How Long Does it Take for the Dealer to Get Working On Your Bike?

[Bushyar15]

I'm curious if this is just the way my local Yamaha Dealership does things when I drop my bike off for work or if this is common across all dealerships when it comes to their repair shop...

So I drop the forks off my bike to the local dealership with a new set of "heavier" springs for them to install (long story on why I didn't do this myself) on Friday at Noon. They tell me they'll take a look and get it squared away. 3 Business days later I call to get an ETA when they'll be done as I've heard nothing from them. They tell me they haven't looked at them yet. And the "service writer" is out so I'll need to speak to him tomorrow to find out status. WHAT?

This is the norm for them. I dropped my bike off when the fan wouldn't work (still under warranty) and it took them almost a week to get to it to find a connector had loosened up...

What I find odd is I can take any of my autos to a dealership and within that same day they'll tell me what the issue is (If I don't know), how long it will take to get parts if necessary and when it will be done. 99.99% of the time barring any unforeseen events they get it to me on time as promised.

Anyone else find their dealership is kinda on "island time"?

 

[Koinz]

Might be a good thing that they're so busy. People trust them to do the job right. If you're in a hurry, maybe you can call around to an independent shop. I usually call ahead and schedule something and tell them I can't leave the bike, so I need it back the same day unless they give me a good reason why it's going to take longer.

 

[Arkyrider]

I always schedule an appointment, drop it off in the morning and get it back the next evening.

 

[Andylaser]

If pre booked, I would expect to drop off bike in the morning, collect loaner and return at the end of the day to pick up my own bike.

 

[Bappo]

Rexburg Motorsports in Idaho. I always preschedule for first thing in morning (usually Friday cuz off day) and then wait there till finished. Usually an hour or two. Only once did I have to drop off the bike for an overnight.

The other cycle shops in this area will take weeks? a month? The HD shop being the worst.

 

[Bigbore4]

Car dealerships are not a fair comparison. They have VOLUME that feeds the monkey. Bike dealer maybe has a couple three good techs and a couple more set up guys. Car dealer has 20 plus.

That same volume drives better training, service literature, tools etc.

I am lucky, my dealer is old school and they actually have a couple veteran techs. I try to tip the scales by giving them the answers. I have a cam chain tensioner acting up, I called and explained my situation and asked them to get one in ( I asked to speak to the service manager). He balked a little, and I asked him to get it in anyway, if Yamaha would not replace it under warranty I would buy it. Eventually he listened to my description and agreed and I am sure they will take care of it. Parts are in and I need to drop the bike off and I'll see how that goes.

Generally if you make it easy for them to help you, they will. That said, Rexburg was one of the dealers I contacted while on my fall ride end of August looking for tires. Nothing in Tenere size and no help whatsoever. Got everything I needed including GREAT SERVICE at Blitz Motorsports in Bozeman MT. It is a bit of a jog from you but for great service maybe worth it.

 

[advswede1981]

It takes my dealer the amount of time they tell me it will take when I make my appointment and it's always ready when they tell me to come back and pick it up, every time. Where I live that's called customer service and craftsmanship. A business like yours wouldn't last a day here. I would never just drop my bike off and tell them to call me when they got around to fix it. I imagine they'd just park it in the back and get to it whenever they get around to it, which is probably why you get such horrible service. Talk to a manager about your problem and if they blow you off, go to another place or call up Yamaha and make a formal complaint.

 

[Mzee]

I always call in advance and tell them to give me a date. I bring in my bike and wait for it whether it is a full service or changing fork seals, springs and fluids. If they cannot do it on the same day, I ask them to schedule another day. So it is up to them or I take it else where. But with time I have increasingly decided to work on my bike except where I am incompetent. So they see less and less of me. ::012::

 

[redneckK20]

Working at a dealer, I can tell you things rarely go as planned. Car dealers are different because they have crazy amounts of staff usually. I'm a service writer, and I try to plan out each day for each tech and call customers accordingly, but most of the time I'll have 50+ open repair orders at any given time, meaning 50 people I have to interact and keep track of their stuff. This time of year is pretty bad for that. On the fork work, call ahead and schedule it, tell them if they can't get it back next day after being scheduled then you'll take them elsewhere. Warranty work is a pain in the ass but we normally push it to the front if we can because dealing with the manufacturer (on your behalf, if your dealership is good) usually eats up a few days with back and forth, slow responses, etc. and can lead to some frustrating wait times if you're not directly on top of it. I understand from the other side of the counter it seems pretty simple, but for most people that actually work that position, they understand that it's the most stressful position in the entire dealership.

