yamaha service depts

[krotchrocketgrampa]

a little ranting from an old man

when I call any ford dealer to have a specific mileage service on my explorer or call a nissan dealer for my altima and ask them, what dose a specific mileage service cost and whats involved and how long will it take,everyone of them can tell me to the dollar and time.

my fjr needs an 8k service and I have a 72 month warranty,so I cant cut corners.

I called the four yamaha dealers service depts in the portland,oregon area and asked what an 8k service costs for an fjr1300, not one of them could give me a straight answer,as to what has to be done or what it costs or how long it will take,they just dont know without doing a bunch of research, hell one dumb ass service writer didnt know who made an fjr1300.some of them could kind of guess what would have to be done but were not sure what all was involved!

with the motorcycle in a world of shit due to the economey. why would they employ people who dont have a clue ?

well, now I feel better :angry2:

 

[YooperDick]

why would they employ people who don't have a clue ?

There is only one answer as to the reason employees do not know about their product....

Incompetent management

Always remember, things are the way they are because management wants it that way. If they didn't they would, or should, have changed it.

 

[darmie]

Management always deals with a balance. I think the reason companies employ people who don't have a clue is because the people that do become a liability rather than being an asset. Companies squeeze out as much as they can from their people, while laying off others. Insert your own reason behind this but that's what's happening and have happen over the years.

I think anyway.

I hope things work out for you. Since the short time I've been on the fjr forum. I read from people that do their own work There are comments on how some don't even trust dealers..

why would they employ people who don't have a clue ?
There is only one answer as to the reason employees do not know about their product....

Incompetent management

Always remember, things are the way they are because management wants it that way. If they didn't they would, or should, have changed it.

 

[OkieBikerDude]

From one old man to another, "I feel your pain" or most of them concerning Yamaha dealers. My older scooter, a BMW with 80k miles is serviced by a dealership that would meet your demands; However, it is 125 miles from my home and is the only one in the state.

When I elected to modernize with an FJR I considered the fact that there were 3 Yamaha dealers within 10 miles of my home to be a plus, and maybe it is for a parts source, the jury is still out on their service. Most of the local personnel are exactly as you described when it comes to getting work done. I do most all of my own maintenance but would like to be a little more assured should I actually need repairs.

IMHO, Yamaha only makes the FJR to keep from loosing market share to Honda, BMW and Kawasaki. Their real interest lies in the Star line of motorcycles and their sport bikes to a lesser degree.

I feel better too.

OBD

 

[DJB]

I guess I am lucky. When I call they can get close or will call me back with an answer. They not only have a clue, but they even allow me to remove and reinstall all of the fairings before and after service to help keep the cost down. Also because I have so much crap on the bike they do not even know were to start sometimes. Do the service yourself just keep great records. Spark plugs grease and oil. Check the bike for everything tight and go ride. What it should take about 1.5 hours.

 

[na1g]

I'm pretty new to the FJR (4 months) but had the same problem with the Honda ST1300 I had before. I think the main problem is that the FJR (and ST13) isn't that common and in a multi-brand shop it's a very small part of their experience. I'd bet they could give you an estimate on services for 600 sportbikes and 250 dirtbikes. Also remember that the service "advisor" is probably not doing any actual wrenching so will have no personal knowledge of the work involved. Still, they should have a flat-rate listing for major services, although that would involve getting it out and looking it up.

Besides not having a price estimate available, it also ticks me off that they have no idea how long the work will take. My car dealer and independent shop can promise a day or time for pick-up, or even do the work while I wait in a comfortable waiting room with TV, internet and coffee. My bike shop has the drop it off a week from Thursday, plan on leaving it until Monday and we'll call you (maybe) when it's done routine.

Customer service has become obsolete in so many ways.

pete

 

[FJRBluesman]

They are bone heads at those dealers. Many warranties are good as long as you can prove, by receipt, etc, that the service was done. Document, sign the book (warranty book for that service interval), have the receipts, they can't say it wasn't done. I do that with my cars all the time they have to honor it. They can't say it HAS to be done by our dealer.

 

[Crash Cash]

I'm pretty new to the FJR (4 months) but had the same problem with the Honda ST1300 I had before. I think the main problem is that the FJR (and ST13) isn't that common and in a multi-brand shop it's a very small part of their experience.

BINGO. We have a winnuh!

I think my local Yamaha dealer has NEVER worked on an FJR. Even if he gets out "the book" and looks up the rated time for a job, that has no bearing on the time it'll actually take for a first-time job, so he can't really give you a good faith time estimate.

I know my 1st valve check took 6 days (2 full weekends plus) but now I know that the coolant needs draining, that both fairing sides need to come off, how to get the fairing off/on w/o breaking it, and the tricks to getting the valve cover off easily, and so the next time probably won't take the full weekend.

