The 1997 Buell S3 has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 4,724 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 9 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the unknown or other. Last updated July 5, 2026.
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: MOTORCYCLES. FAILURE OF ONE OR MORE TURN SIGNAL LAMPS WOULD NOT BE INDICATED TO THE OPERATOR OF THE VEHICLE (NO NOTICEABLE CHANGE IN THE FLASHING RATE OF THE TURN SIGNAL INDICATOR LIGHT). THIS DOES NOT MEET THE REQUIREMENTS OF FMVSS NO. 108, "LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED…
AN OPERATOR WOULD NOT BE AWARE THAT THE TURN SIGNAL LAMPS WERE NOT WORKING.
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE TURN SIGNAL LAMPS ON THESE MOTORCYCLES.
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“Latch mechanism for saddlebags broke. Yh”
“Latch mechanism for saddlebags broke. Yh”
“Latch mechanism for saddlebags broke. Yh”
“Transmission sprocket shearing off. Yh”
“Swingarm bushings let go causing swingarm shift and engine shift too and problems shifting into gear. Yh”
“Continued electrical problems with head and tail lights being out. Yh”
“Continued electrical problems with head and tail lights being out. Yh”
“High beam indicator failed. Yh”
TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEM DESCRIBED ABOVE, BUELL IS RECALLING THOSE FUEL-INJECTED MOTORCYCLES THAT IT BUILT WITHOUT A THROTTLE CABLE CONTROL CLAMP.FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS SUBJECT, PLEASE REFER TO THE MEMORANDUM ENTITLED THE SCOPE OF BUELL'S SAFETY RECALL, 03V-427 COPY ATTACHED.
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1997 Buell S3 as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.