| Author | Message | ||
     Jim_Witt |
Dave asked again: The original question was can a regular HD Tech monkey change out the wheel bearings or do I go to another dealership that has "Buell Certified" Techs? I'd take it to Chosa's. If you had problems there before, TELL THEM about the problems! Mention it specifically to Matt Michalek (the Service Advisor). -JW:>  | ||
| Jasonblue |
O.K. I looked on my 9S and on the sticker on the frame it says it was manufactured in November of 02'. On one of the earlier posts it says that the updates only affect bikes made before Nov. 7th. Where do I need to look to find out exactly when my bike was manufactured. I would also like to know if anyone out there knows which HD dealership in Houston has the best Buell support. I bought mine at the new Mancuso at 290 and 1960. Jason | ||
| Court |
Look and see if the the outer ring of your wheel bearings are Orange. If so, they are the CURRENT ones. Get'em checked anyway next time your bike is serviced. | ||
| Csg_Inc |
JW I called Chosa's after three hours of checking they claim they never got any bearings from Buell. I told them that they received two shipments where did they go? They still say they never got any. But at least they have two "Buell Certified" techs. DAVE | ||
| Csg_Inc |
Buell Customer service call still on hold 45 minutes at this point. | ||
| Csg_Inc |
Is this usual still on hold with Buell Customer Service 60 minutes and still holding? | ||
| Csg_Inc |
Just re-dialed on another line and the answer is they are closed at this hour. But the music and message anouncement keeps comming on saying they are busy but stay on line they will answer in the order received. Ok I am hanging up now @ 1:12minutes | ||
| Jim_Witt |
Don't waste your time calling CS, it'll just piss you off more. Setup something with Matt and get the puppy fixed. BTW, I went through a wheel bearing ordeal with my 98 S3T (back in 98). It distroyed my hub, so be careful. Took them about 4 or 5 months to solve my problem and a lawyer on my end. -JW:>0 | ||
| Mitchelob |
I had the bearings replaced last week on the XB9R and upon returning home the annoying front brake clicking had returned. The front rotor was also extremely hot. I have since been back to the dealer twice in the past few days and the clicking has subsided but the rotor still gets ungodly hot. How hot should the rotor get? My last trip to the dealer (15 miles) I made a point to not use the front brake at all and the rotor was still hot enough to take your fingerprints off. A call to Buell Customer Service did not net any useful information. The dual Nissin disc on my CBR600F4 and Brembo on my Monster stay cool to the touch under the same conditions. I cannot believe that there should be this much frition/heat generated between the pads and rotor under normal highway conditions, especially if the brake is not used. So, how hot does your rotor get? I need some feedback from other XB owners to either pacify my paranoia or pass along to my service tech. | ||
| Csg_Inc |
Ok JW I called Matt. He said they currently do not have any bearings but do believe they changed out the ones in their race bike last week. So I take that to say that yes they did receive a shipment from Buell. I relayed the story that I was told by the parts guys to him. He was not happy that I blind sided him. So his plan for me was for me to drop off the bike, they would determine what needs to be ordered, they would order the parts, maybe Buell would overnight delivery if not back-ordered, change them out, then I could come get the bike. I say I don't like that plan with much too much down time. I even told him that Hacienda had some bearings but no techs and he had techs but no bearings. At this point he dropped the phone. So I came up with another idea. How about they order the parts (I gave him the part number and the product program number) then when they get them in they call me to set up an appointment to change them out. Thus getting me the shortest down time. This did not go well but he finally agreed to this plan only after I told him you were a friend of mine and you told me to call him directly and that he would make it right. So please be my friend. Honest I was very nice and everything. Thanks DAVE | ||
| Blake |
Mitch, Something is seriously wrong. They apparently boofed the front wheel/brake re-install. Your disk should not be getting hot without application of the front brake. Are there any spacers between caliper and mounting bracket? Maybe they left them out. Does the tire/wheel look centered perfectly between the forks? Try loosening the axle and pinch bolts, work/exercise the forks, tighten the axle, work/exercise the forks, tighten pinch bolts. | ||
