What are the common problems with the 2002 Yamaha Road Star?
Owners of the 2002 Yamaha Road Star have filed 87 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the powertrain (82). In NHTSA's complaints file of November 11, 2026, 36 of them list a mileage; a complaint is an owner's report, not a proven defect.
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See what the paid report includes →NHTSA's file holds 87 owner complaints on the 2002 Yamaha Road Star. Owners named the powertrain most often: 82 complaints, and half of the 33 that list a mileage came after 6,100 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. None of the 87 complaints reports a crash, a fire or an injury.
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Common problems with the 2002 Road Star
NHTSA's file holds 87 owner complaints on the 2002 Yamaha Road Star. Owners named the powertrain most often: 82 complaints, and half of the 33 that list a mileage came after 6,100 miles. A complaint can name more than one component.
| Component (NHTSA category) | Complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Power Train | 82 | 33 | 6,200 |
| Electrical System | 1 | 1 | Under 5 mileages |
| Equipment | 1 | 0 | Under 5 mileages |
| Fuel System, Other | 1 | 1 | Under 5 mileages |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 1 | 1 | Under 5 mileages |
None of the 87 complaints reports a crash, a fire or an injury.
Mileage when owners reported a problem with the 2002 Road Star
The 36 mileages owners gave run from 1,000 to 67,000 miles. A quarter are at or under 3,200 miles, half at or under 6,000, three quarters at or under 11,000 and nine in ten at or under 19,342; none came after 100,000 miles, none after 150,000 and none after 200,000.
These mileages say when owners reported a problem, not when a 2002 Road Star wears out. NHTSA's file holds only vehicles whose owners complained; one that ran without a problem never appears in it, so it gives no lifespan and no cutoff, and how a vehicle was maintained matters more than any one odometer reading.
Most of these reports came early in the vehicle's life: all 36 came at or under 100,000 miles, so they say nothing about how many miles a 2002 Road Star can cover.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Lowest mileage listed | 1,000 miles |
| 25th percentile | 3,200 miles |
| Median (50th percentile) | 6,000 miles |
| 75th percentile | 11,000 miles |
| 90th percentile | 19,342 miles |
| Highest mileage listed | 67,000 miles |
| Complaints after 100,000 miles | none |
| Complaints after 150,000 miles | none |
| Complaints after 200,000 miles | none |
Is the 2002 Road Star a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2002 is a good or a bad Road Star: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2002 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file.
With 87 complaints, the 2002 ranks 2nd of the 6 Yamaha Road Star model years from 1999 to 2004 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2003 (105). The fewest: the 1999 (15).
Recent model years have had less time to collect complaints, so their counts are still growing. No year is ranked by mileage here, because a year's median mileage mostly follows its age.
| Model year | Owner complaints | Listing mileage | Median mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 Road Star | 15 | 7 | Under 10 mileages |
| 2000 Road Star | 18 | 9 | Under 10 mileages |
| 2001 Road Star | 57 | 16 | 8,200 |
| 2002 (this page) | 87 | 36 | 6,000 |
| 2003 Road Star | 105 | 38 | 4,000 |
| 2004 Road Star | 21 | 15 | 8,000 |
2002 Yamaha Road Star recalls
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 2 recall campaigns that name the 2002 Yamaha Road Star (1 vehicle campaign and 1 equipment or tire campaign that names this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
What these figures can and cannot tell you
- Complaints are owners’ reports to NHTSA. NHTSA publishes them without verifying them: a complaint is an allegation, not a defect finding.
- The mileage is what the owner wrote on the complaint; NHTSA does not check it against the odometer.
- The make, model and model year are the ones on the complaint. NHTSA records them as filed, so a few complaints sit under a model year the name was not sold in.
- They are not a lifespan study. The file holds only vehicles whose owners reported a problem, so these figures do not say how long a typical 2002 Road Star lasts.
- A complaint count rises with how many vehicles were sold and how long they have been on the road, so it is not a rating of the 2002 Road Star.
- Nothing here describes one vehicle: its title brands, odometer readings, accidents and open recalls are in the records for its own VIN.
- 51 of the 87 complaints on the 2002 Yamaha Road Star give no usable mileage (blank, zero, a filler such as 999999, or over 500,000) and are left out of every mileage figure.
- NHTSA name counted: ROAD STAR. NHTSA files some vehicles under several names (a series name and a trim name, for example); this page counts only this one.
- Recall-file name matched: ROAD STAR.
Primary sources behind this page
Open the underlying public source and verify that its scope matches the question you are asking.
- NHTSA complaints flat file (FLAT_CMPL.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Complaints file field layout (CMPL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recalls flat file (FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.zip), downloaded November 11, 2026National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls file field layout (RCL.txt)National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- NHTSA recall and complaint datasets: scope and documentationNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
- Recalls Lookup by VINNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration
NHTSA’s complaints file was downloaded on November 11, 2026 (FLAT_CMPL.txt, dated 2026-11-11 10:15, 2,265,416 rows), with its recall files (FLAT_RCL_PRE_2010.txt and FLAT_RCL_POST_2010.txt, dated 2026-11-11 08:02). Each complaint is counted once, by its NHTSA number, with the model year and mileage of its first row; a model year has a page only with 10 or more complaints. The collection script and its rules are in scripts/collect-nhtsa-model-year-longtail.mjs.
2002 Yamaha Road Star questions
What are the most common 2002 Yamaha Road Star problems?
NHTSA's file holds 87 owner complaints on the 2002 Yamaha Road Star. Owners named the powertrain most often: 82 complaints, and half of the 33 that list a mileage came after 6,100 miles. A complaint can name more than one component. None of the 87 complaints reports a crash, a fire or an injury.
At what mileage do owners report problems with the 2002 Yamaha Road Star?
Of the 36 complaints on the 2002 Yamaha Road Star that list mileage, the middle half came between 3,200 and 11,000 miles; none came after 100,000 miles, none after 150,000 and none after 200,000. These are mileages at a reported problem; they do not say how many miles a 2002 Road Star can cover.
Is the 2002 Yamaha Road Star a good year?
Complaint counts cannot say whether the 2002 is a good or a bad Road Star: they rise with how many were sold and how long they have been on the road. They show how the 2002 compares with the other model years in NHTSA's file. With 87 complaints, the 2002 ranks 2nd of the 6 Yamaha Road Star model years from 1999 to 2004 with 10 or more complaints, counting from the most. The most: the 2003 (105). The fewest: the 1999 (15).
How many recalls does the 2002 Yamaha Road Star have?
NHTSA's recall files of November 11, 2026 list 2 recall campaigns that name the 2002 Yamaha Road Star (1 vehicle campaign and 1 equipment or tire campaign that names this model year, often for aftermarket parts). A campaign covers a production range, not every vehicle of the model year: check the VIN with NHTSA's free recall lookup.
How do I check a used 2002 Yamaha Road Star before buying?
Take the 17-character VIN from the vehicle and compare the odometer with the readings on file for it: title transfers, inspections and auction sales record the mileage on the day. VIN Lookup (free-vin-lookup.com) sells the original ClearVIN PDF for $14.99 (3 reports for $29.99, 5 for $44.99): odometer readings, title brands and auction records on file for the VIN. Check the VIN before buying a used 2002 Yamaha Road Star.