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Transmission and drivetrainPart report

2018 Harley-Davidson Flhr Transmission and drivetrain Problems

Complaints
3about this part
Share
60%of 5 total for the year
Median mileage
6,100miles
Trend
Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.

NHTSA recorded 3 complaints about the transmission and drivetrain of the 2018 Harley-Davidson Flhr, 60% of the 5 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 6,100 miles. 1 recall campaign on record is filed under a similar system.

Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.

Example complaints

Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.

“Same issue with 2017-2017 recall on harley clutches purchased a 2019 road king by harley and the clutch will not release the gear in 1st/ bike creeps forward when clutch handled is pulled in. Wont go into neutral with out double clutching the clutch handle.out of town dealership inspected and found master cylinder cover gasket sucked down and not fluid. They flushed the clutch system and refilled. Worked for test drive but when I had put 100 more miles on the bike issues came back. This bike had a little over 800 miles on it.”

NHTSA complaint #11210265, filed 2019-05, 800 miles

“This is a description of the drivability problems caused by the excessive primary case fluid. While in motion on a city street the motorcycle would sometimes not shift down from 3rd-2nd or from 2nd to 1st gears. This causes problems when turning and wanting to use engine breaking to slow down during the turn. I could not use the engine breaking and would have to use the brakes quickly as to not cause an accident. Also, when sitting still with engine running in neutral at a traffic light, the transmission would sometimes not shift from neutral to 1st gear. …”

NHTSA complaint #11329656, filed 2020-06, 17,000 miles

“The contact owns a 2018 Harley-Davidson FLHR Road King. The contact stated that upon start of the motorcycle there was an abnormal grinding sound coming from the motorcycle without warning. The contact had taken the motorcycle to a dealer where he was informed that the gears inside of the transmission were breaking apart and that the transmission needed to be replaced. The dealer was able to order a new transmission and replaced the transmission under warranty; however, despite the repair, the failure returned and the contact returned the motorcycle back to the dealer. …”

NHTSA complaint #11460871, filed 2022-04, 6,100 miles

Related recalls

Related service bulletins

Transmission and drivetrain: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
2018360%
1999113%

Other parts of the 2018 Harley-Davidson Flhr

Engine
2 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2018 Harley-Davidson Flhr

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology