|
|
Cruiser
Posts: 222
Barefoot Bay, FL United States | I tend to agree with ElroyJ. You have to be especially careful of the dealers that are selling the Victory's as a sideline. Most of them sell Polaris 4 wheelers, ATV's Rangers, etc., and have a BAD habit of getting into a "4 wheeler" mentality, where they work on so many ATV's, Jet skis, 6 wheel units that are covered with mud, that they forget they are working on a 25K finely finished vehicle that needs a little extra care to maintain the fit and finish of the product. I have had my parts laid on top of a 4X4 covered with mud, panels removed and put on a lift under a muddy 6 wheeler as it was being worked on, had the panels placed on top of cardboard boxes, only to get knocked over by another mechanic backing up jet ski on a trailer. WTF???
|
|
| |
|
Tourer
Posts: 554
2 mi from Jim Beam n KY | That does sound crowded and careless!! |
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 1484
LaPorte,Tx. | witchbiker - 2009-06-16 6:24 AM
I tend to agree with ElroyJ. You have to be especially careful of the dealers that are selling the Victory's as a sideline. Most of them sell Polaris 4 wheelers, ATV's Rangers, etc., and have a BAD habit of getting into a "4 wheeler" mentality, where they work on so many ATV's, Jet skis, 6 wheel units that are covered with mud, that they forget they are working on a 25K finely finished vehicle that needs a little extra care to maintain the fit and finish of the product. I have had my parts laid on top of a 4X4 covered with mud, panels removed and put on a lift under a muddy 6 wheeler as it was being worked on, had the panels placed on top of cardboard boxes, only to get knocked over by another mechanic backing up jet ski on a trailer. WTF???
This is amazing, you must be about 2000 miles from me, but you described the dealer where I bought my Vision to the "T". I pulled in one day and there was not a sales person or manager in the building, they were all out on the mud track next door riding one of the new Polaris side by sides! As long as most of there revenue comes from sales other than Victory, I see this not changing much. The one thing you can do is fill out the survey that Victory sends out after your bike is in for service. |
|
| |
|
Tourer
Posts: 460
Centennial, CO |
The one thing you can do is fill out the survey that Victory sends out after your bike is in for service.
There is one that goes out? When? AAAARGH! There are days where I truly wish I had an HD that rode, looked and gave me as much pride as my Vision. The service that HD provides is world class compared to the japanese chop shop feeling I get from my dealer.
I keep hearing stories from all of my HD friends that I get shafted each time I take my bike in. Here is what I hear:
1. Dude...they came and got my bike...serviced it and brought it back
2. Dude...they didn't even question why the sh!tt!n thing broke...they just fixed it...NO CHARGE
3. Dude...The guy took my new part off his personal machine (no kidding...I watched him) and put it on my bike. Got me back on the road and then he dealt with HIS bike later.
Where is this world class service I would expect with such a high end machine? Sheez! |
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 1290
Ruskin, Fl | Guess I'm lucky my dealer sells Indian and Triumph. I think the Indian starts at about 30K. |
|
| |
|
Iron Butt
Posts: 600
Linwood, MI | ElroyJ - 2009-06-16 5:37 PM
I keep hearing stories from all of my HD friends that I get shafted each time I take my bike in. Here is what I hear:
1. Dude...they came and got my bike...serviced it and brought it back
2. Dude...they didn't even question why the sh!tt!n thing broke...they just fixed it...NO CHARGE
3. Dude...The guy took my new part off his personal machine (no kidding...I watched him) and put it on my bike. Got me back on the road and then he dealt with HIS bike later.
Where is this world class service I would expect with such a high end machine? Sheez!
Any dealer could provide this level of service if they wanted to. The Victory dealer I bought both my Vics from was like this. When I had trouble with my Kingpin the dealer took good care of me. The only real hassles were them trying to deal with Victory. They had my bike for a whole month at the beginning of riding season trying to track down the problem and get Vic to ok the warranty repairs they wanted to do. During that month they gave me on of the demo 'pins to ride so I wasn't without wheels. After arguing back and forth with Vic over what the mechanic said was wrong and parts needed, the owner finally told him to take the parts off one of the new bikes that came in and get mine back to me. The mechanic was right and I never had any more trouble.
So, this type of service isn't just exclusive to HD, although they may teach their dealers better customer service and encourage them to go the extra mile. Any dealer that truly concentrates on customer satisfaction and long term thinking can do this and cultivate an incredibly loyal customer base.
