual exhausts for your Harley Davidson.

I’ve managed three motorcycle tours in my life and one was on a Harley, while it was the most enjoyable of the three a premium pair of true dual exhausts would make the ride ever more pleasant plus I would be squeezing out that extra speed.

We came up with these recommendations based on our own personal experience riding various motorcycles including Harley’s, and also doing research on the products themselves.

Lastly remember this is a single guide and unfortunately we can’t cover the best true dual exhausts for every type and variation of Harley Davidson motorcycles. So please double check fitment for your specific model of Harley to make sure the true dual exhaust you choose is compatible and will properly fit.

More Harley True Dual Guides

• Best True Dual Exhausts For Harley Touring
• Loudest True Dual Exhausts For Harley Motorcycles

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We felt Rinehart’s 4 Extreme true dual system was a clear winner and definitely the best true dual system you can purchase for a Harley, the only drawbacks are that it’s a pricey exhaust and secondly not every Harley model will be compatible with this beast of an exhaust.

If you’re one of the lucky motorcyclists to purchase the Rinehart 4″ Xtreme it’s going to be an exciting first ride. The vast majority of true dual systems are very long in length and also because of their design they excel at higher speeds and squeezing out revs at the top ranges, but this all comes at the cost of torque and it’s going to slow you down once stopped.

Rinehart has managed to mitigate a large portion of this problem by creating what’s called anti-reversion louvers at the end of the exhaust ports, these are very new and few exhaust are utilising anything similar.

What these anti-reversion louvers do is reduce negative pulses formed from gasses in the piping which knows how to improve torque without costing higher rips and higher speeds. This innovative design may solve the problem of what you should choose when picking out an exhaust, high speeds? Or… high torque?

Bassani has designed the piping to include the least amount of bends possible. This reduces restriction of exhaust flow because it’s easier for gasses to move down a straight pipe then a curve, improving the overall performance of your Harley both at high and low revs. It also is going to make the ride slightly more smooth, although it’s a lot more noticeable after a day’s riding than a quick wizz around the block.

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Basssani’s true dual exhaust system maximises performance at higher speeds and provides a variety of useful benefits especially when on a motorcycle tour. The true dual design will maximize speeds in the higher rev’s range and provide a smoother ride, improving smoothness was something we didn’t fully appreciate until we stepped off the motorcycle after a few days of riding.

The smoothness and performance improvements happen because of two things, firstly the increased length and pipe diameter plus it actually being a true dual design and not just a two into one, into two again design. While all accolulates into more gases escaping your engine at a far higher rate, and the more gases that can be expelled the bigger the improvements at higher revs and top speeds.

Although the touring and top speed benefits will come at the cost of lower revs, this is a fact with all exhausts all though we didn’t think the reduced torque was too significant and it’s a small price to pay for all the improvements at the top levels.

If you’re switching out a stock exhaust for an aftermarket true dual model, anything you choose will bring improvements in terms of sound. Although Bassani’s made sure this exhaust is one of the best sounding true dual models on the market. It’s tone is a very masculine growl, in a good way it reminds me of aeroplane propellers going whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, over and over.

The installation of the exhaust was relatively straight forward, any true dual exhaust is going to be more complicated than a standard exhaust system but that’s to be expected. I found the fitment to be completely fine and had no problems attaching and securing the parts.

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Vance and Hines Power dual headers excel at performance improvements around the lower rev ranges producing huge bursts of torque, it’s also a stand out for longevity and rerouting heat away from vital engine components.

What we really liked about these dual headers is they’re one of the best at reducing the amount of heat around your engine, less heat equals better longevity and less trips to the mechanic. They do this by a new design that reroutes hot glasses away from your rearset area, keeping those vital components cooler.

While this might look like not a true dual exhaust system it actually is, it looks as if the piping crosses over around the intersection near the foot pegs, but the pipes are completely separate giving the look of a one into two exhaust when it’s actually a two into two exhaust.

In terms of performance benefits we found this true dual exhaust to excel at lower revs, expect your throttle to be a lot more aggressive when at the lights, perfect for city riding and speeding around traffic. If you’re purchasing a true dual exhaust specifically for touring then you may want to reconsider this recommendation.

Vance and Hines also uses what’s called a power chamber for this true dual exhaust, it’s quite the innovation at improving poor torque but this will come at the cost of the higher revs. So you’re going to have to decide what’s more important for you, high revs or low revs?

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More Harley Davidson True Dual Buyers Guides

• Best True Dual Exhausts for Harley Touring Motorcycles