| Author | Message | ||
     Detroiter |
I bought my first Buell or Vtwin for that matter one month ago. I sent it to a local dealer to have a new clutch and oil change. The bike has only 5k miles on it and its in mint condition. Might i ad it has the ever so beautiful BUB exhaust system on it. Its the perfect first Vtwin to own coming off supermotos and super bikes. The dealer got me back on the road in one day and 450 bones later with fresh oil and a fresh clutch. Today I heard a horrible clunking noise form my tranny and also noticed an oil leak from the oil filter. Without knowing it and trusting the dealers work performed on my bike I rode the bike for at least 1000 miles with no tranny oil. Earlier in the week i told them to check for oil circulation because of the oil leak is at the filter and they said it was a faulty oil filter. So no motor oil circulating for about 500 miles. The dealer picked it up moments ago and said they want to make it right. Would anyone here seek 3rd party assistance at this point to ensure it is fixed correctly? Im affraid they will put oil in it and send me down the road. Ive never been so violated in my life! if this issue isnt resolved, I will have a bad taste in my mouth for anything harley in the future plus go postal in the dealership. Ive alreadt gathered the material to make my sandwich sign that reads "this dealership ripped me off!" Weeks ago after dropping my bike off at the dealer to be serviced I strolled through the showroom floor and I must admit I feel like such a small fish in the vast sea of HD. They are selling so well and have such a huge cult following they could care less about a small consumer of a lightly used Buell from the year 2000. But with attitudes like that is what sank the domestic auto industry! Anything Made in American is gone as we know it. Pride and craftsmanship is a thing of the past. | ||
| Ratbuell |
Ask to have (or at least to *see*) the damaged parts, so you know they took something out and replaced it with something. Ask a tech if they'll be kind enough to pull the derby (clutch) cover off so you can check the fluid level before you ride off; also doublecheck the dipstick level for the engine. If they give you any flak, ask *politely* if you can speak to the manager, given the history. I'd also ask them to double and triple check the bearings and bushings in the transmission, cams, and if they're really accomodating, ask them to run the engine with an oil pressure gauge attached (yes, there's a special tool in the box for that). Finally...make sure they put a *Buell* filter on the engine. There are HD filters that will not work on this engine. Just 'cause it threads on doesn't make it the right one, unfortunately. If, after this round of action, you still aren't satisfied, call Buell customer service and ask them to get involved. I hope this helps some, and keep the faith. The bikes are worth it  | ||
| Detroiter |
im worried about the clutch running for as long as it did with no tranny oil. It had to have caused internal damage! NO OIL in it! what few table spoons that did come out was brown and burnt. We shall see... Thanks for the tips! I will certainly have the oil pressure checked. | ||
| Spiderman |
Detroiter, PMed you. | ||
| Ebear |
Hey Detroiter....Which model do you have?...... I'm not sure if your aware that the oil that bathes your clutch is also your tranny oil.The clutch is the cheap thing to replace , the tranny running for 1000 miles with no oil is for certain done damage and of course all bearings and seals are dust.Your oil filter leaking will have very likely not hurt your motor(the filter only works on the engine oil,not your tranny oil)and unless it leaked a quart or more(on a tuber Im talking)your probably fine.The XB holds less oil so it may be more critical.The tranny on a tuber is cassette style so the service people HAVE TO PULL the entire TRANNY out to replace the big bearing so tell them you want to see it out so you can see heat marks on the gears and sliders.If they dont you will suffer later so dont let them Bulls..t you.I would ask for a written warranty on their work for anything related to this screw-up.Probably wont get it but its worth a try.If you could email me the Dealer and Technicians name I'd like to be able to track this personally.Dont post it cause everyone screws up once in a while and if they make good on the repairs your likely to get better service in the future.Heed Ratbuells advice!....PS...Ratbuell , could you email me?I have used the Dyna filter on my tubers for years cause I thought they were smaller micron.Which filters aren't usable?Thanks... | ||
| Buell920 |
I sent it to a local dealer to have a new clutch and oil change. The bike has only 5k miles on it and its in mint condition. why a new clutch? So no motor oil circulating for about 500 miles. um.....that would make one very loud motor with no power ie.. collapsed lifters , dry cyl walls, no oil around the crank pin.... NO OIL in it! what few table spoons that did come out was brown and burnt. you drained the oil? from where may I ask? was it the plug at the bottom of the motor? look, if your bike had no oil trans/engine (either or) you would know in less than 10 miles. you road for over 1000? I'll be interested to hear the prognoses and your response. | ||
| Ratbuell |
Actually we have a Blast at our dealer right now that came from another location. Over a thousand miles on it, dead trans/primary, grenaded tensioner, dead clutch...no evidence of fluid having ever been there. Might have burned out completely, but no external leaks or drip trails to show a bleed-out. Couple new cases later, and we'll have him back on the road. But, it *is* possible to run for a looong time without trans/pri fluid. Clutches get hard, shifting gets harder, but it (apparently) still works. Not recommended, though. |
