Front page article in the WSJ today. Apparently the push by Harley to offer more modern features and additional models of bikes is partly to blame for the large increase in recalls.
To be fair, BMW has a
very large recall list too.
RB
Harley-Davidson Bikes Feel Recall Sting
Hog maker’s recalls soar to 312,000 this year, up from an average of 94,000 in earlier years
By JAMES R. HAGERTY and TOM MCGINTY
Recalls of Harley-Davidson Inc. motorcycles have surged in the past two years, along with the cost of making repairs to the faulty bikes, potentially denting the company’s reputation at a time when its U.S. market share is falling.
U.S. government data compiled by The Wall Street Journal show recalls affecting about 210,000 Harley vehicles in 2014 and 312,000 so far in 2015. That compares with an average of 94,000 annually in the 10 years through 2013.
Michelle Kumbier, Harley’s senior vice president in charge of manufacturing and suppliers, said in an interview that the Milwaukee-based company was studying its manufacturing, design, testing and sourcing of supplies to see how future flaws might be avoided.
“We’re disappointed,” she said of the recalls. “We don’t find it acceptable.”
A Harley spokeswoman also said the number of motorcycle owners affected in the past two years is smaller than the numbers suggest because some bikes were recalled more than once.
Recent Harley recalls have involved problems including a faulty cylinder that could prevent the clutch from disengaging, a defective fuel-pump seal, and a clasp that could allow saddlebags to fly off the back of the bike. Harley reported 35 crashes or other incidents from the defects and six minor injuries.
“We’ve definitely noticed there have been more recalls than we like to see” in the past couple of years, said George Gatto, who owns a Harley motorcycle dealership in the Pittsburgh area. Many of the recalls have involved things that can be fixed quickly, he said: “A lot of times we’ll do it while they wait.”
Mr. Gatto points to the profusion of new Harley models and features introduced in the past several years. Starting with some 2014 models, Harley introduced engine-cooling technology that uses water and a liquid coolant. It also put hydraulic clutches on more motorcycles. Problems with some of the new clutches led to a recall in October 2013 that included an unusual “do-not-ride” warning.
New technology tends to increase recalls, Mr. Gatto said: “When they make big changes, this is what happens.”
The recalls have cost Harley about $30 million in the three years through 2014. That is up from $7.9 million in the three years through 2004, even though Harley sold about 27% more motorcycles in the U.S. in the earlier period.
One Harley customer dismayed by all the recalls is Dan Harvey, an insurance adjuster who lives near Townsend, Tenn. He has purchased half a dozen Harleys since 1999. His current bike—a 2013 Ultra Limited touring model, which cost him about $26,000—hasn’t been recalled, but all the recall news has contributed to his sense that Harley motorcycles have grown less reliable.
“I’m seriously considering
changing brands for my next bike,” Mr. Harvey said. One thing that so far has kept him loyal to Harley, he said, is good service from his local dealership.
Robin Farley, an equity analyst at UBS Group in New York, said recalls were a concern but added: “I don’t think we’ve seen anything that’s going to change the way the core customer feels” about the brand.
The spike in recalls comes as Harley’s market share is dwindling, though it remains far larger than any other motorcycle maker in the U.S. Harley’s share of the U.S. market for motorcycles with engines of 601 cubic centimeters or greater skidded to 47.5% in the second quarter from 50.3% a year earlier and 54.9% for all of 2013.
‘When they make big changes, this is what happens.’
—George Gatto, Harley dealer
Harley has blamed the drop on discounting by rivals from Japan and Europe. Ms. Farley of UBS said she believes other factors include the aging of Harley’s baby boomer customers and tougher competition, including from the revived Indian brand produced by Polaris Industries Inc.
Honda Motor Co., one of Harley’s largest rivals in the U.S. market, also has had relatively high recall totals recently—involving up to 143,000 bikes in 2014 and 60,000 so far this year. Honda doesn’t disclose U.S. unit sales, making it hard to compare rates of recall with Harley.
A Honda spokesman said its recalls involved parts used in several popular models over a number of years and that the company had a “proactive approach to identifying potential safety issues.” Recalls by other major rivals have been much smaller.
U.S. regulators have become more aggressive after facing congressional criticism for failing to spot safety problems. National Highway Traffic Safety Administrator Mark Rosekind, who took over in December, has decried what he views as an auto industry that reacts to defects instead of taking a proactive approach.
Harley in recent years also has reorganized its factories to gain efficiency and begun using more temporary workers. Its manufacturing executive, Ms. Kumbier, said those changes aren’t to blame. Rather, she said, recent recalls have resulted from a variety of glitches, including a design flaw that allowed the saddlebags to fall off and overly porous metal that compromised clutches.
In a 2014 lawsuit now pending in U.S. District Court for the eastern district of Northern Illinois, Michael Dvorak of Park Ridge, Ill., alleges that a clutch failure on his 2013 Harley Softail motorcycle caused the throttle to stick, sending him hurtling across several of his neighbors’ lawns before he tipped over the machine.
The suit says Mr. Dvorak broke four ribs and hurt his back, accuses Harley of negligence and seeks more than $300,000 of damages. It also says the clutch was the subject of a recall in October 2013.
Harley has said the recall didn’t apply to the clutch on Mr. Dvorak’s motorcycle and has denied it was negligent.
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