B.E.S.T. warranty does not cover exploding clutch at 13k miles - 2008 RS - Premier Ed

[kawakii]

Zurich Warranty

http://secure.zurichna.com/uug/consumer.nsf

Our dealer sells Zurich and you could call them for more information as well. Freedom Cycle, Concord NH 603-225-2779.

We feel the same way as artufun about buying a warranty from BRP since we weren't impressed with our manufacturers warranty of our RS-S.

 

[pro10is]

I'm really sorry you're having so many problems. Clearly this is a warranty issue, clutches wear out but they should never blow up and take the engine with it, that's absurd. There should be no doubt that this should be covered under the warranty. After all the extended "warranty" is actually an insurance policy against catastrophic failures and this certainly qualifies as catastrophic.

I have a BEST warranty for my BRP boat but I haven't purchased one yet for my 2011 Spyder. I think Randy's point about not buying a warranty from the company that manufactures the product has merit especially if BRP had the gall to deny coverage on this issue. With BRP muscle boats and PWC's there is an issue of the supercharger clutches blowing up and taking the engine with it. The BEST warranty covers the repair even though the supercharger clutches are also considered a wear item. BRP made them out of ceramic and when they heat up they can explode. This has been a known issue since 2007 yet BRP has never issued a recall even though they recently fixed the problem on new boats by changing the clutches to metal.

Can you please inform us if there was any sign of problems before the clutch blew up? Anything we should watch out for?

 

[Firefly]

Look at it this way...If BRP continues to give loyal customers a hard time when obvious warranty issues come up and they don't honor the BEST warranty and try to screw the customer every time..thier great success at bringing this machine to market is gonna fall flat on it's face and some other company will surface with a comparable product and BRP is gonna fall by the wayside..It's the customers that took the chance to buy a very expensive, unproven product that looked like it was gonna be a big success that made it a big success...Play on words?...absolutely not..Look what happened to Harley when AMF bought them out..It was a nightmare owning one of the machines that AMF built...Trust me...I owned 3 of them and swore I'd never buy another Harley...Look at what you pay for the machine, all the accessories, the very expensive BEST Warranty and ask yourself..Do you want to continue throwing money into a machine that the company that manufactures them won't stand behind thier product or quality? BRP should take notice...they're gonna lose the loyal customers that have supported them from the beginning that made the product such a success....Not even mentioning the terrible service the dealers are providing at the new rate...$120 an hour?

You're painting with a really broad brush...... Most owners have not had problems.. and most who have had warranty work have been taken care of. We've had a few stories lately.. and many people only post when something bad happens.

The BEST warranty is in the same price as other aftermarket warranties.. so I would not consider it 'expensive'. Nor do I consider the Spyder itself 'expensive'.

For every one of these bad stories of warranty problems.. there have been plenty where BRP has gone above and beyond in helping owners.

 

[Firefly]

If I were you I'd be checking into some other warranty companies for when the Spyder is returned to you. Some individual warranty companies don't require the warranty be put on when the bike is purchased or new...one of them is Zurich. Might be worth a call to them to find out some iformation if you can't renew B.E.S.T. We were told to not use BEST from the beginning and purchased Zurich which we have been happy with overall. Not waiting for part approval fro BRP - Dealer makes the call on what parts are needed, etc...

Who told you not to buy the BEST? Most have been very happy with BEST, and I believe there's less chance of problems when using the BEST warranty compared to a 3rd party. While Zurich is well known, there are many others out here that used other 3rd party warranties that turned into a nightmare.

At least with BEST, it is endorsed by BRP.. and should push come to shove in court.. that could prove to be important.

 

[Firefly]

In my short time as a Spyder owner, I have had occasion to contact BRP twice by phone and once by e-mail. My perception is that calling them is a complete waste of time. They don't return calls when they say they will and then, in my case they had the information in hand that I was looking for and would not give it to me. The issue had to do with a blatant error in their accessory catalog that they feel no responsibility to honor or correct. New accessory catalogs were recently sent out with the same error in them. I did contact BRP by e-mail about another issue and got the information back by e-mail the next day. Currently, my Spyder is in the shop for shifting issues that are going to be difficult to duplicate. It will be interesting to see how that comes out and, it has nothing to do with shifting at higher RPMs.

Care to tell us all what the error in the catalog is so we can be aware of the problem???

 

[pro10is]

You're painting with a really broad brush...... Most owners have not had problems.. and most who have had warranty work have been taken care of. We've had a few stories lately.. and many people only post when something bad happens.

The BEST warranty is in the same price as other aftermarket warranties.. so I would not consider it 'expensive'. Nor do I consider the Spyder itself 'expensive'.

For every one of these bad stories of warranty problems.. there have been plenty where BRP has gone above and beyond in helping owners.

He does make a good point. In all fairness we should also post all the good things BRP does right instead of primarily the bad. For example when I had an issue with my BRP boat they went far and above the call of duty to make it right not once but twice. So credit where credit is due.

 

[kawakii]

Who told you not to buy the BEST? Most have been very happy with BEST, and I believe there's less chance of problems when using the BEST warranty compared to a 3rd party. While Zurich is well known, there are many others out here that used other 3rd party warranties that turned into a nightmare.

At least with BEST, it is endorsed by BRP.. and should push come to shove in court.. that could prove to be important.

We choose not to buy B.E.S.T after some of our own research and after talking extensively to the technicians at our local dealer who have had experiences with both BRP's warranty and with Zurich. We have had issues with BRP and getting parts covered under their manufacturers warranty already and we are still within our 2 first years of ownership. Our dealership has much better relationship with Zurich on warranty issues and say they get Spyders back on the road a lot quicker not having to consult BRP and go through the hoops of B.E.S.T to justify the needing of parts. Whether that is true 100 % of the time or just their opinion I don't know. Didn't see any statistics but we have a good relationship with our dealer and choose to go this way after looking over the pros and cons of both policies. BRP has a great program but it's just not the way we choose to go. They sell both B.E.S.T and Zurich at this dealership so we were offered both- not pressured on either. Our Zurich is a 5 year extended warranty. Everyone should do their due diligence when picking a warranty company -- look at what they cover and what works best for you. Their are other options then B.E.S.T and it never hurts to take a look.

 

[jsmiley]

Can you please inform us if there was any sign of problems before the clutch blew up? Anything we should watch out for?

There were no indications of any issues. The clutch seemed perfect at the time, until it wasn't. I had never had any slipping issues or shifting problems. It went from good to nuclear instantly.

 

[Littlebadwolf]

He does make a good point. In all fairness we should also post all the good things BRP does right instead of primarily the bad. For example when I had an issue with my BRP boat they went far and above the call of duty to make it right not once but twice. So credit where credit is due.

I'll agree that I painted the issue with a broad brush but just reading the situation got my blood boiling. Most of the instances where people have presented thier problems seem to have a terrible time dealing with BRP and I wouldn't want the same to happen to me, especially if I was on the road a long distance from home. Time will tell what happens to the warranty issues.

 

[wyliec]

kawakii or Randy,

Quick question for you. Is there a 'pay out' schedule for different replacement parts listed in the Zurich warranty? I ask incase you aren't able to take the spyder to the dealer that sold the warranty and you take it to a dealer that charges way above what would be considered reasonable. I'm making an assumption here that you can take the spyder to any BRP spyder dealer; but, if the dealer doesn't participate with Zurich that you pay up front and then are reimbursed.

 

[Bob Denman]

I suppose tht the point should be made to them again:
"Clutches wear out; but they don't

" When they do pop and ruin everything downstream; the Company should of course pay for that. You actually should only need to argue over the value of replacing the clutch...

 

[kawakii]

kawakii or Randy,

Quick question for you. Is there a 'pay out' schedule for different replacement parts listed in the Zurich warranty? I ask incase you aren't able to take the spyder to the dealer that sold the warranty and you take it to a dealer that charges way above what would be considered reasonable. I'm making an assumption here that you can take the spyder to any BRP spyder dealer; but, if the dealer doesn't participate with Zurich that you pay up front and then are reimbursed.

You can take the Spyder to ANY licensed repair shop. They do not need to sell or be within the Zurich network. Zurich will pay by corporate credit card any dealership or state licensed repair facility. If they do not take credit cards you have to pay up front and submit for reimbursement. For our Spyders that means any BRP dealer - but if it was a motorcycle who could be worked on by an independent shop they would also pay for that shop as well.

I don't remember in our contract seeing a "pay out" clause or schedule. I do know Zurich has different levels of extended warranties .. I'll have to drag out of contract tonight and take a look but I don't believe their is. We choose a plan without a deductible and with tow pickup reimbursement . ** Dragged out our Zurich Warranty paperwork tonight and it says they'll pay reasonable parts costs and labor but no exact payout schedule. ** Just wanted to update this.so if a shop was way out of ine with costs I'm sure they would set a certain amount they'd pay per hour of labor. I dont exactly know what this is-- but I plan on calling to ask.

Zurich customer service is very helpful over the phone as well : 1-888-835-5063 to get specific answers.

 

[Mr. White]

Carlo is not available. When I called two days ago, to see when a part for BR1 would ship, I was told Carlo has not been in the office for "several weeks" and the laldy said "We do not know when he will return."

