"Disclaimer": Take what I'm saying here with a grain of salt. This is my 3rd year and 3rd bike as a rider, but the bike I'm speaking of below was my first used one (bought my first two brand-new), and I am not mechanically inclined, so I will say up front that there are things I probably *should* have asked for/noticed, but did not know to. This should probably be looked at more as a "buyer-beware"/"know your stuff" story than a true review.
Let me first say that generally, my experience shopping at GP Bikes has been excellent. I know a few of the staff there which helps, but even aside from that, they're very friendly, knowledgeable and professional, unlike some of the smaller shops I've been to. That said, I have my doubts about their service department, and their ethics/thoroughness in examining used bikes they buy/sell -- perhaps in the servicing itself even.
I traded in my Ninja 650R for a used, 2005 V-Strom DL650 this past November. Put a deposit down on a Saturday, did the trade & picked up the bike that Monday, with the conditions that I'd be getting an oil change and brand new tires installed as part of the deal; the rear tire was backordered, so I would return that Friday to have it installed free of charge. I noted that they only seemed to very briefly look at my 650R, but figured maybe they'd done a closer inspection while we were out getting lunch prior to taking the V-Strom.
Cleaned up the bike the day after I picked it up, and realized that the chain & sprocket was *horribly* filthy. I actually had thought it was *supposed* to be black in colour, until I had globs of thick black gunk/dirt come off the chain. I would have expected the place to have checked the chain, and cleaned it in the process, so this was a surprise to me, but I let it go. I took the bike to my regular maintenance guys at 22Customs that night to have them look over the bike, check the bolts, etc. He noted that the bike mostly looked fine, but that my chain was *way* too tight and had almost no slack, so we adjusted the chain to spec.
Picked up my rear tire that weekend, rode for a few days and loved it. A bit later, I learned that my rear tire was actually mounted backwards -- I immediately called, left work to visit GP and they corrected this without delay, no appointment or such needed. Perhaps an innocent mistake while rushing to get the bike ready for me -- but nonetheless, a potentially dangerous oversight that I would not forget.
Flash forward to this March. This one is a little tricky, and could be one, both, or neither mentioned shop's fault.
Took the V-Strom to 22Customs last week, after noticing a difference in the feeling of my rear wheel -- my chain had about 2.5-3" of slack as opposed to the 1-1.5" it normally would. As soon as he looked at the bike, he noted that something looked off about my axle nut. Upon further inspection, we discovered that the entire nut was badly stripped, as was a good portion of the axle's threading. Potentially, the only thing that was holding the nut on was the cotter pin that locked it in place. There was enough free play to the nut that it could potentially slide around about 1-2mm on the axle. I ordered a new axle + nut on the spot and it's since been replaced. We aren't sure whether it was like that for long, but with the threading being mostly gone and no metal filings etc visible, it seems that way.
I suppose all of this comes down to being the risks of buying used, when lacking mechanical knowledge. But I'm left wondering: the axle/nut could have been that way since I bought the bike, and if so, *somebody* should have noticed it, if they hadn't actually caused it, especially since GP had worked on the rear wheel not once but at least twice. It could also just happen to have worn down that way in the last few months, maybe helped by some overtorquing or just the process of removing/replacing that nut the few times. Regardless, I wonder if legally, GPbikes and other dealerships are required to check for/fix issues like this mentioned above when buying/selling used vehicles, or if it truly is "buyer beware" in these cases?
In the long run, I intend to learn how to do all of this maintenance myself, so that if anything DOES go wrong, I'll know exactly why and only have myself to blame... I just hope that either way, an oversight or error by myself or someone I take my bike to, doesn't cost me my safety and possibly my life.
Let me first say that generally, my experience shopping at GP Bikes has been excellent. I know a few of the staff there which helps, but even aside from that, they're very friendly, knowledgeable and professional, unlike some of the smaller shops I've been to. That said, I have my doubts about their service department, and their ethics/thoroughness in examining used bikes they buy/sell -- perhaps in the servicing itself even.
I traded in my Ninja 650R for a used, 2005 V-Strom DL650 this past November. Put a deposit down on a Saturday, did the trade & picked up the bike that Monday, with the conditions that I'd be getting an oil change and brand new tires installed as part of the deal; the rear tire was backordered, so I would return that Friday to have it installed free of charge. I noted that they only seemed to very briefly look at my 650R, but figured maybe they'd done a closer inspection while we were out getting lunch prior to taking the V-Strom.
Cleaned up the bike the day after I picked it up, and realized that the chain & sprocket was *horribly* filthy. I actually had thought it was *supposed* to be black in colour, until I had globs of thick black gunk/dirt come off the chain. I would have expected the place to have checked the chain, and cleaned it in the process, so this was a surprise to me, but I let it go. I took the bike to my regular maintenance guys at 22Customs that night to have them look over the bike, check the bolts, etc. He noted that the bike mostly looked fine, but that my chain was *way* too tight and had almost no slack, so we adjusted the chain to spec.
Picked up my rear tire that weekend, rode for a few days and loved it. A bit later, I learned that my rear tire was actually mounted backwards -- I immediately called, left work to visit GP and they corrected this without delay, no appointment or such needed. Perhaps an innocent mistake while rushing to get the bike ready for me -- but nonetheless, a potentially dangerous oversight that I would not forget.
Flash forward to this March. This one is a little tricky, and could be one, both, or neither mentioned shop's fault.
Took the V-Strom to 22Customs last week, after noticing a difference in the feeling of my rear wheel -- my chain had about 2.5-3" of slack as opposed to the 1-1.5" it normally would. As soon as he looked at the bike, he noted that something looked off about my axle nut. Upon further inspection, we discovered that the entire nut was badly stripped, as was a good portion of the axle's threading. Potentially, the only thing that was holding the nut on was the cotter pin that locked it in place. There was enough free play to the nut that it could potentially slide around about 1-2mm on the axle. I ordered a new axle + nut on the spot and it's since been replaced. We aren't sure whether it was like that for long, but with the threading being mostly gone and no metal filings etc visible, it seems that way.
I suppose all of this comes down to being the risks of buying used, when lacking mechanical knowledge. But I'm left wondering: the axle/nut could have been that way since I bought the bike, and if so, *somebody* should have noticed it, if they hadn't actually caused it, especially since GP had worked on the rear wheel not once but at least twice. It could also just happen to have worn down that way in the last few months, maybe helped by some overtorquing or just the process of removing/replacing that nut the few times. Regardless, I wonder if legally, GPbikes and other dealerships are required to check for/fix issues like this mentioned above when buying/selling used vehicles, or if it truly is "buyer beware" in these cases?
In the long run, I intend to learn how to do all of this maintenance myself, so that if anything DOES go wrong, I'll know exactly why and only have myself to blame... I just hope that either way, an oversight or error by myself or someone I take my bike to, doesn't cost me my safety and possibly my life.
