NHTSA Complaint #10178029 — 2005 YAMAHA FJR1300

YAMAHA FJR1300, 2005 MODEL, EXHAUST VALVE NOISE ASSOCIATED WITH FAULTY VALVE GUIDE AND VALVE GUIDE SEAL DESIGN. THE NOISE STARTED AROUND 5000 MILES ON THE ODOMETER AND HAS GRADUALLY INCREASED TO A LOUD TICKING. YAMAHA DEALER SAYS IT COULD BE A PROBLEM ASSOCIATED WITH THIS MODEL BUT ADVISED I WOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR THE DIAGNOSIS. THIS IS A DOCUMENTED PROBLEM FOR THE 2003-2005 FJR1300 MODELS AND YAMAHA IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM BUT HAS NOT ISSUED A RECALL. THE FJR1300 OWNERS GROUP HAS DOCUMENTED SOME REPAIRS PAID FOR BY YAMAHA BUT ONLY AFTER REPEATED COMPLAINTS TO YAMAHA DIRECTLY. MY FJR1300 IS OUT OF WARRANTY AND I AM STUCK WITH A LEMON. THE VALVE PROBLEM WILL EVENTUALLY RESULT IN ENGINE DAMAGE MAKING THE MOTORCYCLE USELESS. THE OUT OF POCKET COST FOR REPAIR IS WELL OVER $1000. *JB