| Author | Message | ||
     Twowheeldream |
hey everyone... im new round here and haven't gone through all the archives yet so i hope im not beating a dead horse with this. Im riding a 97 S3 and was wondering if anyone else has any before and after experience with the recalls.... I bought my bike back in Sept. with 3800 miles and i love my bike. got a good deal on it to boot. I found out about a few recalls over on another Buell site. Sent my vin# over to the local dealer to find out that there are 8 active recalls and only 1 for a brake bolt has been taken care of. They have to replace pretty much everything from the front shock eye back to the swingarm, blinker relay, sidestand switch, and a front isolater/rubber mount... I think there might be another thing or two that i cant remember at the moment. How's the quality of the replacement parts... am i going to notice a difference? Does anyone else have this model and know what all the recalls are, active or not.... i dont want to miss out on a recall because its no longer active but hasn't been done yet if thats possible kinda scares me a little to be riding with 8 different safety defects | ||
| Whodom |
I have a 2000 S3, and while it didn't have as many recalls, it had a few. When I bought it, my bike had an outstanding recall on the rear shock which my local dealer took care of promptly and with no hassle at all. IMHO many of these recalls are barely necessary. You know, in 0.05% of cases, if you abuse the crap out of the bike, or do something dumb, one of these parts could fail. My impression is also that Buell went above what the law required and issued recalls on some of these things to improve the bikes. Look at it this way, Buell will replace all these parts at no cost to you- why wouldn't you let them? (Message edited by whodom on March 24, 2005) | ||
| Henrik |
Buell stepped up to the plate with those recalls. Some were known to get people stranded on the side of the road. Others were done on the very remote possibility that something bad could break and cause serious trouble. So in short, IMHO - get the recalls taken care of. The biggest controversy was about the look of the recall shock - it's a real pig compared to the exposed-spring WP it replaces. Your other option there is to spring (pun intended  ) for an aftermarket replacement shock through Al at American Sport Bike. The new components work well - the exception being the gas tank hold down clamp: a metal plate with huge teeth biting into the gas tank flange under the seat. It's supposed to keep the gas tang from flying off in case the front tab snaps off in a crash. Some S3 owners had an issue with the front of the seat not fitting tightly against the tank after the hold down clamp was installed. I have no experience with how it fit on the S1 Others, I'm sure, will chime in with more. Henrik | ||
| Kenb |
that toothy washer did the same thing on my S1, caused the seat to kind of lift up in the front away from the tank | ||
| Firemanjim |
Twowheel,look here in knowledge vault for a recall list http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/3842/3607.html?1079883991 None of these was a big deal.The shock recall was rumored to come about from at most 2 reported failures under EXTREME conditions.No one here to my knowledge ever had a problem.See if you can keep the WP shock.Used ones on Ebay all the time.Think I even have one from an S-3. | ||
| Henrik |
Careful with that WP shock; I asked the guys at Traxxion Dynamics about that some years ago, and they strongly recommended replacing it. Apparently there are no warning signs. I explicitly trust those guys when it comes to suspension issues. Henrik | ||
| Davegess |
My understanding is that the shock failure, while extremely unlikely to ever happen, needs to be done. It is a safety recall so under the law the dealer should not let the bike leave the shop without recall being preformed. Don't bring the bike in, set it up over the phone, make sure they have ALL the parts they need and make an appointment. That way your bike won't sit for a long time while some doofus in the parts department forgets to order the parts. Did I mention, make usure you have a good dealer, ask about them here first. | ||
| Sleez |
i was one of i think only 2 who had a cracked swingarm, i didn't ride that hard! | ||
| Twowheeldream |
I was definately planning on getting all the work done... just didnt know if everyone liked the old shock better and weather or not there was a difference in ride quality or adjustability The dealership Im using is Seminole Harley Davidson-Buell in Florida.... has anyone had experience with this dealership. They were one of the participating dealers for the free hat  | ||
| Court |
