| Author | Message | ||
     Crazyhawk99 |
Just curious. Why is this very common, well documented problem with the 09 1125 not an official recall. Here is a link to a Suzuki recall based on Alternator/Regulator failures. http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/recalls/results.cfm?r cl_id=11V108&searchtype=quicksearch&summary=true&r efurl=email Seems like a problem with similar consequences. | ||
| Thefleshrocket |
Maybe it's not widespread enough to warrant a recall? The Suzuki recall affected 73K bikes, whereas the stator problem affects around 5K bikes. | ||
| Ratsmc |
Does it affect 5000 bikes? It seems like it wold be pretty easy to get the feeling that this is happening to everyone because it is the major point o discussion here but do we know what the actual percentage is? I'm not saying it isn't affecting everyone, I just don't know. | ||
| Crazyhawk99 |
I think it IS widespread and from what I understand of DOT recalls, it isn't how many are affected, but the potential "impact", if you will, if the failure were to occur due to an existing, known problem. True, since there were only a few thousand bikes made, you aren't going to see the large numbers, but I have seen recalls where there were only a couple hundred bikes affected. | ||
| Jules |
I believe there was a post on here previously about the percentage of bikes that had failed stators - but there was also some indication that some diagnosed as stator failures weren't really. There may well be 5000 bikes with potential problems but the real question would be what percentage of the total number built have had failures that are 100% correctly attributed tot he stator itself. I'm sure that has been asked (and answered) previously, i remember something from Anonymous with some proper figures in , just can't recall them off the top of my head. | ||
| Dannybuell |
I am on my second stator, it has 6,000 miles on it and seems to be working OK with the stock ECM. Knock on wood! The garage queens with low miles dilute the severity of the problem. These stators will fail long after the warranty has expired. | ||
| Jules |
The garage queens with low miles dilute the severity of the problem. I'm not sure that's strictly correct, from a statistical basis you need to account for a number of variables to get a correct output. If some people choose not to rack up large miles on their bikes then the results should be adjusted to take that into account. However, the primary issue we'd face is the lack of a complete dataset, there are too many variables that are not being tracked so there's no real way to get a complete picture. Without knowing the precise manner in which all of the bikes in the dataset are ridden there's no way to come to a correct logical outcome. Just too many variables | ||
| Court |
Very little on this page is accurate. Visit recall criteria for accurate information. | ||
| Gbaz |
make a complaint if you feel it is a safety issue. https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/ | ||
| Davegess |
recalls happen for safety related items. Not sure the stator would be safety related. | ||
| Froggy |
I agree with Dave. The stator gives plenty of warning when you have an issue. Hell I still rode about 50 miles with the Charge Sys Error on my dash before I came to a safe stop at a gas station before the battery was totally dead. A nail in the tire or running out of gas are bigger threats to our safety. | ||
| Pwillikers |
The fact remains that many of us, me included, have had stators fail and some have experienced multiple failures - even with the "harness upgrade" in place. Since the stator design has not changed, it is logical to assume that the failures will continue long after warranties have expired and you and I will incur significant expenses. HD should extend the warranty period for stator repairs, redesign the stator and recall/replace affected stators. I encourage all of you to document the circumstances of your stator failures, dates, mileage, etc. At some point HD will need to be held accountable. | ||
| Drawkward |
Froggy: Fact remains that the stator issue COULD cause the bike to shut down at speed and cause a crash. Suzuki recalled the bikes/hardware with this very similar issue...that's what a good company does. This stator issue is PATHETIC. | ||
| Froggy |
Yea, so can running out of gas. My Blast has no gas gauge, no low fuel light, the bike randomly stalls every 150-200 miles or so. Then I pull over, put it on reserve, and continue. That is more dangerous than something that gives plenty of warning so you can come to a safe stop. Indeed the stator issue is pathetic, but perhaps its even more pathetic that Suzuki has nothing on the recalled bikes to inform the rider of a malfunction to allow them to pull over safely? I see in the list no mention of my co workers 98 GSXR750 which has had multiple stator failures, and it has nothing on the gauges to let you know something is wrong. | ||
| Freezerburn840 |
+1 PW. | ||
| Freezerburn840 |
Basically Harley won't do s**t unless they get sued for a stator failure that causes an accident. | ||
| Ratbuell |
As noted above, a recall is only for a SAFETY concern. And, the fact remains that many of us have NOT experienced stator failure. If a bike stalling is too unsafe for you, go buy a Buick. Or an M1 Abrams. But, you have no place in the saddle of a motorcycle if that's the way you feel about it. | ||
| J2blue |
The stator is a safety problem if Mr. Wandell happens to be within arms reach the next time it happens to me.  | ||
| 1125rcya |
If you haven't had any stator problems consider yourself lucky for the moment. This is a sure sign leading up to the failure System Voltage displayed on your odometer. When the SYSTEM VOLTAGE comes on you have no Idea how fast your are going, you have no gages, and most important you have no TURN-SIGNALS. This happened to me 5 times in one year until my stator finally went bad. HD couldn't find a problem with the bike until the problem presented it self. | ||
