Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - BATTERY | |||
| 11/05/2003 | 0 | 1 | 03/07/2002 |
| Despite countless calls to customer relations, yamaha continues to deny knowledge of the battery leak problem that has plagued r6 motorcycle owners around the country. instead, they accuse owners of using third party . *ak battery chargers and leave them with over $1700 worth of damage. owners lucky enough to be within the 1 year warranty will have the parts replaced at yamaha's expense. then later experience the problem after the warranty has expired. in which case, they are left with the bill. my acid leak was extensive covering the back half of the bike. i was unaware of the leak, because i was not aware to what battery acid looked like; i assumed it was dirt off the road. i was informed of it by a mechanic who was changing my oil. the damages were tallied by my local yahama dealer (motofixx) at around $2200, which yamaha refused to pay since the bike is over the 1 year warranty. this is a common problem, as told to me by the mechanic, the yamaha dealership, and many many complaints on the internet. the battery in question is produced by gs battery 1999 - 2000 part # gt12b-4 2001 - 2001 part # gt9b-4 new battery part # gt9b-4-c i am now trying to figure out how to fight back and make yamaha pay for the damages they have inflicted upon my bike due to their manufacturing defects. | |||
| 1 | |||
| The battery leaked acid (yamaha r6 2002). *nlm. *ak | |||
| 10/09/2002 | 1 | 03/29/2002 | |
| Yzfr6 model. the vehicle was park and he noticed that the battery acid had leak out on the motorcyle. dealer is aware of the problem. ts yamaha would not replaced parts damaged by battery acid. vehicle still under warranty. *tt | |||
| 08/15/2002 | 1 | 01/01/2002 | |
| Battery leakage: after driving motorcycle around oahu for about an hour on 15 aug 02, i stopped for food. upon returning to my motorcycle, i did a quick walk around inspection and noticed a white, crusty spot located on the left top side of the swingarm. upon further inspection, i saw that there was battery acid dripping from the battery box under the seat area. acid was dripping on swingarm, rear suspension spring, battery box, and chain. corrosion on swingarm, spring, or chain could lead to structure failure, resulting in loss of control and an accident. having done further research into this matter, it appears that there are lots of other r6 owners having this same problem. it has been addressed to yamaha by many of them, and yamaha has and hasn't replaced the damaged parts, depending on dealership. apparently, the sealed batteries are faulty, and gas pressure builds up inside of it until it ruptures and leaks battery acid all over. this is a potentially severe issue that must be addressed by nhtsa in order for yamaha to recall all of the affected batteries. | |||
| 09/01/2002 | 1 | 04/01/2002 | |
| No description given. nlm | |||
| 08/03/2002 | 1 | 05/01/2002 | |
| Battery acid leaked all over the swing arm, chain, shock reservoir, and rear shock. bike is only 3months old w/3500 miles. heard several other people complain abouth this same problem.*ak | |||
| 08/01/2002 | 04/01/2002 | ||
| The battery has been leaking acid onto my swingarm, rear shock, and chain. yamaha is covering this under the 1-year warranty, but this has happened to hundreds of people who own a yzf-r6 and a recall has not been performed. i am absolutely outraged. | |||
| 08/28/2002 | 1 | 07/01/2002 | |
| 2002 yamaha r6 street motorcycle - oem battery begins to leak acid on suspension components and drivetrain components (swingarm, shock, shock linkage, left footpeg, gear shift lever, drive chain, gearshift linkage, subframe, rear fender)this is a common issue with this model. many reports at www.houndheaven.com/batteryleak.htm. reported to always happen around 2000miles on vehicle. many reports that when manufacturer replaces damaged components, it happens again after another 2000 miles and many times this occurs after factory warranty has expired, leaving customer with damaged components and a large repair bill. | |||
| 09/09/2002 | 1 | 07/01/2002 | |
| Let this be known, this is happining to hundreds of r6 owners. we will be heard. this could cause major parts to fail. i dont want to see a death because of this!!!!!no safety defect mentioned. *ak | |||
| 06/01/2002 | 1 | 05/01/2002 | |
| Battery leaked onto the inside of motorcycle corroding everything, i have never used a battery charger and have never dropped or laid down the bike. it also has never been trucked or trailed. *ak | |||
| 08/05/2002 | 1 | 05/01/2002 | |
| Battery leaked causing swing arm, chain, and shock damage. battery is leaking most likly due to over charging by the motorcycle, creating a fire hazard. | |||
| 07/05/2002 | 1 | 02/01/2002 | |
| Battery leaked,replaced, but damaged many other parts not replaced. *ak | |||
| 08/12/2002 | |||
| While driving noticed battery was leaking.*ak | |||
| 08/10/2002 | 1 | 06/01/2002 | |
| Only had the bike for 2 months and noticed a leak (battery acid)coming from under the drivers seat which is where the battery is located. a white like substance is forming on the swingarm, chain, and shock. called dealership same day of notice. problem not resolved as of yet.*ak | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - STARTER ASSEMBLY | |||
| 04/23/2004 | 1 | 05/25/2002 | |
| I have a 2002 yamaha v-star 1100 classic motorcycle. the starter is beginning to fail due to a design flaw. the problem is well documented but yamaha will only replace it at the consumer's cost.*ak | |||
