American electric bike manufacturer Brammo->ke3399 is the latest company to get bitten by the recall bug. This time around, the company is planning to recall a handful of its Empulse and Empulse R models made between November 19, 2012 to July 8, 2014 over problems involving the gearbox.

According to a memo issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the problem with the gearbox of the Empulse is serious enough that the bike’s transmission breather tube may blow onto the rear fender and the tire. In the event this happens, oil could drip into the rear tire, which could lead to the tire losing traction and setting up the increased likelihood of a crash happening.

All in all, Brammo indicated that a total of 149 units are affected by the issue and owners of these bikes are being encouraged to bring their bikes to Brammo dealers. These bikes will be tested and if it’s discovered that they’re experiencing the problem, engineers will install a new transmission breather baffle kit at no cost to the bike owners.

The recall starts today, February 12, 2015 so if owners believe that their bikes are having problems, they’re free to contact Brammo’ customer service.

Click past the jump to read more about Brammo's recall of its Empulse and Empulse R bikes.

Why it matters

Things like this shouldn't be worth repeating because it's serious enough that people should only need to be told once before they understand the gravity of these situations.

But like I've always said, recalls are important. They may be annoying to a lot of riders who have models that have been subjected to these recalls in the past, but if a manufacturer believes that a problem is serious enough to justify a recall, then owners should just understand the situation and get their bikes fixed at the earliest possible time.

The Brammo recall looks pretty serious, especially if it involves oil leaking out into the rear tire, something that riders won't be able to notice when they're riding on the road. A slippery rear tire is a recipe for disaster, not matter how good a rider is at avoiding crashes like this.

So to avoid a situation like this from happening, it's incumbent upon riders to address the issue before something worse happens.