Service Manager speaks out...

[Mr.Wizard]

We spend so much time talking about issues with our TG's but have you ever spent time actually talking to a Service Manager when he is free to chat?

I spoke with one on his day off and he started to be very candid as the beer flowed.. He spoke out. This is what he said...

Oil leak. On top of your oil filter is the oil cooler adapter. The top plate leaks and it's a real pain to tighten up the two bolts. If yours isn't leaking now, it will be soon. Most techs will see it but because it is so hard to get to they won't say anything about it of fix it.

The SE compensator is really loud on the TG's. That's because the TG is so heavy. It's normal on the TG but not on anything else I'm told to say. It will sound like Tranny gear clunk when you simply roll on and off the throttle. "Normal Operation".

Rear wheel lug bolts are usually tight but check them every few months at 90 to 100 ft pounds. He wouldn't say any more about that, got very tight lipped. Makes you go hummmmmm....

Trunk gaskets are still leaking. He's replaced several even on the new models. Said make sure your retention cables are installed with a half twist or they will get caught in the door making the gasket leak more water if it rains.

Front brake rotors that have chrome bolts instead of the stock bolts. Chrome bolts will work loose. Thread lock doesn't help. Don't use the chrome bolts "ever" he said. I came home and put the stock back in. He had that look in his eye.

Rear brakes will only be good for 10k or under. Said the brakes were too small for the TG. He has warrantied a few but is under the gun not to.

Heat... What heat he said. I can't talk about heat. I'll get fired. (From his mouth to my ears Folks)

Reverse motor bolts. Said he has sent only one in for warranty but he hasn't seen any that became loose. I told him and let him see the pictures of Ice Bites.. He said the lack of thread lock is the fault of the assembly line.... and I will quote him now... "Most of the crap that comes back to us broken has no thread lock on it. It's like the assembly line doesn't give a crap". (Again... from his mouth to my ears)


There was more but it didn't concern a TG so much as it did with MoCo in general. He has been a SM for over 20 years. Sounds like he really needed to vent.

:Shrug:

 

[TheBobs]

Wiz, thanks for passing that info to us.

 

[Nana]

It's amazing how well a good, smooth root beer will loosen a tongue.....

 

[KindaOldTriker]

"Oil leak. On top of your oil filter is the oil cooler adapter. The top plate leaks and it's a real pain to tighten up the two bolts. If yours isn't leaking now, it will be soon. Most techs will see it but because it is so hard to get to they won't say anything about it or fix it."

Fire a couple of them then! See if that fixes the problem!

D.

 

[msocko3]

He's right on about the adapter, sometimes you may be able to fix it by tightening it or replace the gasket. In the case of my dads we had to replace the whole adapter because tightening and gasket didn't get it. The adapter on the 2010 I used to own was starting to leak, its someone else's problem now.

 

[Oldmsocko]

It's amazing how well a good, smooth root beer will loosen a tongue.....

It had to have been a DIET Root Beer.

 

[Oldmsocko]

He's right on about the adapter, sometimes you may be able to fix it by tightening it or replace the gasket. In the case of my dads we had to replace the whole adapter because tightening and gasket didn't get it. The adapter on the 2010 I used to own was starting to leak, its someone else's problem now.

You are the lucky one. Maybe I should follow suit. Only time will tell.

 

[TheBobs]

Fixed any potential adapter leaks by replacing it with a Jagg adapter. The method they use is better overall.

Of course I should have paid more attention to the difference between teflon tape and teflon thread sealer. As my Father used to tell me, "Life is tough, but it's even tougher when you're stupid!" Teflon tape works real good on water pipes, but not so good on presurized oil line fittings!

So now the leak I created at the hose fittings in the adapter are fixed too!

 

[Trent]

My tech noticed the adapter leak early and fixed it. No problem since. Very interesting info Wiz...Good job plying him with tongue oil to get the shop stuff flowing! Maybe you could try Crown Royal next time and we might find out even more scary tales.

 

[427dave]

My tech noticed the adapter leak early and fixed it. No problem since. Very interesting info Wiz...Good job plying him with tongue oil to get the shop stuff flowing! Maybe you could try Crown Royal next time and we might find out even more scary tales.

I have had my adapter for the oil cooler repaired three times. Right now it is NOT leaking. My engine and transmission covers have come loose, boy does that throw oil everywhere. They just removed each bolt, put loc tight on it, re-torqued the bolts and so far no leaks again....

 

[Aussie Annie]

Thanks wiz...... interesting

 

[msocko3]

Fixed any potential adapter leaks by replacing it with a Jagg adapter. The method they use is better overall.

I have one of those with out the thermostat setting on the spare parts shelf just waiting for when my dads needs it.

