The clutch switch on my '18 Heritage became intermittent a while back and finally quit altogether about 2 months ago. I shimmed it with some tape - took 3 layers of gorilla tape on the lever to fix it and now it works fine again. Just thought I'd share that for anyone else having the same problem.

 

I had that problem as well and it was due to the fact the switch wasn't locked in placed in its housing. Took the top cover off the switches, snapped it back into place and put the cover back on, no more issues since then

 

 

I already verified that the switch is correctly installed. And yeah, I'll get it fixed under warranty eventually but in the meantime now it works again. Not really a big deal since I don't often start in gear, except those rare occasions when I have brain failure and kill the engine at a traffic light.

 

Thanks for posting this. It's kind of mind blowing that HD didn't make this switch adjustable. It's the first thing I'd check if the bike won't crank but the battery otherwise seems good.

Yeah, fix it under warranty, but who wants to trailer their bike to the dealer because they can't get it started and then wait three days to get it back?

 

It still started ok. I just had to put it in neutral first. Depending on who is commenting that is either a good practice or a bad one. Prolly doesn't really matter one way or the other.

Edit: my biggest concern was that there have been reports of failed neutral switches also and if that had happened in addition to the clutch switch I would be SOL.

 

Just had my left switch group changed out for this problem. Used to start in gear, then progressively became more difficult until it just wouldn't anymore. Brought it in for repair, the tech replaced the "little" clutch switch, but it didn't solve the issue. They then ordered in a new cluster (as I'd added cruise control, so they needed one with cruise) and it totally resolved the issue.

 

On most Jap bikes, the clutch must be pulled period to start the bike, whether or not it's in neutral. I didn't know you could start the HD in neutral without pulling the clutch.

Putting the bike into neutral is still a good idea for starting the bike, The wet clutch still has a good bit of drag, espectially when the bike is cold and the oil is thick. Plus, I've let the clutch out more than once thinking the bike is in neutral (Yes, stupid, but bound to happen as long as I've been riding. LOL!)