Harley-Davidson Fat Bob
Real ownership data from 3,884 UK Fat Bob motorcycles — mileage, MOT pass rates and the faults that actually come up, taken from DVSA test records rather than opinion.
Most common Fat Bob problems
Ranked by how often each fault appears in this model's MOT history.
| Fault | Severity | Share of faults |
|---|---|---|
| Lights and indicators | dangerous | 6.4% |
| Brakes | fail | 2% |
| Tyres | dangerous | 1.1% |
| Steering and head bearings | dangerous | 0.8% |
| Exhaust and emissions | major | 0.7% |
| Suspension | dangerous | 0.7% |
| Brake discs and pads | dangerous | 0.6% |
| Other | fail | 0.5% |
Advisories (wear noted but not failed) are excluded above; the most common is lights and indicators.
Fat Bob mileage and reliability by year
Use this to judge whether a specific bike is high or low mileage for its age.
| Year | Examples | Median mileage | Miles/year | First-time pass |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 20 | — | — | — |
| 2024 | 163 | — | — | — |
| 2023 | 137 | 3,270 mi | 903 | 95.38% |
| 2022 | 157 | 3,626 mi | 700 | 91.32% |
| 2021 | 211 | 5,762 mi | 888 | 91.99% |
| 2020 | 203 | 6,592 mi | 852 | 90.87% |
| 2019 | 443 | 8,078 mi | 991 | 90.82% |
| 2018 | 469 | 9,101 mi | 935 | 90.64% |
| 2017 | 236 | 10,159 mi | 993 | 90.24% |
| 2016 | 125 | 11,272 mi | 1,033 | 90.28% |
| 2015 | 217 | 13,266 mi | 1,066 | 87.01% |
| 2014 | 267 | 13,074 mi | 1,020 | 87.62% |
| 2013 | 234 | 13,308 mi | 1,000 | 89.29% |
| 2012 | 131 | 15,709 mi | 1,093 | 88.83% |
| 2011 | 218 | 13,809 mi | 869 | 87.75% |
| 2010 | 187 | 16,268 mi | 1,121 | 89.06% |
| 2009 | 160 | 15,411 mi | 934 | 87.29% |
| 2008 | 224 | 16,390 mi | 882 | 87.09% |
| 2007 | 78 | 15,069 mi | 841 | 88.51% |
Fat Bob questions, answered with data
What are the most common problems with the Harley-Davidson Fat Bob?
Across 3,884 UK examples, the most frequently recorded MOT faults are lights and indicators (6.4% of all recorded faults), brakes (2% of all recorded faults), tyres (1.1% of all recorded faults).
What is average mileage for a Harley-Davidson Fat Bob?
The median Harley-Davidson Fat Bob in the UK has covered 9,722 miles, and typically rides about 971 miles a year. Half of all examples fall between 5,305 and 16,361 miles.
Is the Harley-Davidson Fat Bob reliable?
89.12% of Harley-Davidson Fat Bob MOT tests are passed first time, with an average of 0.59 faults recorded per test. This is measured from DVSA MOT records, not owner opinion.
Based on DVSA MOT test records for 3,884 Harley-Davidson Fat Bob motorcycles registered in Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.