Engine heat burning my legs

po161 O2 sensor bank 2 sensor 2 after catalytic.

car is cold and moving is OK if not moving getting hot could be thermostat stuck close or rad.is clog.

Since the introduction of the Twin Cam engine, heat has been a real problem. Go here and look at this site. http://www.nightrider.com/ I do not know if this works or not but the reason your engine runs so hot is because of the extremely lean fuel air mixture. The factory has to set the mixture this way in order to meet the EPA emission standards.

Good Luck
Steve

YOU WILL LOT OF FUEL CONSUMPTION. A OPEN OR MISSING THERMOSTAT WILL CAUSE VECHICLE STAY IN OPEN LOOP.ENGINE WILL BURN RICH BURN MORE FUEL.YOUR THERMOSTAT ALLOWS COOLANT TEMPERATURE TO GET AT A SET POINT WHERE ECM OR PCM ADJUST FUEL SYSTEM FROM OPEN LOOP RICH MIXTURE FOR COLD ENGINE TO CLOSED LOOP TO LEAN OUT FUEL SYSTEM AS ENGINE COOLANT TEMPERATURE GET HOT.YOU NEED TO REPLACE THERMOSTAT.OPEN THERMOSTAT WILL CAUSE NO HEAT PROBLEMS ALSO.

You must keep in mind that your Harley, unless it's a V-Rod, is an air cooled engine. It relies upon air moving by the cylinders to keep the engine cool. If you're doing a lot of standing still idling, your engine will overheat. If your bike is an Ironhead Sportster like the header indicates, the clyinders and heads are made of cast iron. This makes it even more difficult for them to radiate the heat as the aluminum cylinders and heads of the later models cool better. However, there are two things that you may wish to check on. One, is the ignition timing correct? Late ignition timing can cause an engine to overheat. Secondly, is the jetting of the carb correct? A lean fuel air mixture lends itself to higher engine temperatures.

Good Luck
Steve

Not an expert here but hope this helps. I had an 85 GMC Van and the previous owner had installed an electric fuel pump in engine compartment. I too would stall when hot. I finally relocated fuel pump to underneath the van and it ran cool and no more vapor locks.

This is a common problem with this bike,and does not mean that the engine is overheating.Go to www.triumphnet.com and click on the "mods" link for a solution.
They show photos of the modification which basically consists of installing a mesh screen on the inside of the fairing to channel the heat away from your leg.Also the upper fairing vent is enlarged to aid heat disipation.

It can be driven but you will have to monitor the engine temperature guage to make sure it doesn't get too hot. As long as your driving steadily over 30 mph, you should be fine. The problem is if you are stuck in traffic, your engine can overheat.

What you can do if you are stuck in traffic is turn your heat in your car to max and point the vents out the window. That will help somewhat. If you are stuck in traffic too long it may be wise to pull over and shut the engine off until the traffic is moving at a good clip again.

sounds like a blown head gasket letting coolant get injected into the engine and getting burned with the fuel. a head gasket replacement should help

First of all, you need to install a temp gauge as, even if your motor is running within the red-line (below 300degF, preferably lower than 280) the exhaust can still be several hundred degrees. Even if you add most cooling units that claim to lower engine temperatures, lowering your engine temp as much as 20-40 degrees may lower the exhaust as much as 100 degrees or possibly a little more however, lowering exhaust pipe temps from 5-600 degrees down to 4-500 degrees is going to help your engine but, it is still going to produce a lot of heat radiating to the human body.
Have you tried the heat diverter panels that fit on both sides of the upper frame. they are made to divert heat away from your legs. Also, most of the Harley drill teams use a heat blanket that does the same thing. It works a little better but, it doesn't look quite as nice.
I have a new cooling system that actually does work well and is designed specifically for the conditions you described and it has worked wonderfully. It keeps the engine cool enough that the rear cylinder cut-out never even actuates. It completely eliminated the engine overheating issues. None the less, it is still hot on me even though I never hit the red line anymore. If your interested, I can give you the product name. I'll check this site occasionally to see if you respond.
Heat is one of those negatives that are going to occur when riding on an air-cooled bike with a V-twin as the pipes have to be mounted high under the rider. There are a couple companies that claim to produce internal ceramic pipes that supposedly removes nearly all heat down the pipe and out the rear yet, they will be very costly and I haven't heard any actual feedback from anyone using them so, it would be an expensive investment that may or may not remedy your issue.
Wish there was better news. If I had actual oil and/or engine temps to go on, I could possibly give you a better answer. Good luck..................Erik