2011 HARLEY-DAVIDSON FLHX — Problems, Recalls & Safety Data

FRONT BRAKE LEVER IS FROZEN IN OPEN POSITION MAKING STOPPING MORE DANGEROUS.

FRONT BREAK LEVER COMPLETELY STIFF. WAS ABOUT TO GO FOR A RIDE WHEN I NOTICED IT. . LUCKILY I WAS NOT RIDING THE BIKE WHEN THIS HAPPENED. FROM WHAT I'VE READ AND UNDERSTAND THIS IS A ONGOING ISSUE WITH THE ABS MODULES ON THESE BIKES. INSTEAD OF ISSUING A RECALL HARLEY HAS OPTED TO REPLACE BRAKE FLUID AT NO CHARGE AND RECOMMEND CHANGING FLUID EVERY TWO YEARS AFTER. THIS SEEMS TO BE A ENGINEERING PROBLEM AND NOT A FLUID PROBLEM. THERE ARE PLENTY OF OTHER VEHICLES WITH ABS AND DOT 4 FLUID THAT ARE NOT HAVING THIS ISSUE. I HAD ROAD THE BIKE TWO WEEKS BEFORE AND HAD NO PROBLEMS. IT SEEMS TO BE SOMETHING THAT HAPPENS VERY QUICKLY WITH NO WARNING. THIS COULD BE DEADLY ON THE ROAD!

WHILE RIDING MY HD MOTORCYCLE, I TURN ONTO AN OFF RAMP FROM I-95. AS I APPROACHED THE INTERSECTION, I EASED INTO THE REAR BRAKE. I WAS GOING TO MAKE A RIGHT TURN AT THE INTERSECTION, AND AS I APPROACHED I RAN OVER A ROUGH SPOT IN THE ROAD, THIS MADE THE REAR TIRE LOCK UP VERY BRIEFLY AND I COULD FEEL THE ABS AT WORK. I THEN WENT TO PULL IN THE FRONT BRAKES FOR MORE AGGRESSIVE STOPPING AND THE BRAKE LEVER WAS COMPLETELY FROZEN IN PLACE. I COULD NOT PULL IT IN, I WAS FORTUNATE THAT I WAS NOT IN AN EMERGENCY STOP OTHERWISE I WOULD HAVE BEEN DOOMED. AFTER A SPLIT SECOND OF "THINKING THIS THROUGH" I IMMEDIATELY HAD TO BRAKE VERY AGGRESSIVELY WITH MY REAR BRAKE TO KEEP FROM RUNNING INTO CROSS TRAFFIC. I PULLED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND TRIED TO PULL THE LEVER AGAIN AND IT WOULD NOT PULL NOT MATTER HOW MUCH I TRIED. I HAD NEVER HAD ANY ISSUE WITH THIS BEFORE. THIS PROBLEM IS VERY DANGEROUS AND ALL THE TALK BY HD THAT IT IS BECAUSE OF NEGLECTED MAINTENANCE IS BULL!! I HAVE NOW HEARD OF PEOPLE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM WITH BIKES THAT HAVE RECEIVED THE REGULAR 2 YR INTERVAL SERVICE. THIS IS A DESIGN FLAW!!! I NOW HAVE MY MOTORCYCLE AT THE DEALERSHIP BEING REPAIRED FOR THIS PROBLEM AND WAS SUPPOSED TO PICK IT UP TODAY BUT THE SAID THEY HAVE RECEIVED A BAD HCU UNIT AND HAD TO ORDER ANOTHER. TO MY KNOWLEDGE THEY HAVEN'T CHANGED ANYTHING ABOUT THE MODULE SO NOW I HAVE A $20000 DEATH TRAP! IT IS DESPICABLE HOW HARLEY HAS HANDLED THIS. I GOOD ANALOGY WOULD BE TO HAVE A CAR THAT HAS A CHRONIC PROBLEM WITH BLOWING ENGINES AND THE MANUFACTURER SAYS "OH BRING IT IN, WE KNOW THE ENGINE IS BLOWN BUT WE'RE GOING TO CHANGE THE OIL FOR FREE". THE DIFFERENCE IS, A BLOWN ENGINE USUALLY WON'T GET YOU KILLED! NHTSA SHOULD PUT THEIR FOOT DOWN ON THIS ONE!

