Print

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

[Hotrod50]

Does anyone know if the Motor company has a policy against having trailer hitches on bikes?  I guess I'm mainly asking about bikes that would still be under warranty.   What dealer experiences have you had when the service people see a hitch?

[PAPA T]

Do you mean your "Parade Flag holder" ?

[2k]

Have one on mine. Been in twice for warrenty repair. Stealer didn't mention it and I never thought bout it. Would be a royal pain to have to remove each time!!

[roadking71865]

No problems with my "parade flag holder" and warranty work.  They don't even mention it.  However, it is the MOCO's policy that warranty is void if you have a hitch on but I've never heard of one person that has been denied warranty work.

[grandpadoc]

The last Bushtec hitch I had installed was done by a HD dealer they were happy to do it. The bike wasn't on warranty though.  Doc

[ultrafxr]

Normally not a problem for small type repairs the dealer handles routinely without involvement (on site inspection) from the moco or xtd service folks.  But once when I had a more involved problem on my '99 the xtd service folks had their regional rep come to inspect before authorizing repairs.  Dealer suggested and I agreed that we should un-install the hitch.

[mrmagloo]

Imho, it would depend on what you are trying to claim as a repair under the warranty. If you had the hitch and came in for a clutch repair, I think you'd have a hard time. But if the radio quit or something totally unrelated, I think you'd be fine.

[JCZ]

On my 89 Ultra Classic the transmission main shaft twisted right in to two pieces.  The dealership that installed the trailer hitch said that could be a problem at the wrong dealership if the bike were still under warranty.  The MoCo paid for the tranny rebuild out of their "good faith customer service" program.

Interesting that they think towing a Bushtec could be a problem but dragging around a side car that weighs 50% more than a Bushtec isn't a problem.

[grc]

Imho, it would depend on what you are trying to claim as a repair under the warranty. If you had the hitch and came in for a clutch repair, I think you'd have a hard time. But if the radio quit or something totally unrelated, I think you'd be fine.

    Exactly!   They can't "void" your entire warranty anyway; legally each failure stands on it's own.  If your trailer hitch could be proved to have caused your cheap radio to fail, I guess they could refuse to pay to replace it with another cheap refurb.  The key is "prove".

Now, that burned up clutch example, I think you might have a problem getting H-D to fix that regardless.  And unless they have eyewitnesses willing to testify, the fact that you have a hitch mounted isn't proof that you actually towed anything.  In other words, I don't think I'd sweat it.  Only you know if your local dealership is a bunch of azzholes who might try to screw you around over this sort of thing.  If they are, find another place to do business, and if you can't avoid taking the bike to them for warranty work just remove the hitch.


Jerry 

[grc]

On my 89 Ultra Classic the transmission main shaft twisted right in to two pieces.  The dealership that installed the trailer hitch said that could be a problem at the wrong dealership if the bike were still under warranty.  The MoCo paid for the tranny rebuild out of their "good faith customer service" program.

Interesting that they think towing a Bushtec could be a problem but dragging around a side car that weighs 50% more than a Bushtec isn't a problem.

Somehow I have a feeling that even the incompetent jerks in Milwaukee don't really believe towing a 150 lb trailer behind a 950 lb motorcycle should cause any sort of failure.  It's just one more way they can try to avoid responsibility for poor quality by blaming the consumer.  BTW, I wonder why they don't also have a policy against 300+ lb riders with 200 lb passengers.  I've seen a lot more of those than I have trailers.

I could make some chitty comments about "good faith" and Harley, but I feel generous at the moment.  Maybe later.


Jerry