| Jim_Witt |
Dave, Strange story, but typical when you're talking Buell service in the valley. Sure wish I understood it all and knew WHY it had to be that way. I've received outstanding service for many many years on my Harleys at Chosa's. Something tells me there's more to the poor screwed up service on Buells that's not the dealership fault. I'm going to do some investigation in the comming weeks. BTW, the only thing Matt and I have in common are the turbos on our HD's. Funny thing, I just spoke with him yesterday on the phone too. I wouldn't let them do a thing on your Buell until the parts were in stock. Oh, I'll be your friend but only until your bike is fixed. (grin) -JW:> | ||
| Mitchelob |
Blake, I'll go back and talk to the dealer (again) about this today. The bike is beginning to be a problem. The problems I'm having with the brake come after picking the bike up after 5 weeks in the shop for a new stator, voltage regulator, relay, temp sensor, and fuel pump. I shouldn't leave out a new ECM that was tried but wasn't the problem. Grrrr | ||
| Court |
Mitchell: Not sure where you are at but let me know if you need any help. Court | ||
| Court |
Hints, based on my personal opinion & experience: 1) Dealers were sent an initial supply of the new bearings, the balance has (or is shortly) headed out. Call, ask politely and, in the words of NBC "the more you know", have that service bulletin in your hand when you make the appointment. 2) Having the Service Bulletin in hand confers on you the responsiblity to be responsible. When you hand it to the tech (with the critical info about the deletorious effects of belt twisting HIGHLIGHTED ) be a nice person. Hand it to them as a partner, not with a 'tude on. 3) When you call Buell Customer Service, if you get "leave a message" option, take it. HD, in their infinite widsom, likes to march all the Buell folks to training simultaneously. It indeed is possible to go into "hold pergatory". Be samrt, don't. 4) When you leave the message, leave a MESSAGE with DATA. Name, dealer, contact phone number, year, model, V.I.N. and concise reason why you are calling/description of the symptoms. Fight phonetag, leave enough info to allow them to have done work prior to calling back. 5) If you are a C.I.A. Operative and decided to conceal all personal contact info when you filled out the purchase forms you I hereby declare you as officially esstopped from bithcin' about contact with Buell. 6) Progress, like ground troops in Iraq, may not be as fast as we'd like but it is steady and the outcome certain. Court | ||
| Mitchelob |
Court, thanks for the offer but I believe the problem is currently under control. I'm just a few minutes away from Gulf beaches in South Florida, it's not still cold up north is it? I repeated my 15 mile ride to the dealer today without using the front brake and was glad to see, or feel, the rotor much cooler. Still hot, but not to the point you had to pull your hand away. I was able to take a demo Firebolt out for a ride in which I duplicated the 15 mile no brake ride and noted that its rotor though cooler than mine, was still very warm. Apparantly, one of the pistons had gotten hung up and caused the pad to make uneven contact with the rotor resulting in the excessive heat build up and clicking. Now that everything is back in place I hope to see the pads mate squarely with the rotor thereby resulting in less friction/heat. I will definitely keep a close watch on the rotors temp as I plan to repeat my "15 mile w/no front brake" test often in the next few days. | ||
| Court |
>>>it's not still cold up north is it? EAT ME ! As I write this on Park Avenue South, it is SNOWING in New York City! Who brought the creator in on this April Fool's deal? Keep us posted. The Firebolt is proving quite the bike and input from REAL people (for goodness sake, tell me you are not an alien) is playing a role in providing rapid feeback. Court I say again...TAKE THE PRINTED SERVICE BULLETIN, HAND IT TO THE BUELL TECH WITH THE "DO NOT TWIST" HIGHLIGHTED. | ||
| Csg_Inc |
