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[Nicky Pass]

I have been reading more and more quality issues on CVO Harleys (which I've never owned before).  Paint peeling, rust under paint, engine paint flaking off, gas cap trim rings falling off, chitty pin striping, lack of exhaust....a lot of stuff that makes me feel like owning this bike may become a headache.  I could sell my 9 mile, never really ridden Breakout for $30-35K and just buy a regular HD....Road King Classic or Anniversary Fat Boy Lo and not have the quality control issues of owning a hand made....but poorly quality controlled motorcycles.

Maybe I should not read the problem threads....but then again, there isn't a lot of things to do during Chicago winters with a foot of snow on the ground.

[ultrarider123]

Nicky, I was in the same boat March 2012 when I bought Ginger.  She is my 11th Harley and my first CVO.  First scooter was my dad and my 1972 Electra glide.  Had all kinds through the years and trouble/issues/problems on all of them in some form or another.  My 1997 Ultra, on the way back from a Sturgis trip, I rode from Louisville, KY to Lexington KY with my hand on the ignition switch (the center switch on the faring) so it would keep running.  Had it fixed under a recall at Lexington dealer (on a Saturday afternoon no less...) and got home.  My 1995 Ultra had a miss (only on left hand turns...go figure) that took me a week to diagnose (another Sturgis trip) and finally as we were headed into Canada, I'd had enough.  Called the closest dealer (Bozeman, Montana) told me I was the 5th person to have this issue.  The factory forgot to shield the wires from the computer to the ignition.  Sure enough, one of the wires had rubbed and was shorting out on the block when I would do left hand turns.  A little electrical tape and ran like a top for the next 25K miles I had it (with 10 carb rebuilds, a new SE coil and LOTS of choice words during the 5 days of diagnosis).
2009 SG had some ignitions problems, wife's 2009 1200 sportster custom had some fuel injection problems.  Yep, had some issues with my current CVO in a couple program recalls and wife's 2011 Super Low had a couple recalls.
Saying all of that, you won't be going away from problems going back down to a standard bike.  My experience says they all will have some kind of issue.  HOWEVER, with all the problems over the years, I've never been stranded anywhere on an HD.  Cussed more than I should (sorry Lord) but still made it where I was headed, never trailered or been stranded on the side of the road.  Best of the bunch?  Tie between my current CVO and my 1994 FXSTC with that old shovel not far behind.

Keep the CVO, brother and ride (when the snow melts and the salt it gone... )

[Charlie]

I have been reading more and more quality issues on CVO Harley's (which I've never owned before).  Paint peeling, rust under paint, engine paint flaking off, gas cap trim rings falling off, chitty pin striping, lack of exhaust....a lot of stuff that makes me feel like owning this bike may become a headache.  I could sell my 9 mile, never really ridden Breakout for $30-35K and just buy a regular HD....Road King Classic or Anniversary Fat Boy Lo and not have the quality control issues of owning a hand made....but poorly quality controlled motorcycles.

Maybe I should not read the problem threads....but then again, there isn't a lot of things to do during Chicago winters with a foot of snow on the ground.

Stick with the CVO! only when you get out and ride it will you know the difference, do yourself a favour and after a couple of months of riding it, go a test ride a Fat Boy! you will feel where your $ went! not just power, just different!!! Stick with it and enjoy....
Good Luck,

[SBB]

and not have the quality control issues of owning a hand made....

Who told you that it was handmade?

 

SBB

[Nicky Pass]

Who told you that it was handmade?

 

SBB

The tins are hand painted...and that seems to be where the problems are coming from....

[110tHunDer]

 
To answer your question, yes.  You can psych yourself out of anything if you want to.  You are worrying about things that haven't even happened yet and may not ever happen to your particular bike.  If everyone did that, there wouldn't have been anymore 110s sold after 2007.  Drink a few beers or do whatever you do to relax.  Spring will be here soon.

[Twolanerider]

Most of the QC issues described are not specific to the CVO bikes.  The problems are far more systemic.  If you like the Breakout and plan to keep any Harley might as well keep the Breakout.  The standard production bikes have just as many problems.

