Software issues are once again rearing their ugly heads in motorcycle applications. This time, it’sHarley-Davidson’sturn in the barrel. Harley is recalling certain Pan America and Sportser S models totaling 3,719 motorcycles. Software causes a problem in the bike’s instrument cluster. For cold starts under freezing, the cluster may not show a speedometer or neutral indicator.
Harley’s Part 573 Safety Recall Report
Harley’s Part 573 Safety Recall Report to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)says up to 3,719 motorcycles are affected.
In the report, Harley says:
The Instrument Cluster Modules on certain 2021 motorcycles, P/N 70900896 on
RA1250S/RA1250 models (i.e. Pan America models) and P/N 70900897 on RH1250S models, (i.e. Sportster S models) may have a software error related to the internal temperature of the instrument cluster.
Describing the safety risk, Harley says:
“Due to an error in the instrument cluster module software in the recalled population, the instrument cluster may not display the speedometer or neutral indicator as required by FMVSS 123 if the temperature of the instrument cluster is below 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 degrees Celsius). Testing indicates that the instrument cluster will self-heat during vehicle operation, such that this condition can only occur at cold start-up when the instrument cluster temperature is below freezing”
Interestingly, if the problem occurs, the bike will display the following:
“Display Temperature – Please allow to cool down,” and a temperature alert icon.
Specifically, Harley’s investigation found that the instrument cluster will display the error, followed by a black screen. The blank display will remain until the internal temperature of the instrument cluster is above 32F/ 0C and an ignition cycle occurs.
Affected motorcycles
The motorcycles affected by this recall are as follows:
| MAKE | MODEL | MODEL YEAR(S) |
| HARLEY-DAVIDSON VIN Begin: 1HD1ZDS11MB305300 hd1zds VIN结束:128MB315752 ✔ Not sequential Production dates: MAY 24, 2021 – OCT 12, 2021 |
RA1250 (Pan America) | 2021 |
| HARLEY-DAVIDSON VIN Begin: 1HD1ZES18MB300794 VIN End: 1HD1ZES29MB315751 ✔ Not sequential Production dates: MAR 10, 2021 – OCT 19, 2021 |
RA1250S (Pan America S) | 2021 |
| HARLEY-DAVIDSON VIN Begin: 1HD1ZC42XMB305005 VIN End: 1HD1ZC417MB318088 ✔ Not sequential Production dates: MAY 21, 2021 – DEC 03, 2021 |
RH1250S (Sportster S) | 2021 |
Notification schedule
To remedy the defect, Harley will notify dealers and owners of this recall following the below notification schedule:
Planned Dealer Notification Date: FEB 01, 2022 – FEB 08, 2022
Planned Owner Notification Date: FEB 08, 2022 – FEB 15, 2022
Harley-Davidson motorcycle repairs
Registered owners of the affected motorcycles should take them to an authorized Harley-Davidson dealer. The dealer will update the software in the instrument cluster free of charge.
Contacts
Should owners have any questions, they may contact Harley customer service at 1-800-258-2464 and cite Harley recall number 0631. Owners may also contact the NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), quoting NHTSA Campaign Number 22V030000, or go towww.nhtsa.gov.
