09Tri Glide - gimme the good, bad, and ugly y'all!

[MJanusz]

As others have said Thanks for your service. To your problem If this is your first Harley then I think you may find that it will take a little time and you will get shifting into neutral very easy. If you have a friend that has a Harley you might have him or her try it out and that could eliminate if it is a clutch or tranny problem.
Welcome Home and ride safe

My little bro served as an FO for the 173rd back in the early 90's. Thank you for your service as well...I suspect there are a lot of Vets on this forum...which makes it an even better place to be!

I talked to my boss who rides a Honda GW and he said he occasionally has the same issue. His recommendation was to try to get it into N before the bike stops completely. That makes sense to me since I did notice it was easier to get it into N when I pushed the bike forward or backwards a couple inches. I guess it is kind of like when your car keys won't go into the ignition unless you turn the steering wheel...if the tranny is stopped completely (bike not moving), it creates the problem I described originally.

As I get more time on her, I'll post my findings here in case someone else has the same issue later on. Thanks ALL for the feedback.

 

[SirDimsdale]

Being injured in Iraq, I thought my riding days had totally ended...but the trike will keep me riding for a long time to come, I hope!

The only thing I've noticed thus far, that is a bit of a let down is shifting it back into Neutral. I found that about half the time, the shifter was so sensitive (hard to move) that I would jump over N when trying to either lift the toe or push down on the heel bar. Once I push the bike forward or backwards a couple inches, it seems to take care of this problem. Any thoughts?

Also-anyone with any comments on this bike, please let me know your thoughts (good or bad) as well as mods you feel are essential compared to mods that are for fun or looks. Thanks all!

Thank you for your service and God Bless you. I have '10 HD trike and had a similar problem. It does get easier with mileage but fluids are definitely the difference. Replace your tranny fluid with one of those recommended in the tips section. I used Mobil 1 70/90 gear oil and saw a quick improvement after some mileage. Planning on the Mobil 1 70/140 gear oil next time since the Redline & Spectro are in that range. My best to you and your family.

 

[MJanusz]

The Trike has over 14K miles on it now so I don't think it's a break in period thing. I've found a couple issues with it but nothing that has made me think twice about the purchase. This bike is fun!!!

I've gotten used to having to play with the gear shift on occasion when it doesn't want to work with me. I don't even notice the problem anymore so it is happening a lot less than it was...and I use the heel-shifter every time.

A few weeks ago I went to a gig in Austin, about 60 miles from the house, and drove the Trike. The cruise control wouldn't work for anything! I started messing around looking for anything that might be causing the cruise control to not function properly when I noticed my rear brake lights appeared to be on when I wasn't applying them. Sure enough...I pumped the rear brake a bunch of times, finally got the tail brake light to go out, and the cruise control has worked fine since. I have no clue why the brake lights were on like that. No fuse problems or anything else that I could identify.

With the recall that was just announced, I wonder if that may have something to do with my cruise control problem since the recall is directly related to the rear brakes from what I remember.

Thanks for the feedback/input all. Keep it coming. This HD was by far the best darn present I've ever given myself!!!

 

[09RG/92spster]

Thanks for your service MJanusz,
My 09 road glide had a problem with the cruise not canceling when pressing the back brake, front brake and clutch lever canceled it fine. Found out that the brake light did not come on either when pressing only the back brake. Dealer replaced the rear brake switch and works fine now.
Russell

 

[Gas Gauge]

....A few weeks ago I went to a gig in Austin, about 60 miles from the house, and drove the Trike. The cruise control wouldn't work for anything! I started messing around looking for anything that might be causing the cruise control to not function properly when I noticed my rear brake lights appeared to be on when I wasn't applying them. Sure enough...I pumped the rear brake a bunch of times, finally got the tail brake light to go out, and the cruise control has worked fine since. I have no clue why the brake lights were on like that. No fuse problems or anything else that I could identify.

With the recall that was just announced, I wonder if that may have something to do with my cruise control problem since the recall is directly related to the rear brakes from what I remember.

MJ: The symptoms you descride are exactly what takes place when the rear brake switch that is under recall fails as further described in the thread you are referring to (follow link).

Recall!! - Harley Davidson Community

To be certain your trike falls under the recall go to the Harley-Davidson Recall website and enter your VIN (you may have to go through the sign-in process if you haven't already)

Service Recalls for H-D Owners | Harley-Davidson USA

and THANK YOU! (for your service...caps intended, not shouting just saying loudly!)

 

[MJanusz]

I have that same problem right now. Good! When I bring it in for the recall, I can have them replace that switch for me. Great stuff Bradah! Thank you very much!

 

[cidl]

thank u for my freedom, and sorry u paid such a price for it. i've been riding the 09 tri-glide for a couple yrs now. every so often we need to readjust the clutch; and when adjustment is off it definitely works best shifting b4 stopping. but when it is adjusted correct, it slips rite into nuetral. many happy trails to u.

 

[NEWHD74FAN]

MJ...thank you for your service...! I would go with the brake switch recal replacement, fluid change (make sure it is not over filled), and clutch freeplay adjusted properly to about 1/8" cold. Finally a trick from the ol' rider playbook. Shift into neutral while bike is moving slightly so there is less tension - gearset loading. :s