My Current Experience with Yamaha

kidblooper

kidblooper

Well-Known Member
Visit site
WARNING HEADACHE AND LOTS OF READING. NOT FOR THE WEAK AT HEART !
There are many twist and chain of events in this experience , and most likely a headache to read much less live.
a. I Purchased a 2007 Yamaha FZ1 and Gold Card Plan from Interstate Cycles in Lake City Fl, and for the most part Interstate Cycles were very pleasant to dell with
and very helpful in offering information which led me to buy the FZ1.
b.I spent a few very very enjoyable hours on the FZ. words can not explain how great it felt to ride this bike.
c.I hit my 600 mile mark and took the bike in for my first service.
d.I picked my fz1 from the 600 mile service and noticed that the oil and filter were NOT noted as being changed on my receipt, so i confront the technician and the service manager only to learn that Yamaha has indeed changed the 600 mile oil change to 4k miles to give the rings plenty of time to seat properly " Wow thats a big Leap" , but with all consideration i accepted it to be true.
e. A few weeks went by and my concern grew, the oil was black and thin..i was thinking to myself this can NOT be right.
f. So i made a post on a online forum asking for help and if other fz owners had experienced this to be true. I heard the same reponse from everyone, NO NO and NO, was even called stupid in a non direct manner. and was told to read my F**ckin Manual. My response was i have read my owners manual but that it has changed. A few ppl offered up information that NO it has not changed and whoever told me that was a moron.
g.I started asking questions on another forum where i ended up talking to a motorcycle technician that wishes his name remain completely out of this "for he works for the company in hand" But he urged me to contact Yamaha for he sensed foul play on the end of the dealership.
h.I contacted Yamaha Tech Support which after a few minutes i was transferred to a woman named Susan, which indeed confirmed my thoughts of foul play at the and of the dealership. She was very pleasant and offered to contact the dealership in question. I replied no but if i have any trouble i'll call you back tommorrow.
i.The next morning i contacted the dealership and spoke with the service manager about the amount of miles on my bike and after research revealed that it was 600 miles not the 4k miles he had told me. His reply was still on pace with his previous statements that it is indeed 4k miles.
j.I'm thinking at this point. I'll call the bluff. and responded ok good deal can you print me a copy of any documentation that states 4k miles. and thought to my self.. lets see how he works his way out of this one.
k. His reply "Absolutely" Anything i can do to help just let me know.. so we proceeded to the back of the dealership where his office was. And there its was a service manual sent to Interstate Cycles from Yamaha Stating the FZ1 was to receive its first oil and filter change at 4k miles.
l. Holy Cow you cant be serious. I thanked him for his time and told him i was headed home to call yamaha and point out the actual documentation.
m.Once i got home i started reviewing the service manual and owners manual and sure enough there is a discrepency between the two documents, then while i was reading i noticed something the documentation from the dealership was Printed Yamaha FZS10V / FZS10VC and the owners manual was Printed FZS10W / FZS10WC.
n. Ah HAH i found the problem.. surely the dealership has used the 06 model for my 07 model bike and they are different from year to year. so instead of calling Yamaha i Immediately contacted the dealer ship.. i asked for the service manager and was almost excited because i found the source of the problem and maybe i wouldn't be loossing my warranty over failure to comply with service standards. He was a little stumped for a bit and replied mr. christie i'm gonna need a few minutes to contact Yamaha and figure out where the source of the problem is.
o. The service manager then returned my call and with the most polite voice said mr. christie there is indeed a variance between the service manual we receive and your owners manual. Even in the 07 Model. Well how in the world can this be. he also replied that my warranty would be in no danger and that Jason a service tech with Yamaha will be filing a discrepency report with yamaha..
OK Now where getting somewhere right ? WRONG
HERE IS MY CONCERN
After speaking with numerous mechanics the one thing i hear in common because i did hear something different from every tech i talked to. Was how many miles did you put after it was supposed to have the 600 mile oil/filter change. and how hard have you rode it.
well here ya go.. the bike never seen 4k rpms during breaking with this exception to throttle up and down to not keep a consistent speed on the motor.
Next Concern there is no shame in my thoughts after riding this bike for weeks at 4k rpms or less i was excited about exceeding it. so for the next 1511 miles after i was supposed to get the oil change at 600 miles "total miles now 2111" This bike has been rode with a free spirit." nothing excessive as street racing. but i've had a few nice country side rides.
Now heres my question to everyone. !
Has Damage to this motor been done ? i spent and extra $1299.00 to make sure i didn't have problems with regular scheduled maintinenece but in fact feel i have been failed by Yamaha Co. Them selfs . Do you think they should be liable for the replacement of the unit ? Or atleast extend the warranty for the terms of my payments ? so i'm not stuck paying for a bike that is parked blowed up ?
Very Stressed and Concerned
Chad Christie
 
Hi Chad
I can totally understand how stressed you feel. Your story really sucks. Wish I had more to offer you as far as advice goes. But didn't the dealer after seeing that his service manual references a different bike offer to do an immediate oil change in accordance with your manual?

I wonder if there is some way to document your story in case there is a problem. Like perhaps a registered letter to Yamaha???
 
yes they indeed did do an oil change at 2111 miles. they did so after consulting Yamaha. and yes everything is documented. The fact still remains. i ride the freeway everyday. do i really want a motor to seize going 70 mph down the freeway. And should i have the worry. for paying for a new price msrp. note a few months ago before economy drug motorcycle prices through the floor. + $1299.00 to insure i never had mechanical problems. this is currently my only transportation. i could have easily paid half the price for the same bike used if i didn't care about reliability. Also note the 07 reference service manual givin to dealers .. also states 4k miles.. not just the 06
 
Last edited:
The only thing that I see going in your favor is that there is in fact some models that do get their change at 4000 miles according to the manual your mentioned. You also followed the break-in procedure to a "T". I would not worry about it right now. You have everything documented in reference to what happened. Stick to your service schedule and go enjoy the bike.
 
Good Point FZ1RiderNY . i should be doing just that. unfortuanately i have parked the bike. regardless of what a few ppl of told me about how strong the engine is. i paid for the comfort of knowing nothing is wrong with the bike.. and failed nothing to consumer error. the idea of riding freeway and having a motor seize is quite a scary thing to happen. at the very least i have started a process and have a few ppl agreed to have the engine broke down for inspection. My Butt will never be on this bike again. PERIOD in the worse case scenario and i get no support from yamaha it will most likely go up for sell on ebay for 1 dollar with the hopes that somebody will get something out of it. and i'll just have to go through the process of fighting in court for years to come i'm sure. on the same token my son will enjoy his dad coming home from work every night
 
kidblooper said:
Good Point FZ1RiderNY . i should be doing just that. unfortuanately i have parked the bike. regardless of what a few ppl of told me about how strong the engine is. i paid for the comfort of knowing nothing is wrong with the bike.. and failed nothing to consumer error. the idea of riding freeway and having a motor seize is quite a scary thing to happen. at the very least i have started a process and have a few ppl agreed to have the engine broke down for inspection. My Butt will never be on this bike again. PERIOD in the worse case scenario and i get no support from yamaha it will most likely go up for sell on ebay for 1 dollar with the hopes that somebody will get something out of it. and i'll just have to go through the process of fighting in court for years to come i'm sure. on the same token my son will enjoy his dad coming home from work every night
Click to expand...


I don't want to come across as being harsh, but I think you're over reacting.

You have all of the documentation from the back story so you're covered there if anything goes wrong in the future. Secondly there are people out there with FZ1's with 100,000 miles on them and still going strong.

Yep there's a discrepancy and a misunderstanding between the dealership and Yamaha, but they have sorted it out and serviced your bike.

It might be worth voicing your concerns to Yamaha and the dealer, and maby ask for a letter to verify that based on what has occurred, no undue damage would have been caused to the engine. If anything happens in the future then you can go back to them with it and follow up.

I'll lay money down though to say that they won't strip down the engine without a very good reason to, and they're certainly not going to give you a new motor or bike for nothing.

If the bike is running fine I don't see any reason to shelve it.

If you are worried about it (and I can understand why) get it serviced again after another 500miles - it can't hurt.

Get out there and ride that beast :Rockon: :Rockon: :Rockon:
 
Enigma , Point taken and understood. Same token. Some ppl will accept a response like that . some will not. I'm not asking for something for nothing. i simply want what i paid and ungodly amount of money for. I'm not asking for the latest and greatest. i'm asking for a unit to be replaced. or and extended warranty for the terms of my loan. i Dont want to be stuck paying for a bike that will not last. And by paying full msrp and 1299 for a service plan. i have paid for the best. not to settle. They made the mistake. yes mistake happens. they're is also insurance in place to cover those mistakes. if they dont think theyre is a problem with the bike.. GREAT let them sell it to someone else. they can do so after i have received another bike.. mind you its not like i bout the bike 2 years ago. more like 2 months ago
 
I don't know, but as one who just spent the entire day arguing over facts of what a set of construction documents showed vs. what the contractor building, my suggestion is to ride more and worry less.

If it is your principal means of transportation (or preferred), I think that you had indicated that the miles put on the bike vs. what the dealer expects you to ride, tipped the scales in your favor. I Don't know the terms and conditions of your financing -- but how long does the extended warranty last for? Back to the peace of mind.....

If something is going to happen it could happen when you are babying the bike or when you are getting after it. The hope is that the FZ never breaks. But then it might, and isn't that what you purchased the extended warranty for?

If it is an unlimited mileage and 3-5yr period -- ride more and worry less.....
 