:spyder2:

 

[Huntindawg1962]

If I were you I'd be checking into some other warranty companies for when the Spyder is returned to you. Some individual warranty companies don't require the warranty be put on when the bike is purchased or new...one of them is Zurich. Might be worth a call to them to find out some iformation if you can't renew B.E.S.T. We were told to not use BEST from the beginning and purchased Zurich which we have been happy with overall. Not waiting for part approval fro BRP - Dealer makes the call on what parts are needed, etc...

I second (or third or fourth) this one. My first RT has the "best warranty" but the second one was warrantied through a different company that was the same cost as "best," no deductible, and more of a "no question" process. All I gave up was the roadside assistance but my insurance company for the bike covers that anyhow so that was redundant coverage from BRP that I dont need anyhow.

 

[3leggedSpyder]

When I purchased my Spyder, back in may of this year, my dealer only offered the Zurich warranty. I had asked about the B.E.S.T. warranty through BRP, but he said that he didn't know about that one. I would add that he was a newer employee at the dealer.:dontknow:

 

[wyliec]

Carlo is not available. When I called two days ago, to see when a part for BR1 would ship, I was told Carlo has not been in the office for "several weeks" and the laldy said "We do not know when he will return."

:spyder2:

I was wondering about that. As of about 2 months ago he hadn't returned. Someone else handling service issues was very helpful to me. I can't remember her name.

 

[Firefly]

Sounds like Zurich maybe a good viable option. I just recall a few others out here buying other 3rd party warranties thru their dealer--- and then finding out after the dealer went out of business that the warranty was not honored anywhere else.

On my new RT I have 2 years factory plus 2 years BEST was added for free. If I keep this bike that long I'll have to reassess warranty options then.

I too am boiling mad about this clutch blowing up issue not being covered.

 

[bullant12]

When my clutch slipped back in 2011 (2700 miles on the ODO), my dealer's owner was concerened that BRP was not going to take care of it being a wear-and-tear part. So I got Carlo on the phone and documented everything (both myself and the dealer). After more than a month in the dealer, BRP shipped the parts and dealer rebuilt the clutch. Nothing out of pocket and Carlo said that as long as I owned the :spyder2:, any clutch issues that appear would be taken care of.

But a clutch BLOWING UP THE ENGINE?!?! Yeah, BRP should step up on this one...:duh:

 

[CyncySpyder]

I did a lil search and found this info listed elsewhere, maybe worth a try for you

Call the BRP customer support line at 888-272-9222 or 819-566-3366. Last person I talked to was Chrystelle LaChance, don't know if Carlos returned or what happened to him, she was great and helped a lot.



The above I copied from another thread & pasted it here for you since Carlos seems to be MIA
That man has helped a great many of us:bowdown: myself included, and if he has left BRP, its a major loss for their Customer Service & Support, thats for sure :lecturef_smilie:

Either way, none of this is good and Teddy & I only hope you can get this resolved in one manner or another to your satisfactionray: Good Luck & keep us posted:helpsmilie:

***On a side note, the pic you posted, that's what I do in my day job, manufacture forward & coast clutches for an Automotive Company, but I've never seen them look like that:shocked:***

 

[jsmiley]

Call the BRP customer support line at 888-272-9222 or 819-566-3366. Last person I talked to was Chrystelle LaChance, don't know if Carlos returned or what happened to him, she was great and helped a lot.



The above I copied from another thread & pasted it here for you since Carlos seems to be MIA
That man has helped a great many of us:bowdown: myself included, and if he has left BRP, its a major loss for their Customer Service & Support, thats for sure :lecturef_smilie:

Either way, none of this is good and Teddy & I only hope you can get this resolved in one manner or another to your satisfactionray: Good Luck & keep us posted:helpsmilie:

***On a side note, the pic you posted, that's what I do in my day job, manufacture forward & coast clutches for an Automotive Company, but I've never seen them look like that:shocked:***

I have spoken with customer service. I called myself after the dealer told me about the slow walking issue. This was after I raised a little hell being 3 months in.
- first time I called, gave them my VIN and they confirmed my name and told me there was no claim on my bike. They gave me a Call-ID number. I promptly began raising hell again with the dealer who pulled his records and provided me a Call-I'D that was several thousand ahead of the one I was given.
- I call BRP again referencing th dealer Call-ID and they were oh, oh yeah. Then they told me they were not covering clutch work or replacing the engine in whole. Voiced my dissatisfaction and asked for this to be escalated.
- received a call from another gentleman a week later and he was rude and pretty much told me I was SOL on the clutch as it is a wear item, end of conversation. I talked to him about my engine and my concerns with piecing it back together and the overall health and the dude actually raised his voice to me and told me that was the best I'm getting out of BRP. Told me the dealer was at fault because they could not diagnose why the clutch exploded.

Dealer is not happy either as they are getting low balled on the rebuild labor.

Consulted with a lawyer yesterday and they are researching it, they say its a slam dunk. I have not heard back from the email I sent to Carlo and I am at my wits end.