Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[stodz]

just wondering if the No Warranty when pulling a trailer has ever came up with any of you who tow, I am wanting a trailer but our local dealer will not honor any warranty claims when the bike has a hitch. Thanks in advance Stodz

[Twolanerider]

just wondering if the No Warranty when pulling a trailer has ever came up with any of you who tow, I am wanting a trailer but our local dealer will not honor any warranty claims when the bike has a hitch. Thanks in advance Stodz

A few here have reported being denied warranty or extended warranty coverage due to the dealership or the service contractor's rep seeing a hitch.  Other's have reported having service successfully completed.  The language in each agreement is specific though.  Service definitely can be denied under warranty or extended warranty.  They don't hide that fact even a little bit.  So it's a craps shoot at best; and one you're all too often likely to lose.

[JCZ]

If your dealer has that attitude I'd be looking for another dealership.....even if I didn't have a trailer.

Personally, it has not been an issue for me (this is my third Bushtec) however, I've heard the stories....especially with the aftermarket service agreements.

I find it pretty interesting that Harley feels our bikes can drag around a side car without affecting the warranty but a much light trailer with two wheels under it does.  I believe it's like the hocus-pokus with synthetic oil.  For years they made all kinds of flat claims (it's to slick.....it'll put flat spots on the parts rubbing together, etc.).  They made those claims all the way up until they put their label on a bottle of synthetic oil and then all of a sudden synthetic oil is fine....as long as it has the MoCo label on it and they're making the money off of it.

The same with trikes until they started making trikes again.  If Bushtec ran at the MoCo and they worked a deal.....all of a sudden trailers would be OK if it  were a Bush-Davidson trailer.

[RGlideKid]

I agree with Don and JC, and I'll throw in my .02 worth.  If you have a warranty issue with something completely unrelated to the towing of a trailer, the dealer would be foolish to call out a  "trailer infraction" and not do the repairs under warranty,  Like JC says, it's definitely time to switch dealers (but not without letting them know that's why their losing business to Indian and that you'll be posting the dealer name on every forum on the internet).  Hey, if they can play dirty, so can I.
If the dealer balks at doing the repairs on a tranny or engine problem, that might be a different story.  Again, I have to wonder how Indian will handle this situation.  I had 40k miles on the bike I towed my Bushtec with, and never had a warranty issue with it that would have been attributable to towing a trailer. 
To me, Harley is splitting hairs on this subject, and isn't smart enough to see it's bad business.   
"And professing themselves to be wise in their own eyes, they became fools..."

[JCZ]

I had over 60k on my 89 Ultra Classic, pulling my first Bushtec and warranty work was never a question.  But the MoCo has lowered their quality control and specs since then (ie. acceptable crank run out tolerance).   

[Fired00d]

just wondering if the No Warranty when pulling a trailer has ever came up with any of you who tow, I am wanting a trailer but our local dealer will not honor any warranty claims when the bike has a hitch. Thanks in advance Stodz

You would need to have them show your or find the wording in the warranty that addresses this... IE: if the warranty explicitly states "this warranty is void if you pull a trailer" (or wording like that) it doesn't matter if the failure is a result of the trailer or not the warranty in it's entirety is voided. Now... if a dealer(s) wants to overlook that you are pulling a trailer and submit the warranty claim that is an individual decision. If they are caught submitting false claims so to speak it's their @$$ on the line not yours.

 
Ride Safe,
Fired00d
 

[grc]

It is very important to separate the factory warranty from the ESP service contract.  The factory warranty is subject to Federal law and the consumer has certain rights under that law.  An ESP is not covered by warranty law and the contract itself is the last word on this subject.  Read the details in the ESP contract and you will find that the entire contract will be void if they find any evidence of trailer towing (or many other modifications btw). 

When dealing with the factory warranty, they can't void the entire warranty.  However, they can refuse to pay for repairs that they can show were caused by your actions.  For instance, if you ride in with a hitch on the bike and a controller for trailer brakes and lights installed, and you have a powertrain issue or an electrical issue that could have been caused by towing, they can decline to accept responsibility for that repair.  On the other hand, if you show up at the dealership with a paint defect or any other defect not directly attributable to towing, the manufacturer cannot deny coverage for those items based on having a hitch on the bike.

