Recalls, owner-reported complaints, investigations and safety data
Data refreshed
Our database contains 10 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 1998 Yamaha Yamaha, most frequently naming the transmission, powertrain (other) and electrical categories.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
When owners filed reports about this model year
| Month | Complaints filed | Cumulative |
|---|---|---|
| Feb 1999 | 1 | 1 |
| Jul 1999 | 1 | 2 |
| Oct 1999 | 1 | 3 |
| Feb 2000 | 2 | 5 |
| Jul 2000 | 1 | 6 |
| Oct 2000 | 1 | 7 |
| May 2001 | 1 | 8 |
| Apr 2002 | 1 | 9 |
| Jun 2002 | 1 | 10 |
Complaints grouped by the component NHTSA recorded
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
No recalls in our database for this model year
That does not guarantee a specific vehicle is unaffected — recalls are issued against VINs, and new campaigns are announced regularly. Check a VIN on NHTSA.gov.
Reports submitted to NHTSA, shown in the owner's own words
HI, I DONT KNOW IF THIS AFFECTS R1S IN YOUR COUNTRY BUT WE WERE TOLD ABOUT IT HERE ,THE CLIP ON THE COOLANT HOSE UNDER THE TANK IS NOT TIGHT ENOUGH FROM THE FACTORY AND THE HOSE COULD POSSIBLY DETACH....NOT MUCH OF A PROBLEM WITH A CAR BUT A PROBLEM ON A BIKE ,HOT COOLANT SUDDENLY WHERE YOU LEAST WANT IT=LOTS OF PAIN!
SECOND GEAR DOES NOT FULLY ENGAGE OR POPS OUT. I WRECKED ONCE BECAUSE THE LOSS OF POWER TO REAR WHEEL ON A CORNER.**** DIMS 11 IVOQ ENTRY POSTED AFTER 12/12/02 CUT-OVER TO ARTEMIS*****760931.*AK *JB
NO SUMMARY LISTED FOR ABOVE VEHICLE. *AK
THREE OF FOUR TIRES PURCHASED ON 6/26/98 HAD TREAD SEPARATION WITHIN 28 MONTHS OF PURCHASE. THE FOURTH TIRE WAS REPLACED AT THE FIRST FAILURE TO HAVE A BALANCED SET ON THE FRONT OF THE CAR. THIS OCCURRED IN MARCH, 2000. THE SECOND TIRE FAILED IN AUG 2000 AND THE THIRD FAILED IN OCT. 2000. (DOT NUMBER: CC9L8KL068 TIRESIZE: 205/65R15)
THE CUSH DRIVE HUB IS BASICALLY A SPROCKET CARRIER THAT FITS INTO THE REAR WHEEL. IT IS MADE OF CAST ALUMINUM, AND IS APPARENTLY VERY FRAGILE. WITH ONLY 1500 MILES ON MY MOTORCYCLE, I NOTICED THAT THE HUB WAS CRACKED VERY BADLY, WITH PIECES MISSING FROM IT. IT EVEN GOUGED A SPIRAL IN THE SWINGARM, WHICH WASN'T REPLACED. THE DEALER ACCUSED ME OF ABUSING MOTORCYCLE, ALTHOUGH I HADN'T. HOWEVER, THEY FIXED IT UNDER WARRANTY BUT GAVE ME NO RECEIPT. ABOUT ONE YEAR LATER, BEFORE LEAVING ON A LONG TRIP, I NOTICED THAT THE PART HAD CRACKED AGAIN, AND I CALLED YAMAHA USA AND THEY AGREEED TO REPLACE IT FOR FREE SINCE THEY HAD REPLACED IT ONCE ALREADY. THEY DENIED ANY KNOWLEDGE OF A DEFECT, EVEN THOUGH MY DEALER HAD CLAIMED FIXING ABOUT SEVEN OTHERS AT THIS POINT. I WAS NOT GIVEN ANY RECEIPT AT THIS TIME EITHER.THERE HAD ALSO BEEN MANY REPORTS OF THIS FAILURE AT HTTP://WWW.YZF-R1-FORUM.COM. YAMAHA HAS MADE AN UPGRADED PART TO REPLACE THE ORIGINAL, BUT THE FIRST REPLACEMENT PART I RECEIVED WAS THE SAME AS THE ORIGINAL. THE NEW PART IS STILL FINE AT 9000 MILES. NO ONE WAS HURT, BUT IF THIS PART HAD BROKEN FURTHER AT A CRUISING SPEED, THE REAR WHEEL COULD HAVE EASILY LOCKED, CAUSING THE BIKE TO CRASH. THERE HAS BEEN A WORLDWIDE RECALL ON THIS PART EVERYWHERE EXCEPT THE US AND CANADA. PLEASE LOOK INTO THIS MATTER, AND I WILL HELP WITH ANY OTHER INFO YOU MAY NEED. I HAVE SEVERAL PHOTOS OF THE PART IN QUESTION, ALTHOUGH THEY ARE NOT MY OWN, I AM WILLING TO SEND THEM TO YOU. *AK
