Holy Moly, $300 for a 3k service? I only paid $20 for a couple quarts of oil, plus 30 minutes to change it and then adjust the chain tension and check tire pressure. I may need to buy some brake fluid, the front brake is starting to feel a bit soft....+1
What I am trying to say is, $300 seems outrageous, $600 is simply ludicrous. It is too easy to do the maintenance yourself.
And if you don't want to DIY, you may want to consider using a more reasonable shop or indie mechanic for everything other than electric/electronic issues specific to this bike. Brakes is brakes!
+1 on the 600$ being ridiculous. I did a post on the suspension change and consulted with my suspension guru who helps me with my race setup and the Marzocchi owners manual indicates that fluid change is not needed until 15kmi. (BTW you may have more luck at a Ducati dealer for those forks if you decide to do them)
My 2013 Empulse R has passed 6,000 miles, so it's time to make a service appointment. The company that had been Brammo's local authorized service center, Seattle E-Bike, referred me with no explanation to the local Victory dealership, Lynnwood Motoplex.
Today I paid them a visit and learned the following:
* Yes, they have an Empulse TT in stock, having pride of place in their Victory/Indian showroom near the window looking nice in red, but otherwise quite similar to the Empulse R we know. Pictures to follow.
* No, they've not sold even one yet.
* They were surprised to see someone show up with an Empulse they hadn't sold themselves.
* They were doubly surprised that I'd bought it used (http://brammoforum.com/index.php?topic=2550.0 (http://brammoforum.com/index.php?topic=2550.0)).
* They think they can service my Empulse R, but they would need equipment and information specific to that model because of its differences from the TT.
* To get that equipment and information might take a couple of weeks.
* They estimate the labor cost alone would be $600. My 3,000-mile service appointment cost closer to $300, so this estimate seems a little high, even if the extra work for the 6k service is to replace the brake fluid and suspension oil.
How have your service appointment experiences been? Have you had your Brammos serviced by Victory technicians yet? Did they charge you reasonable prices compared to your Brammo authorized technicians?
I think you'll be disappointed if you expect the Empulse to cost less for service than any other motorcycle.
(BTW you may have more luck at a Ducati dealer for those forks if you decide to do them)
I have performed general motorcycle maintenance for my Empluse myself but it is my understanding that battery/powertrain issues must be dealt with by Brammo authorized/trained techs.
| me: | was quoted USD $600 for labor alone for 6,000-mile service; gave dealership my VIN, now waiting on dealership to say they're ready to service my bike; I grease the chain and maintain tire pressure, but do no other service myself |
| vtbrammorider: | thought USD $600 is too high; does his own maintenance with the help of local non-Brammo experts; advises to do it yourself or find a Ducati dealer |
| Ashveratu: | thought USD $300 is too high for 3,000-mile service; does all service himself; ignores electrical system unless a problem occurs; nearest Victory dealership is too far away |
| JeffK: | reported USD $395 (EUR 350) for service, which he deemed reasonable; finds service at local Victory dealership; has ridden 25,000 (kilometers?) and problems are behind him |
| cybergodzilla: | reported USD $200+ for maintenance and replacement of fluids by a Victory dealership, which was more expensive than an earlier experience with a Brammo dealership |
| skuzzle: | doesn't expect prices to be lower than for ICE motorcycles; finds cost of service disappointing; service also overlooks software updates; mostly does own service except for what only the local Polaris dealership is authorized to do |
| +progress-: | bike is currently at Lynnwood Motoplex for disappointingly longer than expected waiting for communication problems to be resolved between dealership and Polaris |
| Shinysideup: | recommended local (to me) traditional bike technicians, but didn't describe any interactions with authorized technicians |
It's admirable that many of you check your own bolts, nuts, and fluids; I salute you. But I'm pretty sure most of you aren't Brammo or Victory Certified Technicians, either.
+progress-:QuoteI have performed general motorcycle maintenance for my Empluse myself but it is my understanding that battery/powertrain issues must be dealt with by Brammo authorized/trained techs.
Exactly.
Thank you all for your replies and suggestions so far. It seems that there are many people who perform their own basic maintenance, which I guess is typical among motorcyclists.
From your other posts, I gather that you have a white Empulse R. If that's the case, we probably met a couple of years ago at the XXX Root Beer Drive In for one of the National Drive Electric Week EV shows organized by the Seattle EV Association.You are correct I do have a white Empulse R and my bike and I were at that event at XXX Root Beer. Did seeing my bike in person ignite the spark that led to your purchase? :)
May I ask what they're quoting for their service? If it's service under warranty, then hopefully they're not charging you directly. As you read earlier, they (a service associate named Kirk), quoted me $600 in labor costs.
Is all of their communication with Polaris? I wonder if they communicate with Brammo, too.
It doesn't sound like you are interested in any DIY but changing out the brake and clutch fluid on my bike has become very painless with the installation of http://www.speedbleeder.com (http://www.speedbleeder.com) bleeder screws. They have an internal check valve that prevents any air from re-entering the system as you pump the old fluid out/new fluid in (it is baffling that these are not the standard for bleeder screws). For any DIYers out there I highly recommend these.
You are correct I do have a white Empulse R and my bike and I were at that event at XXX Root Beer. Did seeing my bike in person ignite the spark that led to your purchase? :)
Fortunately the work they are preforming, swapping out two battery modules, is covered under the battery warranty. I am very happy that they extended that warranty from 2 years to 5.
I will ask them what the out-of-pocket expense would have been. $1,000? $2,000?
My understanding is that the dealership sends Polaris the log data from the bike and an individual (yes only 1 person) is responsible for diagnosing the issues and then tells the dealer what they need to order to perform the repair. I am not sure exactly how much contact they have with Brammo but I do know that the battery modules were shipped from Brammo in Oregon.
I received a call on Friday letting me know that the new(maybe refurbished) batteries are in the bike and after a successful test ride everything is back to normal and it is ready for pick-up.... The smile under my helmet will be especially large on Tuesday.
Tuesday morning, 2 months after they received the bike from Seattle E-bike
MichaelJ:
It will be interesting to hear what the final cost of your 6,000K service will be.
*It could be justifiable for $300 dollars worth of labor for changing the front suspension oil and repacking the steering head bearings. Those are time consuming tasks.
It doesn't sound like you are interested in any DIY
The bad news is that the cooling fan after a ride sounds a little rougher than before, like the rotor is off balance. I'm not talking about the full-speed fan heard right after plugging in to recharge, which still sounds the same as before.
That's the water pump you are talking about making more noise??
So maybe check the level of water in the cooling circuit and ask the dealer whether they did anything on the cooling.