| 11/01/2003 | 4800 | 1 | |
| The motorcycle was having starter problems. the starter frame was starting to twist which caused the clutch bearing to fail (2002 yamaha xvs11ap-r). *ak *nm | |||
| 10/31/2003 | 5600 | 1 | 03/28/2002 |
| Bolts holding starter to engine are twisted along with internal components of vehicles starter motor. *la | |||
| 10/22/2002 | 3200 | 1 | |
| During normal start up of my 2002 yamaha v star 1100 classic, there was a loud backfire a popping sound and the motorcycle did not start. another attempt to start had no result. inspecting the starter i could see the bolts were twisted. i had to have it repaired at a cost of $164.00. *la | |||
| 05/15/2003 | |||
| Defective manufacturer product on 2002 yamaha vstar 1100 silverado motorcycle | |||
| 08/20/2003 | 04/18/2003 | ||
| 2002 yamaha vstar 1100 silverado starter problem. twisted bolts, kickback, clunking noise on startup and sometimes shutdown. follow yamaha starting recommendations so i am not at fault. yamaha has even came out with a beefier starter, but still denies there is a problem with their design and product. | |||
| 06/07/2003 | 3000 | 204 | 08/01/2002 |
| Yamaha vstar 1100. the starters on the 1100 vstar from years 1999 to 2002 are defective and fail. the symptom is that the engine will clunk and wheeze as it attempts to start. there is a defective dog ear inside the starter that shears off and causes the end cap to twist putting the starter in a bind. the consumer is frequently unaware of the failure and continues to grind the starter into complete failure. the issue is that yamaha is aware of the issue as they have replaced numerous 1999-2002 starters, and went on to redesign it on the 2003 model. many times the starter will start the bike in this binding condition until the warrantee runs out. soon after this happens, the starter fails all together leaving many consumers a $1300.00 replacement bill. the most comprehensive tracking of this issue resides delphi forums, a web based informational refrence where owners of these motorcycles gather to discuss several issues concerning the bikes. the link concerning the starter failure, can be found here http://forums.delphiforums.com/star_riders/messages?msg=42152.1 please assist by applying pressure to yamaha concerning this issue. it is a known problem of accelerated obselesence, that they are attempting to keep quiet.*ak | |||
| 06/30/2003 | 1 | 06/15/2002 | |
| I have a 2002 yamaha v-star 1100 that the starter bolts are just starting to twist. apperently this is a common problem with all 1999-2002 yamaha v-star 1100 motorcycles. in model year 2003 yamaha redesigned the starter to prevent kickback from damaging the starter. since the older starters don't have this design, they are damaged every time that the engine kicks back. yamaha claims that the failures are because of operator error in starting the motorcycle, but if that is so, how come the redesign of the starter in 2003. i belong to the international star riders association, www.star-riders.org, and we conducted a poll of current v-star 1100 owners with starter problems. this web address, http://people.delphiforums.com/dadbenny/ documents the problems with these starters. yamaha needs to issue a recall and replace the older style starters with the newly redesigned starters. $319 to replace a starter on a new bike is rather steep. here is a excerpt from one of our members. yamaha says it has a torque limiter built into it and there is a rough diagram of it in the tech bullentin. the outsides were beefed up, but the larger head is necessary to house the torque limiter. bear in mind this doesn't eliminate kickback only helps ease the pain it causes to the one-way starter clutch and starter. the official reason from yamaha's rep for the mid-atlantic for the new starter is telling. he claims the original starter is fine. i asked him why, if there is nothing wrong with the original starter and starter clutch did they spend the time and money to redesign it. his reply, and i quote, customer convenience. *ak | |||
| 01/04/2003 | 5000 | 1 | 11/17/2001 |
| 2002 yamaha v star 1100 custom my starter is failing due to an apparent design flaw.if when trying to start the bike the starter fails to start, it many times will kick back violently resulting in the starter case itself rotating against itself. *ak this is quite obvious by looking at the external bolts that hold the 2 end caps and center section together. the alignment will be off from slightly to a rather large amount. the bolts themselves will no longer be straight but bent. i am a member of the international star riders association which has a discussion forum on the internet. this problem has been around since the 1999 model year and has been discussed in great detail there. a poll was conducted of members and out of 737 votes tallied 192 had the problem and either replaed it or were in process of trying to get it replaced. that is a 26% failure rate which in my opinion isn't good. so far yamaha has denied there is a problem even though they redesigned the starter for the 2003 models and all old starters are being replaecd with the new model. i only have 5000 miles on my bike in a 2 year period. when i contacted the dealer they said it was out of warranty and $316 would buy a new starter plus labor to install. a call to yamaha motor corp was like talking to a wall. i have never had or even heard of a starter failure like this before. i hope that you caninvstigate this matter and obtain a favorable resolution for the owners of these motorcycles. please contact me for much additional information. | |||