I have had it with this thread....not with the OP or OUR responses but with the snapshot we have presented of the HD dealers and service departments. There is a theme of mistrust and animosity toward them and to some degree perhaps well deserved. Apparently our CVO's are made with crappy parts, by crappy workers, sold by a crappy dealership network, and serviced by a bunch of idiots; at least that is the impression we are leaving. IF so, why have we each spent a large chunk of money on these products?
I buy Mercedes-Benz cars. When I walk in, they know my name. When I get service I am offered loaners so I can go shopping or to lunch. They text me when my car is ready and it is vac'd and washed first. IF I need warrantee work, they apologize and bring my car to my home and pick up the loaner. They treat their customers like royalty.
Why doesn't the most successful manufacturer of motorcycles worldwide, selling the most expensive production products in their class, do the same thing? A g.d. twelve dollar part!!!!!
If this SM worked for me he would be a "service washer" for a month with reduced pay, if not fired on the spot. 45 minutes of HIS time, B.S. his "time" is paid for, now take care of my customers and put a smile on your face as well. IF HE CAN'T HANDLE THE PRESSURE, QUIT. Pressure isn't needing 45 minutes you really don't have that day. PRESSURE is making the payroll, Pressure is making the floor plan, Pressure is having a guy slip out front and breaking his arm, Pressure is finding out you owe the I.R.S. ten grand you don't have.
Harley-Davidson needs to re-think and re-train their Corporate attitude period. They need to TELL their franchise owners they STAND BEHIND THEIR PRODUTS period, and the owners need to tell their EMPLOYEES that their number one job is to make each customer feel as if they are their ONLY customer.
I realize WE are a cantankerous group; demanding, at times rude, sometimes crude, and we use their products (at times) in the most destructive ways. That is all factored into the price of a $32,000 (or more) product. Get with it HD, the Indian is hunting now, and it's your wagon train they are looking for.
OWL
sorry for the rant, I'm pissed off.
You are right and this is the way it should be but the reality of the situation is HD promotes saving money
on warranty claims. I often suspected that because service depts did not want to do warranty work that there was
a good reason why. As it turns out the dealer gets a bonus from the MoCo if they keep the warranty dollars spent
by the dealer below a certain level. This promotes bad customer service and HD obviously worry's more about saving
money than keeping customers happy.
I worked at a dealership and a customer brought in a black Fatboy with a defective gas tank. We replaced the tank under warranty but when we got the new tank in it had a very visible thumb print in the clear coat on top of the tank.
I called HD about it and they said they would only replace it if it was visible from 10 feet away. It was not of course
and they said they would NOT replace it but it was in a perfect place to see it sitting on the bike. I ended up having
the tank buffed until the print was gone. The customer was still not happy that we had to fix the tank instead of getting another new tank so I traded him out of the bike and sold him another new one.
It's sad but it seems to me that the MoCo just doesn't care about there customers after they sell you the bike. They would rather save a tank than keep a customer happy. I had to trade with the customer to keep him happy. After
that I was very disappointed with HD on customer service.
As long as they keep selling us these overpriced bikes and we keep buying them I guess they really don't have any
incentive to give you good customer service. They know we will buy them anyway.