NHTSA vehicle safety data

2001 Yamaha Road Star Recalls & Complaints

The 2001 Yamaha Road Star has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns and 57 owner complaints on file as of November 3, 2026. Recall repairs are usually free at an authorized Yamaha dealer.

NHTSA recall and complaint data for the 2001 Yamaha Road Star. Recall data is refreshed daily from NHTSA.

Pre-purchase inspection checklist → Reliability & 5-year cost forecast →

2001 Yamaha Road Star owner complaints

Owners have filed 57 complaints with NHTSA about the 2001 Yamaha Road Star, describing incidents dated April 30, 2001 to November 10, 2008.

Most-cited components

Power Train 47 complaints
Engine 5 complaints
Fuel/Propulsion System 4 complaints
Suspension 1 complaint
Wheels 1 complaint

Of the 57 complaints on file, 3 report a crash; across all 57 complaints, owners report 14 injuries (owner-reported, not verified by NHTSA).

Newest complaints

ODI #10265496 · Filed April 15, 2009
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 YAMAHA ROAD STAR MOTORCYCLE. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FOR NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 03V309000 (POWER TRAIN:MANUAL TRANSMISSION). THE DEALER WILL NOT PERFORM THE RECALL REPAIR AFTER MULTIPLE CALLS AND PROMISES. THE CONTACT MUST CALL THE DEALER SO THEY CAN ORDER…
ODI #10265245 · Filed April 14, 2009
FUEL (GASOLINE) IS SPRAYED FROM REAR PORT OF CARBURETOR. AS MUCH AS 2 OZ MAY BE EMITTED AND SPRAYED ON HOT EXHAUST PIPES AND ENGINE. THE FUEL IMMEDIATELY VAPORIZES. THIS ONLY SEEMS TO OCCUR WHEN THE MOTORCYCLE IS HOT, THEN SHUT OFF AND ALLOWED TO SIT FOR APPROXIMATELY 15 MINUTES. IT DOES NOT SPRAY…
ODI #10127332 · Filed July 2, 2005
THERE WERE NO "EVENTS" LEADING UP TO THE FAILURE OF MY FUEL SYSTEM. WHILE RIDING IN TRAFFIC I NOTICED AN ODOR OF RAW FUEL. WHEN I PULLED OVER TO INVESTIGATE,I DISCOVERED GASOLINE POURING OUT FROM UNDER MY MOTORCYCLE! SHUTTING OFF THE FUEL PETCOCK AND RUNNING THE ENGINE @ AN ELEVATED RPM CAUSED THE…

Read all 57 complaints

NHTSA defect investigations

NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2001 Yamaha Road Star in 1 investigation. A listed model year means only that an investigation names it; it says nothing about any particular vehicle. An open investigation is not a finding that a safety defect exists, and NHTSA can close one without a recall.

Preliminary Evaluation PE03-038: UNINTENDED REAR WHEEL LOCKUP
Closed November 6, 2003
- Recall 03V-309
- Recall 06V-397

Open and recently closed NHTSA defect investigations

ACCESSORY HANDLEBARS

NHTSA #10E041000 · Equipment · NHTSA notice

Reported August 23, 2010 · YAMAHA MOTOR CORPORATION, USA

Potentially affected: 300 vehicles

Owners notified August 31, 2010

Defect description

YAMAHA IS RECALLING CERTAIN ACCESSORY YAMAHA DOUBLE "T" FAT HANDLEBARS , PART NUMBERS STR-5PX75-12-00 AND STR-4WM75-12-00, MANUFACTURED FROM AUGUST 1, 2008 THROUGH JULY 31, 2009, TO BE USED ON MODEL YEAR 2002-2009 XV1700PC WARRIOR, 1999-2003 VX1600 AND 2004-2010 XV1700 ROAD STAR MOTORCYCLES. THESE HANDLEBARS MAY HAVE TUBING THINNER THAN DESIGNED WHERE THE BARS NARROW FOR THE SWITCH HOUSINGS AND GRIPS.

Safety consequence

THE AFFECTED HANDLEBARS COULD BE WEAK ENOUGH IN THE AREA TO BREAK. SHOULD THIS BREAKAGE OCCUR WHILE THE MOTORCYCLE IS BEING OPERATED, THE OPERATOR COULD LOSE CONTROL OF THE MOTORCYCLE WHICH COULD RESULT IN A CRASH.

