When I was in my dealer getting the ignition switch swapped out, he had a couple of bikes in that were getting aftermarket work done. I asked the tech and he said, "If we do the work, we warranty it." I guess it isn't industry wide after all. As far as older bikes go, I put a new clutch basket in my 76 sportster and couldn't quite get it to work right. They adjusted it for me.

 

ANYTHING...car, truck or boat; they all have new models that need attention out of the box, fact of life. The 07 H-D's are NOT proned to alsways be in the shop. My 07 883R has over 5K on it in 2 1/2 months, rode like I stole it, nothing but "come on let's go...faster". Second, all dealerships are different. They are franchizes, they hire good and bad and anything in-between. Don't throw away the brand because one dealership says they won't work on your older H-D! Your letting a dealership that might be comprised of schmoe's didctate what you ride? Rider/owner loyalty?

 

My dealer has a sign that says they work on Shovels...I think it is $89 per hour. That doesnt mean they can find parts. Is this related to not finding parts for the 1995 bikes?

 

I agree with most of the posts on this topic. If you want good service, try an independant who owns his own business. It's in his best interest to give you 110% top notch service. The Harley dealers have some good techs and some bad ones and none of them are there because it's their own business. To most, it's a 9-5 job and thats it. Paying attention to detail is not in their vocabulary. True, there are some good ones out there, but many of them just don't care. With that said, go to someone who has an interest in making you happy. Most independant's care and will give you the service you desire...

 

I know the feeling..I bought a 91 Cadillac Allante a few years back and most local caddy dealerships won't work on em anymore - plus many parts are simply no longer available. I ended up getting most of my info online at the allante forum, buying parts on ebay or at scrapyards and did most of the work myself.



Pic of my Allante's engine from cadillacowners.com

 

Man, that's a really clean Caddy engine!

 

Thanks to all for not bashing me to hard over my vent job. Yes, there is at least one REALLY good small old timer outfit here in New orleans that I trust. They only do Harleys. Truth is, they want $250 more to do the full conversion than Harley charged one of my fellow riders. They are so good that it takes at least a month to get in and weeks to get out. What you get is more than worth it, and they are known for being able to build one from scratch - engine too.

It's more the principle of the thing to me. Why not recognize that old Harleys driving around promotes Harley sales? Big time.

 

blr....you're an arsonist at heart, aren't you?

 

No. I only burn trash