Crashes Spur Triumph Motorcycle Suspension Class Action

A California man says that he needed an ambulance after a structural failure while riding his Daytona 675 bike and is seeking damages in a new Triumph motorcycle suspension class action lawsuit.

Lead plaintiff Craig R. Duttweiler alleges that in February 2014, he was riding his motorcycle when the drop linkage plates failed, a purported Triumph motorcycle suspension defect, causing the rear of the bike to drop down on the rear tire. He lost control of the motorcycle, fishtailed and then it left the road. An ambulance transported him to the hospital for treatment.

Two months later, an engineer retained by Triumph who examined the damage allegedly told the man that “the plates were defective and that the material used — a cast aluminum — was likely too brittle and not sufficiently ductile for the … purpose.” The drop linkage plates act to provide additional support for the rear suspension so that the shock absorber can travel independently. Without it, the assembly allegedly sits on the rear tire, making it difficult for it to rotate properly.

Duttweiler alleges that Triumph knew of the defect in 2006, 2007, 2008 and early production models of the 2009 Triumph Daytona 675 and Street Triple 675 motorcycles because “multiple customers have reported these issues to Triumph[,]” and in 2009, “Triumph corrected the suspension defect by switching from the defective cast aluminum plates to milled steel plates.” According to the Triumph Daytona class action lawsuit, they had known of reports as early as 2007, the year Duttweiler purchased his motorcycle.

Instead of notifying owners, Triumph has not done anything regarding the drop linkage plates, even though company employees at a dealership saw that the holes in the one damaged prior to the man’s collision were “distended and elongated” prior to the fracturing, according to the Triumph motorcycle suspension class action lawsuit.

As a result, the class action lawsuit seeks certification of a group of “all persons in the United States who are current owners of a 2006, 2007, 2008, or 2009 Triumph Daytona 675 or Triumph Street Triple 675 motorcycle, and all former owners of a 2006, 2007, 2008, or 2009 Triumph Daytona 675 or Triumph Street Triple 675 motorcycle (the ‘Class’) who paid for repairs or whose motorcycles were damaged as a result of the Suspension Defect as defined herein; and (ii) all members of the Class who are consumers as defined by [California’s Consumer Legal Remedies Act].”

The putative Class is represented by Michael F. Ram and Susan S. Brown of Ram Olson Cereghino & Kopczynski LLP and Richard Alexander and Annie Wu of Alexander Law Group.

The Triumph Motorcycle Suspension Class Action Lawsuit is Craig R. Duttweiler v. Triumph Motorcycles America Ltd., Case No. 3:14-cv-04809, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.