WORST bike shops

[Dakara]

Well, sometimes shit happens and people should be advised to watch out, nit-picking aside.

The very first Bike I bought, a '94 ZZR250 had the front wheel fairing virtually fall off onto the wheel on the ride home, 5 minutes from the shop. I went back and said so they glued it back on and said "here ya go".

When I confronted them about the huge hole burnt through it from rubbing the tyre they're response was "Yes yes, we'll fix it, but just enjoy your bike for a few days first, you don't want to wait any longer to ride it do you?"

Frustrated I took the bike home, (admittedly it was almost closing time), and went back 3 days later. No one there knew anything about it, nor did they want to. Tried a few calls after that, but nothing. Was never fixed, and the shop didn't want to know me.

That's why I'll never buy from "Said Shop" again. It was 4 years ago so I'm not gonna bad mouth their name now. But with the amount of shops in Auckland we have to choose from, I would of thought they'd be more competitive service wise.

[Fatjim]

Service at several bike shops has picked. I'd hazard a guess a lot of it may be to do with a lack of work.

[slopster]

Palmerston north is good for crap bike shops.
AFC - believe it or not when I was a newbie I got them to do the fork seals on my zxr 250 and they forgot to refill the forks with oil afterward. I rode for the next 1000km thinking that although my bike was bouncing all over the road, It was better then it had been and I just had to get used to the new feel!
PTMC - Brought same zxr 250 in for a warrant and they failed it saying the rear disc was too worn. But they kindly offered to sell me a 2nd hand one they had lieing around. Later on after I had changed them round I measured the old one with my verniers and it was well withen the manufacturers 3.5mm limit.

[Griffin]

Gotta say I was surprised at Motomarts name leading the charge on this thread... then I read the date.

Things have definitely changed there if the service was crap because as my sig says - Awesome Service from the team down there. I went in several times to look at gear, each time the guys/gals there spent time with me, answering questions, ordering stuff for me to try and generally being patient and interested. I could have just been a tyre kicker for all they knew.

I ended up buying a couple of grands worth of kit and I put it all down to the Service I got... I could easily have gone elsewhere had I not been impressed.

So big ups to Motomart... their name definitely doesnt deserve to top this threads list (anymore)

[Tardrider]

motomart blows goats

Took my Africa 750 (cuz I'm thinking they're the only Honda shop in Welly) into them to get serviced. $1600 for the warrant, oil change, new tyres, electrical probs, tighten bearings in the headset, new brake pads. Fair enough bit more expensive than I had hoped but to get the old girl going, all good.

Got there to pick up the bike, I talked to a mechanic out the back and he said he would get someone to help us (and a little biker waits). Then some chick roles up on a late model Duke cuz they hadn't tuned it properly and she complained that it kept stalling. So the mechanic see's to her (more waiting). I talk to him again and he says I should have gone inside to the counter (silly me).

Meanwhile I'm checking out my bike and the fairing on the right side is cracked where they had wound up the screw without aligning it up properly. I tell the sales guy inside and said I would need to talk to some dude who wasn't there on a saturday (didn't bother to come and look).

I pay the money and take the bike and notice the front brakes feel funny. I guess they didn't bleed the lines properly. Then when I get home I notice that it wasn't just badly bleed brakes the bike must have been dropped as the front brake lever was bent forward.

The final parting gift from motomart was all the bolts holding the top clamp on the forks where completly loose. I should take my bike back to get them to fix the damage but really these guys are so incompetent, what would they do next, cut the brake lines, hacksaw my spokes???

I feel lucky to have got out of the motamart experience alive with perhaps a warning to other Bikers out there.

[de_wood_elf]

motomart blows goats

Took my Africa 750 (cuz I'm thinking they're the only Honda shop in Welly) into them to get serviced. $1600 for the warrant, oil change, new tyres, electrical probs, tighten bearings in the headset, new brake pads. Fair enough bit more expensive than I had hoped but to get the old girl going, all good.

