OUCH !

[McVicar]

Just had the 16k service done at my local main dealer. The bike is only twelve months old so with a years warrenty left I thought I'd better keep the main dealer service history. This is a big service because they check the valve clearances. Of course they are always within tolerance.

Parts £ 42.10 plus VAT
Sundries ? £ 6.00 plus VAT
Labour £197.78 plus VAT

Total bill £287.86

A lot of cash for what is essentially oil and filter change and new spark plugs.

[MacP]

£197 for labour!!!!! I feel for you mate - When is the next big service after this one? I've got a mate who's interested and was asking about them...

[Dee Duble Yuh]

Did they give you a list of what they checked/adjusted? Two hundred quid for labour is a lot of checking time! I realise checking the vave clearances can by tricky, but there are only two cylinders.

[McVicar]

No list of what they checked but it is in the service schedule. On the Varadero forum some people have paid nearer £400 for this service.

[stoo]

How many hours labour do you get for £200 ?

If they're charging £56 + VAT per hour, that's only 3 hours work, which I'd have thought isn't that unreasonable for a thorough look over a faired bike...

though I'd be looking for somewhere that charges a lot less per hour for routine servicing stuff!

[McVicar]

I don't mind paying because I know s*d all abut bike mechanics and I like to know if I'm in Scotland or somewhere the bike will get me around with no problems. Touch wood it's worked so far. It just hurts when you spend £300 and the bike looks and feels the same as when you took it in. At least if you spend the money on new cans or tyres you can see something for your cash. Never mind the 20k service is only £120.

[boeingboy]

Dudes,i'm not suggesting for one moment you follow my example,-but bear it in mind.
Recently sold my Transalp ('99 on a T) with 40k on the clock,and only the first 600 mile service stamp in the service book.
The rest of the servicing was carried out by myself (excluding valve clearances,despite trying) and a Haynes manual.
Every 2 years i took it to a local guy working out of his garage for a good look over (cost £200 a time with a service & the dreaded valves)
I found that the little bit of knowledge gained from servicing it myself would be more beneficial to me if i were to be stuck in the middle of nowhere,far outweighed the peace of mind that a dealer service,at ludicrous rates would give me.
These 'v' twins are so reliable that i had every confidence that a regular oil & filter change (every 6 mths) would be all that was needed for a years touring,indeed it was only when i sold it that i was told it had two spark plugs per cyl.-I had only been changing one (manual used as coffee stand during that operation)
Of course the obligatory Scottoiler in its later years was a revelation,but coming from the 'if it aint broke don't fix it' school of thought,I believe that most bikes are overserviced,to the cost of the owner of several thousand pounds over the life of the bike.
To bring my rambling to a close,I traded it in for a '05 Varadero last October,and enquired as to the difference in trade in value of the bike if it had a full service history,the result-£300 more,less than the cost of one rip-off 6000 mile service.
p.s. one slightly used & coffee stained Transalp Haynes manual for sale.

[fewtrees]

enquired as to the difference in trade in value of the bike if it had a full service history,the result-£300

We had a similar discussion on one of the AT threads.. I'm with you on this.. A service history isn't worth as much as you'd believe..

[piguglyshandydrinker]

I found that the little bit of knowledge gained from servicing it myself would be more beneficial to me if i were to be stuck in the middle of nowhere,far outweighed the peace of mind that a dealer service,at ludicrous rates would give me.

Dealer service, peace of mind...

Sorry you lost me there

Phil

[Chad]

anybody got a shot of mcvicar trying to walk after that

hmmm shafted been have you