AI Damage2004 Honda VTX1800: common problems
Owners of the 2004 Honda VTX1800 filed 6 complaints with NHTSA, most often about powertrain and wheels. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 6
What fails most often
- 1 Powertrain 67% of all complaints
- 2 Wheels 50% of all complaints
- 3 Suspension 33% of all complaints
- Powertrain: 4 complaints (67% of all).
- Wheels: 3 complaints (50% of all).
- Suspension: 2 complaints (33% of all).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Powertrain | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Wheels | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension | 2 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
Final drive wheel bearing failure found during tire change. I understand this is commom failure on vtx1800.
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.
Change tire on 2004 honda vtx1800. Bad bearings in rear tire. The bearing flange was completely gone. Trying to find the best bearings right now to put back in. There is 22,000 miles on the motorcycle, did not notice the bad bearings the last tire change.
2004 honda vtx 1800c motorcycle with 57,000 miles. While replacing rear tire, I inspected rear flange bearing and by simple observation noted that about half the ball bearings were missing. First time failure on this motorcycle. Having the flange bearings and the main wheel bearings replaced with new bearings.
When my motorcycle reached 8,000 miles it had a high speed whine, when I had a new tire installed , I found the rear wheel bearings were in pieces. I now have 18,000 miles on it and again the bearings are out. I believe there is a problem that honda knows about .
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 13,278 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 36% most complained about).
On average one model year of the VTX1800 has 22 complaints (6 years in the data). This year has 6, below average.
What to check before buying
- Powertrain. Shift quality under load, harsh shifts, transmission codes, CV joints.
- Wheels. Wheel runout, cracks, signs of a wheel strike.
- Suspension. Wheel alignment, control arms, subframe, even tire wear.
Other years of this model
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 2004 Honda VTX1800?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: powertrain, wheels, suspension. Total complaints: 6. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: knocking, grinding or other noise (17%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 2004 Honda VTX1800?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 2004 Honda VTX1800 from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 2004 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.