Got there to pick up the bike, I talked to a mechanic out the back and he said he would get someone to help us (and a little biker waits). Then some chick roles up on a late model Duke cuz they hadn't tuned it properly and she complained that it kept stalling. So the mechanic see's to her (more waiting). I talk to him again and he says I should have gone inside to the counter (silly me).

Meanwhile I'm checking out my bike and the fairing on the right side is cracked where they had wound up the screw without aligning it up properly. I tell the sales guy inside and said I would need to talk to some dude who wasn't there on a saturday (didn't bother to come and look).

I pay the money and take the bike and notice the front brakes feel funny. I guess they didn't bleed the lines properly. Then when I get home I notice that it wasn't just badly bleed brakes the bike must have been dropped as the front brake lever was bent forward.

The final parting gift from motomart was all the bolts holding the top clamp on the forks where completly loose. I should take my bike back to get them to fix the damage but really these guys are so incompetent, what would they do next, cut the brake lines, hacksaw my spokes???

I feel lucky to have got out of the motamart experience alive with perhaps a warning to other Bikers out there.

Taken straight from the Ministry of Consumer Affairs website

Rights and remedies

If you receive a service that fails to meet one of these guarantees for services you have the following rights:
Right to repair

You can ask the person who did the job to fix it at no cost to you.

If they refuse or take more than a reasonable time to fix it you can:

* get someone else to fix it and claim the cost from the supplier, or
* cancel the contract for service and refuse to pay for the work done. If you have already paid the service provider you may be able to get some or all of your money back. The amount you can ask for will depend on whether some of the service provided was satisfactory.

Right to cancel for serious problems

You can cancel the contract for the service and refuse to pay for the work done or pay less than the agreed price. If you have already paid you may be able to get some or all of your money back.

Have the price reduced to make up for the drop in value of the service - this may mean asking for some of your money back if you have already paid.
Consequential loss

If the work has caused damage to other property, you can claim compensation for that damage (this is called consequential loss).


Maybe get them to fix it for you or try and arrange for someone else to do it and they take the bill?

[Brian d marge]

1600 for a wof ,tyres and an electrical. damn those morals of mine ...why cant they let me be rich

Stephen

[Fatt Max]

I've dealt with Red Baron and most recently Colemans Suzuki myself, found both of them to be great to deal with. Nice guys and really helpful.

There was a scooter place opposite Red Baron on Great North Road who were a bunch of wankers. If you didnt live in Ponsonby and work in advertising, they didnt want to deal with you, god forbid you were straight as well

[Big Dave]

This remains the crapest thread ever on KB.

[vifferman]

This remains the crapest thread ever on KB.

Naw.
We've had much, much more crapulent threads than this one.
Asides, whinging is a popular Koywoy occupation. It passes the time till the Next Big Thing.

[Skyryder]

Naw.
We've had much, much more crapulent threads than this one.
Asides, whinging is a popular Koywoy occupation.

I blame the Poms.


Skyryder

[vifferman]

I blame the Poms.

No, no no!
You need to put a bit more nasal into that, and pout a bit more when you're saying it.

[Hitcher]

This remains the crapest thread ever on KB.

I agree. I started it when I was younger, more innocent and naive in terms of the realities of the marketing of motorcycles, parts and accessories and the servicing of said. Back then I thought that some shops could perhaps be encouraged to get their fingers out if people complained about them constructively, rather than muttering and grumbling as they looked for a better service experience elsewhere. How dumb was that?

With some exceptions, I have done repeat business with shops I've moaned about -- you're forced to really.

[vifferman]

Hitcher! How the hell are you?
How's the SpinDoctoring going? Lost any patients lately?

Keep up the good work.

[Big Dave]

Best intentions and all that - I just felt sorry for the schmucks who go and put in an honest days work in any of the bike shops that have been 'anonymously' bagged - or given their side of the story.