Ok JW I have moved you up to "MY GOOD FRIEND" status. By like 10am today I got a call from Buell Headquarters giving me an update that Chosa's got one set sent March 17 and nine more set sent yestaurday. This is cool cause I never gave anyone my phone number (CIA Operative) but they tracked me down anyway. He even knew about my long wait time on the phone. This is getting spooky. About a half hour later he calls back to say Buell has changed phone systems effective tomorrow and the longest wait time will be like three minutes then a live operator, then choise to leave a recorded message for them to follow-up on. Now this is wild....it is April 1st...but no I checked the caller ID it was real. About another half hour and I get a call from Court telling me he is sending me some shots of some NY fashion models to take my mind off the bearing wait. Jim this is over the top...Honest Well then the best part about another half hour and Chosa's calls and says they have the bearings in hand and want to set up an appointment to instal them. I will be good to go by Friday. So like I said you have been moved up to "MY GOOD FRIEND" status. DAVE PS. Please don't bother Erik B with this. | ||
| Jim_Witt |
Don't forget it's April 1st.! -JW:> | ||
| Anonymous |
Dave, It wasn't a problem! | ||
| Aaron |
 You guys are alright in my book. Keep up the good fight. | ||
| Court |
Actually, in my book it's the Aaron Wilson "follow the light" strategy!  While some folks bitched, moaned and talked about how it "used to be", the good folks at Buell were scrambling to insure a customer was taken care of. Postive stuff...very positive stuff. Next time I will NOT call from the lobby of the Ford Modeling Agency so I won't sound like a teenager stammering as he peers through the crack in the locker room window! Court | ||
| Crusty |
No wonder I love these motorcycles so much. Where else would you get so much help so fast? | ||
| Anonymous |
All in a days work. And we're glad to do it! | ||
| Court |
>>>Where else would you get so much help so fast? Frankly, it'd be tough in the USA. Closest if if you can reach Cody at Aprillia. The fascinating thing is that through all the missteps and learning, Buell is intent on building a SUPPORT TEAM. This is very good stuff. Court | ||
| Road_Thing |
Court said>>>"EAT ME ! As I write this on Park Avenue South, it is SNOWING in New York City! " Heh, heh, heh, 78 and sunny all week in Houston... ...think I'll take the S1 to work and set off a few car alarms in the parking garage! r-t | ||
| Noface |
I called my dealer last week to arrange a time to get the wheel bearings replaced. They said they hadn't gotten them yet, but expected to, so we scheduled an appointment for today. Yesterday afternoon I call to see if they got them (it's 60 mile one way trip to the dealer). They haven't. So I do like it says on the letter I got from Buell and call customer service and ask when are the bearings going to show up. The lady (which will remain nameless) says they are shipping and should be at the dealers in a week or two. She also stated that there's no way to check on individual dealer's order's or shipments. Basically what I got was wait and see... Kinda bummed being my bike's speedo is currently outta commission (for the second time) and I've got a tooth missing on the belt. Both of which my dealer will fix under warranty. I'd hoped to get these fixed for the weekend, but I'll be content to just take it easy so as not to break the belt in two, but will have to stay close to home in case it does. What's this "no twist" thing? No twisting the belt when installing it? Just my $.02 Still love my Firebolt! Jody S. | ||
| Csg_Inc |
Noface Go to Knowledge Vault, Wheel,Tires,Brakes, last post by admin, to other service bulletins, down load the one called B-50 belt handling procedures. Have a great day DAVE Or check Knowledge Vault - Drivetrain - Final Drive topic | ||
| Court |
Jody: The belt is 11mm wide and strong as an Ox ONLY in tension. Any twisting should be carefully avoided lest the integrity of the belt, and perhaps it's service life, be compromised. The speedo thing seems to be on the run and your dealers fix should put an end to that. Please call customer service back. You have received poor information. Buell has, in the age of .net connected commerce, excellent systems for tracking all dealer transactions and I've been assured that these bearings were distributed to dealers using some system. There was a small initial "fire extinguisher" order that went first and was to be followed by "the rest". Court Keep us posted. Court | ||
| Reepicheep |
Why did Buell go with the narrower blast style belt for the XB? Lighter? The bigger one unnecessary with the new constant tension system? |