Manufacturer remedy

YAMAHA WILL NOTIFY OWNERS OF RECORD AND DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE AFFECTED HANDLEBARS FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 31, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT YAMAHA TOLL-FREE AT 1-800-962-7926.

Notes

OWNERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO <A HREF=HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV>HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV</A> .

TRANSMISSION THIRD GEAR FAILURE

NHTSA #06V397000 · Power Train — Manual Transmission · NHTSA notice

Reported October 17, 2006 · YAMAHA MOTOR CORPORATION, USA

Potentially affected: 20,000 vehicles

Yamaha campaign M2006-017R · Owners notified October 30, 2006 · Vehicles built November 1, 1998 – April 30, 2001 (per NHTSA) · Recall influenced by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation

Defect description

ON CERTAIN MOTORCYCLES, CERTAIN TRANSMISSION COMPONENTS MAY NOT MEET YAMAHA QUALITY-CONTROL STANDARDS, WHICH COULD ALLOW ABNORMAL WEAR THAT EVENTUALLY RESULTS IN A BROKEN RETAINING CIRCLIP.

Safety consequence

IF THE CIRCLIP BREAKS, THE TRANSMISSION COULD LOCK UP, WHICH WOULD ALSO CAUSE THE REAR WHEEL TO LOCK UP. THIS COULD RESULT IN LOSS OF CONTROL AND A CRASH WITH INJURY OR DEATH.

Manufacturer remedy

DEALERS WILL REPLACE CERTAIN TRANSMISSION COMPONENTS WITH NEW ONES FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON OCTOBER 30, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT YAMAHA AT 1-800-88-YAMAHA OR VISIT THEIR WEBSITE AT WWW.YAMAHA-MOTOR.COM.

Notes

YAMAHA RECALL NO. 06-006.THIS IS AN EXPANSION OF A PREVIOUS RECALL CAMPAIGN CONDUCTED DURING 2003 (PLEASE SEE 03V309).CUSTOMERS CAN ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.

YAMAHA/MOTORCYCLES/REAR WHEEL LOCK UP

NHTSA #03V309000 · Power Train — Manual Transmission · NHTSA notice

Reported August 26, 2003 · YAMAHA MOTOR CORPORATION, USA

Potentially affected: 29,139 vehicles

Yamaha campaign M2004-001 · Owners notified September 2, 2003 · Vehicles built November 1, 2000 – December 31, 2003 (per NHTSA) · Recall influenced by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation

Defect description

IN THE TRANSMISSION ON CERTAIN MOTORCYCLES, THE SECOND/THIRD PINION GEAR MAY BE INCORRECTLY MACHINED WHICH COULD CAUSE ABNORMAL WEAR THAT EVENTUALLY RESULTS IN A BROKEN RETAINER CIRCLIP.

Safety consequence

IF THE CIRCLIP BREAKS, THE TRANSMISSION COULD LOCK UP, WHICH WOULD ALSO CAUSE THE REAR WHEEL TO LOCK UP. THIS COULD RESULT IN LOSS OF CONTROL AND A CRASH, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH.

Manufacturer remedy

YAMAHA WILL REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION GEARS AND SHAFTS WITH NEW ONES. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN ON SEPTEMBER 9, 2003. OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON AN AGREED UPON SERVICE DATE AND DO NOT RECEIVE THE FREE REMEDY WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME SHOULD CONTACT YAMAHA AT 1-800-88-YAMAHA OR VISIT THEIR WEBSITE AT WWW.YAMAHA-MOTOR.COM.

Notes

ALSO, CUSTOMERS CAN CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S AUTO SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-DASH-2-DOT (1-888-327-4236).

try.vin has no NCAP crash-test rating on file for the 2001 Yamaha Road Star. NHTSA rates some vehicles by body style — pickups by cab, vans by roof height — so check nhtsa.gov/ratings.

57 owner complaints have been filed with NHTSA for the 2001 Yamaha Road Star.

