| Author | Message | ||
     Windrider |
When I bought this bike I figured I was the test case for drive belt durability in dirt use. I live 2 1/2 miles from the pavement on a steep, rutted, dirt road. Every time I ride my bike it involves 5 miles of dirt and I am a fairly hard core 2 wheel commuter. I ride any day that the morning temp is > 34 deg F and there is no ice. Sometimes there is mud, slushy snow, or dry, gritty sand. After 1 1/2 seasons of use and 9200 miles a rock got stuck to the belt and it tore a hole in the center of it. When I called the dealer they said that this was not covered under warranty (nothing that fails on my bike is covered under warranty!).  I have also lost a fork seal and and an engine cooling fan and none of these three failures was covered under warranty. My local Buell dealer has delivered the worst warranty service of any automotive product that I have ever owned. When I bought the Uly I wanted a sport touring bike that I could get home with and occasionally pass through some dirt/gravel roads if needed. It has done this but I am beginning to doubt how well it can hold up to continued use on dirt roads. When I bought the bike I thought that I would be replacing the drive belt every 20K or so and I was at peace with that because that was at cost parity with a chain drive. At $162 I am a bit disappointed to be planning on replacing my first drive belt with less than 10K on the clock. Since it is a pretty clean hole I plan on running the belt for another month or so until it is time to replace the rear tire in preparation for a midsummer road trip to Canada. In the pic you can see the evil, sharp stone balanced on the top of the belt guard. It was still wedged in the belt until I pried it out.  | ||
| Etennuly |
I would have contacted Buell customer service people on all three issues. IMO those items are all under warranty for two years. | ||
| Cavi |
the belt and the fork seal I can see them saying no to warrenty as they are a wear issue, but not the fan, I mean what is the excuse, you ran the fan too much? It is not even up to you. I would contact Buel directly. By the way has anyone tried contacting Buell for any issues? How are they? Do they respond? on the issue of the Belt, it did not break, so you were lucky, if you got two seasons I would not complain too much, I personally hate lubbing and cleaning chains, it is dirty and generally discustiny and on the typee of riding you are discribing would have to happen frequently, so I would perfer to replace the belt every year or two. | ||
| Crusty |
Windrider, call Buell Customer Service. All three items (fan, fork seal and belt) are covered by the warranty. Your dealer is screwing you; either intentionally, or through ignorance. Either way, Customer Service should be able to get it sorted out. If you get nowhere with C.S., send a PM to Court, and see if he can get things sorted out. | ||
| Thunderbox |
I can understand the belt not being warranty but the seals and fan are absolutely covered. Seals don't wear out at 9200 miles. Not good ones. | ||
| Lorazepam |
If the belt guards are on, the belt should be under warranty. The Uly has different guards than the other bikes, (supposedly) to keep what happened to you from occuring. Your dealer sucks, and I would be letting C/S know about them, and give a heads up here, so fellow badwebbers wont waste any money at a sucky dealer. | ||
| Windrider |
Hey Guys, The Post was more to inform Uly riders and potential Uly buyers about the belt failure and durability in a daily dirt situation than to rant on the dealer but thanks for the inputs. The dealer has already lost all of my parts business and future new bike sales business and that is the way that I deal that. I will call CS and see what they say about it but based on my previous discussions with them when my fan failed I don't hold a lot of hope. | ||
| Crusty |
Windrider, send an e-mail to Court. Make sure you put the word Buell in the Title. He's been known to straighten out problems much worse than yours. The belt IS a warranty item; as is the fan and fork seals. Who is your dealer? He sounds like he graduated from the BMW school of customer relations. | ||
| Spike |
Windrider- I worked in HD/Buell warranty at the dealership level for a few years, as long as the OEM belt guards are in place the belt is most definitely covered under warranty. It is clearly stated that way in the HD Global warranty manual, which the dealer should have a copy of if they are doing any warranty work. I've posted the page numbers and the exact quote out of the manual on badweb somewhere, but it's been a while I'd have to search to find them. If your dealer is really obstinate you may have to go to another dealer, but your belt should be covered without question. | ||
| Strokizator |
I wouldn't worry too much about a rock hole in the belt. I rode my '95 Road King for 10 years with a number of holes in it from picking up rocks. Went to Sturgis in '95 and every back road between my house and there was being chip sealed. I'd hear a thunk-thunk-thunk and then nothing as the sharp stone chip worked its way through. I asked my service manager about it when I got back and he said not to worry as he'd seen a demo of a big-twin suspended by just one strand of the aramid fiber used in the belts. I finally replaced it because it was 11 years old and not because of any imminent failure. | ||
| Debueller |
I disagree about not worring about a hole in a drive belt with 9200 miles on it. I'm now on my 5th drive belt in 38,000 miles. Not one has lasted more than 10,000 miles. one failed in as little as 7700 miles! My experence is at about 7500 miles, any visual flaw in a drive belt will leave you stranded soon. I've been stranded twice away from home without a replacement belt on the bike, and it SUX. The up side is that my dealer has, without exception, replaced every belt under warranty. And in one case they replaced a worn belt before it failed. I know Neil has had sucky service from his H-D gift store. I hear simaliar stories from others and it is a shame, for the Ulyssess is a great bike. It's too bad that when people like Windrider go to look at his next bike, he may leave be forced to look at other bikes because of the terrable dealer support. I feel very fortunate to have a great dealer that takes very good care of me. | ||
| Adrian_8 |
I don't understand a dealers' thought process on not replacing something that can be covered under warranty...this is easy money in the dealers pocket and it makes for a very happy consumer...What are the chances he will buy another bike.. or any of his friends will buy a bike from that dealer...NONE. I am sure Buell would not be happy with this joker that runs this dealership. My dealer: Bluegrass Harley, Louisville, KY took a belt off a floor bike and had me going in less than 2 hours and the ULY is the first bike I every bought from him. All under warranty. I told him I broke it doing a wheelie..he said Don't Do That...OOOOK. Call Buell Customer Service...tell them the situation and I would bet it will be taken care of to your satisfaction..... | ||
| Windrider |
Crusty, The local dealer is High Desert HD: http://www.highdeserthd.com/ They are soon to move into a massive new building that will make them the largest HD shop in the Pacific Northwest. Hopefully their fancy new shop will shorten the awful service backlog that they now have. I don't think that new buildings help attitudes though. Their focus in every practice is to make money for the dealership and that has earned them a kind of local nickname that I have heard from several local HD riders: High Dollar HD. Spike, thanks for the note. I think that the key issue with the warranty though is that the belt on my bike is currently not broken, it is damaged. The verbage in the warranty document states "belts that fail" and it could be argued that my belt has not yet failed. Debueller, I may fly up to your dealer and buy my next bike there if I go Buell again! I am also concerned that the belt may strand me but I prefer to lump my service work together if possible so I am going to risk the next 1K miles or so until the rear tire is out and it is time for the 10K service. I didn't have a chance to call CS today: work always gets in the way. I will try again tomorrow and update the thread with the results. | ||
| Duck |
I lost a belt at 25K and it was covered under warranty. I was told (by Buell Customer Service) that if I had not removed the belt guards it was covered under the two year. My fan went bad somewhere in the 30s and it was covered under warranty. Definitely call customer service! | ||
| Bobsims |
Spike, Google found it! Many thanks, great stuff for reference! Link provided below. Drive belt warranty info from the HD/Buell global warranty manual Bob | ||
| Court |
Windrider: Easy fix. Absent any removal of the factory stone guards or an alien intervention I feel confident that the folks at Buell will take care of this without so much as a blink of an eye. Call Buell Customer Service. These folks are really good, technically proficient and in the business of providing the most pleasant ownership experience. If you can't reach them or have any problems, just drop me a note with your VIN and a narrative of the problem and the names of the players. Buell is committed to providing an impressive ownership experience. Court | ||
| Adrian_8 |
Court is our Angel...always looking over our shoulders..Thanks again for the help about a year ago... | ||
| Dirt |
Windrider, I apologize for hijacking your thread, but I wanted to respond to what Court posted. I know he has helped many on this board and is a great ambassador for the company, but his description of Buell CS is way different then what I encountered. My experience was less than "impressive". Let me just say that I was really charged up when I bought my Buell, but now I'm certain I'll never purchase another. I went from a great high to a low very quickly. I won't even go into what I think of the Buell dealer network. Pardon me, I should have said Buell "independent" dealer network. A very nice service manager explained the difference to me one day. | ||
| Chinook |
Dirt, I will say this, let it work it's course and if needed, involve Court. I have been less than impressed with Buell CS, but low and behold, Court has fixed that quick. And if you think I'm blowing smoke, then go buy a BMW and see how screwed you are soon to become. Just don't ask me how I know. OK, I'm a winy vag and i'm checkin' out. (Message edited by chinook on May 25, 2007) | ||
| Panhead_dan |
Windrider, Where in the PNW are you? The problem I've run into concerning Buell warrentee service is that the dealership does not get full payment for warentee work. This is what was told to me by the service manager at Shumate Motorsports in Kennewick Wash. For this reason, they are not too excited about doing the work, understandable, especially if they are busy in peak season. (if it's true) I have had to use the "Court Card" to get claims done and it works like magic. Don't just bend over and hold yer cheeks open. Buell actually does want you to have a good experience with their bikes and will make sure you do, once you get past the HD dealership mess. Keep trying customer service and you will get results. If not, contact Court. | ||
| Windrider |
Panhead Dan, I am near Boise, Idaho. The local dealer is VERY busy. They always have a 3 - 5 week backlog of Harleys to shine, change oil, and put more chrome on. I am a daily rider. I can't be without my bike for 5 weeks while waiting for them to repair some small issue. | ||
| Dirt |
Chinook, I don't want to turn this into a whining session about Buell, because believe it or not, I do enjoy my bike. I guess my critique with what Court stated is - if Buell customer service is as good as he says, then why do people have to contact him to have issues resolved. The mere fact that a bike owner has to contact him, a non-Buell employee, to resolve what in most cases is a routine problem tells me that something is lacking in CS. | ||
| Windrider |
Court, I called Buell CS today. After a 20 minute wait time I was connected with John. I explained the situation with the belt and he opined that it should be covered under warranty. He called the local dealer, had a short discussion, then called me back and let me know that it would be covered and gave me a contact from my local dealership to contact for arranging the service. The only thing wrong here is that the local dealer didn't step up to bat in the first place. I wonder what the conversation was like between my dealer's service manager and Buell CS? Anyway, I will call tomorrow and set up a date to get the belt replaced. Thanks for all the advice from the BadWebbers and especially Court. | ||
| Stevem123 |
Glad you got it sorted out and yes the wait time on hold with Buell C.S. can be terribly long. Ask me how I know...... BC Steve | ||
| Court |
Neil: That's, for the most part, good news. The result is perfect the process may need a bit of fine tuning. If you get a chance, drop me a note with a brief summary of your experience. I'll be having another meeting with the Customer Service folks and they need this input. They are a great bunch and eager to please. Ride safe and have fun, Court | ||
| Chadhargis |
Impressive...I don't know of another motorcycle company that would warranty an environmental issue. I mean, come on, you ride in the dirt or gravel and get a rock in your belt...that's not really Buell's fault. Nice that they stepped up and took care of you. I've got nearly 12,000 miles on my stock belt and I'm still going. Wheelies, track days, lots of hard riding. No problems. | ||
| Chinook |
Dirt, +1 on the "having to contact Court" comment. I'm sure he would like that part of the equation to lessen. +1 on the dealer issue mentioned. That is the crux of the matter and the easiest, simplest, least expensive, and most appropriate point the customer service issue should be handled. I think that is a run-on sentence! (Message edited by chinook on May 27, 2007) | ||
| Windrider |
Chadhargis, The belt drive was a point of much debate when I was looking at the bike knowing that it was going to run some dirt. The salesman insisted that Buell had engineered a belt drive system that could take some dirt and that a broken belt would be covered under warranty. You are right in saying that it is not Buell's fault that a rock took out my belt but Buell is marketing the Ulysses as a dirt road capable bike and they do expressly warranty the belt for 2 years as long as the stock guards are in place. I checked this out before I bought the bike. | ||
| Etennuly |
they do expressly warranty the belt for 2 years as long as the stock guards are in place. I checked this out before I bought the bike. What happened to the Life Time warranty on the Uly belt? | ||
| Jlnance |
There has never been a life time warranty on the belt, nor has Buell ever said the 06 belt will last forever. What did change with the 06 belt is that there is no longer a recommended replacement interval. Instead, it is supposed to be inspected at each service and replaced when it begins to show signs of wear. | ||
| Court |
You make a good point. It's a funny world and information moves quicker than it used to. Seveal years ago, in a case like this, your dealer would have written it up, presented to the DM or mailed it to Customer Service for review. Processes and procedures are the hallmark of huge (Fortune 50) corporations like Harley-Davidson. Years ago, neigh on 1988, I suggested to Erik Buell that one of our greatest strengths was that Buell was "mobile, agile and hostile". Erik, like yourself, is a fan of the right thing happening in the most efficient way it can. Since those days communication has sped from stamp speed to light speed. No so the American Corporation. HD, embracign an element of protectionism, doesn't even so much as list a single e-mail address on their website. I troll for stuff like this. Cases where what the dealer thought was rigth may not accurately reflect the level of service/care that Buell intends to provide. Having spent a couple years working at Buell Customer Service, crafting some innovative (anyone recall the "1-800-Buell-Fix") interim band-aid programs, I'm familiar with most the names, some of the procedures and as much as my wife and Buell would like me to stop . . . frankly I go trolling looking for folks to help. My attitude is I'll stop when Buell catches or passes me. I have a pretty good working relationship with the folks at Buell Customer Service and periodically meet with them to review elements of their program. They're not my biggest fan but I always challenge them to put me out of business. They are very good people. . . smart and their hearts are in the right place. They'll make me a useless historical Buell commodity someday . . cool! Sometimes, it's a matter of knowing the personalities and skills of different folks in the CS staff . . Until then, when I see an itch I scratch. Some of the cases involve special circumstances and in all candor I've racked up some pretty impressive "saves" where the dealer and customers, sometimes owning to escalating hostility resulting from the problem just needed a cool headed intermediary. In additon, I can move at light speed. Just ask Danger Dave about the problem he recently had in New Zealand. It arrived on my Blackberry while in an engineering class at Columbia and I was able to craft a solution and was on the phone with him in 11 minutes. (took be 5 minutes to slip out of class, call Australia and get his county code so I could call) Anyway . . I agree. Having me in the equation ain't the best deal in the world. But, it's a good deal and a temporary solution. Hope this helps a bit. | ||
| Windrider |
Just a quick update: I took the bike to the dealer yesterday for the belt replacement. Their Buell tech called in sick so it didn't get worked on. I asked if they could spoon on a new rear tire while the wheel was off but they didn't have any Pirellis in stock. The next day the Buell tech arrived, the new belt is on, replaced under warranty. While I had the bike there I had them do the TPS reset, put new spark plugs in and adjust the timing as the bike is due for the 10K service. I plan on doing the rest of the 10K service myself. Riding home the bike is running great. The TPS reset has smoothed it out again, and the bike will soon be ready for a road trip to Montana. This was my best ever HD/Buell dealer experience. |
