NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE12-035: Motorcycle Stalling
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE12-035 on November 16, 2012 and closed it on April 16, 2013. NHTSA's investigations file lists 3 Buell models for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE12-035 (also written PE12035)
- Investigation type
- Preliminary Evaluation The first stage of most defect investigations: NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation gathers basic information about a possible safety defect, including from the manufacturer.
- Status
- Closed April 16, 2013
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturers
- Harley-Davidson Motor Company; BUELL MOTORCYCLE CO.
- Component
- Electrical System — Alternator/Generator/Regulator
- Vehicles and equipment
- 3 Buell models, including the 1125R and 1125CR
A recall appears here only when NHTSA's investigations file links one to the investigation; NHTSA's summary or record can name others.
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Preliminary Evaluation PE12-035.
ODI opened this investigation based on 25 allegations of subject motorcycle stalling, without warning, due to charging system failure (typically involving the stator).
As part of this investigation, testing was conducted to assess whether there would be areasonable warning prior to stator-related engine shut-down while underway.
A memo describing this testing may be found in the public file for this investigation.
Given the relative frequency of alleged stator failures involving Buell 1125's, it is apparent that customers may not be satisfied with their motorcycle.
An example of a manufacturer responding to this type of dissatisfaction is found in the Harley Davidson December 7, 2009product improvement campaign to address the stalling issue.
However, current test data does not establish that this customer satisfaction issue is also a safety defect that results in an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety.
In the absence of a safety defect trend related to Buell 1125 charging system failures, this investigation is closed. The 62 ODI complaints we cite may be found by entering the following ODI investigation numbersat www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID:10373814,10386008,10397985,10406939,10406967,10406969,10407046, 10407318,10407511,10407672,10410524,10411954,10429450,10429467, 10429481,10429488,10429530,10429531,10429964,10429970,10429985, 10429987,10430176,10430736,10432169,10432891,10445118,10452480, 10457062,10457815,10457829,10462420,10462439,10462834,10463008, 10463483,10463664,10465165,10465225,10465226,10466505,10470386, 10470415,10470428,10473664,10474136,10474363,10479428,10484793, 10494949,10495197,10496446,10496804,10497643,10496127,10496088, 10496048,10496022,10496018,10495355,10495331,10495307
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE12-035. A listed model year means only that an investigation names it; it says nothing about any particular vehicle. Model years with a try.vin recall page link to that page's NHTSA investigations section.
What an NHTSA investigation is
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) looks into possible safety defects in vehicles and equipment, often after owner complaints. An investigation usually starts as a Preliminary Evaluation, or as a Recall Query when it concerns whether an existing recall covers the right vehicles or fixes the problem, and ODI can upgrade it to a more detailed Engineering Analysis. A Defect Petition asks NHTSA to open an investigation, and Audit and Equipment Queries are administrative investigations into whether companies complied with federal vehicle safety requirements, such as reporting, recall and certification rules.
An open investigation is not a finding that a safety defect exists, and NHTSA can close one without a recall.
To see whether a specific vehicle has an open recall, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Free VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for PE12-035
Investigation details come from NHTSA's investigations file, which try.vin imports once a day. The investigation types are described from the U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General's May 2023 report on NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation, NHTSA's petition rules (49 CFR Parts 552 and 557) and NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation procedures. How try.vin reads NHTSA investigations.