Yamaha Royal Star Tour Deluxe: problems, complaints, bulletins

Summary for the Yamaha Royal Star Tour Deluxe across 1 model years: 5 owner complaints and 0 NHTSA service bulletins, plus repair videos. Pick a year for details.

Model years

Year	Owner complaints	involving a crash	Technical service bulletins (TSB)	YouTube repair videos
1997	5	0	0	0

What fails most often

1 Electrical system 60% of all complaints
2 Tires 40% of all complaints

Circle size and colour show each component’s share of NHTSA complaints. Schematic only, not a drawing of the exact model.

Electrical system: 3 complaints (60% of all).
Tires: 2 complaints (40% of all).

Symptoms owners describe

How many of the 5 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).

stalls while driving1 · 20%
jerking, harsh shifts1 · 20%

Components owners complain about

Component	Owner complaints	involving a crash	Technical service bulletins (TSB)
Electrical system	3	0	0
Tires	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.

I have had a problem with the ignition switch on my 1997 royal star tour deluxe. It would occasionally not make contact so the engine would start. Giggling the key would usually resolve the problem.
Electrical system · 1997 · 2010-06-09 · NHTSA complaint #10335496
Even jiggling the keys while bike is stalled, but still moving can bring the motorcycle back to life. The high possibility for danger occurs when the problem happens while on the highway, as it did with me. The engine stalled, and the bumpy road made the keys jiggle, which began a series of straying and stalling.
Electrical system · 1997 · 2010-03-22 · NHTSA complaint #10321380
About 30 mile north of beatty nv, I felt a "bump" and heard the thump and clank of something bouncing off the inside of the rear fender. I pulled over to inspect and could not locate any problems. I resumed my trip and experienced the same sound about 5 miles later.
Tires · 1997 · 2005-07-20 · NHTSA complaint #10129412
Fault ignition switch has an intermittent connection. This causes the motorcycle to loss power suddenly without warning.
Electrical system · 1997 · 2003-05-26 · NHTSA complaint #10019283
Rear tire has pin holes on the sidewall. Dealer has been contacted.
Tires · 1997 · 2000-04-03 · NHTSA complaint #859595

When owners complained

NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.

20001
20031
20051
20102

What to check before buying

Electrical system. Scan all modules, test the battery and alternator, inspect connectors near the impact zone.
Tires. Tire age by DOT code, bulges, wear pattern.

Other models of this make

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.