Well, the oil thread got me thinking about this and I figured I'd put this up and see what everyone else thought on the topic. I am still amazed that 'HD Dealer installed' work/HD-brand parts/non-locale-based accessories (ie: in the harley book/available at harley-davidson.com) are not returnable, serviceable items at ANY dealership nationwide.(ie: a pair of HD brand boots,I got the wrong size for my woman,up in PA, well, sure as hell cant return those in VA even though they are listed in the catalog) How is it possible with the cost of these bikes that youCANT get dealer installed upgrades serviced under warranty at any dealership? For example, I had a rear turn signal come loose. So I took it to my local dealership, what did they say? well since I had the turn signal relocation kit installed because of the HD sissy bar they wouldnt warranty the work done by the other HD dealer!!! Insane to me. I own a GM car, if I take it to any dealership around the U.S. it will be serviced under warranty so long as all parts in question are GM-brand accessories/parts. I know these dealerships are privately owned, but this is the worst part of owning a Harley by far in my mind. To keep this thread Softail related, I have a 05 Night Train and im getting ready to install my hooker troublemaker darksides this weekend

 

not always, i am a tech at a gm dealer.........for example some kid complained about a clunking noise while shifting in his puddle-jumper/rice-burner with aftermarket motor mounts..........
long story short, the motor mount bolts were beyond loose....car was well within warranty..........charged him 1/2 hour to tighten the bolts

now i agree with your assessment, but how do you think big companies get big?
i'm not saying its right and i am certainly not defending it, its just the way it is

 

kinda missed your point about GM parts in a GM car..............sorry
i see what your saying now

usually with cars tho, factory parts are installed without deviating from stock design

i've been wondering the same thing myself

 

Yeah I hear ya, you cant take into account everything someone might do to their vehicle, even with HD-branded parts. But they should be able to see what was installed by a dealer (via databases of the bikes sold/modified/serviced around the U.S.). And when something goes wrong, ANY dealer should be able to fix it, I shouldnt be forced to ride to the dealer across town where I had the work done. Point being, it was done via a certified HD MoCo shop, the work should be under warranty at any other HD MoCo shop. The accessories/clothes are the worst. Esp. if you ride all over and go to other dealerships, you best make sure you have the right size or like what you have bought or you will be paying for return shipping.

 

Yeah, HD dealers love to play the "blame game" and try to dodge anything that looks like warrenty. I work for a Toyota dealer now and the policy is: If I can find no external cause fot the damage, Fix it under warrenty!

One day a couple of months ago I walked out of Dealer "A" and a guy outside had a bike the same model and color as mine, I started talking to the guy and the story went like this:

well, I had dealer "A" do some handle bars. After that on the freeway at 60 ot 70 MPH the bike would run out of power, so I went to dealer B with the problem under warrenty and they said the I needed a SE stage 1 kit.

So the guy buys It! then pays and gose on the freeway on the way home and guess what, It still has the problem!

the guy gose back and complains, and they proced to give him the run-around.

and tell him to pound sand!


He gose back to dealer A with the same complaint. They tell him that dealer B is responsible cus they worked on it last. This time the guy gose Postal! and starts to cause a seen!

the GM comes down and tries to calm him down, and they got there Master HD tech out to look at it.

Come to find out the dealer A caused the problem to begin with, when they did the bars they sold the guy new cables, and had to pop the gas tank up to change out the thottle cable. Well the tech that did the install pinches the fuel line as he puts the guys bike back together!

All these dealers have alot to learn about customer satifaction!

 

They suck! You wanna talk about freaky crap? The dumba$$ that was running the construction crews that built my house is now a salesman at my HD dealer! He sucked then too! He is the perfect picture of a "never been around a bike" guy who grows a gotee and puts on a HD shirt to make a buck off the poor working bastards like us who have to deal with them because we love our bikes!


[IMG]local://upfiles/18505/15B07E1939E34F21B8480309FDF552D7.jpg[/IMG] <-----for the dealer[sm=smarty.gif]

 

this is what they mean when they say that owning a harley nowadays is being "fashionable"

what are you doing on a bike in the first place if you can tighten a blinker? I don't want/need any warranty on anything I own. If it breaks, I'll fix it. It amazes me that the number of folks who can't or won't even change their own oil any more. You call them stealers... wonder what they call people who can't tighten their own bolts now and then? RUB's?

 

"I know these dealerships are privately owned"

So are the GM dealerships you speak of ! ! !

 

IMO if it is a MOCO part installed by a MOCO dealership (I'm not talking aftermarket or home installed by an unknowledgeable rub) it SHOULD be warrantied by any dealer. The blame game is absolutely ridiculous. If you wantthisto stop here's my advice....

1. Have all your MOCO parts installed by someone else.
2. Do NOT buy back end products such as extended warranties...especially if you are planning big bore, pipes, pciii, etc.
3. Find a qualified tech outside the dealership for all service work. With all the custom shops, there are plenty out there.

If everyone did this WE wouldn't be paying $70 an hour for a "factory certified" tech who's work another dealer won't honor warranty on. I mean come on this dealer pissed a guy off over a tail light due to a re-location for another factory component...installed by a dealer. The way that reads to me is "HD dealerships don't hire qualified technicians but like to rape our customers $70 an hour"...this was not a big bore kit that went bad!!!!

Hit these dealerships in the pocketbooks! I shall now come down off my pedastal.

 

This is one of the reasons why I have never bought a new car or bike with a warranty, but I understand why people do, with the price of replacment parts or just the fact that the manufacturers seem to be pushing things out figuring that it's cheaper for them to fix it under warranty or that maybe the warranty will run out before it breaks and then the user has to pay to have it repaired.Like always it's us against them!