Honda Fury Problems: 4 Known Issues (Explained)

The Honda Fury rolls out of the factory looking like a chopper.

It looks like it belongs in a show from a distance with a teardrop-like gas tank that swoops down to its long fork.

So we get that it’s fun to look at, and Honda built its moto-rep on reliability, so what’s the catch?

We’re here to dive into the four most common problems with the Honda Fury.

Table of Contents

1. Mysterious White Crystals in Fuel

This may sound like a joke, and it’s become one in plenty of forums, but when riders notice their engine performance dipping, or when they catch themselves saying things like “my bike runs out of gas in hot weather,” the laughter winds down.

The likely cause for the dip in performance and gas mileage is a clogged fuel filter.

The filter that was originally came with the Fury was round and sat at the bottom of the pump. What they put there now is square and stands up vertical in the pump.

Honda was aware that the old one was having issues, so they distributed kits to the dealers and told them to convert the fuel pumps of any Fury riders who experienced these symptoms with the type B Fuel Filter.

I suggest getting your hands on the new type of conversion kit to anyone doing a filter replacement.

Now for the mysterious part.

When owners got into the fuel pump to examine a clogged filter, they’d often encounter little white kernel-like pieces, and some say they were crystallized.

Nobody knows exactly what the Fury’s mystery substance was; some people think ethanol in the gas would crystalize on hot days, clogging the fuel pump.

Others infer that it’s just an inadequately fabricated fuel pump.

To this day, there are still debates on fury forums about whether it’s crystalized ethanol or the inner walling of the fuel pump itself chipping off humid weather.

We can’t help diagnose the mysterious filter clog, but we can share some instructions on replacing the fuel pump:

Remove the left side panel in which the pump is enclosed.
Remove the rear seat and rear fender.
Remove the rear wheel.
Remove the mono-shock suspension.
Unplug the electrical pump connector.
Start the bike and let it idle until it stalls and cuts out.
Unhook the negative terminal from the battery.
Remove the fuel tank.
Release the quick-connect on the main fuel line to the pump, remove the lines, keep the quick connect covered with a cloth or plastic baggy.
Remove the two bolts with rubber grommets to take out the pump.
Install new pump.
Re-install the fuel tank and put some gas in it.
Turn on the key and let the fuel pump light go off. Do Not Start the bike.
Repeat this 3-4 more times to pressurize the pump.
Started the bike. Let it idle and check for leaks.
Reinstall mono-shock, wheel, fender, seat, and side panel.

This process takes a full day, requires special tools and the service manual. If your Fury needs to be swapped, we suggest taking it to the Honda dealership and have them swap it on the house.

Please also read our article about how long the Honda Fury lasts.

2. Uncomfortable Seat

This one is more a matter of taste than anything, but you hear a lot about it.

The seat that comes on the Fury is meant to emulate an old 70s chopper throne; it’s not what you’d probably consider comfortable, but to be fair, neither were the choppers Honda built this bike to emulate.

The Fury is about style more than comfort, a rarity for Honda. So if you’re in the market for a comfortable Honda, you are in luck because they have a myriad comfort-focused designs to choose from.

3. Fuel Tank Missing Welds (Solved via Recall)

At the end of 2017, Honda issued a recall on various 2017 Furies and any 2010 and 2016 Fury bikes requiring fuel tank replacement.

The issue? Owners and mechanics discovered several Honda Furies on the market with fuel tanks on them that were missing welds around their mounting brackets.

If the welds are missing, the mounting bracket can separate from the tank, letting fuel leak.

If a fuel leak was significant and the bike was hot enough, this could run the risk of a fire.

Honda notified dealers and owners and called Fury riders to have their tank welds inspected and replaced as needed.

Also read our article about common problems with the Honda CB650R.

4. Problems with Hard Starting

This is the gripe we’ve heard the loudest; the Honda Fury is notorious for hard starting problems.

For years, the culprit was debated as either a problem with the batteries installed at the factory or an issue with the starter.

We looked at a few trouble shooting cases to figure it out.

Let’s start with some symptoms.

One rider said his Fury had been sitting on the showroom floor for a full year with the OEM battery, assuming the guys at the dealership had rarely started the bike.

Almost immediately, this Fury owner started seeing the notorious hot-start issue he’d been warned about in the forums manifested right before his eyes.

The starter engaged, stalled, reset the clock, and finally turned over to start the bike.

Because of the confusing and compelling debate at the time between the cause of the problem, this Fury rider just chose to deal with the hard start.

When cold-starting, the bike got even lazier, too lazy to pull off the initial crank.

He started using a battery tender, but it didn’t change the hot-start slow cranking.

Eventually, even cold-starts became so sluggish that they too reset the clock after disconnecting the battery tender.

It was winter; I thought this was due to the cold climate united against him with the age of the battery. But the cold start got worse even when the weather got warm, and the rider finally considered it was his starter.

After installing the new starter, the cold-start was so quick it made the bike and the battery sound brand-new, and his hot starts were just as snappy, with no resets to the clock, and he still had the OEM battery the bike came with.

Another Fury owner replaced his battery twice and never saw a fix to the hard-start. He finally rolled his Fury through the dealership door and had them test the battery and the starter. The battery passed the test, but the starter test came with a reading that said “REPAIR.”

Eventually, Honda changed the part number of their starters, indicating a design change. Everyone that’s upgraded to the starter with the newer part number has reported that their hot-start issues have gone away, even noting a change in the starter’s sound once they, or their mechanic, had installed the new starter, a lack of the hesitation that the original starter was notorious for.

After reviewing the reports outlined above, I think it’s a safe bet that there was a problem with the original starter.

Make sure to also read our article about how long the Honda Rebel lasts.

General Pros and Cons for the Honda Fury

Here is a short list of the advantages and disadvantages of the Honda Fury:

Pros

The engine on the Fury is powerful but not big enough to intimidate casual riders away from mounting the stylish ripper.

It’s also a rare treat to rip a chopper that comes equipped with a computer-controlled fuel-injection system, combining the best of the modern basics with the stripped-down retro style.

The Honda Fury has the chopper looks at an affordable price, with modern technology that gets Honda’s signature stamp of reliability.

Cons

1. Mysterious Fuel Pump/Filter Issues
2. Uncomfortable Seat
3. Fuel Tank Missing Welds
4. Problems with Cold or Hard Starting

What Do the Reviews Say?

So even though the Fury looks like a chopper, sounds like a chopper (okay maybe the volume is turned down halfway due to the EPA-legal pipes) and when you sit on it feels every bit a chopper, when you hit the starter button you realize something is really different. The 1312cc, liquid-cooled, fuel-injected 52-degree V-Twin, snaps instantly to life and settles into the well-mannered, pleasant beat we’ve become familiar with in its VTX-sourced single-pin-crank engine. No backfiring flames from the carb, no rough idle, just a sweet thrum emitting from the stylish, stacked twin pipes.

First thing you notice after plopping yourself into the 26.7-inch-high seat is the riding position. Feet planted firmly on the ground, you reach out to grab the high bars, which allow a slight but comfortable bend at the elbows. The saddle is well contoured and offers good support, while the ergos offer good protection from the wind on the highway (even at 75-80 mph) due to the high steering head, gauge and headlight locations.

Source: cycleworld.com/

What’s the Resale Value of a Honda Fury?

Year	Mileage	Price
2020	3	$9,399
2019	178	$10,295
2016	1,526	$8599
2015	3,572	$7,999

Sources

https://www.cycleworld.com/

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ⓘ The information in this article is based on data from National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recall reports, consumer complaints submitted to the NHTSA, reliability ratings from J.D. Power, auto review and rating sites such as Edmunds, specialist forums, etc. We analyzed this data to provide insights into the best and worst years for these vehicle models.