Posted on 11/23/2005 12:31:34 PM PST by Red Badger
MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Harley-Davidson Inc. issued a voluntary safety recall on 2006 model Dyna series motorcycles built between June 9 and Oct. 19 due to a transmission defect.
The company said late Tuesday the recall affects some 13,400 motorcycles and is expected to cost less than $5 million, which it will make reservations for in the fourth quarter.
Harley-Davidson also said it expects to meet its previously announced wholesale shipment target of 329,000 motorcycles for 2005.
The Milwaukee-based company said it will provide owners with free pickup and delivery and will make recall kits, which include three redesigned transmission components, available at dealerships starting the week of Dec. 12.
The defect may allow the motorcycles to go into a false neutral position even though the neutral indicator light is illuminated, it said.
"If that happens, the transmission could engage into first or second gear unexpectedly," Harley-Davidson spokesman Bob Klein said Wednesday.
Two accidents related to the problem were reported, but none resulted in injury, Klein said.
The defect resulted from a design flaw in the six-speed transmission, which replaced the five-speed on the Dyna to make for a smoother ride at highway speeds and increase fuel efficiency, Klein said.
The redesign also resulted in a change to the front forks, chassis and a wider rear tire.
Shipments of the 2006 Dyna had been delayed but resumed after a change to production, he said.
Harley-Davidson shares rose $1.20, or 2.2 percent, to $55.67 in Wednesday afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange, amid a general gain in market prices on optimism over consumer spending this holiday season.
Oh man, that made my head hurt just thinking about it.
As I tell my church friends, I now have the serious sin of coveting a Gold Wing. I declare it's actually easier to handle than my 750!
Anyway, I'm looking at getting a ST1300 ABS as an interim step up, splitting time on it with my daughter. She and I can ride together on the 750 and 1300, until she's really trained enough to absolutely have the 1300 solo; I can put the wife on the back of the 1300 on weekends, and see if I can get her hooked on riding two-up with me. Once that happens, hello Gold Wing!
That's the plan, anyway.
I use the name to make fun of people who whine about posers. If people want to own motorcycles just to look at them, good for them. When they get sick of looking at them, they will sell them to me for cheap. In the mean time, we pick up some people who will become serious riders and a whole lot of people that get angry when biker rights are trampled. I also wave, you know.
BMW and Vespa rider here. HD's are okay, just a little bulky in the hills.
I am the King of the slab. You have gone over to the dark side. I think I'm obligated to write mean stuff about people who don't buy American made products, but I find that to be a silly prejudice too. Where's the picture, damnit? Love them Vespas and Beemers
I want every motorcycle and I won't stop until I have them all. Ship me your bikes. You don't need them. Send them to me.
how do you post a picture?
hahahahaha, I just love it when people think that torque does anything on its own. Do you even know what exactly "torque" is? What "HP" is? The physics/engineering definition of these terms? And what they really mean to performance on the street?
Neither number by itself can tell you anything about the actual performance of the bike.
I was very suprised at how nimble the goldwin was, and man did it have some nice takeoff and pickup. Glad to hear you decided you aren't too old to ride a bike. I think everyone should ride no matter what type of bike it is. I work on all of them and my shop treats all of them the same...except the ones we build. They are special ;)
When I returned from overseas in 1968, I bought myself a brand new Harley-Davidson Sportster XLCH (kick-start) as a reward to myself for staying alive.. I rode it from Ft. McArthur, CA, to Ft. Bliss Texas, to the Presidio of San Francisco, to Ft. Lewis, WA, to Ft. Knox, KY, to Ft. Sill, OK and back to Ft. Bliss, Tx. Some posts to others, more than once. I rode the "Sporty" regularly for the six years I was in the Army. The only problem I ever had was with head and tail light bulbs and smart remarks from the dim. I still have it and ride it after all these years. I only walked once when I ran out of gas in Wyoming. I didn't walk far. Never had to walk again.
1968 Yamaha's, Suzuki's and Honda's are now aluminum beverage cans or in a landfill. 1968 Harley's are their owners best memories.
"Yet Harley riders always have "groupies" hanging around hoping for a slow ride on American Steel....and crotch rocket riders don't."
Yeah, but do you really want to take those toothless hillbillies for a ride? Just kidding.
Seriously, is that the best you can do. So you agree that the Harley really is a lifestyle accessory, then?
"I never intended to badmouth the rice bikes but good lord these guys and their whole "go tell it on the mountain" attitude about their rice bikes is almost silly. If they as great as they claim they wouldn't have to talk so much about it."