I'M FILING THIS COMPLAINT DUE TO THE CUSH-DRIVE RECALLS THAT HAVE OCCURRED ON THIS MOTORCYCLE THROUGHOUT THE WORLD, EXCEPT FOR THE USA. I AM NOT AWARE OF THE CUSH-DRIVE FAILING ON MY MOTORCYCLE, BUT AM CONCERNED ABOUT THE SITUATION. CANADA HAS APPARRENTLY RECALLED THE CUSH-DRIVE ON THE MOTORCYCLE IN THEIR MARKET. WHY HASN'T THE USA? NO SAFETY DEFECT LISTED IN SUMMARY. *AK
MOTORCYCLE TRANSMISSION JUMPS IN AND OUT OF 2ND GEAR, RENDERING THE MOTORCYCLE UNSAFE. WHILE OPERATING THE MOTORCYCLE, THE TRANSMISSION JUMPS IN AND OUT OF GEAR, UNLOADING THE MOTORCYCLE'S SUSPENSION, AND CAUSING THE MOTORCYCLE TO LOSE DIRECTIONAL CONTROL AND STABILITY, WHEREBY CAUSING THE MOTORCYCLE AND RIDER TO ENTER ONCOMING TRAFFIC AND THE UNPAVED RUN-OFF AREA OF THE ROADWAY--ENDANGERING THE LIFE OF THE MOTORCYCLE RIDER AND OTHER MOTORISTS IN THE VICINITY OF THE DEFECTIVE MOTORCYCLE. I HAVE RESEARCHED THE PROBLEM OF DEFECTIVE TRANSMISSIONS IN THE 1998 AND 1999 YAMAHA YZF-R1. YAMAHA MOTOR CORPORATION IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM AND THEY HAVE RESPONDED TO COMPLAINTS OF THE CLUNKY AND UNRELIABLE TRANSMISSION BY REPAIRING IT FREE OF CHARGE UNDER WARRANTY. ADDITIONALLY, IN RESPONSE TO THE OUTPOURING OF COMPLAINTS BY CONSUMERS, YAMAHA MOTOR CORPORATION MADE EXTENSIVE CHANGES TO THE 2000 MODEL YEAR YZF-R1, NOTED BY..."THE TRANSMISSION RECEIVE[ING] EXTENSIVE ATTENTION, PARTIALLY TO LIGHTEN THE SYSTEM, PARTIALLY TO IMPROVE TRANNY PERFORMANCE(SHIFTING AND LONGEVITY)..." (ROADRACING WORLD, FEBRUARY 2000, PP 15-16) AND "THERE WERE SOME COMPLAINTS WITH THE PREVIOUS R1 ABOUT THE CLUNK BETWEEN FIRST AND SECOND GEAR, SO YAMAHA MADE SOME IMPROVEMENTS IN THAT AREA - CLEANING UP THE TRANSITION BETWEEN THE TWO COGS TO MAKE SHIFTING SMOOTHER. THERE'S ALSO A NEW SHIFT SHAFT, AND ADDITIONAL BEARING AND DIFFERENT LINKAGE IN THE SHIFT MECHANISM." (CYCLE NEWS, JANUARY 26, 2000, P.21) AND "...YAMAHA ALSO REWORKED THE GEARBOX ON THE R1. WHAT WAS A SOMEWHAT CLUNKY TRANSITION FROM FIRST TO SECOND GEAR HAS BEEN CLEANED UP CONSIDERABLY..." (CYCLE NEWS, JANUARY 26, 2000, P. 21). THE TRANSMISSION HAS BEEN AN ITEM OF SAFETY CONCERNS PRIOR TO MY COMPLAINT. THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMIN OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION POSTED NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID# 98V236000 AGAINST THE YAMAHA YZF R-1. "THE PRIMARY DRIVEN GEAR BACKING PLATE(CLUTCH BASKET) CAN BREAK CAUSING THE ENGINE COMPONENTS TO LOCKUP
THE TANK MATERIAL IS TOO THIN AND WEAK CAUSING THE GAS TANK TO CRACK RESULTING IN GAS ODOR AND FUEL TO BE EXPELLED FROM THE VEHUCLE WHILE DRIVING. NLN
Complaint and recall counts across every year of this model
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. Older model years have had longer for reports to accumulate.