What to do in this situation

[Fred W]

Ari Rankum left some feedback in the Dealer feedback section. I wanted to reply, and open this up as a general discussion not related to this specific dealership.

I called today to ask if my 2006 FJR, in since 12:30 on Friday, had its valves inspected yet. They said they were just taking the bike apart, but there was another issue.
ME: Oh?, says I.

DEALER: Why yes. You probably haven't been able to open your glove box for a while. We got it open. There was something wrong with the latch and it broke off.

ME: WHAT?!@?!?!?!?! You have to turn the ignition on to open that!!!

DEALER: Oh. I don't know what happened. I don't have all the details.

...and so it begins.

I actually had a very similar experience a few years ago that did not come out so well. I brought my BMW 540i (a classic old '94) to a local service place that we were using quite a bit at the time. I needed to have some new tires mounted, a wheel alignment and a state inspection. When they called to let me know the car was ready the service writer said, "Oh by the way, a couple of your wheel center caps were cracked.

I told the guy on the phone that I service my own cars regularly and I know for a fact that the cap was not cracked when I brought it in. He said, oh well it must have already been weakened because they cracked when the caps were being removed. I then asked him if they had used the hex tool that you're supposed to use? You spin the center cap with the hex tool and the cap pops right off.

"Hmmm, hmmm... Well the caps cracked when our mechanic took them off and we are not responsible for cracked plastic hub caps."

When I picked up the car I could see the that jerk had tried to pry the caps off and cracked two of them in the process. I guess he didn't figure it out after ruining the first one... They later globbered some sort of gooey brown contact cement on the cracks and made them look even worse.

You would think that someone that makes their livelihood working on cars might know about such things? I wonder what he though those big freeking hex things on the caps were for? My plastic "tool" was even sitting in the trunk on top of the spare tire, as one might imagine it would be...

There was no offer to pay for or replace them even though both of us knew they have screwed up. I think they probably thought that because it was an older car and a BMW the caps would be unobtanium and therefore big bucks. I mail ordered 2 new center caps and probably spent around $25-30. That particular repair facility will never see my face (or ANY of my money) again. I think in those circumstances that is all you can do. Vote with your feet.

In Ari's circumstance I'd have just told them to hold off on the valve check and take the bike back immediately. If they had found one of the valves out of spec and attempted to make an adjustment and then F***ed it up, you would have been out a lot more time and aggravation than you ended up.

 

[DailyCommuter]

No one on the planet will care about your bike as much as you do. Buy a service manual and a good set of tools and don't be afraid to do anything. People here will help. I can't even think of anything that hasn't been posted on. I talk big now, but ill let you know how my valve adjustment goes at the end of this season, will probably be due by then. But I guarantee it'll be done right. Also not to freak you out or anything, but has it occurred to you that if he didn't know how to open the glovebox on a feejer, this may have been his first valve job too. I'm getting an ulcer just thinking about it. I would go back thee and ask to see his factory certification documentation, and when he can't produce it, you got yourself a hell of a good case for them to pay for the job to be done at a different dealer!

 

[exskibum]

.

 

[Geezer]

My Chevy truck has plastic covers that screw onto the lugs. They are inexpensive fragile plastic and if you try to spin then on with the air gun they will split. I keep a bag of spares in my garage, but I got tired of replacing them every time I bought tires so now I remove them before the truck goes in. The same for the plastic hub caps on my car.

I wonder why the guy doing the valve check needed to open the glove box?

 

[madmike2]

I wonder why the guy doing the valve check needed to open the glove box?

Because they have to remove the plastic dash panels to have room to work on the head. IIRC, one of the retainers is inside the glove box.

 

[twowheelnut]

I do this with all my vehicles because, well, I'm an ******* and I hate having my **** ruined by some uncaring ****: Upon arrival, I have the service writer follow me to the car/bike and do a walk-around. I go through everything and have him or her make note of anything that is amiss before they take possession. If I know something is amiss, I point it out so they don't feel like I'm setting them up.

You'd be amazed how well they take care of your **** after that.

Also, on the bikes, I strip 'em down as much as possible. After all, why on earth would they need the bags (etc.) attached to service the valves? :dntknw: Don't give them the opportunity to screw something up.

 

[Ed_Grant]

A year after I bought my cbr929 there was a clutch recall and I brought it in. Ended up with a torn down engine because the mechanic managed to remove a bolt by brute force from the engine case while pulling out the clutch basket. They were very up front about it though and although I didn't have the use of the bike for a month at least they accepted full responsibility for the gaff. I still go to them for work. **** happens.

 

[Murph]

Also, on the bikes, I strip 'em down as much as possible. After all, why on earth would they need the bags (etc.) attached to service the valves? :dntknw: Don't give them the opportunity to screw something up.

TWN's right. Best to take off as much as possible. I do the same thing.

Although it seems kind of petty, alot of dealers park bikes together within scraping distance of each other. And ... believe it or not ... sometimes bikes tip over at the shop. Check your mirrors after leaving your bike at a shop overnight and there's a good chance that you'll find an extra scuff or two.

Also, many dealers leave their pre- and post-serviced bikes parked in areas that are frequented by customers and other just plain gawkers. Don't tempt them to fiddle with your electronics (GPS, radar detector, etc) and other removable stuff.