| Author | Message | ||
     Dirt |
My bike has been at the dealer for over thirty days due to a failed rear wheel bearing. Received a call yesterday informing me that the repair job had been completed. Great I thought, finally. However, the service rep went on to explain that there was some bad news as well. Seems that when they rolled the bike off the lift and fired it up for a test spin, the belt broke. Of course they don't have a replacement in stock and their belief is that it is a wear issue and not eligible for replacement under warranty. This is the third belt for this bike (weren't these things supposed to last the life of the bike?). I replaced the first one myself (no warranty) just because I didn't want to deal with this kind of bs. They told me they would have to call Buell to get a ruling (sop at the two dealers I have had service done at). I don't really care about paying for a new belt at this point, I just want the bike back. I'm sure they'll take their sweet time ordering the new belt. I probably won't get it back on the road until mid to late next week. This bike is turning into a hanger queen. | ||
| Bearly |
30 days? Looks like they had you on the back burner? | ||
| Treadmarks |
Dayyum Dirt. You are taking this way better than I ever could. The bike was in their possession when the belt broke, period. They breaky-they fixy. Three belts....dayuum. How many miles? I would be camping out in their parking lot. Have you called Buell Customer Service? If I had heard all the horror stories that I have read recently...BEFORE I bought my Uly, I would have bought a non-HD product for a daily driver. Edited to say "Hang in there Brother". (Message edited by treadmarks on June 27, 2008) | ||
| Ulywife |
30 days? Looks like they had you on the back burner? I think I agree with that statement. I took M2nc's Uly wheel (only) in for a replacement bearing, I was out of there in 30 minutes. Might be time to find a new dealer if it takes them 30+ days to replace a wheel bearing, lord knows how long they would have it should something major have to be done to it. Hope they get the belt and get you rolling before the Holiday gets here. | ||
| Dirt |
TM, I'm really po'd. Dealer is about 50 miles away so my hands are a little tied. They did tell me they were real busy when I dropped it off. Probably doing $300 oil changes. I'm sure that's what pays the bills, not warranty work. If it had been just the bearing, I would have replaced it myself, but the damage included swingarm, wheel, axle, and spacer. That's over $800 worth. The bike has 27.5k miles on it. The belt about 14k. Their stance was, hey it's a wear issue, your problem not ours. I told them to call Buell and I did call CS first thing this morning. Of course all customers reps were busy, so they took my name and will call me back. The last time I was told that was a year ago and I'm still waiting for that call. | ||
| Panhead_dan |
I would call CS to find out where I stood on parts avail and liability. My dealership does this routine to me EVERY TIME they get my bike in. It takes a CS call to get them to work on my bike at all. They camp on it forever and ever. 141 days one time. 1 month more recently. While I have gotten a lot of parts and work free during the warranty, I'm glad it's over now. I'm currently waiting on parts I ordered for my first non-warranty repair. By the way, there is a reason you are loosing belts, in my opinion. They should not just fail. The dealership will more than likely not look for this cause but just replace belts (or not) till your warranty runs out. | ||
| Portero72 |
I recently had a dealer of questionable repute try and blame a voltage regulator/stator failure on me. During the process, the service rep let it be known that warranty work pays less than customer-paid repair work. Get BCS involved. There is no way you should be paying for a belt on an 07 'due to wear'. I'm convinced they are trying to profit at your expense. It may be an arduous task, but I'm sure BCS will support you. Beyond that, try and find another dealer, if possible. | ||
| Dirt |
Well, the service dept just called. Told me Buell will cover the belt under warranty and that they would order it right away. Time will tell. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
I believe these wheel bearings are in need of extra grease from the gitgo. I'd wager that Dirt's new rear wheel bearings, if inspected a month from now, will be difficult to turn and in dire need of some grease to fix them up. They are good bearings except for the lack of enough grease from the manufacturer. I've said it three ways in one paragraph and here it is once more, dry bearings need grease. As for that belt, they owe you one in my estimation, but I'll bet you they were beating your ULY out on a test ride when it broke and now want to see how far they can stick it in your _____. Stick it in theirs. | ||
| Nevrenuf |
being buell serviceless here to begin with in greenville, i went an additional 60 miles out of my way to have the first service done on the xt because the closer dealer told me one thing on the phone and then told me something else when i showed up in the morning. wasn't happy at all that morning. | ||
| Jlnance |
Their stance was, hey it's a wear issue This was addressed by Buell a few times when the Uly came out. Their stance was that as long as you didn't remove the belt guards from the bike, the belt was covered by the warranty. | ||
| Treadmarks |
I'll bet you they were beating your ULY out on a test ride when it broke Why Brother EG, Whatever do you mean?  This is one of the reasons I would never... ever let a HD dealer service my ride. Hell, I won't even let them service my softail. I even bought my softail in the crate, just to minimize the amount of dealer contact to the bike. Even after buying it sight unseen, and watching the crate removal and setup process, they still directed me to the chrome nazi who was hell bent on selling me some chrome. I finally had to say "Look Fother Mucker, what part of hell know do you NOT understand? Where are my keys, I'm leaving now, or you're making the payments!" I understand warranty issues, and some folks don't work on their own bikes because they lack the experience/confidence to do so. I wish for them that we had a list of technically proficient HD service departments like the BRAN. Maybe this would take the pain out of Buell ownership. I know there are good dealers and service departments out there, as I met a few of them this weekend at summer fun. Sorry for the rant, and sorry for your pain Brother. Put Buell Customer Service on speed dial, and don't give them a moments rest. We/you deserve better than this. | ||
