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LauraPickles |
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LauraPickles L Plate Warrior
Joined: 17 May 2021 Karma :
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Posted: 18:21 - 17 May 2021 Post subject: Mechanic mess up...Yamaha FZS600 Fazer 2002 |
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Hi everyone,
This is my first time posting on a bike forum so forgive me if I’ve gone about this the wrong way... I recently bought a Yamaha FZS600 Fazer, 2002. The bike started first time, I was happy enough but then the next day it wouldn’t start. Did the usual checks myself but I couldn’t see what the problem was so got the mechanics to look at it. They they told me the bike had a whole host of problems and it might be best contacting the seller & trying to get my money back or sorting something out with him. This wasn’t an option as I had the bike delivered from England, so the bike was left with the mechanics to fix. They told me the main problem was with the head gasket which had blown, or failed I’m not sure what it’s called but it needed skimmed. I paid £750 for the bike and £1,200 for the mechanics. That work involved:-
Skimming the cylinder heads/gasket
Rear brake master cylinder replacement/rebuild
Replaced speedo & sensor
New pistons
Spark plugs
New Rear break pads
Not sure exactly what other work was done but this is what I discussed with them and is listed on the invoice, there’s a few other bits on the invoice but I haven’t a clue what they are.
So I waited approx. 2 months and finally got the call today, my bike was ready for collection. Picked it up, bike looked and sounded great, rode it home, felt fine. But it was only when I got off the bike, i noticed there was oil everywhere, all down my right calf and boot, and all up the right hand side of the bike. It took a minute for it to sink in, how dangerous this was. I called them and told them about the oil and they said they’d collect it first thing in the morning.
The thing is, I have crashed a bike once, 13 years ago, due to an oil spill on the road and my bike came from under me. It’s taken me years to get over that, and this has kinda knocked my confidence, mainly in the bike itself. How can I trust them to fix the bike and it be 100% safe...I can’t ride and enjoy a bike I don’t feel safe on but I can’t afford to sell it and lose a small fortune. Has anyone ever experienced anything similar or have any advice on how I should deal with this?
Thanks
Laura |
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Nobby the Bastard |
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Nobby the Bastard Harley Gaydar
Joined: 16 Aug 2013 Karma :
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MarJay |
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MarJay But it's British!
Joined: 15 Sep 2003 Karma :
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Posted: 18:36 - 17 May 2021 Post subject: |
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It really depends what the issue is. It does sound like the seller got one over on you a bit, although anything under a grand for an MOT'd working bike is cheap. Too cheap I reckon.
Wait to see what the issue is. It might be they forgot to tighten the oil cooler lines, it might be they left the oil filler cap loose.
I personally don't really see the relationship between your previous accident and this event - After all, you only noticed when you got back. It's not like you had any idea when riding that something might be wrong. If they hand the bike back and don't give you a definitive cause then I might start to worry, but really you're going to need to come to peace with the money you've spent, and try to trust the bike.
Maybe that's easy for me to say, as someone who works on their own bikes a lot and only sends stuff out to have done when I can't be bothered to do it myself. I'm confident I can check the bike over and work out where an oil leak is coming from.
I'm not sure what else to say really? Can I assure you that the bike won't ever leak oil again? No, not really. Can I be 90% confident the garage will fix it? Yeah, as most bike garages are reasonably competent. Can I promise you you'll never crash? No not really. Can I reassure you that you've done the right thing here? No, but if you're happy then that's all that matters. but I feel like it's worth noting that if you buy cheap you buy twice.... but the bike you'll end up with will be a good one I should think.
See what the mechanics say, and then re-evaluate your mental space once you have the full picture. Also maybe find someone who knows what they are doing to teach you the basics of bike maintenance. The only person who you are ever going to fully trust to check a machine you bet your life on is really yourself. ____________________ British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another. |
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A100man |
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A100man World Chat Champion
Joined: 19 Aug 2013 Karma :
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LauraPickles |
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LauraPickles L Plate Warrior
Joined: 17 May 2021 Karma :
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MarJay |
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MarJay But it's British!
