RoadVitals

2003 Harley-Davidson Fxst Series Problems

Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component

Data refreshed

Owner complaintsComplaints 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.
1
Latest Jun 20, 2007
Components namedHow many of our component categories appear on at least one report for this model year. One report can name several.
1
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.
0

What this page shows

Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2003 Harley-Davidson Fxst Series, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Reports by component

Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category

  • Engine1100.0%

Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.

Each component in detail

What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words

Engine

Reports naming the engine itself — including stalling, misfires, oil consumption, cooling and internal engine components.

1
report

From owner reports, verbatim

VIBRATION OVER TIME CAN CAUSE COMPENSATORY OR NUT TO BACK OFF, ALLOWING METAL PARTICLES TO MOVE FREELY AROUND INTERNAL MOVING PARTS. CONCERN IS MECHANICAL FAILURE WHILE OPERATING THE MOTORCYCLE. THERE ARE NO SCHEDULED CHECKS TO PREVENT THIS. OVER TIME CAM TENSION FAILS, CHECK OR REPLACEMENT IS AT 30-35000 MILES. THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THIS HAPPENING SOONER. CONCERN WAS AGAIN FREE FLOWING METAL INSIDE THE WORKING INTERNAL PARTS OF THE ENGINE. THERE WAS NOT A SCHEDULED CHECK PRIOR TO THE REPLACEMENT MILEAGE TO PREVENT THIS. NOTE: THERE WAS AN ADJUSTMENT MADE BUT NO CHECK REQUIRING PULLING THE CAMS AND CHECKING THE TENSION. DANGER: BOTH OF THESE HAVE THE ABILITY OF ALLOWING METAL FRAGMENTS TO STOP THE NORMAL WORKINGS OF THE ENGINE. IF THIS OCCURS WHILE IN OPERATION IT COULD CAUSE A LOCK UP AND POSSIBLE CRASH, ESPECIALLY WITH A NEW RIDER. THERE IS A RANGE OF YEARS AND I KNOW OF THREE TIMES THIS HAS HAPPENED IN THE PAST MONTH IN CALIFORNIA, RANGING FROM 2000-2004 SOFT TAILED WITH TC 88 ENGINES. THE INFORMATION I HAVE WAS THAT THESE PROBLEMS HAVE NOT REACHED THE PERCENT MARK NEEDED TO PUT OUT A RECALL. SOLUTION: SUGGESTED LOOKING INTO A DIFFERENT MAINTENANCE PLAN TO INCLUDE THESE ISSUES AND RECALL THOSE NEEDING CHECKS BASED ON NEW PLAN. *AK

NHTSA ID 10193837 · filed Jun 20, 2007

Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.

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.

Elsewhere on this vehicle

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .