Motorcycle Shops

If there is anyone out there with any good tips to any less experienced riders (like myself) in dealing with shops, might be a good post. Just thought about it due to my recent troubles with a certain shop here in Long Beach, CA.

A few of the things that I have learned is:

1. Always ask for your parts back. This will help to ensure that the work you pay for actually gets done.

2. Front forks need to be rebuilt more often that they really do. About the equivilant of shocks on a car, first thing most shops say need to be replaced... Not always the case, but not always false!!!! Anyone with some definate signs they need replaced would be greatly appreciated.

3. Price markup can go as much as 2-300% depending on the shop of course. Buy your own parts if at all possible!

4. When taking a bike back, possible before, dont ever, ever, ever accept when a shop tells you this "might be the problem/cause", that is the easy way of saying "I dont accept responsibility if it isnt the problem, I just want you to buy more parts/service from us" or "I am too lazy to figure it out, that is my current guess".

5. Please research your bike, it really does mean so very much more to you than it does to any shop. Most of them do not care, and with a little bit of research you will end up learning what you should in the long run anyways. I know i have learned a lot in the past few weeks, this site helps immensly!

6. If you have any problems talk to the owner, they care a lot more than the techies do, and keep in mind, it is their business licence on the line. They are usually more resonable and listen alot more than the mechanics, and they do tend (sometimes) to get things done.

7. Will someone please do a better post to perhaps save in the top portion... I am new to this posting stuff still ha ha ha!

Keep in mind, My first bike was running a week and a half after $1,100+. They fed me bull, bull, and more bull. I told them what i thought was wrong with it (I was right). I bought parts i didnt need and I am half sure they didnt do the carb rebuild in the first place (only cleaned it) this time it will get inspected, by another shop ha ha ha.

Be careful fellow bikers both inexperienced and lazy alike, the dangers and pitfalls of shops are many!!

Please post with your experiences or your tips when dealing with any shops. Any errors made in any info will be corrected, please send a PM if so.

 

sorry there JnC, I dont deal withy shops!

They are a bunch of "parts changers" who usually dont know, dont care, and dont tell the truth.

I have learned to do all of my own work, educating myself as I go.

Learning from the school of Hard Knocks

 

Your complaints are common.

PO of my ride was having gas in oil trouble. Stealership charged him $471 to "Clean Carburetors", change oil, change spark plugs.

Gas still running into crankcase. After I got it I put an $8 seal in the fuel valve to stop contaminating the crankcase. Over winter I put a $10 needle and seat into carb 3 to fix the rest of the problem. I guar darn tee that those carbs hadn't been cracked open in at least 10 years.

AND, you're right. The wrenches in the shops usually know less than you about the machines.

Bottom line, it's just like with your cage. If you're not doing it yourself find someone who knows what he is doing, give him all your business, and hope he lives a very long time.

 

One shop wanted $85 and come back in a couple of days..to fix a nail in my near new rear Bridgestone.. a New tube cost me $15... took me approx 1/2 hour.

 

I'm cheap...and I love chocolate chip cookies! I get a real joy out of teaching folks how to keep their machines happy. Beats the alternative of fixing something for someone who doesn't care about the machine that transports them regularly. Those types of vehicle owners tend to keep having problems, some of which are caused by their own neglect. "Teach a man to fish, feed him for life" is a great perspective on independant owner maintenance. Nothing like the satisfaction of enjoying the fruits of your labors, like after the tune up. Plus the cost savings are HUGE! This helps defray the materials costs big time!

 

Since my unofficial, part time business is motorcycle repair, I thought I'd throw in my .02. Everything you said is true. You are money and experience ahead doing your own work. Not only do you have the satisfaction of fixing your own machine, but the pieces of the puzzle all begin to fit with every job you do. I highly recommend you give it a whirl if you're up to the task.
That being said, there IS another side to the coin. Some owners couldn't wrench themselves out of a wet paper bag, and do FAR more damage by taking things apart, losing parts, and breaking things than if they left it for a more knowledgable person. And what totally blows me away are the folks who think I should give up my free time to fix their bike because I enjoy doing it! It's a second job to me. Yes, I enjoy it....but if I wanted to work for free, I'd work on my own bikes and get something out of the deal! These are the folks that get a "screamin' deal" on a give-away or make-it-run project, and because they have no money, expect you to donate your services for a couple of bucks. I charge $40.00 an hour, quote my jobs when possible, keep the customer informed of the costs weekly, if not daily, allow them to buy all the parts, and I still get cheapskates crawling out of the woodwork! Remember; you get what you pay for!

 

Like the Captn says, You get what you pay for!

I'm cheap too, but, that's my motivation to learn how to do it myself.

I dont do this part time or any other time except for me!

But I dont mind helping or telling someone else how to do their own repairs.
That goes back to the, teach a man to fish........

 

I don't do Oil Changes for customers any more. They think its something they should just expect to be done for next to nothing.

I don't take carbs off ... or put back on ... the Bike any more. They complain about that time padding the Job.

I don't pull plastic parts doing a Clutch Job any more, either. That's time and I don't want to hear about their parts getting scratched.
(Although, I've put a few clutches in bikes that looked like they were kicked-over and slid under the garage door when put away).

 

The best part about many of these old bikes and actually old vehicles in general is that they are for the most part simple to work on. The tools you need are normal every day tools most of us keep in our garages. Cars, Wave Runners, and more and more motorcycles alike require computerized tools to diagnaose and fix problems. Many mechanics use that aginst consumers. Shoot I don't own the tool to check the computer on my Subaru. Who really does?

It's great fun to get out there and make something run better today than it did yesterday. Mechanics do what they do because they love it. No, not the grease under the fingernails, and coming home smelling like gas, but fixing, finding, and tinkering. Don't think thast just because they love it they will do it for free. They do if for the same reason I go to work everyday, because I love it, and I love the paycheck.

My advice to anyone who goes in to have any vehicle worked on, is know who you are going to. I take most of my things, when I can't do it myself to a local shop. There are two guys that work there and they co-own the place. They have a great following. Why? They understand the concept of word-of-mouth and quality. They know that if they don't do it, and do it right the word will get out and the business they have built will go down the crapper. Most dealers or stealers as MiCarl puts it don't care. They offer great things like "Free oil changes for 3 years". They don't get the chance to see our bikes often enough to really have the know how in most cases.

I called my dealer the other day and asked if they had a YICS tool they would rent or loan out. "What is a YICS tool?" was the response. Holy Crap!!

 

Just a couple of points from a person that works in a "stealership"... Now i work with trucks, not bikes but the principals are the same.


"1. Always ask for your parts back. This will help to ensure that the work you pay for actually gets done."

- This is both a good point and a bad one. It's your right to have your own parts returned to you and is a definate way to see if the work has been done. It's no indicator of the quality of workmanship it just shows that the parts have been replaced. This is also bad because if you need old parts to verify that the shop has done a repair, take your vechicle and never return. A relationship of trust is the most important thing in vechicle repairs. If you can't trust a shop dont go there, ever.


"3. Price markup can go as much as 2-300% depending on the shop of course. Buy your own parts if at all possible!"

- I strongly disagree with bringing your own parts. Yes markup of parts can be a very high percentage for a number of reasons that are unimportaint to this issue. The mark up of parts is part of how the shop makes their profit, most places the labour pays the rent and the parts make the profit. Feel free the haggle down the parts prices BEFORE the job is started if you like. Most reasonable places will drop the price to keep the job. Trying to argue after the job is complete will only sour your relationship with the shop. Would you bring your own steak to the keg and expect them to cook it for you if you bought the potato?

Now on the shop's side of the picture, At my shop we will not install any customer supplied parts because we can not be assured of their quality or offer any kind of warranty on the parts. It's our policy and i think it's a good one. Most higher end shops will not install customer supplied parts for that reason. We work to a high level of quality, you want anything other then that, go to joe's garage around the corner. He will be happy to take your money and do anything you like.

"4. When taking a bike back, possible before, dont ever, ever, ever accept when a shop tells you this "might be the problem/cause", that is the easy way of saying "I dont accept responsibility if it isnt the problem, I just want you to buy more parts/service from us" or "I am too lazy to figure it out, that is my current guess"."

- Vehicle repair is more an art then a science. What happens when you have a customers vechicle and you cannot duplicate the customers concern?. That's the first step to any proper repair. Verify the complaint. A good shop will be able to give you definate answers and then stand behind them if they are wrong. Most of the time misdiagnosis or failure to find a concern is caused by a lack of communication between the driver of the vechicle and the shop. When bring a car/truck/bike in for a problem try to be as specific as possible with the condtions present when the problems happen. This will get you better overall service and cut down on diag time.


"5. Please research your bike, it really does mean so very much more to you than it does to any shop. Most of them do not care, and with a little bit of research you will end up learning what you should in the long run anyways. I know i have learned a lot in the past few weeks, this site helps immensly!"

- The more you know, the harder it is for someone to pull the wool over your eyes. If you do a little research and can talk even a little of the talk, the shop will be less likely to try to snow you into things you don't need.


"6. If you have any problems talk to the owner, they care a lot more than the techies do, and keep in mind, it is their business licence on the line. They are usually more resonable and listen alot more than the mechanics, and they do tend (sometimes) to get things done."

- If you can't get the answers you want from who ever your dealing with go above them. If they are being dishonest they will be delt with. If they are doing everying thing on the up and up, then the manager or upper management will check to make sure they are in line and support them. But they will also take care of you the customer since they want your return business. Anyone who doesent want you talking to their supiorer's has something to hide.

Bottom line from all of this and as said in other posts, find a shop that has a great word of mouth reputation. Go to them and see if you get a good feeling. See if their work is up to your expectations. If it is then use them for EVERY thing. Don't go down the road for a cheepo oil change and then expect your usual shop to bend over backwards for you when your in a jam. Build a relationship with the shop and you will get great value for years to come. You get what you pay for at most places but when you go to a place that really cares and does good work you end up getting alot more then what you pay for. Go around your city and look at the door rates. Most of the time the low end places are low for a good reason, poor equipment, shoddy workmanship and just plain butchery. The most expensive ones probably are over equipped for most needs and specaize on certain kinds of work. Find the one that's about 75% of the top door rate and that has no room in their parking lot because they are so busy. That's the one you want to start with.