1997 Harley-Davidson Softail

Routine

Owners filed 1 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the wheels › rim. It has been recalled 1 time.

What fails

Component	Reports		Crashes	Fires	Injuries
Wheels › Rim	1		0	0	0

1 safety recall

Part 573 reports

Fuel System, Gasoline › Fuel Injection System96V204000

Filed Oct 22, 1996176,515 vehiclesHarley-Davidson Motor Co.

Defect. THE EFFECTS OF REFORMULATED GASOLINE ALONG WITH CERTAIN USAGE OF THE FUEL SUPPLY VALVE AFFECTS THE SUPPLY OF GASOLINE TO THE CARBURETOR. THIS CONDITION REQUIRES TWO FACTORS: (1) THE USE OF REFORMULATED FUELS CONTAINING MBTE AND (2) STARTING THE MOTORCYCLE WITH THE FUEL VALVE HANDLE IN THE OFF POSITION.

Risk. THIS CONDITION CAN CAUSE THE FUEL FLOW TO BE UNPREDICTABLE THUS CAUSING THE ENGINE TO SHUT DOWN INCREASING THE RISK OF A MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT.

Remedy. DEALERS THE REPLACE THE DIAPHRAGM IN THE FUEL VALVE.

What owners reported

Newest filings

Wheels › Rim

Filed Sep 24, 2002PA

AT 40-45 MPH FRONT TIRE WENT FLAT. RIM HAD SPLIT, CAUSING THE TUBE TO GET PINCHED.

1 of 1 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 2003

Year	Complaints	Recalls	Fires	Assessment
2013	1	0	0	Routine
2012	3	1	0	Routine
2011	3	1	0	Routine
2010	1	0	0	Routine
2008	1	0	0	Routine
2007	2	1	0	Routine
2005	4	3	0	Routine
2004	4	1	0	Routine
2003	7	0	1	Routine
2002	4	0	0	Routine
2001	2	0	0	Routine
2000	7	0	0	Routine
1999	0	1	0	Routine
1998	3	1	0	Routine
1997 — this page	1	1	0	Routine
1996	3	1	0	Routine
1995	3	1	0	Routine

Compare every Softail year →

Other Harley-Davidson models

All Harley-Davidson models →

Flhtcu 276 Flhx 184 Flhtk 161 Flhtc 109 Flhtcui 108 Harley Davidson 101 XG750 88 Flhtcutg 87 Flhr 87 Flstc 73

Reading this record

No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Recall repairs are free for as long as the recall stands. Check whether a specific car still has open work at NHTSA's VIN lookup.

Most recent recall on file: Oct 22, 1996. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.