Which brand has the best service/parts/aftermarket support???? Your opinion

[PDXRider]

Not a good question IMO.

Your issue revolves around dealers and that is gonna vary from dealership to dealership. Not brand to brand.

Actually, this is part of the question I was wondering.  I have been in the same market for 15 years (the majority of my motorcycle spending life) and came up with my opinions.  I was wondering was others experiences were and whether my market is an anomaly or the norm. From the responses it seem plausible that in fact service levels are somewhat brand specific.  It seems that most have had similar experiences with UJM dealers lagging significantly behind others.  

I wonder what the effect of this perception/experience has had on the increase of sales of more service oriented brands including HD, BMW, Triumph and KTM.

[FlowBee]

The KTM is a hoot to ride, but if it were my only bike or my dealer sucked I wouldn't put up with its service issues.  

The nearest decent BMW dealer is about 40 miles away across Chicago traffic.  That is a large factor for me.

DGY is relatively close to my house, and I bought my ST1100 there, but after the first "service" I licked my wounds, fixed my bike, and never looked back.

For me, being able to trust a dealership to do the job right is worth a lot.

[burnergold2B]

Since we have entered another ST.Net phase of Brand Bashing (usually the same company) -- it always seems to happen in cycles.  

If purchasing a new bike which brand do you have the most faith in their service/parts departments assuming you have major services done at the dealer?  

  I just bought a used FJR, called up Yamaha North America and asked for their best dealership nearest me. Yamaha calls it a 5 star 'ship and it's less than 40 minutes away. I called them (the dealership) up to talk about the Y.E.S. transfer, they looked up my VIN #, and found the Yamaha updates that need to be done while I wait. Piece of cake. No charge.

  BMW- great for sales when you are shopping-salesman is your best friend, of course. Actual service itself absolutely sucked, was overpriced, nearest decent store/wrench is over 150 miles away. $800 for a 12K service on a 650GS? WTF? Never had an appointment which they could handle while I waited. Another WTF? Dealership did not want to change out both of the leaking base gaskets on an R/GS. Had to write BMWNA to get warranty coverage enforced. Yeah, that was at 2300 miles.Oh well.

  Honda- do all that service myself.

  Suzukis- same as above.

  Bultaco- "     "

  Ducati- 1/2 the price of BMW shop. Never a problem w/ follow ups either, service spot-on the first time.

 

[WarER4X]

I've only owned two bikes and both were Hondas.  The first one was old enough that most parts were unavailable through normal channels, which was to be expected.  The one I have now (ST1300) is a different story.  Still, whenever I need a part (whether it be a normal consumable or not) I expect I'll have to order it and wait a week for it to show up.  Now, a week isn't a terribly long time to wait for parts, but some of the things I've purchased (an air filter, for example) I shouldn't have to wait for.  These are the kinds of things that should always be in stock.

As for the quality of mechanics (in Honda dealerships), but there are few and far between and most of the time, the good ones end up running the service department and the folks who actually turn wrench on your bike are clueless; the idea being that the knowledgeable shop manager will double check everything, which, of course, he cannot.  The only service I've had done to my ST was the first maintenance interval (recommended by the dealer) and a visit for recall work.  I was OK with the regular maintenance visit, but the recall work was a poor situation.  Otherwise, I've done all my own work and will continue to do so except for recalls and warranty and stuff that I just don't have the ability/equipment to do.

Most of my friends who own Harleys don't have problems getting parts and are happy with the service, with the occasional exception.  I've heard mixed experiences from BMW owners and other Euro mfg owners; though, the complaints are usually turn-around-time and price related.  It seems that, anecdotally, mechanics at those dealerships are pretty knowledgeable about their product.

