Harley-Davidson FLHRC problems and owner complaints

FIRST PROBLEM WAS WITH THE THROTTLE. SOMETHING BROKE CAUSING THE BIKE TO RUN WITH WIDE OPEN THROTTLE AND NO WAY TO SLOW THE ENGINE DOWN WITHOUT TURNING THE SWITCH OFF. I WAS RIDING THE BIKE ON I-95 RUNNING 70 MPH WHEN THIS HAPPENED. THE NEXT ISSUE WAS WITH AN OXYGEN SENSOR CAUSING THE BIKE TO RUN ROUGH. THE MOST RECENT PROBLEM; SOMETHING IN THE REAR BRAKE SYSTEM BROKE, THROWING BRAKE FLUID OUT ALONG WITH SPARKS AND FLAMES. I HAD NO REAR BRAKE TO STOP WITH, ONLY FRONT BRAKE. THE HEAT CAUSED DAMAGE TO THE RIGHT SADDLEBAG AND CAUSED MY MESH JACKE…

Owner-reported narrative. 2,700 miles reported. Look up ODI 10206792 at NHTSA ↗

THE ELECTRONIC CRUISE CONTROL ON THE 2007 HARLEY DAVIDSON ROAD KING FLHR FAILED TO DISENGAGE AFTER FRONT AND REAR BRAKES WERE APPLIED CAUSING LOSS OF CONTROL OF MOTORCYCLE IN A TURN CAUSING A CRASH AND SEVERE INJURIES TO RIDER. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10331155 at NHTSA ↗

RANDOM STALLING OF MOTORCYCLE WHILE BEING OPERATED. THE STALLING HAPPENED NUMEROUS TIMES, APPROXIMATELY 20 TIMES, AND HAS BEEN ONGOING FOR A 5 WEEK PERIOD WITH NO SUCCESS IN DIAGNOSING OR CORRECTING THE PROBLEM. THE STALLING OCCURRED AT LOW SPEED AND AT MODERATE SPEED 55 MPH). IT OCCURRED A FEW TIMES WHILE IDLING AT A RED LIGHT. THERE WAS NO INDICATION WHEN IT WILL HAPPEN, IT WAS LIKE SOMEONE PULLED THE PLUG. THE DEALERSHIP COULD NOT DETERMINE THE CAUSE NOR GET AN ERROR CODE ON THE COMPUTER. THEY HAVE REPLACED THE 02 SENSOR TWICE, TH…

Owner-reported narrative. 2,886 miles reported. Look up ODI 10191585 at NHTSA ↗

I RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FROM HARLEY DAVIDSON THE END OF JULY 08 AND AS OF NOW OCT, I AM STILL UNABLE TO HAVE THE RECALL CORRECTED. I LEFT MY NAME AND TELEPHONE AT THE SHOP IN TACOMA, WA TO SET UP AN APPOINTMENT AS SOON AS PARTS ARE AVAILABLE AND AM STILL WAITING. THE RECALL SAYS THE ENGINE STALL COULD CAUSE INJURY OR DEATH. INSTEAD OF HAVING LEGAL DISCLAIMERS, CORRECTIVE ACTION IS NEEDED TO LIMIT FURTHER LOSS. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 150 miles reported. Look up ODI 10244352 at NHTSA ↗

IT START ABOUT A YEAR AGO, MY BIKE THEN HAD 25,000 MILE ON IT. IT WAS GETTING HARD TO START AFTER THE MOTOR WAS WARM. I CHANGE THE SPARK PLUGS, SPARK PLUG CABLES, IGNITION COIL AND BATTERY AND ITS WAS STILL HARD TO START. I TOOK THE BIKE TO THE DEALER WITH ABOUT 30,000 MILES ON IT AND THEY DIAGNOSE THE PROBLEM TO BE THE COMPENSATOR. HOW CAN A BIKE WITH 30,000 MILE ON IT HAVE A MAJOR POWERTRAIN PROBLEM AND COST ME $800.00 TO REPAIR?

