| Author | Message | ||
     Pwnzor |
I went to the parts counter at OC Harley here in Irvine, California... and the guy who rang up my oil purchase had a little shiny badge on that read "Chrome Consultant". I blurted out, "chrome consultant? Oh my God, you have got to be kidding me!" To which he replied, "nope, it's for real, and I had to go to 'school' to get it." Well, I had trouble controlling my guffaws, and in my few minutes there I also observed a couple of service customers bemoaning their repair bills. I grabbed my receipt and my oil and mentioned in passing that oil changes shouldn't cost $200 and left... Chrome consultant.... HAHAHAHAHAH  | ||
| Hdbobwithabuell |
Had to go to school to get it? A couple of months ago I had my Uly in for a Warranty repair. While waiting, I made small talk with the service tech by asking if they were ready to work on the 1125Rs. He said they got some DVDs that they were watching! Maybe we better get those guys some "chrome consultant" badges too!  | ||
| Slamber777 |
"Chrome College" WOW! That's too funny. | ||
| Igneroid |
If the "chrome consultant" was bald, Id have died laffing.... | ||
| Bcordb3 |
Hey, what the deal? I don't have that on my resume! No wonder I can't get a job! | ||
| Lost_in_ohio |
Thats fine let them live their dream. I don't dream in chrome. | ||
| Brumbear |
hey we could write a book under the CHROME DOME | ||
| Thespive |
OC Harley is one •••••• place to do business. When they had Buell they didn't care about them, then they dropped them, now they are back. Whatever. --Sean | ||
| Pwnzor |
Yeah, I asked them when they started selling Buell again, and the guy there told me, "last april, and we immediately became the number one Buell dealer in California." I asked him "why'd you drop the brand in the first place?" He said, "well, Buells are a lot better now that they're water-cooled". I said, "really, I don't see any of those here." He said, "we've sold eight of them so far". I said, "and that makes you number one, does it? Well I guess loyalty doesn't count for anything." ...as I was exiting. | ||
| M2nc |
What's next, Leather Care Specialist? No wait! Ape Hanger Riding Instructor! Ass-less Chaps Consultant! Hey Wolfridge rider may be qualified for that job! Even better! A Book! "How to be a Biker in Ten Days!" And these are the guys that scuff at Buells! | ||
| Johnnylunchbox |
I'm not attacking anybody on this board by saying this so HTFU and deal. I think HD dealerships might be more inclined to embrace the brand if Buellers didn't make barely veiled sarcastic and derisive comments about the employees at said dealerships. You know...flies and honey and all that. That way we won't have Joe Chrome Installer saying to his buddy, "You know this a$$hole Buell guy gave me some $hi7 today..." Just my .02. Fire at will. | ||
| Thumper74 |
Hmmm... maybe Buell enthusiasts wouldn't give them any shit if they didn't give us any shit. They can dish it out, but can't take it. | ||
| Thespive |
Aiming... Aiming... Lock... Ready... Fire.... I don't think our unveiled sarcastic comments have anything to do with how horrible many dealerships are toward Buell customers and riders. They fail to recognize many of us have both brands in our garage. And most of them don't know squat about Buells, let alone BadWeb...and the ones that do are here. Seriously, I have been treated so poorly at OC that I go to Fordyce in Riverside for my needs - at least they are Pegasus award winners. When I first looked at Buells, they were getting out of the biz and no one would help me clear out the inventory for them, I was basically ignored, even though I rode in on my Sporty. What is funny to me is the Sporty was cheaper by several thousand dollars, yet I always got more respect at the dealer on it. When I bought my Buell, I bought it from Biggs in San Diego, because there was NO Buell dealership in the OC. I wrote to Erik Buell lamenting this fact and he wroteback to me.. Sean, Very cool! I have one just like it, except mine is a 2005. The CityX is just so much fun isn't it?! Thanks always for feedback; we are always trying to get better. I wish we had a dealer in Orange county too, but we just didn't have any that were trying at all, so it was not a good situation. Better to drive some distance to a good dealer than to go around the corner to one who could care less. We'll keep trying to figure it out. In the meantime, I am glad to hear Biggs took care of you. We do have quite a few really good dealers, and for that we surely are thankful. Best of riding to you, Erik Shortly after this OC picked up Buell again, but they have lost my business, possibly forever. --Sean (Message edited by thespive on January 25, 2008) | ||
| Vortec57 |
Yup, its for real. I can take a few classes and be a CC myself! ha, no im not going to though. | ||
| Buellboiler |
Funny. I was driving back from Brooklyn Michigan today and stopped in at the large HD/Buell dealership just West of Michigan International Speedway. I wanted to check out their Buell shirts and 'stuff'. Searched the entire place then finally asked the guy at the counter if they had any Buell items. He stated, "Nope." I asked if they sell Buells and he said "yes" as if he was surprised at my question. I tell you I saw no Buell cycles, no shirts, NOTHING. The ONLY thing I saw that said Buell was the damn sign outside. I can only imagine what I could expect from them if I purchased a Buell from that dealership. What type of experience do you really think you would have? | ||
| Pwnzor |