Different bike models are a LOT more different to work on than different car models, and there are lots of tricks to working on any particular model of bike. And that doesn't even take into account different makes. Suzuki does stuff vastly different than Yamaha, and we won't even get into Ducati and Harley.

 

[UHOH]

my fjr needs an 8k service and I have a 72 month warranty,so I cant cut corners.I called the four yamaha dealers service depts in the portland,oregon area and asked ...

first off, your FJR doesn't need an 8k service.

I changed my OE plugs out @ 12,500 and they looked great; new Iridium plugs went in and couldn't tell the difference.

Changed OE air filter about then, and I'm in a dusty area (unlike Portland) and live on a dirt road. Changed fork oil @ 18,000 and it didn't look too bad.

second, you're wanting a repair shop to stand behind your 72 mo. warranty, right? So that will have to be the shop that services your bike.

If you don't want to go back to the selling dealer, well, try Desert Valley Power in Prosser, WA

recommend them w/o reservation to you. Maybe an up and back day trip for you, inconvenient expense yes.

Have been absolutely great w.r.t. extended warranty coverage for me. They have also put on the FJR Tech days in past years.

third, the reason why nobody knows what an 8k service costs is that darn few FJR riders go the their dealer and ask for a mileage service.

We ask for X and Y the be done, but not Z (because we've done Z ourselves).

Bet nobody's every asked your Portland dealers for that kind of service quote before. Relax.

too long a response, but there is my $.02

 

[Bionic Pelvis]

Suzuki does stuff vastly different than Yamaha, and we won't even get into Ducati and Harley.

Actually, a lot of Harley shops have a Service Menu with the standard prices for different service intervals. This is because, despite the fact that they have so many different models, the engines are all pretty much the same. You'd likely see Sportster, V-Rod, Twin Cam, and Evo options; some shops just break it down to Sporty and Big Twin and call it good. This is similar to what is going on in an auto dealership, too.

I think a couple guys nailed it right on the head when they said the dealerships just don't see enough FJRs (or any number of models) to be able to quote off the top of their head. It would take a tremendous amount of work to compile quotes for the dozens of different bikes and engines for each service interval for any given model year, let alone the ten-model-year window that most dealers work with. That doesn't mean it's impossible, but probably just not time effective.

Plus, most service writers don't know their ass from a hole in the ground, in my experience, so that probably doesn't help either.

 

[YooperDick]

I think the reason companies employ people who don't have a clue is because the people that do become a liability rather than being an asset.

I beg to disagree. Assets are typically categorized as money, men, and machines. It would be senseless to employ people incapable of performing their duties as much as it would be to invest in a machine incapable of producing a quality product. In fact, what does management do with unproductive assets? They get rid of them or they fix them. In the case of people, it is the responsibility of management to ensure they are properly trained (maintained), or eliminated as the case may be, to contribute the the survival of the organization. (Let me digress for a moment to specifically exclude from this discussion the greedy managerial sons-of-bitches associated with the destruction of our financial/industrial base along with many of the lives of the loyal employees who served them.)

Each market is different. Management must respond to changing conditions or the company will cease to exist. Many consumers today are focused on low purchase price from a remote dealer and then rely on the local dealer to produce low price services. This practice will ultimately produce poor local service quality. As a practical matter, this will not work in the long run. In order to attract and keep qualified people to service customers and at the same time pay a wage to keep good employees, there must be a profit. Sales margins and volume must be able to support this environment. This should be evident. The question is, does the market or dealer where you have your bike maintained meet this criteria? Granted, there may be a few exceptions, but by and large, the service you can expect is generally a function of the ability of the dealer to produce a profit through adequate sales volume on the floor and in the shop.

A few simple questions one may ask before deciding to purchase an FJR from a dealer where you expect to get it serviced would be:

How many FJRs have you sold?

Do you have a FJR service manual in the shop?

Do you have a factory trained mechanic?

If the answers are not satisfactory, don't be surprised later on. If they are, then hold their feet to the fire by demanding quality service.

Remember, the bitterness of poor quality lingers long after the sweet taste of low price is forgotten. (Not Original.)

 

[WRichStrom]

I understand wanting to do the service manual 8K service especially when you have YES, or some other extended warranty. But I am the most unmechanical person and I have used this forum + FJRTech to change antifreeze, "pumpkin" oil, pivot point lube, oil change, cleaning out the air filter, etc. Please understand that if I can do it anyone can.

But if you want a dealer to do the work for the reasons spoken above and you have the response from the Portland area. Take a day and drive up to Prosser WA at Desert Valley Powersports, 509-786-0260, and talk to Mike who is the service manager. Those guys know the FJRs very well. There may be other's but obviously your look at four dealers especially the one who states "who makes the FJR" doesn't inspire confidence. Anyway if you need to have work done you can't go wrong at DVP.