| Father_of_an_era |
Fact of the matter is that the stator is a real issue for many of us (excluding myself because I have not had that issue). When you purchase a vehicle (especially at full price) reliability should not be a factor. All of these vehicle manufactures should be held accountable for defective parts and the consumer should not have to take it in the shorts because of that defective part. Personally, I have had nothing but good experiences when dealing with Harley and all of the recalls on my R. And, that how it should be! | ||
| Bueller4ever |
I'd like to know how many people, with over 6k miles, have not had a stator fail? My gauges and turn signals worked fine when my stator finally quit. Only my fans quit working and the bike went 30+ miles before the volts got below 10. | ||
| 1125rcya |
mine failed at 8k and that system voltage issue went with the stator. | ||
| Crazyhawk99 |
First of all, I didn't start this thread with the intent to get everyone all wound up. Hopefully, we can keep it civil. There are points made on both sides of the issue. Bottom line it appears is that some owners feel this is a safety issue, as do I, and some don't. I will say that it isn't the same as running out of gas. You have some control over that, but you cannot choose when the stator fails. I personally have not had a failure, but my bike has very low miles on it, because I am lucky enough to afford multiple bikes. It is my recommendation (FWIW) that if your stator has failed and you do believe this is a potential safety issue, that you should contact the DOT. If they get enough legitimate reports, a recall will be the result and then HD will have to do something if it happens to you even after warranty. I also agree that this stator issue is pathetic. How many of you ride around looking at your voltage wondering if it is too low? I have 5 other street bikes and I don't give it a single thought when riding those, but it is always on my mind on the CR. I love going on LONG rides into the Alps or wherever, but will never take the CR only because there is a reasonable possibility if getting stranded. Last, I hope you don't think this is Buell bashing. I love the bikes and I admire the man that built them. | ||
| Jules |
How many of you ride around looking at your voltage wondering if it is too low? OK so I'll admit I think about it more on this bike than any other I have owned, but still not that often. I have even fitted a Tri-State LED to show the battery voltage/charging state, one glance at that every so often makes me feel a warm glow. I won't let it impact my choice of bike to take for a long ride though - especially while it's under warranty. If you think it is "inevitable" that it'll fail, surely you ought to rack the miles up during the warranty period to force the issue? Personally I am still not sure of just how big the issue is, I haven't seen any definitive data... I KNOW there have been failures (sometimes multiples on the same bike) but in terms of the percentage chance of it impacting me - I have no idea so i am not going to worry about it. There isn't enough valid data available for me to come to a logical conclusion about the "Risk" of failure. On my Risk Register at work this would be a "Med/Low" in terms of likelihood and impact.. | ||
| Crazyhawk99 |
Jules, Although we differ on our level of concern and risk on this particular issue, I respect the manner in which you state your point of view without judging those that differ. As for wondering about about how many bikes are affected, I would say that given the small number produced and the many threads posted by those that have had the failure (as you stated, some multiple failures), in my opinion there is a real cause for concern. I have several other bikes that were produced in high volume (10R, SV, GS) and I am active on those forums, but I don't recall seeing nearly as many threads about a particular failure cause, without some sort of recall. I know that isn't scientific, but it still can't be ignored. As always, your input is appreciated. | ||
| Tpoppa |
I seriously doubt HD would have spent any time working on the harness upgrade if the stator issue wasn't widespread. The harness upgrade (which I think is a very poor solution), does mitigate the safety issue that is mentioned in the Suzuki recall. Kudos to Suzuki for fixing the problem rather than hiding it. | ||
| Freezerburn840 |
We want a real fix not a band aid! | ||
| Court |
By the way . . . the DOT does not get involved with recalls, they build highways. NHTSA handles the recalls. | ||
| Gbaz |
If anyone feels the problem is a safety issue they should report it using the link i had provided. NHTSA will review the issue and decide if it warrents a recall. the process takes less than an hour. there is already 1 complaint on file about the fuel tank, but nothing yet on the stator. | ||
| Court |
In addition, at the same site, you can see ALL complaints, correspondence and pertinent information. When a recall takes place . . you can also view, as .pdf files, ALL the correspondence back and forth between NHTSA and the manufacturer. It's really a pretty defined process. Buell had a recall committee that looked into things that REALLY erred on the side of caution. I'm not familiar with other firms’ posture. The common misconceptions are that anything a person finds inconvenient (not necessarily, in some cases a safety hazard) they think is a recall. While many of these indeed warrant correction by the manufacturer, a recall is not the proper vehicle. Also, there is always a marked propensity to believe that 25 people on a website are statistically significant. If 100% of the folks on Badweb had, as an example, a common occurrence, it'd take some bold math to extrapolate to the general population. As much as we hate to admit it . . Badweb represents but a tiny fraction of Buell ownership and tends to be stratified to include folks who participate in forums, who are comfy with technology and so forth. |