I think that the Japanese manufactures' constant drive to tweak this and change that for incremental improvement leads to large amounts of variation, not just between different models of bikes, but even for different years of the same model.  This makes it difficult for dealers to keep parts properly stocked as well as for the mechanics to really know what's what from one bike to the next.  If you take HD, on the other hand, their modern lineup consists of 5 basic motorcycle platforms (Sportster, Dyna, Softtail, V-Rod, Tourning) and among those, they have 5 different powerplants (rubber mounted 883cc, rubber mounted 1200cc, rubber mounted 96ci, rigid mounted 96B and the "Revolution" engine), all of them are V-twins.  All of the other differences are mostly window dressing.  Granted, these platforms have changed over the years, but the basic configuration has not.  This makes it easier for a mechanic to be an "expert" on that product line.  BMW is similar as their modern lineup consists of 3 major engine platform (K-series, R-series, F-series (the twin is on its way out)).  Again, these platforms have had changes over the years, but they maintain basic similarities.  Japanese manufacturers will make thumpers, parallel twins, v-twins, v-fours, inline fours, v-fives (haha), opposed sixes, etc, and you can even find major differences from one inline four to the next.  It's difficult for anyone to keep track of.

-SR-

[timmybob4]

Since we have entered another ST.Net phase of Brand Bashing (usually the same company) -- it always seems to happen in cycles.  

If purchasing a new bike which brand do you have the most faith in their service/parts departments assuming you have major services done at the dealer?  I change my own oil, etc but have no confidence adjusting valves or anything that involves trouble shooting electrics.

My experience from bikes I have owned.......

Harley: Excellent service/parts/aftermarket support.  All things HD somewhat pricey but usually done very well with nice work areas and support.  IMO the best in the industry.  

Honda:  Great bikes but horrible service/parts departments.  Anytime I have had service done at the dealer (multiple dealers) I have never had much faith that the service was done properly.  IMO worst in the industry however I lump the Japanese brands together for service/parts support.

I owned two Harleys from 1999 to 2006 and had a total of 15 regularly scheduled maintenances performed and a few new tires. All work was done correctly and timely. The bike was even washed after the major service intervals.

I bought an '06 ST1300 in March of '06. At the 8,000 mile service the dealer overfilled the oil by 18 ounces. At the first new set of tires they said the Ariete 90 degree valve stems I supplied would not fit, so they installed the rubber mount Goldwing 90 degree valve stems without the supporting clips. I checked the tire pressure when I got home and both tires were underinflated by 10 pounds. I picked up a nail in the rear tire so I went to the other Honda dealership in town. They installed the same Ariete valve stem the other dealer said would not fit, but instead of installing the BT021 170/60ZR17 I requested they spooned on a BT014 190/55ZR17. The guys at OCC would have been proud of that big fat tire.  How do you overfill oil by that much? How do you put new tires on a bike and give it to the customer with under inflated tires. How do you put the wrong tire model and incorrect size on a bike? Rant over, thanks for indulging me.

[kenish]

Triumph-  One dealer has excellent service, is friendly, and goes out of their way to get you back on the road.  The other dealer used to be good but I hear they have become average after their mechanics and service manager went elsewhere and the dealership went multiline / Japanese.  However, the latter dealer tends to keep better inventory of spare parts.

Triumph has dense dealer networks in major urban areas.  Their service seems to vary widely between dealerships.   In less populated areas the dealer network is thin and you could be hours away from the nearest Triumph dealer.


Kawi-  Concur with other's comments.  A cool thing is all their microfiche info is online, and you can order online or call your local dealer armed with a part number.

KTM-  A co-worker has 2.  Had some recall and reliability issues which KTM took care of.  He was sidelined several times while repair parts were on backorder.

[gamountains]

I bought a Thruxton at a Triumph only dealership. Prior to signing the paper work checked the price on the first maintenance and was quoted $125. Make an appointment at 500 miles and bring the bike in and the price jumped to a ball park figure of $350 to $400. Talked to the Owner and Head Service Manager and was told that he had high over head due to his location WTF. was also told that the Triumph firs maintenance was not adequate and that they find additional things that need to be corrected. My responce was that should be covered under warranty if their is something defective on a new bike. Returned to the dealership about three days later talked to the Salesmen That I bought it from and informed him that I checked with two other Triumph dealers one that is his competer 20 miles up the road and $125 is the going rate. Next he had a meeting with the Owner come back and said the service will be $60 and let me use his car over night. Squeaky wheel gets the grease, and some times kicked out of the store.

[jstark47]

Triumph has dense dealer networks in major urban areas.  Their service seems to vary widely between dealerships.

Amen.  In the greater Philadelphia area, Triumph dealers' service ranges from excellent to abysmal.