Warranty

[bkmaxvrb]

OK, here's a question. I'm taking the bike to the shop tomorrow (they don't know it yet) for a gas leak from my tank. I think it might be a defective tank and is leaking from a weld or a seam. The leak doesn't seem to be coming from where you might expect it to. I posted pics in the Garage section under "Another Leak".

I just checked my warranty date and I'm past the date by 5 weeks. Have any of you guys gone in for repair work that was just outside the warranty? Did they do anything for you? I think my leak has exsisted for awhile but wasn't noticed until recently (last week or so) and, even then, I thought it was caused by my overfilling the tank so discarded the notion of a leak.

Did the dealer honor warranty work that was a little past the end date or, at least, split or reduce some of the cost?

If I was a 6 months or a year past the end date, I wouldn't ask but, 5 weeks? I'm just trying to save a couple of bucks.

[glwilson]

If they do; then do them a favor and don't list their name on any posts -- might get them into trouble.

I'll be interested to see if they would though.

[Cajunrider]

It all depends on your dealer and like gl said, don't name them on the forum. 9 out of 10 it will get back to MaKaw in some innocent unintended way.

[flavor]

Tell them it's been leaking for over 5 weeks and you've been looking for it. You thought it might be a hose and figured you'd take care of the issue yourself. Also tell them if you knew it was so close to the warranty expiration, you would have brought it to them right away.......instead of trying to fix it yourself.

[pagemastr]

I can't speak for MawKaw but I did have NAPA replace a bad alternator 30+ days out of warranty once for me. my preferred parts store as a result many years later even though their prices may be a little higher.

If it is a great dealer (...cough) and a simple fix they might repair it for you... was that me saying that??? I would be surprised but nothing to loose in asking!

[nighthawk700]

When I had an issue with my Concours, they said a few weeks out of the regular warranty, they'd go to bat for me with Kawasaki. But if it was beyond the EXTENDED warranty, don't even try. So are you talking the regular 2 year warranty, or an extended one?

[bkmaxvrb]

The regular 2 year warranty. Thanks guys. I think my dealer is going to do the right thing (hopefully). They've been good to me for the 3 years I've lived here. We'll find out tomorrow. I hope they remember the doughnuts I brought in a few months ago.

[bruce]

Originally Posted by Cajunrider

It all depends on your dealer and like gl said, don't name them on the forum. 9 out of 10 it will get back to MaKaw in some innocent unintended way.

Uhhh... Not really.

Approval for warranty repairs aren't made at the dealership level. It's the factories, or more accurately, the warranty/tech reps decision.

A warranty claim is filed by the dealer and then reviewed by the factory rep, the decision is made and then the dealer notified. If the claim is denied the dealer can make an appeal. That decision is still made at the factory level. When a repair is approved and made the dealer is required to hold onto the replaced parts for 90 days, as the factory may call for them at any time during that period. Id the dealer can't produce those parts, or if the parts are called for and found not to be faulty the factory will usually not honor the claim and it is charged back to the dealers parts account. At that point it is up to the dealer to attempt to collect from the customer.

I've found that all the factories go the extra mile with customers that have purchased an extended warranty. The most extreme case was an ATV that was 3 mos out of an extended warranty whose owner didn't service the air filter properly which allowed dirt to enter the engine, trashing the piston, jug and head. Because there had been an extended warranty in place with only one claim they paid for all parts but let the customer pay for our labor. In my own case I had an ignition switch develop a short which made the engine hiccup while riding. The rep was only going to cover the switch itself but realizing the bike was under an extended warranty he authorized an entire lock set replacement including labor costs.

Bruce

[ringadingh]

Its been my experience that if you are a good regular customer, one who takes it there for service, buys parts and accessories, etc. most times the dealer will look after you. If an owner comes in in for the first time, or very infrequently and only for warranty work, they may give those customers the cold shoulder a little more easily.

[bkmaxvrb]

I dropped the bike off at the dealer today and showed the service manager where the leak was coming from (in my opinion). He agreed and thought it was coming from the weld. He left me with the impression that MaKawi will do the right thing and replace it. He said he had to call to be sure and would get back to me with an answer. He's a multi-manufacturer dealer and said Kawi is one of the best at looking after their bikes and customers. He did say a new tank goes for around $1000. If, for some reason, the factory won't replace it, the dealer will figure something else out that doesn't amount to $1000. We'll see. I should be getting a call in the next day or so and I'll post up the results when they come in.

Russ

[bkmaxvrb]

Just got the call from the dealer - Good News!! MaKawi is going to replace the gas tank. The only thing I have to pay is the labor which will minimal as it's a simple task.

All I have to do now is wait for the tank to come in. As long as it's sitting there and I'm not riding it, I'm having them do some routine maintenance as well.

Life's Good. It's nice a company will stand by their product, do the right thing and not go by the letter of the agreement but the spirit of it.

[Cajunrider]

Great news bk. I'm happy that it turned out this way.

Bruce, When I said it depends on the dealer, I didn't mean to imply that they make the coverage decision. They have to submit the claim and some dealerships won't do it if it's past the coverage term. And this is not only with bikes. I had an air conditioner warranty claim put in by my truck dealership exactly 1 month after the coverage ended. The dealer said he would give it a shot but doubted they would cover it. Well, they covered parts and labor. This was GM about 10 years ago. I don't think I'd be so lucky today with a bankrupt corportation.

[dogdoc]

Russ Im happy you got yours fixed. kawa is not all that eager to fix things under warranty, just ask Rufuggio

[drhart]

Originally Posted by Doc (Lonewolf)

Russ Im happy you got yours fixed. kawa is not all that eager to fix things under warranty, just ask Rufuggio

You can ask me too.