Y.E.S., 20W40, and Legal Issues

[SkooterG]

Youse guys worry too much.

Ride, refill with gas, and ride. Repeat.

 

[Randy]

I have NEVER heard of a warranty claim being rejected because of the brand/viscosity of oil used. Here's the deal...with the previously mentioned Magnuson Moss act, it is the dealer's responsibility to prove that the wrong brand/viscosity of oil caused the failure. They can't just come right out of the gate and say they won't warranty it because of the brand/viscosity. If you take the dealer to court, and you win, the dealer has to pay all of your costs. It's a helluva lot cheaper/easier to simply repair/replace.

 

[sprint_st]

Youse guys worry too much.
Ride, refill with gas, and ride. Repeat.

My paranoia comes from riding a Triumph. The head of Triumph USA Customer Relations, Peter Carleo stopped just short of saying "if you work on your bike it will void your warranty." Triumph was having bikes burn because of leaky fuel connectors and Carleo said there was no problem. NHTSA changed his mind. A few random 955i bikes had the cranks just snap. Some were covered and some were not. It was a crap shoot. Lot's of Triumphs had brake issues. If the dealer went to bat for you, they might change something. It has become so big an issue so Hinckley is finally doing "good will" fixes. Yamaha has always been an excellent bike builder but I've got Triumph post traumatic stress syndrome. (Triumph builds great bikes and has some fanatically great dealers, Triumph Corporate just sucks)

 

[RED]

Too bad Owners Manual on the '06 ONLY calls for SAE 20/40 & has NO winter grade listed, that was my argument with them over the phone. . . .

No, you misunderstood me. You're not supposed to ride your bike below 40F. That was one of the changes in the '06 model!

crap, I guess I wrecked it.....

Anyone want to buy an '07 with 200 miles on it, all of it under 40 degrees?

Will you part the bike out? :butcher:

 

[ibsunburnt]

Castro 20w50 and K&N filter for me! No problems on any of my bikes ever (oil related anyway, many electrical on the HD's)

 

[spineman]

Guess no one has had to use YES?

 

[Ignacio]

Guess no one has had to use YES?

That would be untrue.

People have just posted about it and YES use in many, many other threads since this super-old thread that hasn't been touched for 2 years.

Try yes warranty site:fjrforum.com at Google and you'll find it many, many times since then.....and nary a legal hassle as the OP worrywart went on about about.

 

[Ric in Sac]

My YES paid for itself 4 times over. It is especially worthwhile when you put a lot of miles on your bike. If you put over 20,000 miles a year on your bike like I do it gives you a 5 year/100,000 warranty. Kinda hard to beat for 400 smackers don't ya think?

 

[spineman]

Thanks guys. Still learning my way around here. I spent a whole day searching through stuff and haven't even touched the surface. Awesome wealth of info here. Some people tend to worry about everything don't they? They must have too much time on their hands!

 

[git-r-dan]

Broke that little plastic catch on the storage container with power outlet inside. Did that by reaching in there with gloves on early into the extended warranty. I would say that was at least what I paid for the extended warranty. Anyway, no questions asked, the dealer just ordered another one and installed it next time I had some service done.

 

[JimNtexas]

Let me raise this thread from the dead.

I'm fixing to do the 4000 mile oil change (the dealer did the 600). When I went to a big dealer here in Austin they didn't have any of the Yamalube 20-40W oil, which is the only oil specified in the owners manual for my 2008AE.

The parts guys said that Yamaha has discontinued making the 20W-40, and recommended I use 20W-50 Yamalube, which I did buy.

I've certainly never seen 20-40W oil anywhere that I can recall, so if this is true its good news as far as I'm concerned.

Has anyone seen any official Yamaha documentation stating that 20W-40 oil is in fact discontinued?

 

[El Toro]

Yes, it has been discontinued. I bought the last 8 gallons from D&H as it was going away. FWIW, Gerald at D&H told me that he recommended the 20W50 from Kawasaki instead of the Yamalube. He said it was actually bottled in the same factory, but that it had four times as much of whatever it is that keeps the viscosity from breaking down and reverting to a single grade. I don't know if this is true .... but if a dealer like D&H is recommending an alternate oil for FJRs, and Gerald rides 2006 AE model with VIN #7, I think its probably OK to use the alternate oil.

