Update for anyone who may be following this.
I picked the bike up last Thursday. Dealer replaced the ABS modulator but was unable to test the ABS ecm as to why it did not throw a code or why the brake locked up in the open position.

The regional Harley Rep came out to pick up the defective part Friday. Now it is a waiting game for me. The dealer and Rep told me they will keep my posted with what they find.
They also told me they still have no idea what inside that Modulator broke, stuck or jammed. They also have no idea why there are no trouble codes or any signs that the system detected a problem.
And the biggest one of all, they have no idea why the front brake was rendered useless and stuck open.
I have a feeling I will never find out though. I suspect that the ABS ecm is also defective OR the system is just plain flawed in design.

I don't care what anyone says, NO ABS should ever be able to freeze up the brake on a motorcycle no matter what component or part failed.

If and when I get any information from HD, I will update this thread. Not holding my breath though based on my experience with HD customer service the last few days.

 

There's a couple of threads on another forum that seem to describe this same issue, only it's with the rear brake.

Neither of them have gotten an answer either. Might well be unrelated to your problem, though.

 

This should be reported to the NHTSA. It may be an isolated case, but it points to a design flaw that could affect many owners. If it happened on one bike, it can happen on others.

And the attitude that HD has is unacceptable. The apparent way they like to cover-up issues is also suspect in this case. It will be surprising if you ever learn the real truth. They will never come out and say it's a design issue. Money is way more important to HD than the lives and welfare of the riders of the bikes they sell.

But, as we have said and understood before, if we keep buying their ****, nothing will change. The only way to affect change with HD is to get into their pocketbook.

 

I would very much like to read up on this! Do you have any links? Or PM me with the furum name.
I have done a lot of internet searches and I haven't found an issue like the one I had.

 

Boy, i never expected to hear an ABS module failure.... It sounded like a brake master cylinder froze and the only reason why it was bleeding off was because it was bypassing internally or thru a failed seal/or the piston.

I will be watching this in hopes of hearing the truth. Not holding my breath for that! LOL!

 

Here is the invoice showing the part replaced.
They did try to isolate the front Master Cylinder before testing the ABS. I was told they swapped out the master cylinder from one off a new bike, they did that the day after I brought it in. Once they determined the master cylinder was not the problem, they had to wait and call Moco in Milwalkee to find out what to do next.
I don't know why the MC is not listed in the parts list but there is a brand new one on the bike, I had to readjust it once I got the bike home, it was not positioned quite right on the bars for me.

It is what it is and here is the invoice..........

 

This is exactly why I don't have my stuff worked on by anyone but me unless absolutely unavoidable.

The first step in understanding the cause of any problem is to have an understanding of the how the part, or the system, functions. It's obvious these guys don't - or if they do they're not sharing with you what they know. I'd lay my money on the former. Most (not all) of the "professional" mechanics working at HD know how to replace parts, but that's about it.

Bare with me... This next paragraph may seem off topic but if you read all the way through you'll see its relevance.

I had a warranty issue with the radio on my bike. I had done all of the troubleshooting to isolate the cause of the failure before ever taking the bike in to the dealer to have the radio replaced. When I was making the appointment I showed the service manager all of the tests I did, the results, and the fact that they all pointed to a radio defect. He was impressed with my troubleshooting prowess and asked that I show my results to the tech who was going to work on my bike. He also told me that even though I had run all of the necessary tests to isolate the cause as being the radio, they would still need to verify the issue before they could give me a new radio. That is perfectly understandable. What is not so understandable is that the tech working on my bike had no clue what the problem was. He did not run a single test, he only unplugged and re-plugged in connectors, swapped out all the speakers, wiggled the wiring harnesses, and scratched his head. After about an hour or two he said “looks like you need a radio”. No **** Sherlock!

Just thought I’d share that story so you could understand what you’re up against, in most cases (again not all), when having your bike worked on by someone else. Now back to the original purpose of this post.

There’s only two reasons the dealer’s service dept. or the HD rep can’t answer any of your questions. One, is because they don’t understand how the system works; two, is because they’re unwilling to share what they do know. Again I’d bet on the former.

I’m not even any kind of expert on ABS brake systems and I can tell you some probable causes and answers to your questions.

First, I’ll give them the benefit of doubt on not being able to identify exactly what the problem with the module is. That can only be determined by complete disassembly, even destructive disassembly may be necessary, but they should have an idea of what to be looking for before that disassembly begins. Otherwise they may never find the problem because they had no idea of what to even look for.

As for the front brake being rendered inoperative, the most likely reason I can think of is that the valve or port/passage within the module that directs the fluid to the front calipers is frozen in a closed position or otherwise restricted, respectively. With this valve frozen closed or port/passage otherwise restricted, no fluid (or fluid pressure) is able to activate the calipers.

As for the lack of any codes, I think this is due to the fact that whatever the actual failure turns out to be will be mechanical in nature. If the valves are all receiving the correct current a code would probably not be shown, but the valve(s) receiving the correct current could be mechanically inoperative. Maybe there is a machining chip or some other contaminant restricting flow in the system. These conditions would not show a code.

This is what they should be telling you, probable or likely causes, rather than “we have no idea”. No idea means they are haphazardly going about the failure analysis and may never determine the cause even if it's staring them right in the face. Kind of like the guy doing my radio – that’s why I included the radio story in this post.

Good luck.

 

at any point have you added brake fluid yourself? if so maybe contaiminated fluid. an open bottle of brake fluid will pull in moisture. Good luck

 

I have not touched any part of the brake system. The bike only had 1500 miles on it.

 

I agree with everything you said. Unfortunatly for me, I dod not have the tools or know how to tear apart my brake system.
But I still think that even thogh the valves are manual, I have seen the part and I am pretty sure the ABS elec. control module knows what possition the valves are in.
I wish I would have taken pictures of the failed abs module. It has 4 valves with plungers that stick out about 1-3/4" to 2.0" or so. Those plungers fit into 4 holes on the ABS elec module and they are fastenned together. The electric controle module activates the plungers to open and close the valves.
I held the ABS mudulator in my hands and it looked to me like one of the plungers was sticking out a 1/4" or so further than the rest of them. I would bet that the ABS knows when that plunger is sticking out too far indicating a valve closed or open and not where it is suppose to be. I beleive this would have to be a feature of the system just for the plain fact that if ANY valve stuck, it would result in the same failure I had. The system just has to know if a valve is stuck, no way anyone would design a system knowing if a valve failed, the whole system would fail.
So I beleive HD did take that into account when designing the ABS and I believe the ABS ecm on my bike is also bad based on this and the fact it did not throw a fault.
This is why I have been so **** about getting them to check this out further and not just let it be with swapping parts.

Here is a picture on the whole assembly.
found good pictures of it on ebay.......... http://www.ebay.com/itm/Genuine-Harl...dcc0aa&vxp=mtr


And here is the ABS electronic controle module. Not the 4 holes, this is where the plungers fit into....................
http://www.ebay.com/itm/HARLEY-DAVID...16ac29&vxp=mtr