Reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers, shown in full
Data refreshed
Complaints on fileComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
11
Latest Jul 25, 2011
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
3
Filed in the last 12 monthsReports filed with NHTSA in the trailing 365 days. Recent volume reflects attention and vehicle age as much as anything else.
0
Reports on file since Aug 20, 2007
What this page shows
Our database holds 11 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 2007 Harley-Davidson Flstf. Each one is a report filed by an owner or driver and published by NHTSA without most of them being verified. A complaint is not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. Narratives are shown exactly as filed.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Complaints, most recent first
Showing 1–11 of 11
Other / unspecified
Filed Jul 25, 2011
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2007 HARLEY DAVIDSON FLSTF. THE CONTACT STATED THAT FRONT AND REAR TIRES WOULD SCRAPE AGAINST THE FRAME OF THE VEHICLE SINCE THE TIRE LOST TREAD. THE TIRE FAILURE ALSO CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO SHAKE VIOLENTLY WHILE DRIVING. THE TIRES WERE REPLACED NUMEROUS TIMES, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE DEALER AND MANUFACTURER DENIED ANY ASSISTANCE WITH FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 6,300 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 17,032.
NHTSA ID
10415049
Incident
May 1, 2011
Mileage
6,300 mi
Other / unspecifiedSteering
Filed Feb 6, 2011
WHEN LOOSING MY GRIP ON THE HANDLE BAR, AT APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH, THE FRONT END WOBBLES. IF I TAKE ONE HAND OFF THE GRIP AT A STEADY SPEED THE FRONT END WOBBLES MORE. I ALSO NOTICE THE WOBBLE IS WORSE ON DECELERATION. I CAN FEEL THE FRONT END AT 30 - 55 MPH AND THE LONGER I LET LOOSE MY GRIP THE QUICKER AND MORE DRASTIC THE WOBBLE BECOMES. I HAVE CHECKED THE FRONT WHEEL BEARINGS AND THE STEERING HEAD BEARINGS ARE TIGHT. I HAVE ALSO REPLACED THE FRONT TIRE WITH ANOTHER DUNLOP TIRE. THE WOBBLE ISN'T VERY NOTICEABLE WITH BOTH HANDS TIGHTLY ON THE HANDLE BAR GRIPS.
NHTSA ID
10381929
Incident
Jun 12, 2010
Mileage
19,958 mi
Electrical
Filed Dec 15, 2009
Fire reported
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2007 HARLEY-DAVIDSON FLSTF. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 40 MPH, THE IGNITION SWITCH BEGAN TO SMOKE ALONG WITH SPARKS. THE SWITCH WAS LOCATED ON TOP OF THE FUEL TANK. THE ENGINE STALLED AND THEN ALL OF THE LIGHTS TURNED OFF. HE WAS ABLE TO SAFELY PULL TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. HE THEN TURNED THE CONSOLE OFF. HOWEVER, THE MOTORCYCLE AND THE ON-SWITCH HAD COMPLETELY BURNED. HE CHANGED THE WIRING AND WAS ABLE TO DRIVE TO HIS HOME. HE HAD NOT CONTACTED THE DEALER OR THE MANUFACTURER TO-DATE. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 46,009
NHTSA ID
10295758
Incident
Dec 14, 2009
Mileage
46,009 mi
Suspension
Filed Aug 8, 2009
2007 HARLEY-DAVIDSON MOTOR COMPANY HARLEY DAVIDSON FLSTF ON MY 2007 HARLEY-DAVIDSON FATBOY, THE FRONT AXLE TILTS/LEANS TO THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE BIKE. THIS HAS DONE TWO THINGS. FIRST, IT HAS REDUCED THE AMOUNT OF TREAD THAT IS AVAILABLE FOR MAKING RIGHT HAND TURNS. SECONDLY, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY IT IS WEARING ONLY ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE TIRE. THE TIRE WEAR TO ONE SIDE COMBINED WITH LESS TREAD AVAILABLE DUE TO THIS FLAWED DESIGN HAS PRESENTED A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE WITH REGARD TO GRIP GOING AROUND CORNERS. THE PROBLEM WAS FIXED IN 2008 AND 2009 BUT HARLEY HAS YET TO FIX THE 2007 BIKES. IT'S ONLY A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE SOMETHING FATAL HAPPENS BECAUSE OF THIS DESIGN FLAW. *TR
NHTSA ID
10279790
Incident
Aug 7, 2009
Mileage
2,000 mi
Suspension
Filed Feb 13, 2009
Crash reported
2007 HARLEY DAVIDSON FATBOY FLSTF MOTORCYCLE WAS MANUFACTURED WITH MISALIGNED FRONT WHEEL. *TR
NHTSA ID
10258586
Incident
Jun 13, 2008
Mileage
6,300 mi
