What breaks most · 2002 to 2008 model years
Honda VTX1800 problems by year
Owners have filed 132 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Honda VTX1800 across model years 2002 to 2008. Three years stand out: 2002 for suspension complaints, 2003 for powertrain and transmission complaints and 2004 for powertrain and transmission complaints. The quietest years are 2005.
- Years to check closely: 2002, 2003, 2004
- Fewest complaints: 2005
- Complaints on file
- 1322002 to 2008, all trims
- Worst year
- 200263 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 30 fires · 3 injuries · 2 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 14kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 3Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 63 | 2 | 3 | Suspension (14) | |
| 53 | 1 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (18) | |
| 6 | 0 | 0 | Powertrain and transmission (4) | |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | Wheels (1) | |
| 5 | 0 | 0 | Visibility (1) | |
| 2 | 0 | 0 | Engine (1) |
What fails on the 2002 Honda VTX1800
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SuspensionStruts, springs and control arms | 22% |
14 | 0 | Shop all suspension parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Powertrain and transmissionTransmission parts | 21% |
13 | 1 | Shop all powertrain and transmission parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Engine and coolingRadiators, thermostats and cooling | 14% |
9 | 0 | Shop all engine and cooling parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Body and structureDoors, latches and body hardware | 13% |
8 | 0 | Shop all body and structure parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Wheels | 10% |
6 | 0 | — |
| Unknown or other | 5% |
3 | 0 | — |
| Tires | 5% |
3 | 0 | — |
| SteeringPower steering pumps, racks and hoses | 3% |
2 | 0 | Shop all steering parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
1. Grinding noise in rear 2. Flange bearing completely destroyed 3. Bearing replaced at dealer(have old bearing in hand).
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Rear drive side flange bearing total failure 4 times before 30000 miles. Bearings totally ground down and rough. T $220.00 a pop, it is becoming expensive and an imminent danger to all riders. *js
-
Flange bearing failure, totally disintegrated. No advanced warning. Was in process of replacing rear tire. 12,400 miles on a 2004 HONDA vtx took hours to remove shredded metal. Replaced with repaired unit.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Honda VTX1800 years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2002, 2003, 2004 carry the most filings on the Honda VTX1800. The 2002 alone has 63 complaints, led by suspension.
What is the most common Honda VTX1800 problem?
On the 2002 model year, the most-reported component is suspension with 14 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Honda VTX1800 problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Honda VTX1800 complaints that include mileage is about 14,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.