2016 Yamaha FJR1300 Owner Complaints

There are currently THREE recalls on this motorcycle not TWO. I have now been waiting for the recall repairs to be done since February, 2021. It is currently June, 2022. Which means I've been waiting for 17 months to have my motorcycle repaired. I'm on "waiting lists" at these dealerships: Highland’s Yamaha, Countryside, IL, Rich’s Yamaha, Lockport, IL, and DuPage Honda/Yamaha, West Chicago, IL. I was told by several people at these dealerships the following reasons why they haven't gotten to me - or quite frankly, simply refuse to do the work. That is, unless it's winter, when they have nothing better to do - and good luck getting a bike to a dealership in Illinois in the middle of winter. The first excuse is that, "it's just too much work". They have to remove the engine to repair the bike. They're "short staffed" and "Yamaha doesn't pay them enough to perform the recall work". They're opting to take in bikes for which they can charge full price while my bike and thousands of others like mine sit unused and unsellable, because no one wants an unridable motorcycle. I've spoken with and written Yamaha customer service. Their reasoning for not doing more to make sure the work gets done, is that "every dealership is privately owned" and they "can't tell their dealships how to behave or what to do." They do however, recommend that I don't ride the bike until it's repaired and that I can "feel free to look for another dealer to do the repairs". Wow. Thanks for absolutely nothing. I've literally called every Yamaha dealership in a 60 mile radius of where I live. Some will actually tell you that they're simply refusing to do any recall work. These recalls are based on manufacturer defects that could cause life threatening injuries or death. It seems clear that Yamaha has a responsibility to their customers and are refusing to do anything about it.

NHTSA ID

11469563

Incident

Jan 1, 2020

YAMAHA HAS ISSUED 2 SAFETY RECALLS FOR MY MOTORCYCLE 1/21/2021. VIN [XXX]. IT IS A 2016 YAMAHA FJR 1300. ONE IS FOR FRONT BRAKE SWITCH MAY FAIL, THE 2ND IS FOR THE TRANSMISSION'S SECOND GEAR NOT BEING STRONG ENOUGH AND THE GEAR COULD BREAK POSSIBLY CAUSING THE TRANSMISSION, REAR WHEEL TO LOCK AND NOT ROTATE. I MADE AN APPOINTMENT AND DROPPED THE BIKE AT A DEALER. IT HAS BEEN 50 DAYS, AND NO PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE. BOTH DEALER AND YAMAHA MOTOR CORP SAY PARTS ARE NOT AVAILABLE. YAMAHA STATED YESTERDAY THAT THE NEEDED PARTS ARE IN JAPAN. PARTS ARE EXPECTED IN JUNE 16, 2021. YAMAHA ALSO STATED THEY HAVE ALREADY DELAYED PARTS BY ONE MONTH, AND WILL MOST LIKELY DO IT AGAIN, A LITTLE BEFORE THE JUNE 16, 2021 DATE. HELP ME. THE RECALL STATES "YOU SHOULD NOT OPERATE YOUR AFFECTED MOTORCYCLE... UNTIL THE MODIFICATIONS ARE PERFORMED". SO, I AM STUCK WITH NO MOTORCYCLE, AND THERE IS NO COMPLETION DATE FOR YAMAHA COMPLETING THE REQUIRED RECALL REPAIRS. WHAT IS MY COMPENSATION FOR LOSE OF USE OF MY MOTORCYCLE FOR 50 DAYS ( AND MOST LIKELY UP TO 41 TO 70 MORE DAYS OF WAITING!)? SINCERELY, [XXX] PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

NHTSA ID

11415239

Incident

Jan 21, 2021

Mileage

17,000 mi

I RODE TO LUNCH WITH SOME FRIENDS ON SATURDAY, MARCH 25, 2017. AFTER LUNCH, WE GOT BACK ON THE BIKES TO GO HOME. WE CAME TO A RED LIGHT, IT TURNED GREEN AND WE PULLED AWAY. I'M RIDING WITH CRUISERS AND WAS THE SECOND BIKE. PULLING AWAY WAS NOTHING DRAMATIC OR "SPIRITED". THE BIKE MADE A FUNNY BANG, LOST POWER, AND STARTED KNOCKING. GOT IT PULLED OVER TO A SAFE PLACE IN ABOUT 100 YARDS. IT WOULD RUN, BUT THE LACK OF POWER AND KNOCKING CONTINUED. I HAD IT TOWED TO THE SHOP AND WENT BY TO VISIT WITH THEM APRIL 4, 2017. THE MANAGER CAME OUT AND ASKED ME TO JOIN HIM IN THE SHOP. THEY HAD DISASSEMBLED THE ENGINE THAT MORNING AND HAD IT ON A BENCH. HE SHOWED ME THE INSIDE. IT LOOKED LIKE A GRENADE WENT OFF IN THERE. THERE WAS SHRAPNEL EVERYWHERE. THERE WAS A HOLE IN THE WALL SEPARATING THE TRANSMISSION FROM THE CRANK-CHAMBER, THE CRANK SHAFT WAS CHEWED UP, ONE CON-ROD WAS BROKEN, AND THE UNDERSIDE OF THE PISTON WAS CHEWED UP. THEY SUSPECT THAT ONE OF THE GEARS DISINTEGRATED, DROVE THROUGH THE SIDE OF THE CASE, AND BROKE THE CON-ROD BEFORE BOUNCING AROUND AND CHEWING UP EVERYTHING ELSE. YAMAHA HAS ASKED HIM FOR PHOTOS AND A PARTS LIST. HE SENT THEM PHOTOS. WHEN THEY SAW THE EXTEND OF THE DAMAGE, THEY SENT A CRATE MOTOR TO REPLACE THE WHOLE THING.

NHTSA ID

11385746

Incident

Mar 25, 2017

Mileage

7,300 mi

YAMAHA HAS ANNOUNCED RECALLS IN A NUMBER OF COUNTRIES (CANADA, GERMANY, UK TO NAME A FEW) FOR A DEFECTIVE 2ND GEAR FOR ALL 2016 THROUGH 2020 FJR MODELS. THE SAME DEFECTIVE PART IS USED IN THE PRODUCTION OF FJR MODELS ACROSS ALL MARKETS WORLDWIDE. THE REPORTED FAILURES RESULT IN TOTAL DESTRUCTION OF THE ENGINE AND IN SOME CASES HAVE CAUSED THE REAR WHEEL TO LOCKUP WHICH IS A CONSIDERABLE SAFETY CONCERN FOR A MOTORCYCLE RIDER. I AM FILING THIS REPORT TO MAKE SURE THIS ISSUE HAS BEEN BROUGHT TO THE ATTENTION OF THE NHTSA SO THAT A RECALL WILL ALSO BE ISSUED HERE IN THE US IN THE NEAR TERM. I AM AWARE OF OTHER OWNERS HERE IN THE US THAT HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS FAILURE AND HAVE REQUESTED THAT THEY ALSO FILE A VEHICLE SAFETY COMPLAINT. CANADA'S RECALL NUMBER IS 2020-571. THE LINK TO THE CANADIAN RECALL CAN BE FOUND HERE HTTPS://CANADAMOTOGUIDE.COM/2020/12/02/YAMAHA-RECALL-21/

NHTSA ID

11382734

Incident

Dec 2, 2020

Mileage

29,000 mi