Even though my original dealer is now gone and it's inconvenient to travel a couple of hours to the next closest dealer, I like the Victory products so much more than HD (or any other manufacturer, for that matter) that I'm willing to put up with the extra hassle. |
|
| |
|
Cruiser
Posts: 74
Lehigh Valley, Pa | I have to agree with Rebel. My dealer pulled parts from his personal bike to replace mine so I could get out and ride. When the new parts came in they swapped them around and took care of any and all of my complaints. They just did a warranty replacement of a mirror on my Vision and they did this on their own, with out going through Vic. After the replacement and I was happy they will then file the claim with Vic and send me the paperwork so that it would not slow the process. They bend over backwards to get my bike serviced on my schedule and make things right. I guess they could pick up my bike, then I would miss the ride to and from the dealer which I love. |
|
| |
|
Puddle Jumper
Posts: 8
northeast ohio | One bad apple ruins it for all the other dealers. We are multi line atv, ranger, snow, and victory. However, our shops are divided and dedicated atv mechanics along with dedicated victory mechanics. Any Polaris dealer who takes on Victory i feel should be required to do this bc you guys are right, your Vision didn't just come off the trail did it? Rebel hit the nail on the head. Any dealer could give that kind of service, if they wanted to!! We value our customers way too much to risk anything and bend over backwards for all of them. Heck, last week a customer of mine came in with her Vegas low to get serviced and her friend was riding a custom HD Screamin Eagle Dyna. Beautiful bike with a black boot mark melted on the pipes. I told her to stick around and cleaned it for her bc she said she tried everything. Well, a little bit of flitz polish on a hot pipe and it came right off. She may be on a Harley now, but who knows what the future may bring. |
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 3006
San Antonio, TX | Dealers pulling parts from their own bike and the show room....others that are going above and beyond the call of duty. I thought this was just a joke that other owners were pulling on the group. Then it happened to me.
The new dealer in San Antonio is first class. I took my Vision in for a warranty work today.
They have second floor windows over the shop area so you can watch the doctors (Techs) perform what ever surgical procedure is required. When they were done today it was as good as new and it took lees then an hour.
I can now easily recommend Yamaha/Victory of San Antonio in Selma, Texas to anyone without hesitation. It is quite a relief to me since I was burned by the old Victory dealer and my first Kawasaki dealer.
Go with your gut. If you get a bad vibe on a dealer, walk out and promise yourself never to come back. |
|
| |
|
Cruiser
Posts: 177
| There are actually good people out there thta do care about there customers....... but it's to bad they are so out numbered by the assholes...... the one that I had are no longer a Vic dealer because of this AWESOME economy we are in. The best of luck to you dealers who do care. |
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 1436
| I have found that by talking with the shop manager and dealer owner you can correct most issues. I had a lot of the same issues folks have complained about but my dealer has really turned things around, kudo's to them. Yes they still pull the odd bone head moves; like one of my throttle-body covers evidently got dropped and scratched up then put back on without mention, but for the most part they are doing well. |
|
| |
|
Visionary
Posts: 3006
San Antonio, TX | Both times I had problems at dealers....It was with the owners.
The first dealer I ever bought from would not provide me my license plates. I paid cash for the bike and he would not get me my plates. Twenty five days after the sale he forged my paper plates so I could take my license test. I was young and did not understand what he was doing so I told my dad about it. Dad let me know he game the dealer was playing on me and the floor planning company.
My dad needed to go to the bank so I took him to town. I mentioned the issue to the banker and he was concerned. He normally gets title info in a week. Then one of the banks other employees stated that her son bought a bike at the same dealer for cash a week before mine and he still did not have plates.
I went down to the shop and demanded my plates. He said he bought them that day and mailed them to me.
At the time I had lived in that small town for about 7 years and knew a few people. I went the the tax office that day and paid the taxes on a boat trailer for my dad.
While at the tax office I mentioned my problem to a friend I knew from high school that worked at the only tax office for the county. She said that the dealer had not been by all week. She knew of someone I could call to get the problem solved. She gave me the phone number of a State Cop that helps the state collect its taxes.
I called him up and told him my story and about the other bike I knew about. I got a call from the dealer that I could come by and get my plates about an hour later. That dealer thought they could push me around because I was young and paid cash. They were wrong.
The husband and wife owners of the old Vic dealer in SA thought they could take off the brushed aluminum parts off of my new Vision and keep them when I bought the chrome parts. I had to threaten them with lawyers to get my parts back. Read about it below.
http://www.vision-riders.com/bb/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=1322&sta...
Some dealers just want to make the fast buck. My new dealer on the other hand is great and understands customer service from the top down. |
|
| |
|
Tourer
Posts: 329
scotts valley, California | Not to make excuses for sloppy work at some Victory service centers, or to put down the "Old American Motorcycle"; just to advise that Victory isn't alone. In 2006 I bought a new Dyna Lowrider with dealer installed Screaming Eagle mufflers. After the bike was broken in, I wound it out a little in second gear and blew both mufflers off into the street. Maybe they weren't properly installed? After the ten thousand mile service, I noticed oil under the bike in my garage. The drain plug took four or five turns with my bare fingers before I put a wrench to it to make the seal. This could have been a bad one. -- I guess it is just a sign of the times. |
|
| |
Funky dealers