 

[DanP]

My Yamaha dealer is like many noted here, getting work done in a timely way. Port Washington Yamaha at Port Washington, Wisconsin, does a good job of getting parts and work done when promised. When a delay in getting a part and having it installed left my Super Tenere in the shop for an extra week, Mike, the shop owner, gave me a FJR 1300 as a loaner to ride.
Also, on a separate note, for an independent shop, you can't beat Retrospeed at Belgium. They do outstanding work and always get it out on time.

 

[Checkswrecks]

We've got the Tale of Two Cities on the north side of DC. I bought the bike at a larger multi-line dealer named Battley, where I've known the technician, service writer, and parts manager for many years. I would get an almost immediate appointment and it was rare when they would need to keep the bike longer. Unfortunately, most of their business is Harley and Harley has been pressing dealers to cut other brands. Battley insisted on keeping BMW and Ducati, but did cut Yamaha.


The next dearest dealer is in Frederick MD. This on the sales side is a truly nice family run dealership that should have expanded YEARS ago. Now that Battley is gone the little Frederick service shop is booked for weeks in advance. They carry few spares, so everything needs to be ordered, tying the bike up longer. I really do like the people but need my machine. They don't get my business or money because I can install parts myself which have been ordered online LONG before Fredericktown can get me in.

 

[racer1735]

I spent a couple years as a Service Manager at an OEM dealership, so I know how it goes in this regard.

Having said that, I called my local dealer months ago to set up an appointment to get the headlight subharness swapped out per the recall. The service department wasn't aware of the recall, and the writer's first response to me when I told him of it was 'are we afraid our blinkies are going to stop working?'. 10 days later, I contacted them to see if they'd received the part. They said they hadn't. I then called Yamaha (who originially told me of the recall and procedure to follow), and they traced the shipment and said that 'yes, they received the part two days ago.' So I called back and spoke with the parts department and after first telling me that it wasn't there, they eventually found the part. Needless to say, I wasn't filled with confidence so still haven't taken the bike to them for the recall (I do pull the headlamp covers and see no apparant signs of the harness cooking). Also, I've hit the mileage for having the valves checked. Do you think I'm going to let this dealership do that job for me? Problem is, they are the only Yamaha dealer within 110 miles, and I haven't heard too much good about Watts Yamaha in Lubbock, either. So next option os to either go to Champion in Roswell, NM, or to the dealer in Altus, OK. Anyone have anything to offer about either of those dealerships service departents?

 

[greg the pole]

Another reason I do all my own work.

 

[Bushyar15]

I try and usually do. But with a warranty I go that route first...

Another reason I do all my own work.

 

[greg the pole]

I try and usually do. But with a warranty I go that route first...

Ah, that. my warranty rant out a long time ago.

 

[Checkswrecks]

I spent a couple years as a Service Manager at an OEM dealership, so I know how it goes in this regard.

Having said that, I called my local dealer months ago to set up an appointment to get the headlight subharness swapped out per the recall. The service department wasn't aware of the recall, and the writer's first response to me when I told him of it was 'are we afraid our blinkies are going to stop working?'. 10 days later, I contacted them to see if they'd received the part. They said they hadn't. I then called Yamaha (who originially told me of the recall and procedure to follow), and they traced the shipment and said that 'yes, they received the part two days ago.' So I called back and spoke with the parts department and after first telling me that it wasn't there, they eventually found the part. Needless to say, I wasn't filled with confidence so still haven't taken the bike to them for the recall (I do pull the headlamp covers and see no apparant signs of the harness cooking). Also, I've hit the mileage for having the valves checked. Do you think I'm going to let this dealership do that job for me? Problem is, they are the only Yamaha dealer within 110 miles, and I haven't heard too much good about Watts Yamaha in Lubbock, either. So next option os to either go to Champion in Roswell, NM, or to the dealer in Altus, OK. Anyone have anything to offer about either of those dealerships service departents?

Your town is big enough that I'll bet there is a good independent shop to do the valves. I'd start asking around.


The headlight harness is quick and you may be able to do it at the dealer's parking lot if you tell them you don't want to leave the bike and that they can inspect it when you are done. If not, I'd just buy the part and eat the cost.