- Vehicles
- 1,884
- Built between
- Jul 1980 – Jan 1981
- Models
- 1
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 20 March 1981
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between July 1980 and January 1981. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1981 Harley-Davidson 1340Built July 1980 to January 1981
What the defect is
If the rear shock absorber should "over-travel" when motorcycle is operated over rough terrain, the current position of the rear brake caliper could cause the rear brake line to contact the right saddle bag carrier. This could cause a deformation in the rear brake line.
What gets fixed
ALL INVOLVED VEHICLES WILL BE INSPECTED AND THE REAR BRAKE TORQUE ARM WILL BE REPLACED WITH ONE OF A NEW DESIGN. THE RIGHT SADDLE BAG CARRIER WILL BE MODIFIED, IF NECESSARY.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtJuly 1980 to January 1981
- Recall reported to NHTSA26 January 1981
- Owners notified20 March 1981
Your rights
A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.
That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 26 January 1981.
To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.
Official source
- Recalling manufacturer
- HARLEY-DAVIDSON MOTOR CO.
- Recall initiated by
- MFR
Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Additional notes
Vehicle description: motorcycles equipped with saddle bags.system: service brakes; rear brake caliper.consequences of defect: partial or total loss of the rear brakes and anaccident could result.note: owners are advised not to operate motorcycle until dealer has inspectedvehicle.
Check your own vehicle
This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.
A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.