My service nightmare

[sparky3008]

Pictures of the amazing brake job would be cool!

 

[Randy]

Not to worry, as I'm done offering advice in the forum anyhows. There's already plenty to be had.

Are the betting windows still open????

 

[FlyingLow]

Good luck, DB, I'm sure the dealership will make good on your brake issue.

Unbelievable. I actually feel sorry for the young guy that did the work, if he has to stand there with the service manager when the bike is brought in.

 

[benneyb]

FlyingLow,

Screw that. The kid should have at least asked someone to check his work if he had ANY doubt about what he did. If he didn't have any doubts, based on the description, he's too incompetent for mechanically related work.

We are the ones that pay hard earned money for substandard service - donaldb is the only wronged party here, and the one I feal sorry for.

 

[yamaholic]

I don't think the charges were out of line. You asked for quite a bit of service work to be done. Easy stuff, but still it takes time, tools, and shop space.

Now the brake issue is a whole different story. I work on bikes on the side, mostly for friends and FJR guys in my area, and ALWAYS check and recheck any and all bolts, fasteners, etc. And always do a test ride, too. The problem you are having no doubt should have been caught and fixed before you took possession. Shame on them for doing such shoddy work. I can't recall that I have made a mistake with working on other bikes, but if I did...I would fix it at any cost to maintain my integrity. Your dealer will likely do this as well.

Sounds like you need to invest in some tools and start rolling up your sleeves. Make a new riding friend in your area that can show you around the bike. Beer and pizza is a lot less than $500+

 

[markjenn]

Total screw up on the brakes. It takes a real tool to jam the brake rotor into the rear caliper and not notice (or care) that they didn't get the rotor between the pads. If the shop is reputable, they should put it good as new and I expect they will.

In total, given that you asked them to do a lot of work in some pretty deep recesses of your bike (swingarm bearings?), I don't think the charges are grossly out of line. It helps that their shop rates are relatively low. But the incompetence in the brake repair does call their competence on the whole job iinto question.

Calendar-based service is probably a good idea for stuff involving fluids (engine oil, coolant, brake fluid, etc.), but for everything else, I'd just use mileage-based servicing. All a bike with 5K/3-yrs, really needs are all the fluids changed, a TB sync (although if the bike is running smoothly you could skip it), maybe a check of the air filter, and a general inspection of fastener tightness. An experienced mechanic can check the steering head bearings just by lifing the front end of the bike and checking for play or notchiness in the front end. Grease in wheel bearings, swingarm bearings, suspension linkages, and drive splines is just fine after a few years if the mileage is within reasonable bounds. And unless you have a mechanic you specifically know and trust, I'd avoid giving them ambigious instructions to "look things over". Most shops aren't set up to handle these requests properly and miscommunication is often the result. If you have the time/skills, the best bet is to do the work yourself, but if not, give the mechanic very specific instructions on what you want done.

Hope they fix the brakes for you quickly and without hassle. Unless you have reason to believe you got their "bad mechanic" and know he won't work on your bike again, I'd avoid the shop.

- Mark

 

[Yambone]

4. Lube and service swing arm bushings and u joint-2.0 (this seems high to me since they already had the rear tire off?)

This has been mentioned as a real PIA from many here. I know it would take a day for me to do it! I balked and saved that one for a trusted dealer (Sunnyside Motorcycle Company) to do when I took it in for 26K valve check. I think you might be on the high side of what a dealer would/should charge, but its in the range.
Monday morning quarterback: Best to find a knowledgable dealer for the FJR. Heck, plan a trip--it might be worth going to Texarkana (Yamaha Motor Sports--shameless plug for Tony) for some maintenance events. Mom and Pop shops don't always cut it for this somewhat rare bike. Its not so much about saving money as finding a quality FJR shop.

 

[donaldb]

Man this sh*t just keeps getting better and better. Was off work Friday so no way to post update until this morning. Had a great weekend by the way, we brought back 50 redfish, 4 flounder and 4 speckled trout, got my mind off this bike and work, etc. Anyway, the service tec came out to my house last Thursday while I was at work, he wanted to see what the problem was, I told him the bike was in the shop, door unlocked but not to do anything as I wanted to take a pic. after I got home. Welp, when I got home Thursday and went to ck on the bike, he had been there and did exactly what I asked him not to do, he disconnected the caliper and flipped the inside break pad back around to the proper side, then reassembled. I got some pic's but they are after he flipped the pad. I will try and get the pic's posted this week, you can see the scarring of the metal side of the pad/puck side and the scarred rotor.

So, Friday morning rolls around and the service tec calls and advises me he saw my problem and repaired it to where it was safe to ride. He was sending someone from the dealership out to pick the bike up and ride it back to the dealership and they were going to replace the rotor and the rear pads. After close examination, I don't think the caliper pistons ever made any contact w/the rotor, I think they just pushed the back side/puck side of the pad against the rotor, but I am going to call them this morning and make sure they ck the pistons, just to make sure.

They had to order the rotor, it is suppose to be in today or tomorrow, we'll see! hope to get ya'll some pic's soon.