>>>My understanding is that the shock failure, while extremely unlikely to ever happen, needs to be done. That's an accurate statement. Buell doesn't arbitrarily decide whether or not to do recalls. There is in place a well defined process and procedure. There have been recalls (Canadian Fail-Safe Flashers for instance) where the entire cost of the recall program wouldn't buy 3 of us lunch. There are some recalls that are most unlikely. The purpose of the process is not to define the "most likely". I have had a shock break in half at speed on a public road. This was on a test bike and was not a shock you could ever have gotten your hands on. I say this only to make a point, I can tell you PRECISELY what happens (and have detailed photos) when the shock goes. You are NEVER going to fail a shock for the reason that prompted the recall. The point, again, is not PROBABILITY, but possibility. Get all recalls done. Court (who has, I just recalled (pardon pun) an S-2 with an "old" shock. | ||
| Firemanjim |
Scoff-law--- I still have mine in a box on shelf. You still see the WP's on bikes for sale on a regular basis. | ||
| Firstbuell |
Help, please. My brother & I each ride '99 M2s, with recall shox. My Q: what's the static length, installed, supposed to be? How measured? Sag? I know this was well-established pre-XB, but I don't have the copy I'd printed back in the day. Thanx in advance. | ||
| Odinbueller |
I'm a big OEM advocate being an H-D/Buell Tech by trade. If they are willing to replace something for free, it is definitely worth doing. Remember, Erik Buell is an engineer, and was a builder before becoming founder & "Chief Technical Officer" of BMC. Could you get by without doing the recalls? You've been lucky so far, but luck always runs out. Also remember that not all repairs Buell pays for are recalls. Some are known as "Product Programs", which is where a non-safety related item has been identified as prone to failure, and the company will pay to have it replaced in the name of customer retention. I agree, Buell went above & beyond with both product programs & recalls, but this was a fledgling company that was under tight scrutiny of H-D. Look at the fuel flange replacement for 2003 & 2004 VRSC models. This is a perfect example of that kind of program. A lot of these were beaten into the ground by the press as well. If unsure, you can send me your VIN and I can run it to see what was a product program and what was a recall that requires replacement. | ||
| Nemster |
Odinbueller - I have a 97 S-1 and I am unsure of the recall situation. Could you run my VIN and check it out or can any Buell Dealer do this?? (Message edited by Nemster on April 09, 2005) | ||
| Court |
Any Buell dealer should be able to help you. Go to the Badweb Knowledge Vault and jot down the recalls that impact your bike. Compare the info you get from the dealer to what a visual inspection shows and you should be able to reasonably assure yourself that everything that needed to be done, has been done. If you need any help along the way, don't hesitate to ASK Court | ||
| Carguyinok |
Dont worry about the 8 recalls & just let them do it. I just had the recall shock put on my 00 M2 yesterday. It took alittle work with the dealer but its done and better then new. On the shock.... If yours is anything like the M2 recalls you could have three recalls in the rear shock alone. But only the latest recall will go on. That being a whole new shock.The way I understood it Buell had put out 2 recalls out on the rear shock pre whole new shock. Those being a brace for the front of the shock mount and another for the rear mount. These are made to hold the shock within the bike if it ever broke. Then once 01 hit they just went with the whole new unit. If you want your dealer to be alittle on the happy side with you. Understand they are putting in alot of time and free parts for you. So for me I paid for a dyno tune & carb jetting on top of my recall stuff. I felt funny rolling in a 5-6 year old bike for free parts. Plus the dyno tune is worth every cent in power and MPG. Enjoy the ride.............  | ||
| Court |
The dealer gets paid to do the work, no problem there. Having the dealer run your VIN won't burden you with the chronology of the process, it'll simply let you know what SHOULD be on your bike and what is. Just let me know if there are any questions. The process is simple and works well. Court | ||
| Twowheeldream |
Just got my bike back from the dealer... everything went pretty good. took a few days longer than i was told, but the dealer had to buy a hoist to hold up the frame to change the swingarm. Felt an odd vibration when I left the parkinglot, turned right around and went back... turns out the D shaped washer over the front isolator turned during assembly and was hitting against the steering head. They took care of it within half an hour. all in all a good experience |