Joined: 15 Sep 2003 Karma :
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MarJay |
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MarJay But it's British!
Joined: 15 Sep 2003 Karma :
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Posted: 19:05 - 17 May 2021 Post subject: |
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Ok... first of all take a very deep breath, and let it out through your mouth and think *relax* as you do it.
That is a comparatively tiny amount of oil, and unlikely to cause you any noticeable traction issues. I'd say it's either coming from the crankcase cover, or the starter motor cover. It probably just needs nipping up to seal the gasket. A tiny amount of oil goes a long way. The bike is not wrecked, in fact it's sort of normal after a rebuild for this to come out during a shakedown run. Why they didn't road test it themselves I'll never know, maybe to get it back to you quicker?
I'm sad to say that the bike doesn't look in fantastic shape. The frame there has lost it's powder coat, and the coating on the engine is past it's best. It's never going to win the concours d'elegance, and it's probably not worth much more than you paid. However, I reckon nip up the bolts holding on the clutch cover and the crankcase cover, and you'll have a decent rideable bike. I'd also attend to the surface rust that is appearing on the uncovered part of the frame... else you'll have a newly rebuilt engine with nothing to hold the wheels on to it...
For now some curust, and then a thorough clean and black hammerite should be enough. If you wanted it mint again you'd have to strip the bike and get the frame blasted and powder coated, but I don't think it's worth it on a bike this age and condition. Keep it as a rat bike. ____________________ British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another. |
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Nobby the Bastard |
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Nobby the Bastard Harley Gaydar
Joined: 16 Aug 2013 Karma :
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A100man |
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A100man World Chat Champion
Joined: 19 Aug 2013 Karma :
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Posted: 19:31 - 17 May 2021 Post subject: |
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..yep, and get them to slap some paint on that bare metal part of the frame as recompense.. did someone heat up some bolts to release the mounts and burn it off? ____________________ Now: A100, GT250A, XJ598, FZ750
Then: Fizz, RS200, KL250, XJ550, Laverda Alpina, XJ600, FZS600 |
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LauraPickles |
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LauraPickles L Plate Warrior
Joined: 17 May 2021 Karma :
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Posted: 19:34 - 17 May 2021 Post subject: |
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I have to say, I laughed out loud reading that message. I think I may have overreacted, just a tad. Thank you guys, definitely feeling a bit more relaxed now after all your advice. I know, the previous owner did not look after it very well at all, lived by the sea too so that could explain the rust and corrosion. I took a risk when I bought it and it did not pay off! Lesson learnt, the hard way haha. Hopefully once it's cleaned up I can get out on it and give it stacks. Appreciate all the help guys, these forums are quite handy hey! |
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MarJay |
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MarJay But it's British!
Joined: 15 Sep 2003 Karma :
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Posted: 19:41 - 17 May 2021 Post subject: |
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I think those are brake caliper pistons, rather than the usual engine pistons. When one says 'pistons' one usually means the engine type!
Ask them if they can stick a bit of paint over the bare part of the frame just in front of the engine... As I said it's already started to rust.
https://www.bikechatforums.com/files/whatsapp_image_2021-05-17_at_18.43.43_frame_paint.jpg ____________________ British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another. |
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LauraPickles |
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LauraPickles L Plate Warrior
Joined: 17 May 2021 Karma :
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Posted: 19:53 - 17 May 2021 Post subject: |
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Oops! I just heard "pistons", I have no idea what they are, sorry for the confusion! There's me thinking I got a bargain getting the engine ones done!lol. I'll say to the mechanic if they can paint that part of the frame and see what they say, thanks for the tip I really need to come on here more often! |
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stirlinggaz |
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stirlinggaz World Chat Champion
Joined: 22 Jul 2007 Karma :
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Posted: 05:52 - 18 May 2021 Post subject: |
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Hi,
I havnt read all the replies so apologies if this has already been said/asked.
On your bill/receipt, how many hours work were you charged for & cost of labour per hour?
