Complaints by model year
Each bar is one model year. The most recent years are still collecting complaints.
NHTSA ODI complaints (public domain) · updated 23 Oct 2026
New York safety inspections
Share of first inspections failed on safety, by model year. Older cars fail more as miles build up, so compare each year with the average car of the same year.
NY DMV Vehicle Inspections, initial inspections since Aug 2021 · how we count
Year by year
| Model year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 Road King | 10 | 1 |
| 2003 | 1 | 0 |
| 2002 | 6 | 0 |
| 2001 | 8 | 0 |
| 1999 | 4 | 0 |
| 1998 | 3 | 0 |
| 1997 | 1 | 0 |
A model year gets its own page when it has enough data for at least three sections
Most common problems
- Engine and engine cooling6
- Suspension5
- Service brakes, hydraulic5
- Electrical system5
- Power train3
- Wheels2
- Fuel system, gasoline2
- Equipment2
NHTSA ODI complaints, all model years
Fatal crashes in the US
From 2020 to 2023, 201 Road King vehicles were involved in crashes on US public roads in which someone died, and 201 people died inside them. These are counts, not crash rates: a model with more cars on the road shows up more often, and people killed outside the vehicle are not counted here.
| Model year | Vehicles in fatal crashes | Deaths in the vehicle |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 5 | 5 |
| 2015 | 12 | 13 |
| 2014 | 22 | 23 |
| 2013 | 12 | 12 |
| 2011 | 11 | 11 |
| 2009 | 14 | 14 |
| 2008 | 7 | 7 |
| 2007 | 13 | 13 |
| 2006 | 17 | 16 |
| 2005 | 16 | 15 |
| 2004 | 14 | 14 |
| 2003 | 20 | 21 |
| 2002 | 10 | 10 |
| 2001 | 10 | 9 |
| 2000 | 18 | 18 |
NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), crash years 2020–2023 (public domain) · how we count
Recalls
1 campaigns cover the Road King.
ON CERTAIN MOTORCYCLES, A CONDITION OCCURS THAT COULD ALLOW PRESSURE TO BUILD UP IN THE FUEL TANK. ON FUEL INJECTED VEHICLES, THIS CONDITION COULD CAUSE FUEL TO SPRAY OUT UNEXPECTEDLY WHEN THE FUEL CAP IS REMOVED. ON CARBURETED VEHICLES, EXCESSIVE FUEL COULD BE TRANSFERRED TO THE CARBURETOR, WHICH WOULD EVENTUALLY ALLOW FUEL TO DRIP FROM THE AIR CLEANER.
NHTSA recalls