2008 Harley-Davidson Flhr problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Vehicle Speed Control (3) · Service Brakes (2) · Wheels (1)
Safety recalls (1)
Service Brakes, Hydraulic:antilock/Traction Control/Electronic Limited Slip 2018-01-29 · campaign 18V076000 · 174,636 vehicles
Defect: Harley-Davidson Motor Company (Harley-Davidson) is recalling all 2008-2011 Touring, CVO Touring and VSRC motorcycles equipped with anti-lock brakes (ABS), including Road King (FLHR), Road King Police (EFI) (FLHP), Road King Police (EFI) (FLHPE), Electra Glide Standard Police (EFI) (FLHTP), Electra Glide Classic (EFI) (FLHTC), Electra Glide Ultra Classic (EFI) (FLHTCU) and Street Glide (EFI) (FLHX), 2008 VROD (VRSCAWA), CVO Road King 4 (FLHRSE4), Night Rod (VRSCDA), CVO Ultra Classic 3 (FLHTCUSE3
Risk: These deposits may cause a valve within the ABS Hydraulic Control Unit to stick, reducing braking ability and increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Harley-Davidson will notify owners, and dealers will flush the entire brake system with new Platinum Label DOT 4 brake fluid, free of charge. The recall began on February 14, 2018. Owners may contact Harley-Davidson customer service at 1-800-258-2464. Harley-Davidson's number for this recall is 0171.
Service bulletins (15)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2025-08-16 · M1684 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
service bulletin m1684: market specific battery introduction. purpose: initial release. this bulletin informs dealers of the availability of new batteries for new original equipment (oe) vehicle production and in the parts and accessories (p&a) catalog. availability of the new absorbed glass mat (ag
Vehicle Speed Control 2025-01-24 · M1650 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
service bulletin m1650: milwaukee eight and twin cam camshaft drive gear retention kit changes. purpose: this bulletin informs dealers that changes have been made to the camshaft drive gear retention kit and service proceduresfor the milwaukee-eight and twin cam applications. in an effort to increas
Unknown Or Other 2024-09-12 · M1555 · Warranty Program/Extension
service bulletin m1555 (rev e): battery warranty guidelines. purpose: revision e. added: added procedures for the dca-8000 e battery tester.* updated: all sections. this bulletin informs the dealership network that harley-davidson has provided guidelines for battery warranty.
Unknown Or Other 2024-08-08 · M1490 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
service bulletin m1490 (v 24.8.8): digital technician ii - updates and release notes. purpose: this bulletin informs dealers that harley-davidson has made a software update to digital technician ii (dt ii). digital technician ii (part number: hd-48650). version 24.8.8. release date: week of august 5
Unknown Or Other 2024-07-10 · PAB1158 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
genuine motor parts and motor accessories bulletin pab1158: oil filter packaging and case quantity update. purpose: to inform dealerships that harley-davidson has made updates to oil filters including new part numbers, packaging design, and bulk case quantity changes.
Unknown Or Other 2024-05-01 · M1490 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
service bulletin m1490 (v 24.6.4): digital technician ii - updates and release notes. purpose: revision. this bulletin informs dealers that harley-davidson has made a software update to digital technician ii (dt ii). digital technician ii (part number: hd-48650). version 24.6.4. release date: week
Showing the 6 most recent of 15 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2018-02-12 · Service Brakes · 21,038 mi“my complaint is with the recall on the abs brakes on 2008 hd flhr road king i towed my motorcycle to tucson harley because the back brake wouldn't work they told me due to maintenance the abs module is bad $800.00 parts alone i just bought this bike in dec used i haven't put 50 miles no way to check maintenance on the motorcycle when you buy it pr…”
2014-08-22 · Service Brakes · 38,000 mi“sudden and complete loss of rear brake; pedal goes to the maximum limit without resistance. *tr…”
2014-04-19 · Wheels · 27,000 mi · 💥 crash“front wheel locked up at 40 mph and threw me off the motorcycle. we believe the cause to be a defective front wheel bearing. *tr…”
2013-12-11 · Vehicle Speed Control · 10,300 mi · 💥 crash“i was traveling on a surface road at approx. 50mph. as i approached the intersection of euclid and lambert the light started to change. i rolled onto the throttle to clear the intersection safely. as i cleared the intersection i rolled off the throttle at which point the throttle went to the wide open position by itself. the sudden surge forward ca…”
2013-08-28 · Fuel/Propulsion System · 6,000 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2008 harley davidson road king flhr motorcycle. the contact stated that before starting the vehicle, he noticed fuel leaking from the fuel tank. the vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was notified. the vin was not available. the approximate failure mileage was 6,000. …”
2013-05-13 · Engine · 12,300 mi“stock compensator failed at 12300 miles. hd suggests replacing with upgraded screaming eagle compensator. high speed failure could result in serious bodily injury. *tr…”
2012-04-09 · Vehicle Speed Control · 23,000 mi“bike would just shut down. once restarted it would idle at approx 1500 rpm (limp mode). this happen twice. there no throttle response, idle was still around 1500 rpm. talk to the dealer about my issues. before i could finish my little speech, i was told that it was the ecm or the atc pin connectors. he describes my problem to me. they have fixe…”
2012-03-05 · Suspension · 10,000 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2008 harley davidson road king classic motorcycle. the contact stated that there was a loud noise coming from the bottom of the vehicle. the contact diagnosed the failure and determined that the wheel bearing was defective. the dealer replaced the wheel bearing numerous times, but the failure would recur. the manufacturer…”
2012-01-09 · Vehicle Speed Control · 22,000 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2008 harley davidson flhr motorcycle. while driving approximately 35 mph,the motorcycle decelerated abnormally. the failure recurred when driving at various speeds. the motorcycle was taken to an authorized dealer where lubricant was applied to the electronic throttle connectors. the manufacturer was not notified of the defe…”
2011-11-03 · Vehicle Speed Control:cruise Control“2008 harley davidson motorcylce. consumer writes in regards to rapid acceleration *tgw the consumer stated while riding the bike, it started to rapidly accelerate over the speed set on the electrical speed control. the speed control was set at 50 mph. however, the bike raced up to 70 mph on its own. the cruise control did shut of when the consumer…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.