Picture this:
You?ve been dreaming for months about those beautiful 1200GS?s sitting on the show room floor. So you gather your savings & go to a reputable BMW dealer to buy a supposedly good quality 2004 R1200GS that?s just out of warranty but looks brand new and only has 17000kms.
So you thinking: ?sure it?s out of warranty but those boxer engines are ?bullet proof? and besides I?m buying this bike from a ?reputable? BMW dealership so nothing hectic should happen...? So you sign and you are now a happy man. For now.
As it happens you don?t use the bike much ?cause you working overseas and so very little mileage accumulates, a bit of city ridding and one lekker holiday ride down to the coast. Now its time to take it back to the same dealer for its 20 000km service. Service gets done and you pretty excited ?cause the very next day you?ve got yourself an advanced ridding course booked with the BMW ridding academy. So after the bike was delivered to you from the service you go to the track the next day where the nice people at BMW teach you how to corner, swerve and how to generally be a safer rider. You have a good time during the days ridding getting more confident with your bike and, not having the abilities of Valentino Rossi, you careful and don?t push too much as you know if you come off on a race track the insurance is probably gonna tell you to take a hike. As the day is ending, you accelerate gently does it out of a corner and BAM the engine loses all power, shakes like hell and makes a noise that makes you wanna cry. Now you worried and upset cause your bike is F&^#ed with a capital F and you sure as hell didn?t exceed any engine limitations. Besides these things have got governors that won?t let you overrev so you try calm yourself down thinking it cant be too bad. ?Besides? you tell yourself ?I?ve only done 3500km on it since I bought it and it?s just come out of a service, so I?m sure BM will sort it out??
The friendly dealers that serviced your bike the previous day come and pick it up and 2 weeks later finally take the thing apart. Turns out a valve has broken off halve way down the stem and basically obliterated everything around it. The cam chain and cam shaft are all fine. Now you pissed off but they tell you that BMW should cover it as its just 4 month out of warranty and this sort of thing shouldn?t happen. A few days later you get a call: ?sorry but neither the dealership or BMW is gonna pay for anything and its unfortunately gonna cost you R20 000 to get the engine fixed up.
This sad story has just happened to me and I?m wondering if I?m right to be upset and tell them that this is unacceptable. Anybody out there with some advice as to how I can sort this mess out without making myself bankrupt?
You?ve been dreaming for months about those beautiful 1200GS?s sitting on the show room floor. So you gather your savings & go to a reputable BMW dealer to buy a supposedly good quality 2004 R1200GS that?s just out of warranty but looks brand new and only has 17000kms.
So you thinking: ?sure it?s out of warranty but those boxer engines are ?bullet proof? and besides I?m buying this bike from a ?reputable? BMW dealership so nothing hectic should happen...? So you sign and you are now a happy man. For now.
As it happens you don?t use the bike much ?cause you working overseas and so very little mileage accumulates, a bit of city ridding and one lekker holiday ride down to the coast. Now its time to take it back to the same dealer for its 20 000km service. Service gets done and you pretty excited ?cause the very next day you?ve got yourself an advanced ridding course booked with the BMW ridding academy. So after the bike was delivered to you from the service you go to the track the next day where the nice people at BMW teach you how to corner, swerve and how to generally be a safer rider. You have a good time during the days ridding getting more confident with your bike and, not having the abilities of Valentino Rossi, you careful and don?t push too much as you know if you come off on a race track the insurance is probably gonna tell you to take a hike. As the day is ending, you accelerate gently does it out of a corner and BAM the engine loses all power, shakes like hell and makes a noise that makes you wanna cry. Now you worried and upset cause your bike is F&^#ed with a capital F and you sure as hell didn?t exceed any engine limitations. Besides these things have got governors that won?t let you overrev so you try calm yourself down thinking it cant be too bad. ?Besides? you tell yourself ?I?ve only done 3500km on it since I bought it and it?s just come out of a service, so I?m sure BM will sort it out??
The friendly dealers that serviced your bike the previous day come and pick it up and 2 weeks later finally take the thing apart. Turns out a valve has broken off halve way down the stem and basically obliterated everything around it. The cam chain and cam shaft are all fine. Now you pissed off but they tell you that BMW should cover it as its just 4 month out of warranty and this sort of thing shouldn?t happen. A few days later you get a call: ?sorry but neither the dealership or BMW is gonna pay for anything and its unfortunately gonna cost you R20 000 to get the engine fixed up.
This sad story has just happened to me and I?m wondering if I?m right to be upset and tell them that this is unacceptable. Anybody out there with some advice as to how I can sort this mess out without making myself bankrupt?