Power Train

ODI #10265496

Incident: November 10, 2008 · Filed: April 15, 2009

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2001 YAMAHA ROAD STAR MOTORCYCLE. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FOR NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 03V309000 (POWER TRAIN:MANUAL TRANSMISSION). THE DEALER WILL NOT PERFORM THE RECALL REPAIR AFTER MULTIPLE CALLS AND PROMISES. THE CONTACT MUST CALL THE DEALER SO THEY CAN ORDER THE PARTS FOR THE REPAIR. HE HAS BEEN CALLING THEM FOR EIGHT MONTHS WITHOUT ANY RESOLUTION. HE CALLED YAMAHA CUSTOMER RELATIONS FOR A REMEDY AND WAS INFORMED THAT THEY WOULD CALL THE DEALER SO THEY COULD PERFORM THE REPAIR; HOWEVER, HE HAS NOT RECEIVED A RESPONSE TO RESOLVE THIS MATTER. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 5,000.

Fuel System, Gasoline

ODI #10265245

Incident: August 23, 2008 · Filed: April 14, 2009

FUEL (GASOLINE) IS SPRAYED FROM REAR PORT OF CARBURETOR. AS MUCH AS 2 OZ MAY BE EMITTED AND SPRAYED ON HOT EXHAUST PIPES AND ENGINE. THE FUEL IMMEDIATELY VAPORIZES. THIS ONLY SEEMS TO OCCUR WHEN THE MOTORCYCLE IS HOT, THEN SHUT OFF AND ALLOWED TO SIT FOR APPROXIMATELY 15 MINUTES. IT DOES NOT SPRAY LIQUID GAS IF IMMEDIATELY STARTED OR IF ALLOWED TO COOL. HOWEVER, THERE IS STILL A FREQUENT SMELL OF GAS. FIRST REPORTED IN AUGUST 2008. PROBLEM IS FREQUENT. *TR

Fuel System, Gasoline

ODI #10127332

Incident: August 1, 2004 · Filed: July 2, 2005

THERE WERE NO "EVENTS" LEADING UP TO THE FAILURE OF MY FUEL SYSTEM. WHILE RIDING IN TRAFFIC I NOTICED AN ODOR OF RAW FUEL. WHEN I PULLED OVER TO INVESTIGATE,I DISCOVERED GASOLINE POURING OUT FROM UNDER MY MOTORCYCLE! SHUTTING OFF THE FUEL PETCOCK AND RUNNING THE ENGINE @ AN ELEVATED RPM CAUSED THE SYMPTOM TO SUBSIDE AND LED TO THE CONCLUSION THAT A FAILURE IN 1 OR MORE CARBURETOR(S) HAD OCCURED. I CONTACTED MY DEALER AND WAS ADVISED THAT YAMAHA USA WOULD NOT WARRANTY A FAILURE OF THE CARBURETOR(S) CLAIMING THAT "POOR FUEL QUALITY" WAS THE FAULT,NOT A MANUFACTURING DEFECT. UPON QUESTIONING,I WAS FURTHER ADVISED THAT CORROSION OF THE NEEDLE AND SEAT ASSEMBLIES WAS A KNOWN FAILURE IN THIS PRODUCT AND THAT WARRANTY COVERAGE WAS CONSISTENTLY DENIED BY THE MANUFACTURER DESPITE THE OBVIOUS SAFETY ISSUE OF POTENTIAL FIRE HAZARD. I ALSO ASKED IF YAMAHA HAD RELEASED ANY UPDATED COMPONENTS TO AVOID A REPEAT OF THE SAME FAILURE AND WAS ADVISED THAT CHROME PLATED COMPONENTS IMPERVIOUS TO THIS KIND OF FAILURE WERE AVAILABLE,BUT,NOT FROM THE MANUFACTURER. FOR OBVIOUS REASONS,I HAD THE DEALER REPAIR THE CONDITION WITH UPGRADED PARTS AND PAID FOR THE REPAIR SINCE THE DEALER WAS NOT AT FAULT. I THEN CONTACTED YAMAHA USA AND SPOKE TO MATTHEW WHO LISTENED ATTENTIVELY BUT,COULD ONLY TELL ME HE WAS SORRY THAT MY YAMAHA HAD NOT LIVED UP TO MY EXPECTATIONS! MATTHEW ALSO ADVISED ME HIS DATA BASE SHOWED NO OTHER COMPLAINTS OF THIS NATURE DESPITE THE FACT THAT THERE ARE SIMILAR REPORTS IN THE N.H.T.S.A. DATA BASE ON THE WEB. THE POSITION THAT FUEL QUALITY IS AT ISSUE IS BELIED BY THE FACT THAT IN THIS HOUSEHOLD ALONE 3 CARS,A SNOWBLOWER,2 LAWNMOWERS,A POWER EDGER,AND A CHAIN SAW WERE ALL OPERATED ON THE SAME FUEL WITHOUT INCIDENT. I FEEL THAT THE MOTORCYCLE PRODUCTS OF YAMAHA USA SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED FOR POTENTIALLY LETHAL DESIGN FLAWS IN IT'S FUEL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS AND HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE COST OF CORRECTING A CONDITION THAT COULD COST SOMEONE THEIR LIFE.

