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General Category >> Rubber Side Down! >> 600 mile service
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Message started by alcoa on 08/20/08 at 18:24:06

Title: 600 mile service
Post by alcoa on 08/20/08 at 18:24:06

Next week I am taking the bike in for its first service. If this is a good shop what will they do, what should I look for and what can I ask them? This is my first bike and I want to take very good care of it, :) can anyone give me advice on this service.

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by Sandy Koocanusa on 08/20/08 at 18:34:29

There is a maintenance chart in your owner's manual. What they should do is listed in the 600 mile column. We took my wife's GZ250 in for its initial checkup, and some of the itemized info on the bill was a little ambiguous. Things like "valve clearance: within spec" I took to mean "sounds okay, not opened and eyeballed."

The bottom line on the bill was quite clear, though. I will not do that again.

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by EssForty on 08/20/08 at 18:50:46

They should confirm the proper amount of play in your cables and adjust everything properly, change your oil and filter, pull and inspect your plug, and most importantly they should check, and if needed....adjust the clearances on your intake and exhaust valves. There's a laundry list of items like that but the critical items seem to be the valve clearance and, of course, you want to get the break-in oil changed out for some regular motorcycle oil.

I had a very bad experience when I took mine in for the 600 mile. First , they tried to upsell me on synthetic oil for $25 extra. I said no thank, I'll go with regular oil. Then they told me that the $200 or so they quoted over the phone only included a valve "inspection" and that I will have to pay an extra $125 for the adjustment. I asked how they could know that the valve clearances would be out of spec if they had not looked at the bike. They simply said "They're always out of adjustment". Sensing a ripoff, I left the dealership on my bike and decided to do it myself. It's not that hard.

If your bike is still under warranty, you probably have to let them do it to keep the warranty valid. I hope you have an honest stealership (an oxymoron), but the good news is that if you don't you've got a very reliable bike that is easy for someone with basic wrench skills to work on.

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by Ed L. on 08/20/08 at 19:22:39

When you pick up the bike after service make sure it has oil in it before leaving the dealer. I've heard of more than one bike that suffered an early death because the oil was drained and not refilled.

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by barry68v10 on 08/20/08 at 19:42:06

3133263D3D3C213B21520 wrote:

So now I gotta ask, when you checked your valves were they "always out of adjustment"?

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by barry68v10 on 08/20/08 at 19:44:38

One additional comment here, if you haven't suffered from the dreaded plug cap leak yet, look for it AFTER the 600 mile service.

If it starts leaking, you're in luck because they checked and maybe even adjusted your valves. If not, your in luck, no dreaded plug cap leak... :-/

Ok, I'm over my cynical diatribe now. 8-)

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by Sandy Koocanusa on 08/20/08 at 19:47:31

During that service, aren't they supposed to pull that plug and torque a bolt beneath it? If so, I would ask them to seal it up when they put it back in.

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by verslagen1 on 08/20/08 at 20:23:25

600 mile service (get a manual)
valve clearance I
fuel line I
auto decomp cable I
idle speed I
drive belt I
clutch I
brakes I
brake hose I
brake fluid I
tires I
steering I
front forks I
rear suspension I
chassis bolts and nuts T
cylinder head nuts T
exhaust pipe bolts T
muff clamp T
engine oil and filter R

I=inspect, clean, adjust, replace or lube
T=tighten
R=replace

As you see T=tighten, not optional. If this is not done then he's cheating you. It requires the head cover removed. plug pulled.

Mandate that the plug is replaced with hi temp RTV or he has to do it again free when it leaks oil.

And I don't think I=inspect only. It's as applicable, I'd complain to corporate/BBB if I got that bull.

Demand to see the statement of work before the service, know what you're paying for. >:(

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by Jay on 08/20/08 at 23:04:56

Honestly, if you're not handy with a wrench, find a gearhead freind and buy him lunch and a 12 pack. There's just too many horor stories about people getting ripped off at stealerships. I know there's some honest ones, but it's just so rare.
You should be able to go in with a list of what you expect to have done, ask for it to be written up, and be able to examine the list for error; as well as recieve a realistic estimate as to cost before work gets started. HOWEVER, if you're a newbie, they'll smell that on you like a shark smells blood in the water. Oh, they may smile, take your list, and promise you the moon. They might also manage to "adjust" something so that it fails in such a way that it's long after you've left their shop, and you'll never know it was them. Why do you think they're called "stealerships"?
With some basic tools, a Clymers and this forum, there's not much you can't tackle. I did my own 600 mile service. I've checked the valves twice now. Niether time did they require adjustment. I've had the bike for 4 months and have over 3,000 miles on her. If she was going to fail from a "warranty" issue, she'd of likely done it by now. I may be horribly surprised at a later date. Suzuki may not honor their "warranty" because I did the work myself, even though the law plainly states we can; but then, I've never put much faith in "warranties" anyway.

