NHTSA vehicle safety data

2012 Triumph Thunderbird Recalls & Complaints

The 2012 Triumph Thunderbird has 1 NHTSA recall campaign and 1 owner complaint on file as of November 3, 2026. Recall repairs are usually free at an authorized Triumph dealer.

NHTSA recall and complaint data for the 2012 Triumph Thunderbird. Recall data is refreshed daily from NHTSA.

2012 Triumph Thunderbird owner complaints

Owners have filed 1 complaint with NHTSA about the 2012 Triumph Thunderbird, describing incidents dated December 3, 2013.

Most-cited components

Vehicle Speed Control 1 complaint

Newest complaints

ODI #10554982 · Filed December 5, 2013
WHILE RIDING HOME IN RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC THE HEATED THROTTLE GRIP SUDDENLY BROKE CAUSING THE ENGINE TO DROP IMMEDIATELY TO IDLE. I HAD TO QUICKLY TAKE EVASIVE MANEUVERS TO AVOID CAUSING AN ACCIDENT AS OTHER VEHICLES ON THE ROAD WERE NOT EXPECTING MY MOTORCYCLE TO SUDDENLY SLOW TO A STOP. THE GRIP…

Read the full complaint

Wheel Bearings may Fail Prematurely

NHTSA #13V032000 · Wheels · NHTSA notice

Reported January 29, 2013 · Triumph Motorcycles America, LTD

Potentially affected: 250 vehicles

Owners notified February 28, 2013 · Vehicles built July 20, 2010 – August 24, 2011 (per NHTSA)

Defect description

Triumph Motorcycles (Triumph) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Daytona 675 and Street Triple motorcycles and 2012 Thunderbird and Thunderbird Storm motorcycles. The wheels were assembled with bearings of an unknown quality.

Safety consequence

Wheel bearings of poor quality could fail unexpectedly, increasing the risk of a motorcycle crash.

Manufacturer remedy

Triumph will notify owners, and dealers will replace the affected bearings free of charge. Owners may contact Triumph at 1-678-854-2010 for more information.

Notes

Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.

try.vin has no NCAP crash-test rating on file for the 2012 Triumph Thunderbird. NHTSA rates some vehicles by body style — pickups by cab, vans by roof height — so check nhtsa.gov/ratings.

1 owner complaint has been filed with NHTSA for the 2012 Triumph Thunderbird.

Vehicle Speed Control

ODI #10554982

Incident: December 3, 2013 · Filed: December 5, 2013

WHILE RIDING HOME IN RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC THE HEATED THROTTLE GRIP SUDDENLY BROKE CAUSING THE ENGINE TO DROP IMMEDIATELY TO IDLE. I HAD TO QUICKLY TAKE EVASIVE MANEUVERS TO AVOID CAUSING AN ACCIDENT AS OTHER VEHICLES ON THE ROAD WERE NOT EXPECTING MY MOTORCYCLE TO SUDDENLY SLOW TO A STOP. THE GRIP BROKE WHERE THE THROTTLE CABLE ATTACHES TO THE GRIP INSIDE THE RIGHT SIDE ELECTRICAL CONTROLS HOUSING. THIS GRIP IS CONSTRUCTED OF FLIMSY PLASTIC. THERE ARE MANY INSTANCES OF THE SAME THING HAPPENING TO OTHER RIDERS AS EVIDENCE BY FORUM POSTING SUCH AS THIS; HTTP://WWW.TRIUMPHRAT.NET/THUNDERBIRD-CRUISER-CHAT/183312-BUSTED-THROTTLE.HTML I CONSIDER THIS A DESIGN DEFECT IN THE SELECTION OF MATERIALS FOR THIS SAFETY CRITICAL APPLICATION. *TR

Other Triumph Thunderbird model years

Check your 2012 Triumph Thunderbird VIN

Not every recall applies to every VIN in a given year. Enter the 17-character VIN from your Triumph Thunderbird at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see whether your specific vehicle has an unrepaired recall.

Check a Triumph VIN