| Author | Message | ||
     Sifo |
Skipping the HD hating, etc. for a moment... If you have one of these, you may want to get things serviced. Stay safe, regardless of what you've got under your butt. Harley-Davidson recalls more than 250K bikes globally; brakes can fail
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| Strokizator |
I'd hope that anyone with any motorcycle of that vintage has changed brake fluid, and fork oil, a couple of times by now. What's next, a recall to change 10-year old tires because they've gotten hard just sitting in the garage? This is a problem that shouldn't be one. | ||
| Hootowl |
scheduled maintenance is a recall now? pfft. | ||
| Greg_e |
You can't properly change the fluid is these bikes without a computer to activate the ABS pumps, so not as simple as you might think. | ||
| Shoggin |
I just love how the 'problem' is caused by improper maintenance, and the 'solution' is to force the dealer to provide the scheduled maintenance for free. #wearedoomed | ||
| Froggy |
If what Greg says is true, it doesn't surprise me it is a problem. Most DIY owners skip doing things like brake fluid, and if it does require a dealer visit then it is even less likely to get done. | ||
| 651lance |
HD is going to release a new DOT 4 brake fluid for this recall. We don’t have a lot of details on it but that was on our notice. I can’t remember how far back but the service manuals have had the brake fluid in there as a service every two years. Even our BMW and Audi manuals tell us to change it every two year, the BMW has a service light for it. We see an issue with customers not wanting to pay to get their spokes tightened on their bike then want us to replace the hub under warranty ones the hole are ovaled out from being loose. | ||
| 86129squids |
"We see an issue with customers not wanting to pay to get their spokes tightened on their bike then want us to replace the hub under warranty ones the hole are ovaled out from being loose." OMG- SOFA KING WE TODD ED. Fun stuff, I'm making a spring maintenance list for Frau Blucher... | ||
| Greg_e |
This is also about the failure mode of the ABS valve/pump, they are tending to fail in a way that causes loss of brakes. The lever/pedal is firm because the fluid is compressed against the stuck closed valve and no matter how hard you press, the fluid does not move to the caliper. If it failed such that the pump just didn't work, but you had manual control, then things would not be a recall. My problem is that a cheap tool is not available to actuate the pump so that a person can do this at home. This applies to cars and bikes. | ||
| Ratbuell |
So, for a metric (and Indian) dealer who cycles through LOTS of pre-owned HD's...what would be the best resource for VIN checking, from our perspective? My H-Dnet password went away YEARS ago... | ||
| Sifo |
This is also about the failure mode of the ABS valve/pump, they are tending to fail in a way that causes loss of brakes. And this is why I posted this. If it were normal lack of maintenance issues, it wouldn't be worth mentioning. This is a case where the brakes suddenly stop working completely, and people have been hurt. | ||
| Crusty |
I sure am glad that the Roadster doesn't have ABS. | ||
| Greg_e |
I was getting the vibe that the general opinion was that this wasn't a real problem, when it is a very serious problem indeed. | ||
| Strokizator |
If the remedy is merely changing the brake fluid then it still points to a maintenance issue. Apparently the components of the ABS are sensitive to contaminated fluids. In this case, brake system neglect can lead to catastrophic failure which may just now be coming to light and hence the recall. | ||
| Crusty |
I remember a guy on the Guzzi forum who lost his brakes on his Norge while riding over a mountain pass. He didn't crash, and the next day, his brakes were back to normal; but I'm pretty sure he lost his faith in the brakes and sold the bike soon after. I have no faith in ABS brakes. A system that leaves you without the ability to stop in the event of the failure of a component is just a potentially deadly accident waiting to happen. If I screw up and over brake, then I have only myself to blame if I lose control and crash. If I'm riding in a safe and sane manner and the brakes take a dump, causing me to crash; then that's on the manufacturer. Moving parts fail. It's poor engineering to design an ABS system that leaves a rider without brakes when the system malfunctions. Then again, like the decision to not have a cassette type transmission in Sportsters and XBs, I bet the decision to have an ABS that doesn't allow for emergency braking was made by some bean counter who realized that the MoFoCo could save a couple of bucks per bike. It's time to pay the Piper, boys. | ||
| Screamer |
To check a VIN for an open recall, you can go to hd.com for Harley's, or the NHTSA website (I think it's safer car.gov) for any vehicle. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
So they have a pump? I thought ABS used a solenoid valve. | ||
| Midknyte |
"I sure am glad that _my_ Roadster doesn't have ABS." FTFY  | ||
| Zac4mac |
Of all my vehicles, only the Buick Reindeer has ABS. So far it works... very well in fact. Still wouldn't want it on a bike, especially a Buell/EBR. I've got 40 years of reflexes that really hate being out-guessed. Z | ||
| Midknyte |
I don't know how I feel about them on a bike. My Roadster has them, but not by choice, it was what it had. But it also has keyless ignition, which is rather nifty. | ||
| Greg_e |
On a big touring bike they can be very useful. | ||
| Tootal |
I have a friend that this happened to on his 2009 Road Glide. He paid for a new abs assembly. He then complained and it looks like others have too. He wants a refund now! That's the same bike I was riding this last week. |