 

[sparky3008]

Man this sh*t just keeps getting better and better. Was off work Friday so no way to post update until this morning. Had a great weekend by the way, we brought back 50 redfish, 4 flounder and 4 speckled trout, got my mind off this bike and work, etc. Anyway, the service tec came out to my house last Thursday while I was at work, he wanted to see what the problem was, I told him the bike was in the shop, door unlocked but not to do anything as I wanted to take a pic. after I got home. Welp, when I got home Thursday and went to ck on the bike, he had been there and did exactly what I asked him not to do, he disconnected the caliper and flipped the inside break pad back around to the proper side, then reassembled. I got some pic's but they are after he flipped the pad. I will try and get the pic's posted this week, you can see the scarring of the metal side of the pad/puck side and the scarred rotor.
So, Friday morning rolls around and the service tec calls and advises me he saw my problem and repaired it to where it was safe to ride. He was sending someone from the dealership out to pick the bike up and ride it back to the dealership and they were going to replace the rotor and the rear pads. After close examination, I don't think the caliper pistons ever made any contact w/the rotor, I think they just pushed the back side/puck side of the pad against the rotor, but I am going to call them this morning and make sure they ck the pistons, just to make sure.

They had to order the rotor, it is suppose to be in today or tomorrow, we'll see! hope to get ya'll some pic's soon.

If they can't listen to your wishes I think I would have serious reservations about ever letting them touch my bike after they get it fixed.

I would definitely speak with the service manager, store manager and who ever else to let them know your dissatisfaction with the work and what they did when they came to your shop after asking them not to touch it.

In the future though I don't think I would be as trusting as you seem to be.

Once you mentioned taking pictures they probably made it their intention to make that impossible. You trusted them when you dropped it off the first time to do the job right. Since they didn't, my trust to them would have to be earned back not continued to be given freely...

Just my 2cents

 

[Geezer]

On the bright side, it sounds like they are going to make good on the screw up they did on the brakes.

If they sent out a trailer like they said they were going to do, then why are they going to send out a rider to get it? Just too lazy to trailer it? I don't want to make you feel any more uneasy about your FJR, but I gotta wonder what else got screwed up while the kid was working on it. Make sure a real mechanic looks over everything the kid touched before you accept the bike back from the dealer. Then give it a good workout as soon as you get it back so you can assure yourself that all is well.

 

[donaldb]

Hey Geezer, they sent out two people to get the bike and take back to dealership. One was the owner, the other rode it back. We had a long talk about my ability or lack thereof to trust their work, that all I have is the trust in my abilities as a rider, and trust in my equipment to keep me alive. Now I dont fully trust my equipment following this service at his dealership. There wasn't much else he could do but agree, nod his head and apoligize. He assured me they would ck over all their work again to make sure everything was perfect. I told him I just dont see how this could happen, how this bike got out in the condition it was in. It's not like it wasnt noticable, my God, while on the center stand when you spun the rear wheel the rubbing and grinding was obvious. There simply is no valid excuse.

 

[Geezer]

Well, it does sound like they are doing the best they know how to make good on their mistake. Hopefully it is an isolated incident and not a systematic issue with their service department. I hope you have an alternative dealership to go to for service in the future.

I wish you the best and hope you can regain your confidence in the bike. It sure is fun to ride.

 

[donaldb]

So, here are my pic's from my break fiasco:

This is the inside of my rear rotor, this damage was done all w/in a distance of about 7-8 miles from dealership to my house:

This is the metal side/puck side of the inside break pad, remember the service tec came to my house and flipped this pad back around, so what you see in these next 2 pic's is what was breaking against the rotor:

This last one shows how much rear inside pad I have left and it also shows a bit more of the caliper. I don't think it was damaged (the pistons) what do you guys think?

 

[radman]

Wouldn't hurt the caliper at all, really no different than the thousands of idiots who ignore their brakes until the friction material is completely gone and the braking surface is the pad backing itself, exactly like what you have there. I see them all the time looking like this-

When like the above, the pad is completely gone and the caliper or the piston itself is the friction material. We have towed them in where the wheel locked up due to the piston falling out and locking in the rotor cooling vanes. Next time you hear a car grinding to a stop, bring up this image in your mind before you pull the deadly dickwad outta the vehicle........ Anyway, new rotor and pads and you're good to go. IMHO of course, subject to dissection by the forum pro's.... <_<

 

[twowheelnut]

Well, in your short ride home you also ate the stainless steel shims off the pads (or they never put 'em back on). Give your dealer an F- for their efforts.

 

[radman]

#10

 

[Constant Mesh]

Yamaha describes this rear brake unit as a "slide-type dual-piston caliper".

Yet, I see only one piston.

 

[markjenn]

They screwed up big time, but it appears they're handling it Okay. Let them fix your bike (pads and rotor) and you should be fine. You can over-worry this stuff if you let it.

- Mark

 

[C&C]

It sounds as they are going to make it better. I wouldn't hold it against them, though obviously mistakes were made.

 

[Bounce]

Are the betting windows still open????

No. They all crashed days ago. :haha: