Roadghost
Well-known member
Call Suzuki. Ask them if doing your own oil changes will void the warranty. I know the dealers claim almost anything voids the warranty, but KTM allows you to do your oil changes.
Will self-service void warranty?
- Thread starter kurtrules
- Start date
Same on my 2019, 5 yr warranty. I did it's first oil change last fall and kept receipts and I think took pics of the mileage and the oil coming out of the bike ... may actually do a 10 sec video next time showing it all in 1 fell swoop although there'll be no issue on my engine either.
The US has Magnusson Moss Act which is substantially that. I'm not sure what the equivalent canadian legislation is.
Actual manufacturers warranties are bound by the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, in the US.
In Canada, we have the equivalent protections from our provincial consumer protection acts.
The warranty holder can make any claims about what is included or excluded from warranty or what will "void" a warranty but these acts are the final arbitrators.
Basically the warranty holder must prove that your action or inaction caused the fault. 100% onus on the warranty holder.
Third party warranties are not warranties. They are a consumer contract NOT covered by the Magnuson Act.
In Canada, we have the equivalent protections from our provincial consumer protection acts.
The warranty holder can make any claims about what is included or excluded from warranty or what will "void" a warranty but these acts are the final arbitrators.
Basically the warranty holder must prove that your action or inaction caused the fault. 100% onus on the warranty holder.
Third party warranties are not warranties. They are a consumer contract NOT covered by the Magnuson Act.
A lot of this will be driven by dealer discretion. The process of warranty denial is simple, they just tell you it's not covered, they don't have to "prove" anything. If you don't accept their decision then you'll have to fight it by escalating within Suzuki or through the courts.
Look at Suzuki warranty as per above link under EXCLUSIONS - ITEMS NOT COVERED BY WARRANTY sections d), i) and j) in particular and then OWNER’S WARRANTY RESPONSIBILITIES.
There's more to maintaining your bike than just oil and filter changes. Within the overall 5y period of the warranty you'll be needing valve clearance checks as an example, are you intending to have a dealer do these? Why guess as to what their position would be, as someone has suggested, using the owner's manual maintenance schedule just call the dealer and lay out what you intend/want to do, what you'll have them do and see what they say.
Depends on the manufacturer. Maico switched to magnesium hubs in 79 and replaced any broken ones with the previous year's aluminum ones.
TK4
Well-known member
Its tough to believe that any legitimate warranty claim can be denied.
The grey area is when the machine is out of warranty or its a 'goodwill' repair. I've been involved in both sides - I've seen machines that have been extensively modified or abused and the dealer or the customer is screaming, sorry no payout.
I've seen dealers submit fake claims to placate the owner and avoid having to pay for repairs out of their pocket. There are sometimes 'hidden' extended warranties when the distributor knows of a common problem that isn't technically a recall.
Usually, if its outside of regular warranty parameters it will be handled case-by-case, there are no hard and fast rules. If you aren't getting the answer you want then contact Customer Service, all the majors have one.
At the end of the day, factory pays the Canadian distributor for warranty repairs - the distributor's job is to try and keep it all on the up and up.
Trials
Well-known member
another successful warranty claim on a competition motorcycle that had no warranty expressed.Add a Beta swingarm or two to the list.
Makes absolute sense.
My dad used to joke that his job was to find a reason to say no when you applied for a Visa to Canada. He was in charge of the Visa departments in various embassies throughout the word. Background checks, interviews, etc.
... and another thing you should know about warranties:
Dealerships may have a yearly warranty limit, contingent on their sales. Their warranty claims are limited to a percentage of their total sales.
A dealership with small warranty claims total will be a LOT more lenient than a dealership that is swimming in warranty.
Dealerships may have a yearly warranty limit, contingent on their sales. Their warranty claims are limited to a percentage of their total sales.
A dealership with small warranty claims total will be a LOT more lenient than a dealership that is swimming in warranty.
TK4
Well-known member
I've never seen a quota system for warranty claims.
What I have seen is dealers being audited for what may appear to be abuse of the system.
I know of 2 dealers, one in Quebec and one in New Brunswick that had their privates smacked for fraudulent claims (mostly on ATVs).
