• Harley-Davidson Motor Company, Inc. has initiated a Safety Recall Campaign to replace the old brake fluid of certain models.

• The models involved are 2008 TO 2011 TOURING, CVO TOURING AND V-ROD MODELS WITH ABS.

• The new Malaysian Harley-Davidson dealership, Harley-Davidson of Petaling Jaya will carry out the campaign.

The Harley-Davidson Motor Company, Inc. is conducting a Safety Recall Campaign for its motorcycles worldwide.

In an earlier article of ours, we mentioned that the motorcycle’s brake fluid needs to be replaced every 2 years, regardless of mileage and appearance.

This is because brake fluid is hygroscopic (a description for something that loves moisture) and will absorb moisture right out of the air. It is even more critical in our country where the climate is hot and humid. Moisture in the fluid will lower the latter’s boiling point, causing brake fade.

As for this Safety Recall Campaign, the models involved are 2008 TO 2011 TOURING, CVO TOURING AND V-ROD MODELS WITH ABS.

The Motor Company notes that the brake fluid should be flushed and replaced with fresh fluid every two years, as per the H-D Owner’s Manual and Service Manual. Prolonged usage of the old fluid may cause it to gel and leave deposits on the brake components. Should these deposits continue to form over a prolonged period on the apply valve of the ABS Hydraulic Control unit, the valve may stick and cause a loss of braking function.

The new Harley-Davidson dealership in Malaysia, Harley-Davidson of Petaling Jaya (HDPJ), will carry out the campaign for all the affected motorcycles, regardless if they were purchased through the official channel or grey importers. And there is also good news for owners of grey import Harley-Davidson’s, as the new dealer no longer charges an exorbitant “activation fee” for the technician to simply work on your bike. All Harley-Davidson’s are now welcome at HDPJ regardless of where you bought your bike.

As such, the Motor Company will communicate the affected VIN (vehicle identification number) to HDPJ. However, as HDPJ is still new and there are many grey import Harleys in Malaysia, owners of 2008 TO 2011 TOURING, CVO TOURING AND V-ROD MODELS WITH ABS are advised to contact HDPJ and provide their VIN for verification. HDPJ will immediately confirm if the motorcycle if affected.

The new Harley-Davidson Platinum Label DOT 4 brake fluid will be available for ordering from mid-March 2018, thus HDPJ will schedule appointments for the affected units.

Only the replacement of brake fluid is covered and no further parts will be replaced under the campaign. Replacement of the brake fluid will be carried out using the Digital Tech II apparatus, as the bikes are equipped with ABS. Please be advised that the machine will instruct the ABS hydraulic control unit to fully flush the brake fluid and residue, hence replacement of brake fluid without the Digital Tech II machine is erroneous and potentially dangerous.

The task will take 1.5 hours and is free-of-charge.

Please get in touch with Harley-Davidson of Petaling Jaya at +603-79559399. You may also call Service Advisors Lingesh at +6018-9861229, or Naqid at +6018-9891229. HDPJ are open from 9.30am to 7.00pm Mondays to Saturdays and, closed on Sundays and Public Holidays. Please click here to visit the Harley-Davidson of Petaling Jaya’s FB page.

Also, as a side note to parallel importers who import Harley-Davidson’s, the official dealer at Harley-Davidson Petaling Jaya will also conduct software updates and bike resetting to prepare the motorcycle for local sale. While importers had to previously fork out money to previous H-D technicians to conduct “localization” and resetting, the official dealer can and will reprogram the bike for you with all the right tools and machines needed to service the bike. This is great news for grey importers as they can now have their machines better prepared for sale, while buyer’s can now rest easy knowing that their machines have been worked on by official Harley-Davidson technicians.

According to Juan Chow Wee, who is the General Manager of Didi Resources Sdn Bhd, the importer and distributor of Harley-Davidson in Malaysia, the new Harley-Davidson of Petaling Jaya is opening its doors to all owners of Harley-Davidson regardless of whether it was bought through the official channel or through the grey market.

“We want to be accessible to all Harley-Davidson riders, and we will not practise two standards. The love for Harley-Davidson runs in everyone working for Harley-Davidson of Petaling Jaya and we are showing this by not charging any localisation fee for any Harley-Davidson bike. The price of bikes, parts, accessories and merchandise has also been adjusted to ensure competitiveness, and we are proud to continue the Harley-Davidson brotherhood which was recently put on display at the Grand Opening ride and party.”