Again, give me a break. The arrogance of Harley owners with their "rice" this and "rice" that and "real" bikes and so on is unbelievable. When you guys stop fantasizing that you've got a lock on what a "real" bike is, maybe you'll get some respect from the people who just ride well-made, good performing bikes because they enjoy it.
duh, I wasn't the one bring up hp over and over again. It was your rice buddy. I will say it again though Hp is bragging rights but torque gets the job done. I just built a bike that lays out 125ft lbs of torque at 3200rpm. No reason to rev it up to 6000, 9000, 10000, or 12000 it gets the job done at 3200 rpms.
Rice bikes are much more efficient though. I had a cbrr600 in my shop until a couple weeks ago I had to fix up because the idiot was doing wheelies down the highway. I filled the bowls with gas started it up and it idled for almost 30minutes just on the fuel in the bowls. That was most impressive.
Precisely.
We have the same attitude here.
Every flyer for every event held, whether it be a benefit ride or just some fun gathering includes the obligatory footnote
"Jap bike riders welcome too!"
Nobody picks at them when they come and for the most part, the ricers are polite and respectful.
Hubby started buidling radical choppers bikes and trikes down in FL decades ago and most of the bikes were Kaws.
He also drag-raced Jap bikes back then.
[and crashed at 140 mph wearing just a helmet and polyester shirt and dress pants]
His personal favorite cruising bike back then was a Yamaha Venture.
He switched over to Harleys years ago because people pay more for modified HDs than other bikes.
He's never looked back.
[except for that one time he brought home another Venture and expected me to ride it out in public with him]...LOL!
"duh, I wasn't the one bring up hp over and over again. It was your rice buddy. I will say it again though Hp is bragging rights but torque gets the job done. I just built a bike that lays out 125ft lbs of torque at 3200rpm. No reason to rev it up to 6000, 9000, 10000, or 12000 it gets the job done at 3200 rpms."
And so what? Is there something inherently great about trolling along at low rpms? It eludes me. Also, as I said, no production V-twin gets anywhere near that.
Okay hotshot I will give you a bread go back and read where I badmouthed the rice bikes. I simply stated a fact they are better bikes and they are. You little rice boys are running around screaming " mines better, mines better c'mon everybody believe me mines better" not me. So show where I sat there and badmouthed the rice bikes since you want me to give you a break. I started out giving them their props on what they deserved to have props on. You guys are just so worried that nobody will think you bike is worth a crap you have to jump in here and start insulting one type and carrying on about it. The only arrogance I have seen is coming from you little rice boys. I guess if your bikes were actually as good as you think they are you wouldn't be on a thread about Harley's trying to badmouth them and talk about how much better yours is. Your actions speak volumes.
What exactly do you think rpms are? They are how fast your motor is spinning nothing else. Your question is kind of....well it's a question of ignorance. It doesn't matter how fast your motor is spinning it matters on how fast your bike is moving.
AIH and BIG DOG are production bikes and they are putting out numbers almost equal to that. So you are again wrong. Thanks for playing.
Since I'm one of those "toothless hillbillies" you'll find straddling a Harley rider, then no, I'm not into taking them for a ride, myself.
The Hog riders get the women.
It's more like basic, primitive evolution, really.
Survival of the fittest.
[and women would prefer to ride a legend]....:)
The bosshoss is also a production motorcycle and I will put it up against absolutely any japanese or any other production bike out there on a straight track. In fact you can even supercharge and put nitro on those bikes and it will still smoke them naturally aspirated and it won't get over 3000rpms. So you do understand that lower rpms the less stress and wear there is on a motor right? You als know the lower rpms produce less heat right? The reason those jap bikes are made to rev as high as they do is so they can try and match the raw power of the vtwins.
I am starting to wonder if you know anything about motorcycles beyond what you have learned from gixxer.com.
Yup it's funny how Harley riders are willing to be inclusive of the metrics but somehow they are told that they have some kind of attitude while the metric riders are out there screaming at the top of their lungs how much better their bikes are, whereas people just aren't buying into it.
I have lots of people come in on the Metric Cruisers and the number one request is "Make it sound like a Harley". They then always follow it up with "I really wanted a Harley but couldn't afford it so I will ride this until I can".
Let's hear how much great those metrics are when the only thing it comes down to is what people want and what they are willing to pay for it. The Harleys are what people want and they are willing to pay more for it.
HaH, Great Post.
My brother owned a Harley, and I owned a Yamaha. He would try to make me feel bad by saying, "Why don't you get yourself a real bike?"
My reply was always, "Because, I like riding my bike, not working on it."
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