[Nicky Pass]

I reall like to think that mine won't have any issues, but I just feel that they dropped the ball on quality.  Over $26K for something with only 2 wheels.....It should be top notch.

[Layin the Pipe]

Breakout is a damn smooth ride.  Even if I have to hassle with issues as they come up I'm keeping mine.  Try buying a standard bike and customizing it yourself. You will spend more than 26k.

[Z06_Pilot]

yes, I agree it does suck that there are paint issues with the Breakout(mine have been documented elsewhere on this site).  And yes, the tins are all hand finished which should provide a high quality product....but alas, that appears not to be the case.  It is unusual here since it might not be HD at fault, but the Gunslinger folks in Colorado who were contracted by HD to to the actual paintwork, from my understanding.

however, the Breakout is a very unique bike in many ways.  for me, the only air-cooled bike from HD I will ever own is a Softail, and we may not see anything like the Breakout for a good while.  Nothing looks, rides, feels, or handles like an HD Softail....nothing.  And yea, for $26k, I would expect ultimate quality, but as pricing goes, we all know the Breakout is a steal(based on what it would cost to take a "standard" Softail and build it up to a Breakout).

Now, in my case, I lowered my expectations when I bought this bike.  I did the same thing when I bought my Z06.  Let's face it, HD and Chevrolet never appear anywhere near the top of anyone's high quality list, so I assumed I would have problems with both of them when I bought them, and set my mind that I would deal with the hassle of making regular trips to their service departments to have their "fix-it-in-the-field" mentality defects rectified.  Neither company is a Honda or Toyota in the initial quality department.

If virtually hassle-free ownership was my goal, I would have bought a Honda VTX1800 when I got my first Softail in 2008, and would probably never have to step foot into a dealer's shop except for routine maintenance.....but, I would be riding a VTX1800  

I will say this however.  I have owned 3 V-Rods, 1 Sportster, and 2 Softails(including my Breakout).  I have never had a single mechanical or electrical problem with any of them....only bothersome fit/finish issues.  I can say the same for my car.  After 8 years of ownership, only a water pump has needed to be replaced, so thus far, both companies are exceeding my expectations !

Also, I bought the 5 year extended warranty for this reason as well(7 years, including the initial 2 year factory warranty) .  If my fit/finish issues become bad enough, and I bug the MoCo long enough, they will fix them, IMO. My expereience thus far has been they fixed the issue with no questions asked....we will see how long that continues.  

[Z06_Pilot]

Maybe I should not read the problem threads....but then again, there isn't a lot of things to do during Chicago winters with a foot of snow on the ground.

yes, this is true as well.  it's easy for us to get caught up with problem threads and think all the examples will be like that.  there are hundreds of CVO's out in the field by now I would think, but only a small fraction of that number post on this site, and very few ever post "hey, just wanted to let everyone know I have a (enter model type here) and there is absolutely nothing wrong with it"  !!

[Nicky Pass]

My 2011 Deluxe was great on fit and finish....the 2012 FLHX was about 95% great.....I'm just over thinking, but it (paint and fit and finish) is an issue.

[CVOBreak]

I know you read my post about the paint issues and I was really upset after it first apeared. That being said, I would never think about getting rid of my Breakout. I live in NE Ohio and its cold and snowy.
i probably wouldn't have so much time to stress over the little things if I was actually riding. I traded a mint condition 07 FXSTC in on the breakout and let me tell you it had all the extras you can imagine. even so, I never looked back. Spring is just around the corner and a few hrs. riding will melt away the bad feelings just like the snow. all in all the Breakout is an awesome looking/performing/riding machine. It is the first year of a new model and the parts like aftermarket exhaust will catch up soon.

My wife reminds me all the time to stop stressing and if something goes wrong, well thats what the warranty is for.

[cbdeluxe]

I had paint issues with my breakout as well, But I chalked that up to custom paint that in my opinion would probably have some human errors. The paint that
comes directly from the factory I don't think is done by hand so less chance of defect. But that being said I had a few defects in paint on my 2012 FLHX
but those IMHO happened during assembly. But just because I had a small paint defect which the MOCO fixed instantly, I would not get rid of this bike
just for that reason.

[jamnflhxse2]

Keep it - ride it - enjoy it!!!