I bought mine at Laidlaw's in Baldwin Park, Ca. I paid $12,500 CASH. One hundred twenty five BENJAMINS. Did that get me any respect? No. I went there for service for the first 10,000 miles, and paid cash for all my service without ever questioning what I was being charged. Did that get me any respect? No. I bought a sh1tload of stuff from them and sent them business, and even helped one of their salesmen move, which tied up me and my truck for two whole days. Did that get me any respect? No. Did I discover that services I had paid for had not been performed? Yes. On three occasions. Did I discover major cosmetic damage to my bike after it had been serviced? Yes. On two occasions. Did I almost lose my bike off my brand new trailer on the freeway after the salesman insisted that he had to SHOW ME how to tie down the bike properly? Yes. Was he apologetic about it? Not really. /rant on f*ck being nice to them for no good reason, they are retailers, and I am the customer. NICE STARTS ON THEIR END, NOT MINE. ESPECIALLY AFTER WHAT THEY HAVE PUT ME THROUGH. /rant off    | ||
| Thespive |
Pwnzor +1 --Sean | ||
| Johnnylunchbox |
Pwnzor, I hear you. I'm just lucky that I have a good dealer nearby. I guess some of the Buell hating is endemic in some of the HD crowd and no amount of nice-nice is going to garner any respect. Ultimately we vote with our dollars, and in the end they may or may not be sorry. That being said, I usually try the nice approach, but I can be an a$$hole if I need to be although I'd rather not. | ||
| Pwnzor |
stealerships aside, I am very lucky indeed to be geographically blessed to be 48 miles from American Sport Bike where I enjoy the greatest customer service and selection available. Today I needed some oil in a hurry so I went into the stealership and it cost me over $40 for 3 quarts of Syn 3 and 1 quart of Formula plus. Got the filter at Autozone, K&N part number HP1003. I had almost 3000 miles on my oil which is a no-no in my book. I'm usually a 1500 mile changer. | ||
| Cityxslicker |
The chrome consultant job is nothing new, it has been around at least the 5 years that I have been working at the dealership. On the dealership, you just cant force enthusiasm and excitement. Buell is a niche market to them, the 3%; to us here it is the everything, the center of the world that revolves around our fun. Some get it, some dont, seek those that do. In the 5 years I have done this I have over 1200 bikes to my credit, funny the 82 Buellers I know by sight, name, ride and could pin their mileage with-in 2k ;) | ||
| Wile_ecoyote |
I too have been treated very poorly at a local dealer. I refuse to go back and subject myself to any more b.s. . Now then, I have been with other riders of the brand and witnessed some rather excellent service at the same shop. Why? The only reason I can come up with is a bit of snobbery and contempt for my poor little X1. I basically could outperform any bike in the shop with the flick of my wrist and they seem to know it. 3500 for a bike that kicks the snot out of bikes that are 4-5 times as much. A bit of jealousy maybe? I think its just how they would prefer to keep treating everyone thats not on an HD. Italian, Jap, Chinese whatever, the loyalists just dont seem to understand that there are some amazing bikes made by other companies than HD. We shouldnt expect to be treated different because Erik used that motor as a platform.......THEY JUST DONT UNDERSTAND! I treat them like I want to be treated then, when I get the 'tude, I walk away. | ||
| Pwnzor |
After-the-fact disclaimer: I never intended this thread to be a dealer bash-fest. I'd like to point out that I realize there are good dealers out there, yada yada yada, it's all been said ad nauseum. I just wanted to poke fun at the Chrome Consultant title, and I'm still chuckling about it. However, since the subject of jealousy came up, I'd have to agree that there is a level of envy that is thinly veiled behind the facades of the wanna-be tough guy weekend warrior types in the chrome boutiques known as Harley dealers. Example, my mom's neighbor got a 1200 sporty, added NOS, big bore kit, and a list of other mods. His horsepower after spending $4000 over the purchase price of the bike was about 95 at the wheel. But his bike still weighs well over 600 pounds. Mine is around 400 pounds and for about $650 over the purchase price of the bike I got 103HP to the wheel.  But he's cooler than me for buying a "real bike". | ||
| Jayvee |
Nawww, it's a "girl's bike" (sorry wrong thread...) | ||
| Cityxslicker |
The only chrome I would ever put on the bike, is that if in a drunken fit of relived teenage angst, I stole the XB crome plate off a Scion Mini Van.... Not saying I did. It wasnt me, and you have no photos to prove it was. Then I would have to Deflower some Saab for a 9; and a poor Nissan coupe for the SX. All that bling would get me some attention when I park at the shop. | ||
| Danger_dave |
How sad. If you walk in to Auckland Motorcycles there is a good range of Buells right beside the front door. I also have a very heavily chromed t-bird in the garage as well as the Uly. Nothin' wrong with having a show bike too. (Message edited by danger_dave on January 26, 2008) | ||
| Rubberdown |
After looking at the hundreds of chrome accessories in the P/A book available for Harleys, it's probably a good thing that they offer training to their staff. Trying to figure out what chrome goodie fits on a given bike, with who knows what accessories already on it it, could be confusing. HD has a lot of accessories for a lot of bikes. As a customer I would appreciate the assistance of trained staff. ** shameless plug** Ray Price Buell/HD in Raleigh, NC was also very knowledgeable and helpful with my Buells as well. | ||
| Svo1023 |
Here's aa twist for you...Our shop was a Harley shop for a lot of years so we still get the h-d crowd stopping by..We still sell pre-owned harleys so it throws them off when they walk in...You have bandana's? Nope...I need a helmet..I take them over to the Arai's...Is this all you have? Yep......I need a windshield for my roadking.....ok great we can order it for you.....sound familar??? It's a little different world at the ole Buell shop... I dig it. | ||
| Wile_ecoyote |
And where is this holy land you speak of? | ||
| Jlnance |
Rubberdown, here is one for you.   | ||
| Svo1023 |
Wile, Seminole Buell Shop Central Florida |
