Wow, you guys were right about dealers

3918 Views 44 Replies 26 Participants Last post by Big B, Sep 16, 2011

RyanG

Discussion Starter · Sep 15, 2011

I've always heard folks complain about Suzuki dealers and how they can be outragiously expensive for service. I've been lucky cause my bike has never had any problems and I always do the maintainence myself. Circumstances made me leave the bike at Wasilla Alaska Suzuki to have the clutch rod seal replaced. They charged me $130 for an oil change, $150 diagnosis fee to verify I was telling them the truth about the seal, and $170 to actually change the seal. It took 5 weeks to be completed. This maybe perfectly normal for dealers to charge this much but it only reinforces my do it yourself approach.
There are certainly many riders that are happy with Suzuki dealers but my first experience with a dealer service dept. makes me really appreciate this forum and all of the great information here.

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· #12 · Sep 15, 2011

tmcgee said:
All dealers and techs are not the same. I hate painting with such a broad brush.

Thank you. V-Strom oil change in my shop using Amsoil and Hi-Flo filter including labor and diagnostic fee: $$71.50. Includes free air too!

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· #23 · Sep 15, 2011

Jonmo89 said:
I can understand tires and batteries, but I wouldn't be surprised if some tried to sneak in a disposal fee for other stuff. When I took my front wheel in to my nearest dealer to get a new tire mounted they wanted 40 bucks :jawdrop:, so I went to an independent shop and got it done for 25.

I have to pay to dispose of tires, used oil, used coolant and oil filters. Many shops charge an environmental fee and tire disposal fees which is acceptable. But so many customers complain that I don't itemize it anymore. My customers pay it, they just don't know it.

And for you cheap-asses that still don't get it, here's one scenario:

When it's time for me to get rid of all the stacks of used tires around here, I have to pick up each tire, one at a time, and shake the slimy, stinky rain water out. Then I get to load each one in a trailer. Then I get to drive to a disposal site and unload each tire. Then I get to pay a fee for each tire I drop off.

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· #29 · Sep 15, 2011

gijoecam said:
I'm confused... You have to pay for disposal of said items. Understandable. But if I visit any of the instant oil change shops in my closest town, I can drop off as much oil, antifreeze, and batteries as I can carry in there at no charge... So what gives?

I know several guys that have shops that do light repairs on the side. They have guys beating down their doors (especially this time of year) asking to BUY his used oil. How is it that you have to pay to dispose of it? (I'm not trying to start an argument, I just don't get it...)

Tires I completely understand.

In many areas repair facilities are required to accept used fluids to keep the public from dumping them in the sewers. The average Jiffy Lube or similar shop probably acquires as much used oil in a week or two as I do in 3-4 years. Because of the volume of used oil produced it is much more economical for the recyclers to pick up from big volume facilities. I checked a couple months ago about selling my used oil and was quoted 15 cents a gallon to pick up 500 gallons minimum. That's a whopping $75. I can only legally store somewhere around 150-200 gallons on my site per DNR regulations.

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· #42 · Sep 16, 2011

Waste oil furnaces are very efficient and very expensive. But for a shop the generates enough used oil it is a good option.

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· #43 · Sep 16, 2011

mark444 said:
And if a shop is paying for "disposing of oil" and not paying to have it sent to a "recycling center", then he might as well just dump it in his neighbor's back yard at midnight and save a few bucks.

......

That's idiotic.

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