Sounds like you've learned the hard way that most (even small) jobs cost a fortune at most garages due to hourly labour charges.
A quick look at the parts used seems like most parts were consumables (brake parts anyway)
I'm guessing you have little experience of the maintenance of motorbikes.
Only suggestions I have is either buy a Haynes or better still a wsm for your bike & learn to do most jobs yourself (brakes can be easy or a f*cking nightmare) or
find a friendly, local mechanic who won't charge you 75 quid an hour or whatever dealerships are charging these days.
If it's any consolation, the very situation you found yourself in has happened to umpteen people when buying used bikes.
Next time, try get someone to come with you to look over the one before handing over cash?
As for the oil everywhere, I understand your concerns, even though it might not be a lot of oil ,so I'd be foning the mechanic who did the work & explaining your concerns.
After paying 1200 quid you'd expect the bike to be safe to ride, right?
cheers,
GAZ |
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UncleFester |
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UncleFester World Chat Champion
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wr6133 |
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wr6133 World Chat Champion
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LauraPickles |
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LauraPickles L Plate Warrior
Joined: 17 May 2021 Karma :
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Posted: 11:25 - 18 May 2021 Post subject: |
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Hi everyone,
Thanks so much, I really appreciate all your advice here...
Just a wee update, besides the oil leaking...another couple of issues have also arisen over the past 24hrs, I just wanted to focus on the engine/oil issue yesterday as that was more of a safety thing. But, here are the other issues: -
I was told yesterday, before I collected the bike, that they had to replace the whole front fairing, because they dropped the bike and cracked the old one. They seemed to be making this out as if they did me a favour and I'd got a "brand new" fairing, on them at approx. £220. I'd asked was it like for like and they said yes apart from the "Fazer" decals, the new fairing didn't have these and was just plain yellow.
There is a fresh dent in the exhaust, which wasn't there before (see before & after pics)
There is a chip off the paint on the little yellow radiator cover.
I spent a whole afternoon cleaning the bike before they collected it so it was as spotless as it could be but it's come back needing a full valet.
I get the bike isn't worth much but I feel like the above just decreases it's value even further.
All in all I'm just super disappointed. They've had the bike 2 months and I've paid £1,200, and they didn't even lube the chain, I mean is this not a 5 minute job? They collected the bike this morning and I had a good chat with the driver. He was pretty annoyed himself and said I should definitely ring them and tell them I'm not happy. He said one mechanic's bad job reflects badly on the whole company and that I should tell them I'm not happy/make a complaint about it so something is done. He actually said it's like the mickey mouse club down there. This is a long standing, reputable garage (and yes they charge £70 per hour!).
Any advice on the fairing/decals and dented exhaust would be greatly appreciated?
Thanks guys |
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A100man |
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A100man World Chat Champion
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Robby Dirty Old Man
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wr6133 World Chat Champion
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stinkwheel Bovine Proctologist
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Nobby the Bastard |
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Nobby the Bastard Harley Gaydar
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WD Forte World Chat Champion
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Tdibs |
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Tdibs Traffic Copper
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Posted: 16:05 - 18 May 2021 Post subject: |
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yeah.... this is not great service at all, I would be fuming if they had dropped my bike and then charged me for the replacement parts
I would definitely be looking for a new place after they fix the oil leak. Its worth talking to the manager too, showing the condition of the before/after or the exhaust damage and fairings. If it was enough of a drop to destroying the fairing, I would be double checking handlebars etc are all straight still too.
If you give your general area, im sure some on here can recommend better business in the area.
If you have not heard of it already, buying some acf50 is a good idea too, spraying it over anything metal will help slow corrosion. ____________________ Previous : 09 Vanvan 125| 02' Sv650s || Current: 1999 Xj600n | 1992 DR650 RSE | 2005 Fazer 1000 |
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stinkwheel |
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stinkwheel Bovine Proctologist
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Old Thread Alert!
The last post was made 2 years, 342 days ago. Instead of replying here, would creating a new thread be more useful? |
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