2009 Harley-Davidson Fltrse3 problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Service Brakes (5) · Vehicle Speed Control (1)
Safety recalls (2)
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.
Exterior Lighting:brake Lights:switch 2011-10-19 · campaign 11V506000 · 250,757 vehicles
Defect: HARLEY-DAVIDSON IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2009-2012 TOURING, CVO TOURING AND TRIKE VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM JUNE 6, 2008, THROUGH SEPTEMBER 16, 2011. SEE THE ABOVE LIST FOR THE MODELS INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. THE REAR BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH MAY BE EXPOSED TO EXCESSIVE HEAT FROM THE EXHAUST SYSTEM.
Risk: THE EXCESSIVE HEAT MAY CAUSE THE SWITCH TO NOT ACTIVATE THE BRAKE LAMP OR ACTIVATE THE BRAKE LAMP WHEN NO BRAKE IS APPLIED AND/OR CAUSE A BRAKE FLUID LEAK AT THE BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH, AFFECTING REAR BRAKE PERFORMANCE. EITHER CONDITION MAY INCREASE THE RISK OF A CRASH.
Fix: HARLEY-DAVIDSON WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL A INSTALL A REAR BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH KIT, FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING OCTOBER 31, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT HARLEY-DAVIDSON AT 1-414-343-4056.
Service bulletins (12)
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 12 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2018-01-07 · Service Brakes · 7,800 mi“front brake lever is frozen, lever will not pull back. does not engage front brake calibers. back brakes work fine. luckily noticed problem at low speed! if i was moving faster, could've rear ended truck on highway (i-4) in florida where speeds reach 80-90 flow of traffic. bikes in my garage still unfixed.…”
2016-11-04 · Service Brakes · 50,000 mi“started out driveway and tried to stop at street but rear brake pedal would not work. was able to stop with front brake. took to dealership and was told abs module was malfunctioning. there was no abs light indicating malfunction and could have been a potential accident if street were busier. from viewing complaints there are more than a few incide…”
2016-04-29 · Service Brakes · 72,000 mi“hydraulic brake modulator (hd uses term hydraulic control unit, or hcu) within the abs system is failing on many bikes causing brake system to suddenly fail, result in no brakes. this has occurred after the bike has been sitting, or while underway, no warning of any kind is displayed prior to the total lost of either the front or rear brakes.…”
2016-04-14 · Service Brakes · 34,000 mi“i own a 2009 hd roadglide cvo with 34,000 miles. i recently rolled the bike out of the garage and headed dwon the driveway and discovered that my rear brake pedal was very hard and i had no rear brake. i took the bike to my dealer and they diagnosed it as the abs module was bad. i had not abs light flashing or not check engine light. nothing to ind…”
2015-10-02 · Vehicle Speed Control · 20,000 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2009 harley-davidson road glide fltrse3 motorcycle. while attempting to accelerate, the throttle malfunctioned and decelerated without warning. the vehicle was taken to the dealer. the technician diagnosed that the plug and harness on the throttle needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the veh…”
2014-05-22 · Service Brakes · 32,524 mi“parked the motorcycle in the evening. next morning when getting ready to go, discovered that the rear brake pedal would not depress. luckily, the speed at the time was zero mph. no brake failure indicator light was present. diagnosed the problem to the abs system. the abs system has failed in such a way that the motorcycle has no rear bra…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.