I made my first post to this board last week, but I've been reading for quite a while.
Now that I might actually become a Savage owner, I wanted to review the various modifications suggested on this board, only to find that the best 'tidbits' are scattered throughout the board, and hard to find. So I thought I'd do my best to give a summary. I'm not a mechanic and have very little skill with tools, so please correct me or clarify where needed. Maybe if I do the footwork - and get it right, this post, or some revision, could be placed in the Technical Documents section?
The '95 and later Savages are not tuned for best engine performance. This is due to various EPA regulations. Making a few changes can significantly impact the performance of these machines.
First, a few things can be done to the carburetor to minimize backfiring and effect low to mid-range response. A white spacer on the main needle in the carburetor can be filed down to 2/3 to 1/2 thickness (affecting mid-range), and adjusting the idle mixture and idle speed screws will help low-end response. This thread covers how to make these modifications in more detail:
Mid-Range Power & the White Spacer (Backfire)The stock muffler also gives a bit too much back-pressure to the engine, limiting performance at the high-end of the throttle. Replacing the muffler with a high-performance one will decrease the backpressure a bit, and give better high-end response. Because the dynamics of the change of air-flow thru the engine with a new muffler, the carburetor may need to be re-jetted. Commonly suggested replacement mufflers are Sporster (from a HD), Supertrapp, Jardin, Raask, Screamin' Eagle, and MAC. There is no single article on this board discussing the relative merits of each of these, however, there is one with sound clips:
Savage Sounds (mufflers)Many users choose to replace the stock air filter with a K&N filter to further improve the air flow. They do this along with the muffler replacement, since it usually requires a carburetor re-jet as well.
How to remove snorkel & replace with K&NHowever, some are concerned with the larger amount of dust and dirt that a K&N allow into the engine and choose to stick with stock filters:
Why some avoid K&N filtersAdditionally, the handling of the Savage can be improved with new rear shocks and a Super Brace on the front forks.
In addition to handling and performance, many would like a trip odometer. A good thread covering that topic can be found here:
Trip Meter IdeasAnother thread with a GPS solution is here:
Electronic accessoryAll in all, the general consensus of the Savage is that it's the VW of motorcycles. Easy to work on and can be made much better than stock.
Tim