Extended warranty on the other hand is a total scam, their job is to collect premiums and not pay out whenever possible.
If Suzuki Canada is providing extended warranty as a sales gimmick through a secondary supplier it won't be worth the paper it's printed on.
kurtrules
Well-known member
I actually wrote to Suzuki on something similar last fall, when I had to get the first service done. I didn't ask them on self service, but if I got it serviced from a local mechanic nearby (not a dealership). Here's what they wrote:
Hello Vaibhav,
We appreciate your interest in our vehicles and always look forward to hearing from our customers.
Your Suzuki dealership is equipped with the appropriate diagnostics tools, genuine parts and Suzuki-trained technicians, so we would recommend that the maintenance of your vehicle is performed at an authorized Suzuki dealership.
However, in appreciation of your situation, should you elect to have your maintenance service performed at a non-Suzuki dealership, we would strongly recommend that receipts and related documentation covering the performance of regular as well as the recommended maintenance must be kept, and may be requested in the event of any warranty concerns. Please be aware that any such maintenance still may have an impact on warranty coverage, but only if the use of unfit or inferior parts, or workmanship, is the determined to be the cause. Though we have no control over the workmanship of other facilities, we could refer you to your nearest Suzuki dealership for genuine Suzuki maintenance parts, to address that concern.
Regards,
Customer Relations, Parts & Accessories |Suzuki Canada Inc.
360 Saunders Rd.
Barrie, ON Canada L4N 9Y2
B: customerservice @suzuki.ca| www.suzuki.ca
Hello Vaibhav,
We appreciate your interest in our vehicles and always look forward to hearing from our customers.
Your Suzuki dealership is equipped with the appropriate diagnostics tools, genuine parts and Suzuki-trained technicians, so we would recommend that the maintenance of your vehicle is performed at an authorized Suzuki dealership.
However, in appreciation of your situation, should you elect to have your maintenance service performed at a non-Suzuki dealership, we would strongly recommend that receipts and related documentation covering the performance of regular as well as the recommended maintenance must be kept, and may be requested in the event of any warranty concerns. Please be aware that any such maintenance still may have an impact on warranty coverage, but only if the use of unfit or inferior parts, or workmanship, is the determined to be the cause. Though we have no control over the workmanship of other facilities, we could refer you to your nearest Suzuki dealership for genuine Suzuki maintenance parts, to address that concern.
Regards,
Customer Relations, Parts & Accessories |Suzuki Canada Inc.
360 Saunders Rd.
Barrie, ON Canada L4N 9Y2
B: customerservice @suzuki.ca| www.suzuki.ca
Depends on the bike.
LukePakkala
Member
Lots of good advice here. Brian is right: keep records with date and mileage and a list of the service items you dealt with. I normally tell our handy customers to keep the receipts for the OEM oil and filters and write the info right on them. Some manufacturers will have an issue as you can't technically complete the services without the dealership's computer system, but most are not in the habit of denying warranty claims out of spite. If the dealership goes to bat for you, the manufacturer will help in most situations. If you treat the service advisor like crap and/or demand that your repair "is warranty" before anyone has actually looked at it... it might be harder. Contrary to popular belief dealerships do like having customers come in for warranty issues. It gives us a chance to make sure nothing else will come flying off the bike on the highway and gives customers a chance to look at the shiny new toys.
Suzuki is not a hard manufacturer to deal with for warranty, they ride too. They get it. As a consumer, make sure you read the exclusions. I can't tell you how many people I have had to educate that fork seals are never covered under warranty, at any mileage. Some manufacturers will do it once as a goodwill gesture, but it is never a guarantee.
Suzuki is not a hard manufacturer to deal with for warranty, they ride too. They get it. As a consumer, make sure you read the exclusions. I can't tell you how many people I have had to educate that fork seals are never covered under warranty, at any mileage. Some manufacturers will do it once as a goodwill gesture, but it is never a guarantee.
Blowing the shim out with air was cool. Not the biggest fan of grinding shims down like that (nor his poverty calipers to take the measurements).You might not want to watch this, he does a whole bunch of things that you are not suppose to be able to do
