Dave Zien is one tough dude. He served in Vietnam and on the senate floor in the state of Wisconsin. He even grew a helluva bushy beard, which must be a real sweat factory.
It’s almost fitting that he finds himself in an equally tough position these days. The clutch on his 2014 bike went out and Harley-Davidson is denying Zien’s warranty claim. His motorcycle only has about 15,000 miles on it, so mileage isn’t the problem. The seven flags on the back of it and the wind resistance they add are.
Harley spokeswoman Maripat Blankenheim said, “The issue isn’t that the flags are heavy, but they provide terrific drag on the engine and the transmission, especially when the bike is at highway speeds.”
The company also stated Zien was not using H-D flag mounts.
“When you alter a motorcycle with noncompliant products, that does impact your ability to make a warranty claim,” Blankenheim said. “We have a right to protect our product. And (Zien) isn’t using our product for the purpose for which it was designed.”
This isn’t the first time Zien’s flown flags on the back of his Harley. He said he’s been doing it for decades, and never experienced a powertrain failure as a result. He’s Harley-Davidson, heart and soul, but isn’t going to let the manufacturer take away his flowing fabric accessories.
This is a real gray area for the company. Although it has justification for rejecting this case, it might end up doing more financial harm to itself than it would’ve by replacing a clutch for free. Zien is a high-profile H-D owner and a man who is not afraid of speaking his mind, especially when it comes to flags. Perhaps Harley-Davidson should arrange a deal with him in which his repair costs are discounted and he is warned about future use of third-party accessories.
However, doing so could potentially alienate other customers with their own special warranty situations in which H-D didn’t pay out, or lead owners to ask the bike manufacturer to make exceptions for them.
What do you think? Should Zien get a break or should he wave a white flag?
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