Owner-reported narrative. 25,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10513570 at NHTSA ↗

REAR BRAKE SWITCH WIRING MELTED. BRAKE SWITCH BEGAN LEAKING PROFUSELY. DEALER SAYS BRAKE FLUID EXCHANGE RECALLED FOR YEAR. THE SWITCH WAS NOT. HOWEVER, FORUMS SAY THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM DUE TO EXCESSIVE EXHAUST HEADER HEAT. THE DEALER TOLD ME THE SWITCH HAS BEEN REDESIGNED. I HAVE ONE ORDERED. THIS PROBLEM HAPPENED SPONTANEOUSLY AND COULD HAVE BEEN CATASTROPHIC.*DT VIN PROVIDED HAS NO DISPLAYABLE RECORDS. UPDATED 10/2/18*JB

Owner-reported narrative. 12,500 miles reported. Look up ODI 11124446 at NHTSA ↗

DT*: THE CONTACT STATED THE HARLEY DAVIDSON FLHRC MOTORCYCLES TRANSMISSION MADE A RATTLING SOUND. THE SERVICE DEALER EXPRESSED THERE WAS NO DEFECT OR FIX AVAILABLE. THE CONTACT EXPRESSED CONCERN OF A DEFECT.

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10175518 at NHTSA ↗

THIS COMPLAINT IS ABOUT A SAFTEY ISSUE WITH THE 2007 HARLEY DAVIDSON ROAD KING I PURCHASED IN DEC 2006. THE BIKE HAS A VERY LOUD CLATTER EMITTING FROM THE ENGINE, SOUNDS LIKE THE VALVE TRAIN OR TRANSMISSION. IT APPEARS THAT THIS PROBLEM HAS THE ATTENTION OF MANY 2007 OWNERS WITH LATE 2006 PRODUCTION RELEASE MOTORCYCLES. THE BIKES ALSO RUN VERY HOT AND ARE NOT RIDABLE IN WEATHER OVER 70 DEGREES. IM CONCERNED THAT THERE IS POSSIBLE MECHANICAL FAILURE EMINENT WICH COULD RESULT IN FATAL CONSEQUENCES. HALREY DAVIDSON CUSTOMER SERVICE PROCLAIMS THA…

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10185266 at NHTSA ↗

WHILE CHANGING LANES ON THE HIGHWAY I ENCOUNTERED A WOBBLE IN THE STEERING. I CHECKED THE STEERING HEAD BEARING FOR PROPER ADJUSTMENT PER FACTORY SPECS AND FOUND IT TO BE PROPERLY ADJUSTED. I HAVE ALWAYS HAD THE SAME WOBBLE AND NOTED WHEN SPEED IS INCREASED THE WOBBLE APPEARS WITHOUT BEING PROVOKED WITH A LEAN ANGLE. I HAVE BEEN RIDING FOR 46 YEARS AND HAVE BEEN TEACHING MOTORCYCLE SAFETY FOR 13 YEARS. I HAVE NEVER HAD ANYTHING LIKE THIS HAPPEN ON ANY OTHER MOTORCYCLE (INCLUDING PREVIOUS HD SPORTSTER). THE BEST WAY I FOUND TO RECOVERING FROM T…

Owner-reported narrative. 1,200 miles reported. Look up ODI 10621181 at NHTSA ↗

MY 2008 HARLEY DAVIDSON ROAD KING CLASSIC WITH CRUISE CONTROL PULLS TO THE LEFT WHEN HANDS ARE TAKEN OFF THE HANDLE BARS. THE BIKE ONLY HAS 3400 MILES ON IT AND WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER THE FIRST MONTH I HAD IT FOR THIS PROBLEM. NO FIX FOUND AND NOW THEY HAVE HAD IT FOR 6 WEEKS WITH NO FIX. IF YOU HAVE TO TAKE YOUR HANDS OFF THE BARS FOR A SECOND TO ADJUST YOUR HELMET, GLASSES OR REMOVE A BUG THAT GETS IN YOUR EYE THE BIKE STARTS TO PULL TO THE LEFT AND YOU HAVE TO LEAN VERY FAR TO THE RIGHT TO KEEP IT GOING STRAIGHT. THIS IS A VERY LETHAL P…

Owner-reported narrative. 500 miles reported. Look up ODI 10339611 at NHTSA ↗