 

[Bounce]

Yeah. But he also told me never to use a synthetic oil in a Yamaha because it was bad for the motor and would void the warranty. I simply nodded my head and said nothing. Some people attribute mystical properties to person preferences.

 

[cwa]

20w50 is too heavy for me, I ride alot in the winter and always on the move in the summer, no stop and go crap. 10w40 mobile 1, year round.

 

[dustyrains]

Yes has saved me, conservatively, 2000 dollars. New saddlebag, new clutch actuator. Edit. And also repaired my fried ground spider.

 

[krotchrocketgrampa]

Before you tell me this has already been covered, I searched the forum and HAVE NOT found a definitive answer, more like speculation and opinion.
I got my Y.E.S. contract yesterday and the way I, not a lawyer be any means read it, is that if I don't use 20W40 Yamaha "can" void my warrantee.

Let me throw in some quotes:

Page 3, items 11 and 18 under Specific Exclusions This Contract Does Not Cover.

#11 Loss which occurs due to failure to maintain proper fluid and/or lubricant levels as specified by Yamaha or due to improper oil/gas mixture ratios.

#18 The Customer must either (a) use the maintenance Log provided with the Y.E.S. Contract and have it verified by the Yamaha Dealer that performs the services or repars or ( B) the Customer must keep receipts or other records that show the cost, dates, mileage, elapsed hours, services, and repairs performed, including storage. Failure to show proof of servicing may result in the denial of coverages.

The following comes from the Owner's Manual page 8-1 Specifications.

Engine Oil - Type Yamalube(4) (20w40) or SAE20W40 Recommended Service Grade API Service SE, SF, SG type or higher.

There is also a CAUTION on page 6-13 "Do not use oils ..... or of a higher quality than specified"

As most of you already know 20W40 oil is not easy to come by anywhere other than the Yamaha shop. 10W40 or 15W40 without Energy Conserving additives meeting the API spec is common as are some 15W50's.

My experiences with the local Yamaha dealers and throwing in the fact that most of the mechanics, good or bad have not touched an FJR before mine, I will be doing my own maintenance unless it is a warrantee problem. I have kept my receipt from purchasing Pennzoil 10W40 which has absolutely no harmful effects on an FJR, BUT exceeds Yamaha's spec at startup. If my engine widget fails, Yamaha "could" void my warrantee, the way I read it, although in SC I could take them to court to dispute that.

Now for the question. Has ANYONE put this situation to Yamaha for a definitive answer? I called but they said I need to call back on Tuesday. If they tell me I MUST use 20W40, then YES is going to turn into NO in a big hurry.

I have an 09,and on page1-16 it clearly shows an oil symbal that says 10w40 oil,but when you look in service pages it says 20w-40,the service dept said ,its okay to use 10w-40 in the winter months,but switch to 20w-40 in warmer months,I think a lawyer would love to use this in court

 

[ShinyPartsUp]

Let me raise this thread from the dead.
I'm fixing to do the 4000 mile oil change (the dealer did the 600). When I went to a big dealer here in Austin they didn't have any of the Yamalube 20-40W oil, which is the only oil specified in the owners manual for my 2008AE.

The parts guys said that Yamaha has discontinued making the 20W-40, and recommended I use 20W-50 Yamalube, which I did buy.

I've certainly never seen 20-40W oil anywhere that I can recall, so if this is true its good news as far as I'm concerned.

Has anyone seen any official Yamaha documentation stating that 20W-40 oil is in fact discontinued?

As discussed here:

https://www.fjrforum.com/forum//index.php?s...c=29460&hl=

 

[davesoferie]

I've used the Y.E.S 2x since the "regular" warranty has run out and thos 2 times more that justified the investment. One was wiring harness replacement and one was premature fork seal leakage. The work was done at different dealers with no problems. Although I maintain records as Y.E.S. says we should, I have not been asked to show the records.