Since day one, I thought my front brake lever felt very spongy, compared to my '08 non-ABS Road King. They have a lot of lever travel, but quickly firm up after applying the brakes. The dealer checked them, and said they were normal, of course.

I would just as soon bleed the brakes myself, if I'm not going to cause myself any problems with the ABS module. Can you guys please advise?? Thanks!

 

Just bleed them like you would any other brake system.

 

I have a 2010 Limited and have the same problem. I have carried it back twice. The first time it was a little spongy and the bleed the brakes via the pump in the ABS. It helped a little on the spongy feel. I still have about half travel before it catches. The next time I carried it back I got the mechanic and compared it to several other bikes and none had the travel mine did. They were also very firm. I have 3 friends I ride with and all theirs have ABS. One is a 2010 trike, 2008 CVO Ultra Classic, and the other is 2008 Ultra Classic and all are right at the top and very firm. The dealership called the factory rep and was told this is normal. I also have tried bleeding the front brakes myself and it made no difference. If you do watch the fluid as it is an excellent paint stripper. If you get any satisfaction please post. It is kind of sad to pay what you pay for a state of the art system and it isn't right.

 

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Yeah, I was in the dealer today, and grabbed the front lever of two different Limiteds, and they were both firm. I thought that I would just avoid the dealership crap if bleeding was a simple solution. I guess I will try it, and if I don't have luck, then approach the dealer.

 

You can bleed them but be careful not to let the level get below half in the reservior or it will set a code. The codes need to be cleared with a tech scanner.

 

not true

 

According to the service manual, the digital tech is required when bleeding the brakes on a bike with abs

 

Here's the deal. You can bleed ABS brakes just like regular brakes. That said, if you get air into the system above the ABS controller, you're going to have to have the system bled using the Digital Technician. When I did the bars, we got as much air out of the system as we could, but the lever was still spongey and the brakes "pumped up" with a couple of pulls. I bled them again after a few days hoping that the air pockets in the controller had worked themselves out, but that still didn't get it.

You can bleed them well enough to safely ride the bike, but to get it right, you need the DT.

 

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