DETROIT, March 23 (Reuters) - The Audi division of Volkswagen AG (XETRA:VOWG.DE - News) is recalling nearly 173,000 vehicles sold in the United States because of potential fires in the driver's-side dashboard area, federal safety regulators said on Tuesday.

An advisory on the Web site of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the problem, caused by an electrical short, stemmed from a component that was interfering with the headlight switch wiring harness.

NHTSA said 172,866 vehicles affected by the recall included the Audi A6, S6 and Allroad Quattros from the 1998-2004 model years.

Audi has received 19 complaints of dashboard fires in the vehicles subject to the recall, according to NHTSA, but there were no apparent reports of accidents or injuries.

Separately, NHTSA said Harley-Davidson Inc. (NYSE:HDI - News) was recalling 73,678 of its 2001-2003 model year FL Touring and Police model motorcycles sold on the U.S. market because of a potential circuit breaker defect.

In a letter to NHTSA dated March 17, the motorcycle maker said an unspecified glitch can cause the main circuit breaker to open inadvertently. This can unexpectedly shut down all electrical power to the motorcycle, possibly resulting in a crash, it said.

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