Honda GL1500 Problems by Model Year
NHTSA recorded 23 consumer complaints across the 3 model years of the Honda GL1500 (1996–2001) that have at least 5 complaints. 2001 has the most, with 9. Across all years, the part named most often is engine cooling (6 mentions). Pick a model year below to see its parts, mileage, recalls and service bulletins.
All GL1500 model years
Years with fewer than 5 complaints are not listed. The score compares years of the same model, allowing for the era and for how long each year has collected complaints: 50 is a typical year, lower means fewer complaints. It is not adjusted for sales volume.
| Year | Complaints | Median mi | Recalls | TSBs | Score (50 = typical) | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 9 | — | 0 | 3 | — | Not enough data |
| 1999 | 6 | 70,151 | 0 | 0 | — | Not enough data |
| 1996 | 8 | 55,000 | 0 | 0 | — | Not enough data |
Parts named most often, all years
Counts add up complaint mentions across the listed years. A complaint can name several parts.
- Engine cooling6 29%
- Transmission and drivetrain5 24%
- Suspension3 14%
- Body and structure2 9.5%
- Brakes2 9.5%
- Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)1 4.8%
- Tires1 4.8%
- Steering1 4.8%
Example complaints
One per model year, chosen for length and detail. Personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
1999: “A 1999 Honda goldwing motorcycle was converted to a trike using a conversion kit manufactured by champion trikes, a division of champion motorcycle accessories international, inc from garden grove california. The kit used was manufactured in august of 2006 with a serial number of 709268. The swing arm assembly is the main connecting member that joins the two wheel rear end to the front end of the motorcycle. On august 12, 2011 two cracks were found in the swing arm steel affecting both sides of the assembly. …”
NHTSA complaint #10421498, filed 2011-08, 43,362 miles1996: “The turn signals on all Honda goldwings motorcycle are designed to cancel after 7 seconds or after 110 yards of travel. This means at highway speeds, the consumer had to turn on the signals many times before turning. The consumer feels this is very distracting and dangerous. The consumer indicated that the signals do not cancel if speed is below 15 MPH.”
NHTSA complaint #10112911, filed 2005-042001: “During continued low speed operation such as stop and go traffic this motorcycle, along with others of this make and model has an extreme tendency to seriously overheat. The manufacturer contends that the machine was designed for operation other than stop and go which, of coursee, is not always possible. The manufacturer has offered no fix for this problem.”
NHTSA complaint #753417, filed 2001-10Other Honda models
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About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Methodology