I HAVE A 2011 HARLEY DAVIDSON STREET GLIDE. THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKE SYSTEM (ABS) FAILED LAST WEEK AND I ALMOST COLLIDED WITH A CAR THAT HAD STOPPED IN FRONT OF ME. THE FRONT BRAKE FROZE AND WAS UNUSABLE. HARLEY REQUIRES YOU CHANGE THE BRAKE FLUID EVERY 2 YEARS WHICH I DO, ACTUALLY AT ABOUT EVERY $10K MILES. I'M ADAMANT ABOUT FLUID CHANGES. I CHANGE ENGINE OIL EVERY 5K MILES (AMSOIL) AND REPLACE ENGINE, TRANSMISSION, PRIMARY AND BRAKE FLUID EVERY $10K MILES. THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY ISSUE. NHTSA IS CURRENTLY INVESTIGATING 2008 - 2011 MODELS WITH ABS AND HAS RECEIVED 43 COMPLAINTS AND AT LEAST 3 CRASHES. THIS SEEMS TO BE A BID PROBLEM READING HARLEY FORUMS. HARLEY CLAIMS THAT THE MOISTURE FOUND IN OLD, CONTAMINATED BRAKE FLUID CAN DAMAGE THE ACTUATOR VALVES FOUND IN THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKING SYSTEM. NTHSA STATES ABS FAILURE WHICH COULD LEAD TO A SAFETY RECALL IN THE US, POSSIBLY FOLLOWED BY WORLDWIDE RECALLS OF UP TO 430,000 MOTORCYCLES. AFTER THE ABOVE INCIDENT I HAD A LOCAL MOTORCYCLE SHOP CHECK IT OUT, THEY FLUSHED THE BRAKE SYSTEM, TOOK IT OUT FOR A RIDE AND THE FRONT BRAKE FAILED AGAIN. I CALLED HARLEY, THEY STATED IT HAD TO BE CONFIRMED BY A HARLEY DEALER AND PROVIDED ME WITH A HARLEY ABS CASE FILE NUMBER: 2951309. THE LOCAL HARLEY DEALER PICKED IT UP TODAY AND CONFIRMED THE ABS MODULE NEED TO BE REPLACED. THEY CALLED HARLEY CORPORATE AND WAS TOLD: MOISTURE IN THE BRAKE FLUID CAUSED THE PROBLEM AND THEY WOULDN'T PAY FOR IT. I ASKED THE LOCAL HARLEY DEALER HOW CORPORATE COULD CLAIM THAT AND THE ANSWER WAS I HAD NO SERVICE RECORDS WITH THE HARLEY DEALER. I CALLED CORPORATE AND STATED I'VE BEEN DOING AS STATED ABOVE. BASICALLY I WAS TOLD I CAN'T PROVIDE INFO TO SUBSTANTIATE MY CLAIM. COMPLAINT HAS BEEN FILED WITH THE BBB AS WELL: BBB COMPLAINT ID 11933554

SEPTEMBER 2, 2016 THE REAR BRAKES (ANTI-LOCK) LOCKED UP FOR THE SECOND TIME LEAVING ME STRANDED ON THE SIDE OF THE HIGHWAY. MAY 27, 2016 WAS THE FIRST TIME THEY LOCKED UP AND CAUSED A FIRE. ULTIMATELY COSTING $3500.00 IN DAMAGES GEICO COVERED. BILOXI HARLEY DAVIDSON REPAIRED THE BIKE IN MAY OF 2016 AND IS NOW IN POSSESSION OF THE BIKE.