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Active Member
What happened when I took the Spyder in for and alignment.
I was excited to find out that our local dealer did the true track laser alignment. When I went to pick it up this is what I found.
IMG_1514.jpgIMG_1513.jpg
It is on both sides of both tie rods. It looked like he used a pipe wrench or channel locks. I went and got the service manager and showed him. He went and got the mechanic. He said that he used the same wrench that he had been using for alignments for years. Supposedly some fancy snap-on wrench. I was not happy and told them they needed something better than that. I can now look down on either side while I am driving and see some nice big scratches. Kind of like taking your car in to get an oil change and they put a big scratch in your hood. The gouges are fairly deep. I guess I am going to try to find some paint that matches and touch it up.
Last edited by kdp1308; 09-30-2018 at 09:01 PM.
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Very Active Member
I would be making the dealer replace them with new ones. They damaged them so they should be the ones fixing them.
2021 Sea To Sky, 2020 RTL
Isn't it weird that in AMERICA our flag and our culture offend so many people......
but our benefits don't?
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The mechanic admitted he used the same wrench. He didn't deny it. He could have used a cloth to protect finish
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You should tell them they need to replace the parts they damaged. There is no way the mechanic has been doing alignments on other customer bikes and none of them have noticed scratches. He may have used the same wrench but maybe on all the others he used a cloth or something and just forgot this time. That would drive me nuts to look down and see those scratches all the time.
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Very Active Member
Bummer.....
Did they even offer to touch it up or replace the rods...?? We always used a wrench a size larger and a rubber or nylon strap.
Gene and Ilana De Laney
Mt. Helix, California
2012 RS sm5
2012 RS sm5 , 998cc V-Twin 106hp DIY brake and park brake Classic Black
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Wow!
Insist on new tie rods. We have done a few alignments, and never did that! OK, I lied; more than a few. He used a vise grips. No 16mm box end wrench would crush a tie rod!
Joe Meyer
Dealer for the Outlaw/ROLO laser Alignment system
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Very Active Member
I'm a pretty easy going guy but if I had damage like that done from a supposedly experienced mechanic I would have had a high speed come-apart! There is no way that something like that should be deemed acceptable.
And what's worse is when they hand you a bill and expect to be paid for sub-standard work!
On the road again...........and forever young!
2013 RT-S SE 5
Yesterday is a cancelled check.
Tomorrow is a promissory note.
Today is cash.......spend it wisely.
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Very Active Member
you can say the dealers name, this is America. I am betting you
are talking about Marine World in Wichita ?
I see by your pictures the type of tool that was used.
There should certainly some "no mar" jaws for something like that.
I have had up and down service there, but they are like the nearest
dealer, before Omaha. But those are stories for another day.
Plus I just had a very pleasant experience with a tire change a couple days ago.
Good luck with the cosmetics.
Flatlander, Navy Veteran, Widower
Loved my 2014 RTS SE6 Pearl white
but have a new love now,
my 2017 RTS SE6 Champagne metallic (Champ)
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Active Member
It was Marine World in Wichita. To be fair the service manager did offer to do whatever I wanted to make it right. I really did think about asking for new tie rods but they would be the ones replacing them and aligning it again. I would end up with the same thing all over again. If he would have used a wrench and put a bunch of torque on it the rods would only have 2 corners rounded or partly rounded not all four and it wouldn't have dug into the aluminum like that.
They look like they are powder coated. They don't look flat or gloss, maybe a semi-gloss?
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Very Active Member
Throw another log on the fire for dealer replacement of the tierods. Insist that the technician use a 16 mm open end wrench as Joe mentioned. If they have to buy a "new" wrench, TS!
Artillery lends dignity to what would
otherwise be a vulgar brawl.
******************************
Cognac 2014 RT-S
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Very Active Member
I've never wrenched on the tie rods, but would they even be that tight if the jam nuts were loosened first? Good grief, even a good Crescent wrench would have been a better choice....What kind of Spyder dealer doesn't have metric wrenches? Tell 'em you want new tie rods
2021 RT Limited
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Very Active Member
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I'll bet BRP specs the wrench to use for that and it isn't a vice grips! I think the idiot forgot to loosen the nuts first and just used a big enough wrench to turn it anyway!
2014 RTL Platinum
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Originally Posted by kdp1308
It was Marine World in Wichita. To be fair the service manager did offer to do whatever I wanted to make it right. I really did think about asking for new tie rods but they would be the ones replacing them and aligning it again. I would end up with the same thing all over again. If he would have used a wrench and put a bunch of torque on it the rods would only have 2 corners rounded or partly rounded not all four and it wouldn't have dug into the aluminum like that.
They look like they are powder coated. They don't look flat or gloss, maybe a semi-gloss?
Tell the service manager you want a BRP-certified mechanic working on your bike. There is no excuse for this kind of sloppy work.
2014 RTL Platinum
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Very Active Member
In all my years of using the wrong tool, I have had my share of vice-grip episodes. With a good degree of certainty, I can see vice-grip teeth marks on your tie-rods. Time for new ones and having the job done correctly. Don't let the dealer and his mechanic get by with this sloppy work.
2005 Windveil Blue Premium Mustang Convertible
2008 Honda GL1800/California Sidecar Trike, SOLD
2014 Platinum Silver Satin Spyder RTL, SOLD
Semper Fi
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Did they offer to replace those tie-rods yet?
They certainly should...
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And the saga continues! I am going thru the Spyder over the winter and while installing new brake pads I figured out that some of the A-arm bushing are shot. I wondered why it didn't seem to handle a whole lot better after the alignment. I had a good 1/8" play on the lower right A-arm. I know when you take a car in for an alignment the first thing they check is the condition of all of the front suspension components. I am doing a lot to my Spyder over the winter because I bought it used this fall. The only thing I had the dealer do is the alignment because they had the proper tools to do it right (I thought). To get it done right I will have to do it myself or maybe take a drive to visit Lamont in the spring. After all new A-arm bushings, of course. It looks like some bolts and sleeves also. I don't think they were ever greased and on at least one the bolt was not tight enough. I haven't got them all apart yet.
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