| Dirt |
Just an update: Customer Service returned my call. Told me a broken belt is a warranty repair and I should just get the bike to any Buell dealer. I thanked her and told her it was already at a dealer and that's where the problem started. While I had her on the line, I asked her about the problems I've had with the wheel bearings. She listened, and then told me that this was truly the first instance she had heard of a Uly with bearing problems. I guess my problems must be an isolated incident.  | ||
| Treadmarks |
Buell must be outsourcing their customer service to the lowest cost provider......in China!  | ||
| Jlnance |
Buell must be outsourcing their customer service to I think they outsourced it to HD. | ||
| Portero72 |
Dirt When I got bcs involved with my VR/stator issue, I was also informed that 'this is the first time I have heard of this happening.' Upon further pressure, I was told that 'no, this is not the first time a Uly has had VR issues.' Seems there is a canned response/script that reps follow. You are not alone. | ||
| Nevrenuf |
tread, i can't believe that you aren't able to find tip top service down there in miami. lived down there for five years and don't have no desire to go back what so ever. | ||
| Dirt |
Panhead, "141 days". Here I am crying about 30. You must be the nicest most patient guy on the planet. | ||
| Panhead_dan |
I was patient for a while. Then I was not so nice. I got very pissed, of course. Then Court told me to call CS. When CS got involved they said that if the dealership can't get it finished that week, they would fly someone out to fix it. When I checked at the dealership late that week, they said "Buell sure is interested in your bike. They call here every hour on the hour the whole time we are open." I feel that you have to be nice- to a point- or you get shat upon for being a dickhead. It's a fine line there. I was basicly powerless without CS. Yell, scream, threaten all you want. It will get you (me) nowhere. | ||
| Lastcyclone |
You really may want to consider taking the bike elsewhere for service in the future. or doing some things for yourself. Most common issues can be fixed in your own garage. From the way you have described your problems, it would seem they did not follow the recommended rear wheel removal procedure. If the tensioner is not loosened it could very well result in belt damage or breakage. Buy a service manual try some things for yourself, you may find it is not very difficult, won't void any warranty, saves you some $ and can be a rewarding experience and give you more confidence while riding. Knowing the job is done right and by you is sometimes the best assurance a rider can have. | ||
| Dirt |
Lastcyclone, as for taking the bike elsewhere, the first (and closest) dealer I took my bike to was less accommodating then where I take my bike to now. How far away is one required to travel to get respectable service? I have a service manual and do all the routine service myself. Always have for all my bikes. As a matter of fact, my Softail is currently out of service while I freshen it up with new cams and a bigbore kit. That's why I'm anxious to get the Buell back on the road. By the way, the first thing the dealership asked when I brought it in for the failed bearing was "who services this bike?". It's almost as if they were looking for a reason to deny warranty. Problem with this logic is that the rear bearing failed the first time with the original rear tire still in place. If there was a problem with the torque settings, it was as a result of the factory. As I stated before, I would have done the job myself, had the damage not been so severe and costly. | ||
| Lootenantdan1203 |
Buell Customer Service hasn't heard of VR or wheel bearing failures? At least we now know who thinks "The Buell XBikes are among the most reliable on the planet." | ||
| Xbimmer |
When I bought my '06 in May '06 I was given a "Free Service for the 2 Year Warranty Period" card along with the deal. Since I expected 20-30K per year with my new bike I thought "Sweet! I'm gonna make a killing on this arrangement!". What an idiot I was to think that a HD dealer would be as enthusiastic about my new (and first) Buell as I was. When it pinged from Day 1 they told me to run it higher RPM's, "Buells do that". They messed up the 1K service and specifically ignored my documented request to check the timing since the pinging was IMHO abnormal... and proclaimed it OK. Funny how another dealer in Idaho a couple months later found the timing 5 deg too advanced from the factory. They messed up the sidestand recall. They messed up the 10K service. They messed up the stator/VR failure, the case latch breakages, and after repeated attempts with the SM to get reimbursed for the $85 I paid the dealer in ID to fix my timing I gave up. And the bike still pings. I liked everybody at that dealer except for the morons in the service dept. I finally started spending my time and $$ at another dealer more Buell-friendly but farther away. Now that I've moved 120 miles away I find the same deal. The local Buell/HD dealer could give a rat's asss about Buells, so I have to go to Skip Fordyce 20 mi further. They actually stock Buell parts and the tech that's working on my tachometer problem sounds like he knows what he's doing. And the parts mgr know Buells and the Buell waiting area has video and a PC to link up to BadWeB with while you wait.  I've had 50/50 experiences with Buell CS. I believe being proactive with Buell CS is the way to go, take names and times, and don't wait for callbacks. SOP. If I had heard all the horror stories that I have read recently...BEFORE I bought my Uly, I would have bought a non-HD product for a daily driver. I agree with Tread, if I'd caught on to all this stuff before I bought I'd be riding something else. But every time I fire up this tall orange beast I smile. And to be honest, now that it's out of warranty at 48K I feel a whole lot better. Now it's me and my bike and American Sport Bike for parts, screw HD dealers. Buell with Harley Davidson is a bad, bad relationship as it is now. (Message edited by xbimmer on June 28, 2008) (Message edited by xbimmer on June 28, 2008) | ||
| Pso |
electraglider-How are you greasing up your bearings? I know how to pack bearings when they are not installed, but how best to grease them up while in the races? I do not have a puller nor anything to seat them so should I get the tools and just replace and pack before installing? I am attempting to make my Uly bulletproof by hauling spare stuff and PM'ing potential problems. I have found my Uly to be the most enjoyable and functional bike I have owned since '59, and plan to keep it. |
