Recently purchased a new 2016 Road King. After completing the requisite 500 mile break-in, I wanted to begin practicing my "parking lot" maneuvers, i.e., slow speed balance, offset cone weaves, sharp turns, u turns, etc., during which I use the clutch friction zone, rev the rams up to about twice idle rpm, little rear brake pressure. After my first practice session, I was having problems shifting the gears from 4-5-6, bike would essentially slip back into the neutral position as I accelerated the bike when trying to shift gears.

Long story short - the service reps have replaced the clutch plates twice, but have not been able to check any potential problems with the transmission, due to warranty requirements from the factory. This is my 7th Harley, I've have done these slow speed practice drills before with previous Harleys (Heritage Softail, Wide Glide, Ultra Limited, Street Glide etc.) I owned without any clutch/gear/tranny problems, NONE. WTF is up with this Road King?? As long as the service reps just keep replacing clutch plates, that will only be a temporary fix.

I told the selling dealership, who has been trying to resolve my situation, that this Road King cannot be ridden safely. I certainly will not ride it again, if all they do is replace clutch plates. The dealership doesn't have a solution yet. Maybe this bike is simply not for me. I will always practice slow speed drills because they help me to improve my overall handling skills. This problem (new) bike is barely a month old, and has barely 1000 miles on it.

I've contacted Harley Customer Care via phone, and mail, explaining my situation with this Road King. It's under investigation, at this point. Maybe someone will be able to resolve this problem. Any thoughts?

 

Warm the bike up and go for a ride. Shift through the gears until you reach 6th at about 60-65 mph. Verify the "6th" gear light is lit in the gauge and pin the throttle (it's not going to jump out from underneath you). As the RPMs build take a quick look at the "6th" gear light; if it went out you have a slipping clutch, not a transmission gear problem. The 6th gear light is based on speed and RPM, if RPM increases without corresponding ground speed the bike assumes you're in another gear besides 6th.

If it does turn out to be the clutch, these things all could be culprits (individually or collectively):

Improperly installed or adjusted clutch (your Road King has cable clutch actuation)

Improper fluid or fluid level in the primary chain case

Clutch plates are beat because of improper use of the clutch (an inspection of the previously replaced clutch pack will tell the tale on this one)

Honestly, it sounds like the dealer is doing good for you. If this were my bike these are questions I'd want to know the answer to:


Can the dealer duplicate the problem you're having ?

Are they basing their diagnosis and repair based solely on your description of the problem without being able to duplicate it?

What do the friction and steel plates look like that have been replaced?

What fluid is being used in the primary and is it at the correct level?

What fluid is in the transmission and is it at the correct level?


Without knowing any of these things it's just a guess at what the problem is. I can say this; I know a lot of dealers that would have sent a rider packing, warranty or not, after two clutch pack replacements.

 

I have heard of this happening on other bikes where a clutch goes out at some ridiculously low mileage but it has been rare and I never have seen what fixed it. If it were me I would put a barnett, SE or some other spring that is a little heavier and see if that fixes it. I don't think that on our bikes the clutch has been messed with since the introduction of the 96" motors. The 103 may be marginal.

The shifting issue is a little odd though. The clutch is only there to take the load of the tranny temporarily not to hold it in gear in anyway.

 

You've done the right thing leaving it with them. There is no reason why once fixed it should be any different to your previous bikes. However IMHO if the dealer is unable to fix it within a reasonable time you should consider rejecting the bike as unfit and demand a replacement. I don't know how your local laws stand with regard to things like that!

 

I believe the 2016 Road Kind is a Hydraulic clutch. Once the plates wear there is nothing you can do but replace them. There is no adjustment.

 

2016 FLHR has a cable operated clutch from the factory. He could have had it changed to hydraulic and that would explain a lot. These things are hard to solve long distance. Mark, my guess is you know that way better than me

 

Can the dealer duplicate the problem you're having ? - No, they simply replaced the clutch plates, then did a test ride to verify the bike is shifting gears ok. They did not try any slow speed ("slipping clutch") drills. Just did a test ride down the road for a distance. Currently, the bike is at the dealership, and is considered repaired with new clutch plates.

Are they basing their diagnosis and repair based solely on your description of the problem without being able to duplicate it? - Essentially yes, and because they discovered the clutch plates were burnt (damaged), so they simply replaced the clutch plates.

What do the friction and steel plates look like that have been replaced? - Burnt, indicating a lot of friction/rubbing wear.

What fluid is being used in the primary and is it at the correct level? - Don't know, assumed factory fluid, and at proper level.

What fluid is in the transmission and is it at the correct level? - Again, don't know, assuming factory fluid still remains at proper level.

 

This bike is a 2016 FLHR Road King (Velocity Red), with a cable operated clutch. The throttle, on a 2016, is electronic to accommodate cruise control.

 

The dealership is considering replacing the factory clutch components with stronger components, such as the screaming eagle clutch plates etc. They've done this procedure before with police bikes that have clutches go out. Maybe the stronger clutch plates might work better under stress??

 

Did this already, noting the lights when trying to shift from 4th to 5th gears, and later from 5th to 6th gears. I had bike stabilized in 4th gear, about 2500 rpm, then increased throttle/rpm to shift to 5th gear. As soon as I increase the throttle, The 4th gear indicator goes out, rpms increase a lot, essentially "slipping" out of gear, no torque to speak off....like being in neutral with high rpms. Same problem when trying to shift from 5th to 6th gears. Once in 6th gear, cannot do more than about 60mph. Trying to accel faster makes the bike slip out of gear.