The direct answer to your question is NO. You can have the service done anywhere you want too. It's just live any other motor vehicle.

Harley Davidson would have to prove that you used the wrong products etc, and that those products caused the damage. If you used, oh lets say vegitable oil in your crank case then MoCo would have a case if your engine blew, but not if your paint started pelling off.

 

My picture in the sig should give you my answer.

 

I would let the dealer do the first service (1000) to make any warranty related adjustments and you can get a feel ofhow they willact if you have a warranty issue after you have added upgrades such as pipes,PC111, air, ect.
After the 1st one, do em yourself or at a local shop.

 

The service manual lays out the service schedule and procedures nice and neat in the first section.

 

I thought you were just cleaning it!!!!

 

I don't know the number or name, but the feds years ago mandated that you do NOT have to take any motor vehicle (including motorcycles) back to the dealer for general service maintenance.
You can take it to anybody (preferably qualified) for service or do it your self.
You can buy your service material (oil, filters, plugs etc) from any place you desire.
However, they MUST meet of exceed the manufacturers service warranty.
I buy my oil filters at the local supply auto store (napa and carquest) and my oil too.
I get the valvoline syntheic blend or full synthetic or the same in castrol. Been doing that since I started riding, ' course back in the '60's didn't have synthetics to the public.
My air filter is a washable K&N.
You need to keep receipts for proof of purchase of the materials, and document the service in the owners manual.
Dealer will accept it, for warranty issues.

 

My bike has never seen the service department at any dealer...........and hopefully never will.

I don't trust anyone to work on my bike, I do all work myself in my own garage. Way too many horror stories of dealers messing up people's bikes and even indy's messing up people's bikes for me to let it happen to myself.

Steve

 

Thats was my train of thought.
Let the dealer do my 1000...........now when I ride by, I just wave

 

Thanks for all the replies. I have been taking my FLHTC to Fosters H-D in Tuscumbia Al. He was only charging me 147 and some change for services. It pays for 6 qts and filter and 1 hr labor so I know everything could not be getting done. At first I was thinking I thinking if anything went wrong they would be liable. But I thought more I would be without my bike to get something fix if they did something wrong.

 

I'm not even comfortable with them doing the pre-sale prep, let alone service work later. If I could talk them into giving me the bike in the crate I would do it. Did the 1000-miler myself over a period of about two weeks, one item at a time when I felt like it. Heard too many horror stories and don't trust anyone else working on my bike, even though I haven't heard anything negative about the locals lately. By doing it myself I'll know what's done and how, and it will probably be right since I won't get in a hurry and I'm not too proud to check the service manual if in doubt. If I had them do it I would check or redo everything anyway, so I might as well just do it myself. How do you know for sure they did anything? You could mark the oil filter but what about anything else?

Though everyone is doubtlessly tired of hearing about it by now, my last bike ('96 RK) only saw the shop twice in 106k miles--once to install chrome lower legs, as at the time I didn't feel like it and I knew a reliable mechanic at the local dealer, and at 85k miles it needed a primary-to-engine seal, which required removing the compensator nut. I didn't have a socket big enough, so I just had the same guy do it, who always does it right. He's working at a satellite store 35 miles away now, so I'm in the cold again.