Kidblooper, Sorry about your stress with dealing with this headache. I have no legal advice to offer. Only my opinion. The engine's these days are machined about as accurate as parts can be, so I think that there would'nt be hunks of metal shavings swirling around in your engine like a 1959 cadillac. The factory oil filter works and I'm darn sure your oil didn't break down after only 2111 miles. STOP WORRYING and start riding. The only problem you'll have now is the engine will blow at 110,000 miles instead of 111,000 miles.:Rockon:
 
thanks for the input.. this is exactly what i was wanting to hear. I am once again currently waiting on yamaha to call me back. my stress has pretty much gone away. i'm still urked with they're method of handling the problem. and i'm not satisfied with a 1 year warranty that will expire at the end of this year. but at this point. its not worth the headache. let it be let it be. but for what its worth. as of right now they're not willing to offer an extended warranty.. so i will indeed ride this biotch like i stole this biotch.
 
I know what I would do...not have the dealer do the service in the first place. It's not hard to do this stuff on your own, and you'd have saved a bunch of money in the process. Change your own oil, and do it quickly. It may not blow up, but oil from break-in really should be changed at or before 600 miles. There may well be some metal particulates getting worked into the motor that shouldn't be. But, as these guys said, don't stress too much about it. You can do it in an hour, pick the oil and filter you want, and you're done.
I have found time and time again that the less an actual dealer works on a bike, the better. I know they have to go get certified and all that, but my experience has almost always been bad with dealership service departments. I've got stories for you if you ever want to hear them. It's why I've taken the time to learn stuff on my own, and document it all for warranty sake.

- T.
 
I think you are probably new to buying a new bike vs. a used one, and as has already been said, the new machines are about as good as they can make them and they have been for several years. Used to be that they put in cast iron liners in the cylinders so they could be bored and honed after 30 or 40 thousand miles. Now they just coat the aluminum with some stuff that is harder than diamonds and unless you let is run out of oil or never change it you can barely hurt an engine. Also, my picture of a motorcyclist is someone who can at least change the oil and filter. I would't pay a dealer to change my oil if I had to drink it to get rid of the old stuff. Your engine is fine as long as you never ran it out of oil. Whenever the sales jock asks me if I want the extended warranty my reply is always, "if I thought it needed the extended warranty, I wouldn't be buying it". That usually ends the discussion. Just ride the thing and worry when it needs worrying.
 
Hey Chad, you should send in an abreviated version of your story to the "Service" Q&A column in Cycle World magazine. See what they think of the situation. I bet they'd answer your inquiry since oil changes are such a highly debated subject in all the motorcycle forums.
 
Steve F , Thank You , Thank You , Thank You
That sounds like the best idea i have heard yet. None the less my stress is over with i dont like being burned , but its up the lawyer now.
Yamaha has givin me they're final answer
1. They will NOT refund my money.
2. They will NOT replace the unit.
3. They will not offer me an extended warranty on the bik. so all documentation is being handed over to a lawyer.. which i'm sure it will be handled hush hush.. but i wont hear back from the lawyer until next monday on whether or not he'll actually take the case.
that gives me a few days to email the motorcycle magazines. after all they can never scream slander.. for everything is documented as fact..
 
You're welcome. But dammit. I think I stumbled on the answer to your problem but it's too late now since you had the oil changed already.

There's a thread on the FZ1OA forum where they're having oil anlysis done. It tells you the condition of the oil as far as contaminents, chemical composition, etc., etc. Basically it tells you if your oil is no good and not protecting your engine or if it's still good for more miles. I just saw it earlier tonight or I would have posted it already. The standard analysis is only $22.50

But anyway, the company is Blackstone Labs. Here is their web site....
http://blackstone-labs.com/index.html. Read the FAQ section. They have a sense of humor.
 
well thanks again Steve F . Definately worth looking into even if not for the bike.. i'm just intrested in stuff like that.. and might help me pick a quality product.
 
Well, my only advice is this, .........

If no action is being taken by anyone but yourself, you are probably are not going to get anywhere fast and who knows how much it may cost YOU in the end. Since you don't have the original oil, you are probably s.o.l.

But to go with my statement earlier, "ride more, worry less!"

On a different note, someone I know took their 60k+ vehicle and ran over 8k past the 3k (so 11k in total) on the same oil. Changed it, and they haven't given it a second thought, but I'm always poking my head in now to make sure there is not a repeat performance (and it is not anyone in my household before the ribbing starts)

BroHay
 
lol i for sure thought you were gonna say your wife.. ya i'm not messing with it at all at this point.. if the lawyer wants to take it rock on. if not i'll have a fun filled year with the fz and then nearly give it away at the end of the year.
 
I'd never let anything like that happen in my household.....but I now have all the company/family vehicles (8) to upkeep with service for sticking my nose somewhere where it should not have been.

And should you decide to "give it away" I'm open for donations......:thumbup:

BroHay
 
I think the underlying lesson here is that if you want something done right do it yourself. Join a riding club in your area and have one of the guys walk you through the oil change process, it's very easy, it's fun and when your done you know it was done right.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top