IMHO, the towing question is similar to the engine mods question or the tuning question.  All can result in Harley refusing to cover a repair under the factory warranty, and unless you plan to spend big bucks fighting them in court you need to address this issue before making any of those changes.  In other words, be prepared IF NECESSARY to pay for any repairs that could be linked to your planned modifications.  Many repairs have been covered over the years that really shouldn't have been covered, either through dealerships fraudulently submitting claims that Harley didn't question, or perhaps the Harley rep just being willing to look the other way.  But just because someone else got away with one doesn't mean you will.

Jerry

[grandpadoc]

My last hitch was installed by a dealer, but the bike was off warranty.

[Chains]

I have extended warranty and just had my compensator replaced under it. My hitch was on my bike and no one said a word.

[Yellow09SERG]

I was asked by a dealer to take the hitch off the bike before I brought it in. There was some motor issues with the bike that was warranty covered and they asked that I took it off because their extended warranty adjuster was supposed to be around the shop during the same time my bike was to be there.

[Jbbrown73]

The same with trikes until they started making trikes again.  If Bushtec ran at the MoCo and they worked a deal.....all of a sudden trailers would be OK if it  were a Bush-Davidson trailer.

If it was a Bush-Davidson the price would double and quality would go to complete chit!!!

[JCZ]

I was asked by a dealer to take the hitch off the bike before I brought it in. There was some motor issues with the bike that was warranty covered and they asked that I took it off because their extended warranty adjuster was supposed to be around the shop during the same time my bike was to be there.

I've heard that being suggested, in the past.

[Rooster]

If your dealer has that attitude I'd be looking for another dealership.....even if I didn't have a trailer.

Personally, it has not been an issue for me (this is my third Bushtec) however, I've heard the stories....especially with the aftermarket service agreements.

I find it pretty interesting that Harley feels our bikes can drag around a side car without affecting the warranty but a much light trailer with two wheels under it does.  I believe it's like the hocus-pokus with synthetic oil.  For years they made all kinds of flat claims (it's to slick.....it'll put flat spots on the parts rubbing together, etc.).  They made those claims all the way up until they put their label on a bottle of synthetic oil and then all of a sudden synthetic oil is fine....as long as it has the MoCo label on it and they're making the money off of it.

The same with trikes until they started making trikes again.  If Bushtec ran at the MoCo and they worked a deal.....all of a sudden trailers would be OK if it  were a Bush-Davidson trailer.

HAHAHA That's a good one JC

[Para Bellum]

I have extended warranty and just had my compensator replaced under it. My hitch was on my bike and no one said a word.

Glad you got it covered.  On the flip side of that, a riding buddy bought the ESP for his Tri-Glide, didn't read the fine print, installed a hitch, hadn't towed anything.  Rear differential went bad, ESP claim adjuster saw the hitch and permanently voided the ESP.  Buddy was out the cost of the ESP and the $5000 for repairs.

[grc]

Glad you got it covered.  On the flip side of that, a riding buddy bought the ESP for his Tri-Glide, didn't read the fine print, installed a hitch, hadn't towed anything.  Rear differential went bad, ESP claim adjuster saw the hitch and permanently voided the ESP.  Buddy was out the cost of the ESP and the $5000 for repairs.

And over the past several years the ESP folks have been requiring more and more inspections by their reps before approving major repairs, thanks to the poor quality and higher failure rates causing increased costs for them on late model Harleys, so the odds of this happening have been increasing.  Anyone who is just relying on their dealership to look out for them to get things covered is basically just rolling the dice.  That's why I constantly remind people about this sort of thing every time warranty and ESP with modified bikes comes up.  The only positive thing I can say is that at least with the ESP if they void the contract you can get a partial rebate of the premium.  It will be a whole lot less than you might think it should be, but something is better than nothing I suppose. 

Jerry