Power Train

ODI #10094938

Incident: October 2, 2004 · Filed: October 4, 2004

MANUAL TRANSMISSION AND REAR WHEEL LOCKED WHILE DRIVING AT 35 MPH. WHEN THIS OCCURRED CONSUMER WAS ABLE TO MAINTAIN CONTROL OF THE MOTORCYCLE ,AND COASTED IT TO A COMPLETE STOP WITHOUT THE MOTORCYCLE TIPPING OVER. THIS OCCURRED DUE TO THE DEFECT DESCRIBED IN THE REAR WHEEL LOCK RECALL 03V309000. BUT THIS VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL DUE TO VIN. *AK

Power Train

ODI #10071954

Filed: April 30, 2004

NHTSA RECALL 03V309000. THE DRIVER CONTACTED THE DEALER ON JANUARY 09, 2004. THE MECHANIC INFORMED THE CONSUMER THAT THE PARTS WERE NOT AVAILABLE. THE MECHANIC COULDN'T INFORM THE CONSUMER WHEN THE PARTS WOULD BE AVAILABLE. *LA

Power Train

ODI #10067450

Filed: April 15, 2004

DISSATISFIED WITH THE RECALL SERVICE OF ROAD STAR MOTORCYCLE. *PH THIS IS BECAUSE THAT THE PARTS TO REPAIR TRANSMISSION ON MOTORCYCLE WEREN'T AVAILABLE. *LA

Power Train

ODI #10067440

Filed: April 15, 2004

COMPLAINT AGAINST YAMAHA MOTOR CORPORATION FOR NOT REMEDYING THE PROBLEM IN A TIMELY MANNER. *PH *LA

Power Train

ODI #10065455

Filed: April 1, 2004

CONSUMER RECEIVED NHTSA RECALL 03V309000 CONCERNING TRANSMISSION FAILURE IN JANUARY 2004. CONSUMER CONTACTED THE DEALER, WHO SAID PARTS NEEDED TO REPAIR THE MOTORCYCLE WILL NOT BE AVAILABLE UNTIL THE END OF APRIL, IF NOT SOONER. *AK

Power Train

ODI #10065243

Incident: March 30, 2004 · Filed: March 30, 2004

CONSUMER RECEIVED 03V309000 CONCERNING TRANSMISSION FAILURE. CONSUMER ATTEMPTED TO GET THE MOTORCYCLE REPAIRED BY THE DEALER. THE DEALER CLAIMED THAT THE PARTS WERE NOT AVAILABLE.*AK

Engine and Engine Cooling; Power Train

ODI #10065187

Filed: March 10, 2004

DUE TO THE TYPE OF DESIGN, TO CORRECT THE DEFECT THE ENGINE WOULD HAVE TO BE REMOVED FROM THE FRAME AND TOTALLY DISMANTLED. *PH CONSUMER FELT THAT DUE TO THE EXTENT OF THE REPAIR ON ENGINE, YAMAHA SHOULD PUT AN AFTER MARKET WARRANTY FOR AT LEAST 90 DAYS OR 3000 MILES. ALSO, CONSUMER RECEIVED RECALL NOTICE FROM YAMAHA ON TRANSMISSION RETAINING CIRCLIP FAILURE. *LA

Other Yamaha Road Star model years

Check your 2001 Yamaha Road Star VIN

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

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