VehicleVerdict

Yamaha Road Star years to avoid

The Yamaha Road Star years to avoid are 2003, 2002, 2001 — each drew complaint volumes well above the model's norm or has an open safety investigation. The 2009 is the cleanest year on record.

326

Total complaints

3

Recall campaigns

1999–2009

Years covered

3

Years to avoid

Complaints by model year

Yamaha Road Star NHTSA complaints by model year105 complaints1999: 16 complaints2000: 19 complaints2001: 60 complaints2002: 88 complaints2003: 105 complaints2004: 23 complaints2005: 2 complaints2006: 3 complaints2007: 8 complaints2008: 1 complaints2009: 1 complaints
Yamaha Road Star NHTSA complaints by model year. Red bars are years to avoid.

Road Star years to avoid

YearWhyComplaints
2003High complaint rate105
2002High complaint rate88
2001High complaint rate60

Every Road Star year

YearComplaintsRecalls
200910
200810
200780
200630
200520
2004231
2003avoid1052
2002avoid882
2001avoid603
2000192
1999162

Common questions

What are the worst Yamaha Road Star years?

Based on NHTSA complaint rates and open investigations, the Road Star years to avoid are 2003, 2002, 2001. The cleanest year on record is 2009.

What is the best year for the Yamaha Road Star?

By complaint volume, 2009 has the cleanest NHTSA record among Road Star years with enough data to compare.

How many recalls does the Yamaha Road Star have?

Across all model years, the Road Star has 3 distinct NHTSA recall campaigns and 326 consumer complaints on file.

Based on NHTSA ODI data through June 2026. Complaints are consumer-reported and unverified. Updated July 5, 2026.

Compiled by Sharon Ben-Moshe, Founder.