wanted to bounce
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Road Master
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 1,101
Likes: 0
From: Redmond, Washington
wanted to bounce
this off of you all - before I send a snotty email to the dealer--You guys have been a great sounding board for me and helping me keep me rightviewed.
So, bring in the 05 wide glide for the 2,500 maintenance. Drop her off at 8am. At 3pm they still hadn't called..so call over there - they were just getting her in - said it would be an hour. Get there at 4pm, and have to hang around and wait another 40 minutes before getting her.
I understand that a 2500 maintenance job isn't going to pay the same rate as a 3,000 insurance claim, but heck, the scoot was there at 8am......is this standard operating procedure around the dealers and do I have high expectations?
(Plus have a really bad cold and really didn't feel like dealing with all this bs today)
So, bring in the 05 wide glide for the 2,500 maintenance. Drop her off at 8am. At 3pm they still hadn't called..so call over there - they were just getting her in - said it would be an hour. Get there at 4pm, and have to hang around and wait another 40 minutes before getting her.
I understand that a 2500 maintenance job isn't going to pay the same rate as a 3,000 insurance claim, but heck, the scoot was there at 8am......is this standard operating procedure around the dealers and do I have high expectations?
(Plus have a really bad cold and really didn't feel like dealing with all this bs today)
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 2,322
Likes: 0
From: Somerset County
RE: wanted to bounce
Wow - I am gonna start leaning on my dealer - I waited over a week to get in for my last 1K check for my softail and that pissed me off cause I didn't want to ride it for fear of doing damage - and even then I had to drop it off on a tuesday night and picked it up thursday afternoon - Should I be expecting better???? - I am with Annie - I would think at a larger dealer it should almost be a "while you wait" type of thing - Are there dealers that do that?
RE: wanted to bounce
Annie and Kess,
You should be able to make an appointment for either of these checks and wait for the bike. Sometimes they may want you to come back a little later but if you make your appt. for 8:00 you should expect your bike back in a couple of hours.
I had a new front tire put on my roadglide during the grand opening of my dealer last Saturday. Had my bike there at 8:00 and they washed it and parked it outside for me at 9:00.
I never leave my bike overnight. I'll hand around all day if I have to. It makes them nervous.
Terry
You should be able to make an appointment for either of these checks and wait for the bike. Sometimes they may want you to come back a little later but if you make your appt. for 8:00 you should expect your bike back in a couple of hours.
I had a new front tire put on my roadglide during the grand opening of my dealer last Saturday. Had my bike there at 8:00 and they washed it and parked it outside for me at 9:00.
I never leave my bike overnight. I'll hand around all day if I have to. It makes them nervous.
Terry
Road Warrior
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 1,741
Likes: 1
From: South Jersey
RE: wanted to bounce
I expect a 1k, 5k, 10k etc to take a good tech around 4 hours. 2500, 7500, etc should be no more than an hour or two and that includes washing my filthy bike. 
As for me, I call or stop by the dealership about a week before to set up an appointment, usually for 8-9am and expect the bike back shortly after lunch. The way I do it is I schedule maint. by approx when I'll be "close" to the milage, watch the weather and schedule according to my work schedule and the weather. I like to use "rain days" for service while the nice ones are reserved for riding. I've also been known to just drop by wait around. Millville HD is/has been very accomodating to me and my schedule. Most dealers (mine included) will even pick up your scoot and deliver it back to you... all clean and shiney. But that takes a full day and I'm just not waiting that long. [:@]
As for me, I call or stop by the dealership about a week before to set up an appointment, usually for 8-9am and expect the bike back shortly after lunch. The way I do it is I schedule maint. by approx when I'll be "close" to the milage, watch the weather and schedule according to my work schedule and the weather. I like to use "rain days" for service while the nice ones are reserved for riding. I've also been known to just drop by wait around. Millville HD is/has been very accomodating to me and my schedule. Most dealers (mine included) will even pick up your scoot and deliver it back to you... all clean and shiney. But that takes a full day and I'm just not waiting that long. [:@]
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Cruiser
Joined: Nov 2004
Posts: 118
Likes: 0
From: Fort Worth, TX
RE: wanted to bounce
Annie,
To me it is all about the dealer meeting whatever committment he has made. From your post I don't know when the bike was to be ready but when you called at 3:00 and he told you it would be ready at 4 that was his committment. If he had told you it would be ready at 5:00pm and it was, it is likely that all is well. However, he gave you a time and made you wait. I suggest that you definitely need to tell your dealer about your expectations that he says what he is going to do and then does it. At this point, however, I recommend that you do this with charm and not a "snotty email". Give him a chance to understand where you are coming from then if he doesn't perform in the future, tear him a new one.
TC
To me it is all about the dealer meeting whatever committment he has made. From your post I don't know when the bike was to be ready but when you called at 3:00 and he told you it would be ready at 4 that was his committment. If he had told you it would be ready at 5:00pm and it was, it is likely that all is well. However, he gave you a time and made you wait. I suggest that you definitely need to tell your dealer about your expectations that he says what he is going to do and then does it. At this point, however, I recommend that you do this with charm and not a "snotty email". Give him a chance to understand where you are coming from then if he doesn't perform in the future, tear him a new one.
TC
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Road Warrior
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 1,561
Likes: 1
From:
RE: wanted to bounce
Annie, I'm going to make a different assumption, Please let me know if I'm correct. I'm assuming that you told the dealer that you would pick it up after work. Most of the dealers around here are open til 7:00, which makes 3:00 almost the middle of the day. He said an hour, but I've always taken that with a grain of salt. A 40 minute wait was not good, but in the scheme of life, take care of yourself and get your cold better. I'm assuming that since you didn't tell them that you wanted it by noon or something, that they just put it on a back burner and took care of someone like TerryT who was standing over them watching.
Personally, I just fudge the other way, I make an appt. and ask if they can get it done by a time that is usually 2-3 hours before I need it, that way if they find something else, it gives some leeway. Guess I just play their game in reverse. Take care and get feeling better. Art
Personally, I just fudge the other way, I make an appt. and ask if they can get it done by a time that is usually 2-3 hours before I need it, that way if they find something else, it gives some leeway. Guess I just play their game in reverse. Take care and get feeling better. Art
Cruiser
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 192
Likes: 5
From:
RE: wanted to bounce
I'm gonna pipe in here because I was upset at the dealer that did my 1000 mile service. I trailered my and my buddies bikes 60 miles up to Kingman for the service after we had made appointments the week before. They told us it would take all day so I came back to Havasu. about 4 oclock we get on the road to go pick up both bikes and decide to call and check first. They're almost done with one and haven't started the other, so we turn around and call the service mgr, then the gen. mgr to complain. Long story short, they knocked 20% off the bill, washed and delivered both bikes to Havasu the next day. I think they stepped up and made it right. The funny part to me is, the Service mgr said they had pulled off our bikes to help out some roadies who were coming through Kingman with problems, if he'd called me and told me that was happening I'd have been fine with it but because they couldn't be that courteous it cost em. You never get a second chance to make a first impression, I'll have the next services done in Yuma, or Peoria.
Chuck
Chuck