| Author | Message | ||
     Adrian_8 |
The belt broke on the ULY today with 19,100 miles on it. A quick downshift for a wheelie across a bridge and snappo..The belt appeared to be stressed on both sides of every tooth where the tooth attaches to the belt. I am glad it broke as I would have continued to use it "forever". Someone planning an extended trip with this many miles on their belt might do a close exam or carry an extra. The belt broke at 11:30 am got the bike trailered to the dealer, Bluegrass HD, Louisville, Ky at 2:00 pm and I was on the road at 4:00pm..The dealer took one off a showroom bike...Great job by the dealer...The only downside is the belt came off a black bike, now my Orange bike will be slower and I was with 18 BMWs and was the only "Harley" and broke down ...jokes aplenty... | ||
| Old_mil |
Indeed. But point out that after the belt broke you did not 1. have to face a 400 mile tow to the nearest dealer 2. have to wait for a month while a new final drive was sent from Germany and either 3a. have to find a dealer willing to do the warranty work instead of trying to explain to you how it was your deficient riding that was causing the problem. or 3b. cough up several thousand dollars of your hard earned money to get your bike back. | ||
| Jim_sb |
Hi guys, I just took my Uly in for the sidestand recall work. It has 6100 miles since new. I noticed the belt is frayed in a single spot on the outside edge; closer examination revealed that most of an entire tooth is missing. The Buell dealership told me belts are "wear items" and are NOT covered by my 2 year warranty. I asked them to double check with the factory, they said they would. Are they covered? Regards, Jim in Santa Barbara | ||
| Windrider |
Jim, The story that I have heard is that the belt is covered under warranty if you BREAK it. Visual damage is NOT covered under warranty. There might be some dealer to dealer variances on that...... Either way, I still think that the belt final drive is the best. There is a cost to a chain as well. It is pretty easy to replace and if you feel like it is compromised I would do it before it breaks so that you are not stranded. Happy Trails, WindRider | ||
| Snowscum |
If its damaged their supposed to find out why and fix it. They fixed my shreading I dont see why they dont take a close look at your idler pulley. That was my problem. That belt should last for a long time if everything is aligned. | ||
| Jim_sb |
I had thought I basically had a "bumper to bumper" 2 year warranty excluding things like tires, normal maintenance items, etc. I was disappointed to learn that they don't consider this a warranty item. They did tell me that they recommended I replace it immediately at my own expense. That seemed rather disingenuous to me. I am going to give them time to contact Buell, failing that I will take digital pics and contact Buell Customer Service myself. Worst case scenario is I buy a new belt, swap them out and keep this as an emergency spare. Nevertheless, having put tens of thousands of miles on HD and Buell belt driven bikes I am not impressed so far with the new belt after only 6100 miles. I don't think anything is wrong with the bike, this has only occurred in a single spot. Regards, Jim in SB | ||
| 2_spuds |
I had my belt break on the way home from AK with about 12000mi on the clock.I was carrying a spare and it was a simple job to replace on the side of the road. It took about 30 minutes and that included some time spent keeping a crackhead away from my gear that was piled on the ground.  The removable piece of swingarm makes it a snap. My dealer replaced it under warranty and I still have a spare I'am fortunate to have a great dealer close by.  | ||
| Adrian_8 |
I like the drive belt system, personally I think it is the best for most road conditions. Easy to fix, quiet, clean,and light. My belt had no signs of the side frazzle/fraying some have. The teeth on the belt did appear to me to be cracked/stressed/dry rotted at the point of connecting to the belt face. I bent the belt slightly backward and it would expose the cracking..I am not whining, bitching, woe is me etc...I love the bike and things like this happen.. no big deal. If I rode it like a guy 59 years old should maybe this would not have happened. Great job from the dealer...he has a 06 black that could be bought right...with no belt at the moment! | ||
| Adrian_8 |
Old mil....exactly...that is why I did not want a BMW...among many other things...Momma said,"If you cannot say something nice..." I am a member of the local BMW club and am the "Black Sheep" in the family....also ride a 99 FXDX...have met some nice guys. | ||
| Josh_cox |
One belt is covered under warranty if it breaks. A belt is not bad if it has some rocks through it, small frays, etc. Only if you have more than three punctures closer than 1/4 inch or excessive fraying is it considered a problem. If the dealer won't take care of a broken belt, they are not honoring the warranty. If that is the problem, drop me an email and I'll make sure we get it corrected for you. | ||
| Paochow |
What does a new belt cost? | ||
| Lowflyer |
Daves has new belts for about $150. I also dig the belt drive. It is cheaper to fix than a shaft drive and requires no maintenance like a chain. You are only screwed if you haven't a spare on hand, but you can have one shipped to you from Daves to just about anywhere. | ||
| Paochow |
That's not too bad for piece of mind. I'm considering picking up an extra. Some of the places I ride are a long push/walk from civilization. How well does the replacement belt store? Or is there a more compact emergency version that is available? | ||
| Lowflyer |
I have heard that the belt has a certain bend radius not to be exceeded. I plan to buy one before mine breaks, install the new one and wad the other up to to fit under the seat. I'll use the wadded up one in a pinch just to get me home. | ||
| Adrian_8 |
I think the belt will last like tires...some guys get 9,000 miles out of a set of 616's and some get 2,500. The sudden jerking is what broke mine, but it was stressed at every tooth just ready to snap. Too much fun time on the right grip. Going on a long trip out in nowheresville a spare belt would be a comforting feeling. When we were "turned around" in a New Mexico NF..offroad I was thinking about the belt then with rocks flying everywhere. The spare belt should curl up real nice in the top case. The belt is still a great system. | ||
| Dr_greg |
I love the belt drive but will debate the "no maintenance" part. I read about a H-D rider who averaged 120,000 miles per belt---and this was an older belt---he credited his belt longevity to "washing the belt more than he washed his bike." So I've taken to doing some PM and washing the belt periodically. Still easier (IMHO) than lubing a chain. BTW, the aforementioned H-D rider had 417,000 miles on the bike. | ||
| Lowflyer |
"BTW, the aforementioned H-D rider had 417,000 miles on the bike." Don't let anybody on ADVrider know that. You will crush some egos with that sort of data.  |