Suspension
Filed Feb 10, 2009
FRONT WHEEL BEARING FAILURE 2,500 MILES & 3,900 MILES NOISE & BEARING LOCK-UP WHEEL DRAGGING. *TR
NHTSA ID
10258289
Incident
Feb 26, 2008
Mileage
2,500 mi
Body & structureSuspension
Filed Dec 29, 2008
Crash reported1 injury reported
ON MY 2007 HARLEY-DAVIDSON FATBOY, THE FRONT AXLE TILTS/LEANS TO THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE BIKE. THIS HAS DONE TWO THINGS. FIRST, IT HAS REDUCED THE AMOUNT OF TREAD THAT IS AVAILABLE FOR MAKING RIGHT HAND TURNS. SECONDLY, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY IT IS WEARING ONLY ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE TIRE. THE TIRE WEAR TO ONE SIDE COMBINED WITH LESS TREAD AVAILABLE DUE TO THIS FLAWED DESIGN HAS PRESENTED A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE WITH REGARD TO GRIP GOING AROUND CORNERS. IT FIRST BEGAN WITH A MINOR CRASH THAT INVOLVED MYSELF, THIS BIKE, AND THE PAVEMENT. A CAR PULLED INTO MY INTENDED PATH OF TRAVEL. I HIT BOTH BRAKES AND SUDDENLY MY FRONT TIRE LOCKED UP AND KICKED MY BARS TO THE RIGHT. NEXT THING I KNOW IS THAT IM ON THE GROUND WITH MY BIKE. I THOUGHT IT WAS UNFORTUNATE LUCK AT THE TIME BUT SEEING THE WEAR OF MY TIRE IN THE FRONT, IT CANT BE A COINCIDENCE. ADDITIONALLY IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT MY BIKE WAS PRODUCED IN JULY OF 2006 AT THE BEGINNING OF THE 2007 MODEL PRODUCTION RUN. TO MY KNOWLEDGE, WHAT EVER ISSUE THAT CAUSED HARLEY-DAVIDSON TO ENGINEER MY MOTORCYCLE YEAR MODEL WITH EXTREME AMOUNTS OF CAMBER IN THE FRONT STEERING AXLE WAS RESOLVED WITH EITHER THE 2008 OR 2009 MODEL YEAR. THE FACT THAT THE CURRENT MODEL YEAR OF THIS MOTORCYCLE HAS HAD THIS FRONT AXLE ISSUE CORRECTED IS ABOUT AS LOUD A STATEMENT AS ANY THAT THERE WAS AN ISSUE WITH THIS FIRST YEAR ISSUE OF THE SECOND GENERATION OF THE FATBOY MODEL. SO FAR, THE PARTS THAT WERE REPLACED TO TRY AND CORRECT THIS ISSUE WERE THE FRONT AXLE BEARINGS AS WELL AS READJUSTING THE STEERING NECK BEARINGS. HOWEVER THIS WILL NOT FIX AN ISSUE THAT HAS BEEN PHYSICALLY MACHINED INTO THE FRONT FORK ASSEMBLY. THE MOUNTING BOSSES FOR THE FRONT FENDER ARE THICKER ON THE LEFT SIDE THAN THE RIGHT. NO AMOUNT OF ADJUSTING OR PARTS WILL CHANGE THIS INTENTIONALLY ENGINEERED BANDAID! THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY ISSUE THAT SO FAR HAS GENERATED NO RESPONSE FROM HARLEY DAVIDSON OTHER THAN A REFERENCE NUMBER REQUEST TO TAKE IT TO A DEALER. *TR
NHTSA ID
10253131
Incident
Apr 4, 2008
Mileage
10,000 mi
Body & structureOther / unspecifiedSuspension
Filed Sep 22, 2008
MY 2007 HARLEYDAVIDSON FLSTF (FAT BOY) WAS ENGINEERED WITH A DEFECT (FRONT WHEEL IS DESIGNED 3/4" OFF CENTER BETWEEN THE FORK TUBES) WHICH LEAVES THE MOTORCYCLE PRONE TO "HIGH SPEED WOBBLE" AND TO DRIFT OFF CENTER AT MODERATE SPEEDS. A HIGH SPEED WOBBLE CAN BE DEADLY ON A MOTORCYCLE. I ALMOST CRASHED. *TR
NHTSA ID
10243057
Incident
Mar 13, 2008
Mileage
800 mi
Body & structure
Filed Dec 4, 2007
THE FRONT TIRE IS OFFSET FROM CENTER. THIS CAN CAUSE A POSSIBLE ACCIDENT RESULTING IN INJURY OR DEATH. THE TIRE BEING OFFSET DOES NOT EFFECT THE TRUE FORWARD DRIVING DIRECTION. IT DOES HOWEVER CAUSE TURNING OF THE VEHICLE TO BE DANGEROUS. WHEN TURNING ON A MOTORCYCLE YOU HAVE TO LEAN INTO THE TURN AND WHILE TURNING. BECAUSE THE TIRE IS NOT CENTERED IT CAUSING YOUR ANGLE OF TURN TO BE DIFFERENT FROM LEFT TURN TO RIGHT TURN AND MAY RESULT IN LOSS OF TRACTION RESULTING IN INJURY OR DEATH. THE MANUFACTURER CORRECT THIS DEFECT IN THE 2008 MODELS. THIS MODEL THAT HAS THE DEFECT IS FLSTF KNOWN AS THE FATBOY. THE NUMBER OF FAILURES IS ALL THE 2007 FLSTF. *TR
NHTSA ID
10210741
Incident
Jul 31, 2007
Suspension
Filed Nov 14, 2007
VIBRATION IN THE FRONT BETWEEN 38 MPH AND 42 MPH WHILE HAVING A LOOSE GRIP ON THE HANDLE BARS. ALSO HAS A SLIGHT DRIFT TO THE LEFT WHICH I BELIEVE IS DUE TO THE OFFSET OF THE FRONT WHEEL. *TR
NHTSA ID
10208903
Incident
May 25, 2007
Mileage
3 mi
Engine
Filed Aug 20, 2007
1 injury reported
MY MOTORCYCLE RUNS SO HOT, IT PINGS, KNOCKS AND BURNS MY LEGS. *TR
NHTSA ID
10200083
Incident
Aug 10, 2007
Mileage
100 mi
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.