Dealer. Harrumph.

BushrodW · 04-02-2004, 3:00 AM

start

So my wife wanted to take her bike (F4i) to the dealer she bought it from for the valve adjustment. Fine.

So I make a list of things, one of which was , measuring the cam lobes. So the service manager called checking that we wanted the cams taken out. Duh I thought and said nicely that the cams come off to get the valve lifters off to shim the valves. Yes, he said. But he had nothing to measure it against. I had to point him to the manual page where the service limit of the cam lobes is printed. Groan.

I asked him to do a visual inspection of the PAIR check valves in the valve cover. "What are those?" was the response. Groan again.

There's more but I'll spare you. You get the idea.

Jesus help us all.

end

Bushie

Zeeman · 04-02-2004, 3:04 AM

this happens way to much. Ask them if they are gonna check the distribulator before servicing next time. If they say "sure" then ya know to walk away...

z...

G-Force Junkie · 04-02-2004, 3:15 AM

don't forget to ask him to check the muffler bearings and top off the blinker fluid

HondaGalToo · 04-02-2004, 7:02 AM

Oh, man. I'd be telling them not to touch anything and I'd yank it right out of there.

CanyonCarver · 04-02-2004, 7:22 AM

Just one more reason to save your money by not spending it at the dealership. With the money you save, buy some nice tools, a service manual and a parts catalog, and do it yourself. It's the only way to get it done your way.

I'd rather ride than work on the bike, but I find I can't ride with confidence when someone else has worked on the bike. Know what I mean?

ND4SPD · 04-02-2004, 8:10 AM

Once again, this reminds me how lucky I am. Whenever I take my bike in, not only does it come back running perfectly fine, it's usually washed/polished up too.

Sorry about your lucky Bushie...Call Mother Honda, let them know.

djice929 · 04-02-2004, 11:57 AM

And that was the service manager that was saying that, imagine what the monkeys below him that are going to work on your bike are going to do.. i would have my hand out says "keys please!"

freq · 04-02-2004, 12:12 PM

how many miles on that f4i? and what is the first recommended valve inspection?

*Mo Noyz* · 04-02-2004, 1:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CanyonCarver

Just one more reason to save your money by not spending it at the dealership. With the money you save, buy some nice tools, a service manual and a parts catalog, and do it yourself. It's the only way to get it done your way.

I'd rather ride than work on the bike, but I find I can't ride with confidence when someone else has worked on the bike. Know what I mean?

VERY well said CC. I agree with your points 100%. I have ALWAYS worked on my own bikes, and for exactly the reason you state. I just don't feel as confident climbing on it when someone else has been fiddling with it. And thats simply because it isn't theirs, and I just don't trust that they will treat it with the same attention and respect as if it were. But I will.

A mechanic can screw up something on your car, and it may lead to an inconvenience for you. Someone screws up something on your bike and it could mean your life.

Extended warranty? Yeah right, I have no intention of using the original.

abtech · 04-02-2004, 1:42 PM

"Extended warranty? Yeah right, I have no intention of using the original."

Ain't that the truth.

Red Rider · 04-02-2004, 2:30 PM

What do you expect from a mechanic making minimum wage? I figure I'll attempt just about anything that has to do with my bike (other than forks). If I screw something up I can always resort back to the dealer to fix it.

*Mo Noyz* · 04-02-2004, 3:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Red Rider

What do you expect from a mechanic making minimum wage? I figure I'll attempt just about anything that has to do with my bike (other than forks). If I screw something up I can always resort back to the dealer to fix it.

Absolutely. And the parts department folk can sometimes be even worse. On one of my previous bikes I accidently snapped one of the holder guides by tightening it too much when I was reinstalling my carburetors. For those who don't know, a holder guide is a little plastic cap that holds your choke(a what?) plunger and spring in place on the carb. Just one quarter turn too much and snappy poo.

So I sat on the phone with this idiot from the nearest bike shop, which was the next town over AND a long distance phone call, for nearly 20 minutes. All the while trying to explain what I needed because he said that there was no such thing as a holder guide listed as a part for that bike. SO here I am on the phone saying "ok, you know where the choke is located? Now follow the cable down to the top of the carb.......". So after 20 minutes of this excruciating back and forth, and several bouts of being on hold, the guy finally comes back and tells me he found the part that I was looking for.

Naturally I ask him what it's called on their system. The answer?

A holder guide. Naturally

My buddy was in the same deallership a few weeks later to get a part that he needed for his bike which by some strange stroke of luck happened to be hanging on the wall behind the counter. So what was the response when he told the teenybop behind the counter what he was there for? "Hmmmm, we don't have any of those, I'll have to order you one". My buddy was so pissed that he let the poor bastard go through the whole process of ordering the part before he let him off the hook.

Fire929blade · 04-02-2004, 7:03 PM

I back most of you guys up on most of the things you say about servicing your bikes at authorized dealers.. I have done it once (first service on my first new big bike,a SV650s about five years ago...) I picked up a bike covered in grease/finger prints, scratched frame etc. I bought a manual and did the work myself after that experience.. When it comes to the guys that has to deal with parts, I am nothing but SORRY.. The dudes that work with parts are usually great guys that want to do a great job, but nobody seems to appreciate what they do.. (This is how it is where I live, and I have no idea of how it is "over the pond" ) They never get invited to model update "class" thingies (sorry, I don't know the right words..) They need guidance from people that have dealed with the item in question to find the right part... No way a good old parts dude can locate a rubber grommet or whatever in a system he/she has never heard of or does not know where is situated on a bike without help.. Just my one cent

I've had to much tonight, ..........

The Sook · 04-02-2004, 7:35 PM

You just gotta find the right dealer to take it to. I know that can be hard, but word of mouth is a good tool for it. ALL mechanices make mistakes, at times, as did the guy above saying he broke the holder or whaever. But with a good mechanic, there are things that get done in the service that may or may not be in the service book, that get overlooked by most people when they do it themselves.
As for parts, it's a hard job, coz everyone calls parts by different names, and they swear to god that the part they need is "X" part from a "Y" model bike, until it comes in and it ain't right. The dealer is stuck with the part. As usual, there are 3 sides to every story. BUT, for the mechanics, find another dealer.

djice929 · 04-03-2004, 8:13 AM

I wont go to the local honda dealer, they are horrible.

I take mine to the local buell/ducati dealer.. The owner does alot of the work on the bikes in the shop, and always watched over his mechanics. its a family run business where they go out of their way to get you parts in a hurry, or even get your bike into the shop that day if its something he can do real quick,, excellent customer service. most of the big four japanese bike owners take their bikes to him. just check around

Nillotuc · 04-03-2004, 8:53 AM

Sadly the parts counter at a lot of dealerships are filled with, well lets just say people that could have spent more time reading if they were not riding the short bus to school licking the fog off the windows. But is it their fault or the GM's fault for letting that kind of inexperience take the helm.

Mangina · 04-03-2004, 9:58 AM

Whats an F4i?

Sincerely,

Your dealer.

The Sook · 04-04-2004, 11:52 PM

F4i = "Fixing nut 4 (for) the Injector plugs" . I think. Hahahahaha

ratter · 04-06-2004, 7:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Sook

As for parts, it's a hard job, coz everyone calls parts by different names, .

I used to work in a dealership that used to sell jeep cars, to cut a long story short, I needed a new ashtray for one of the cars, so off to spares I go, the parts guy looks up his books but to no avail, nothing under ash, nothing under tray, after several parts guys examining the books, it's finally found under "reciever...Ash"