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by 07S40rider on 08/21/08 at 11:46:03

Alcoa
I just recently went through this exact same situation of trying to decide if I should do it myself or have an authorized mechanic do it so that I maintained my warranty. After calling every Suzuki shop within 50 miles (there were 4) and grilling them with questions regarding exactly what they charge "out the door" and exactly what that price included I had some good information in hand.
1. the place that charged the most ($275) said "we always adjust the valves on the first service because they always need it - so we charge you for it no matter what"

2. the second place wanted $150 and said "in 20 years we have never had to adjust the valves on first service on a Savage so we dont do it and we don't charge for it - but if you want a valve adjustment it will be an extra $140

3. the third place wanted $200 and said "we listen to it run and if it sounds bad then we look at the valves but we don't charge extra"

4 the fourth place, which ended up getting my business wanted $198 "out the door" - they said they doubted it would need a valve adjustment but they would open it up and inspect anyway, and if an adjustment was need they would already be in there and it was included in the price. They did not try to sell me anything extra and seemed very serious about making me happy as a customer rather than just making a buck and getting me out of their face.

to make a long story short (TOO LATE!) - if you decide to take it somewhere instead of doing it yourself, ask around as much as possible and don't let anybody work on your bike until you are comfortable with what they will do.

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by Ed L. on 08/21/08 at 11:58:05

I've checked the valve lash twice on my '02 but haven't needed to adjust it yet. I bought the bike used and never could find out if the 600 mile service was done on it. From the lack of any type of gasket sealer on the engine I am assuming that the 600 mile check wasn't performed. Most dealership mechanics use way too much silicon sealer and it squeezes out in the strangest places. I have checked some of the head bolts and found them torqued up so I've decided to just leave it alone, look for oil leaks and ride. If you use the dealership to perform the 600 mile service Don't leave the shop untill you check the oil and hear the bike run. If you think it doesn't sound right get the service manager and store owner involved right away, be nice but don't take any BS about it.

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by Rich on 08/21/08 at 12:17:22

I guess I should consider myself lucky..I had the dealer do my 600 mile checkup and was only charged $100.00! I don't think they messed with the valve adjustment or even checked it for that matter. The bike seems to run fine and I don't notice any noise in the valve train. I went with the dealer service to protect my warranty but as soon as it's up, I'll be doing the work myself.

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by bill67 on 08/21/08 at 13:02:25

I'm sure my valves weren't check but I'm glad they didn't,Motorcycle mechanics listen to motorcycles all day for years they know if the valves are loose, then they would adjust than.

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by joeh100 on 08/21/08 at 13:17:25

They don't adjust the valves?
Aren't they supposed to retorque the head?

It seems to me like a valve adjustment would be in order after that.

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by EssForty on 08/21/08 at 14:19:07

[\quote]
So now I gotta ask, when you checked your valves were they "always out of adjustment"?[/quote]

The intake valves were at 0.005, the exhaust were smack in the middle at 0.004". So I really did not need to adjust them. Being a perfectionist, and having the thing apart anyway, I decided to dial the intake in at 0.004 as well. Spun the flywheel a few times, checked them again for good measure and they were still in spec.

I did notice something odd however when I was riding it. My right side was sitting higher than my left. I thought maybe I put the seat on wrong and then I realized it was the $325 cash that was in my back pocket and not the stealership cash register :P Cha Ching!

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by barry68v10 on 08/21/08 at 14:26:30

There ya go! That's what this site is all about!

One quick comment about dealer service, simply document the service you perform and if the dealer chooses not to honor the warranty, they'll loose that battle in court EVERY TIME! (Unless they can prove you messed something up...)

Title: Re: 600 mile service
Post by alcoa on 08/21/08 at 16:43:58

I want to thank you all for your replies. I will give you a full report when I get the service done.