 

[cscsonny]

Hope you don't mind a non-Harley owner (did "back in the day") jumping in on the conversation,but I read almost everything on Trike Talk no matter what the brand. To me it would be interesting to know the possible ratio of problems with the factory made trike compared to a converted Harley. Most owners who decide on a conversion usually have rode the bike a few years and if the bike had any problems,wouldn't convert that bike. I have heard (read maybe) that some of the "die-hard" Harley assembly line workers don't like doing the trikes due to being more conplicated than a straight bike and possibly could be letting some minor assembly flaws slip through that a buyer or dealer would have to contend with after purchase.

I would think,for the amount of $$ these trikes cost, these problems should be taken care of in factory before the bike goes out. Many riders/owners have found out that once the bike, no matter what brand, leaves the factory and warranty work is in the hands of dealers, a whole new world of problems begins. Thanks for letting me comment.

 

[Rick Kay]

Thanks so much for this info! Great stuff to know. I wish more service managers would relate their experiences to "the unwashed masses". Its good to know what to watch for, so any problems can be taken care of before they become major issues.

 

[delta]

I had the oil adapter leak as well. Brought it to the dealer for warranty repair and was lucky enough to get a tech that was not a parts hanger. He told me that the whole repair was a pain in the azz; but found what he thinks was the problem. It seems that the gasket for the oil filter adaptor still had some of the original plastic backing on the gasket. So far with a few thousand miles on the repair - no leaks. He also put a sealant of some kind on the top oblong cover that is held in place by two screws.

 

[GARYD]

CSCSONNY, I sure hope you're wrong. I'd hate to think my bike was put together by some Sportster rider that thinks TriGlides are'nt Harleys (like the V-Rod lol). Doesn't make much sense - a job is a job - it shouldn't matter what model you're putting together. :AGGHH:

And if they do find that's the case (which I doubt) I hope they fire his $#% ass and to hell with what the union says.

 

[arnie]

garyd,what local did u work out of? Sounds like you know how it is on the shop floor!

 

[Papa Zook]

Not to be a smart azz...but if they're all that bad, why the h*ll are all of you guys buying and riding them and spending thousands more to get them just like you want them? Its the hottest (no pun intended) selling bike Harley produces. Moco cant build them fast enough....they must be doing something right.

 

[rap47]

Ya, our local dealer is still selling them as fast as they get them. Have been to a couple of local bike nights and have talked with a few TG owners. It seems like none of the complaints on this fourm seem to exist with their TGs or mine. ThumbUp

 

[rhino 2]

Ya, our local dealer is still selling them as fast as they get them. Have been to a couple of local bike nights and have talked with a few TG owners. It seems like none of the complaints on this fourm seem to exist with their TGs or mine. ThumbUp

Yep, No complaints here either!

 

[msocko3]

Not to be a smart azz...but if they're all that bad, why the h*ll are all of you guys buying and riding them and spending thousands more to get them just like you want them? Its the hottest (no pun intended) selling bike Harley produces. They cant build them fast enough....they must be doing something right. :Shrug:

I know some of the problems folks are experiencing are the same problems their 2 wheel cousins are having.

For me I bought the Triglide with expectations of not doing anything more than bolting on some chrome and putting on miles. Once I took delivery and got some miles under my belt I was disapointed at the lack of power and high heat generated. With the back ground I have in engines I know when something is running as hot as the Twin Cam is these days, sooner or later its going to need the attention of a mechanic and it won't be cheap.

There are a good many people that their only desire is to ride a Harley no matter how many warts it may or may not have, they may be the same people who have ridden bone stock bikes all their lives and didn't expect much more than getting from point A to point B. Myself I've always enjoyed the mechanical nature of a Harley, just not the lack luster power. I've never owned a stock Harley, they just don't do what I expect them to do in stock form.

For a while Harley seemed to be getting better and better, the quality was pretty dang good. I never had a lick of problems from any of my previous Harley's. The 2010 Triglide I had just didn't feel as solid as some of my past bikes. In all honesty my 2006 Ultra Classic to me is twice the machine the 2010 Triglide with its TBW and other updates. This is before I even built the new 120" engine for it, the 06 has always felt more solid. Customer service at Harley Davidson seems to be not quite as good as it was in the past.

There were things I was watching on the Triglide that I knew were going to bite me sooner or later. The biggest was when I lost half the electrical system while coming back from the New England states. I figured sooner or later it would do it again and possibly strand me the next time. I also was watching the oil filter adapter which had started to leak as have others. The compensator was starting to bang when I shut it down while warm.

I love my Harley's, I just don't like the new ones. I think things started going down hill with the 2007 MY when they were having all the crankshaft scissoring issues. The switch to running the cams in the parent material of the cam plate is a great money saver, it gets the engine through warranty. But the down side is folks are noticing the bores where the cams run are getting out of round. To compound the problem Harley decided to save a few more bucks by omiting the brass bushing which the pilot shaft of the crank ran in, it now runs in the parent material of the cam plate. If the cams are making their bores out of round the crank shaft surely will do so with its bore.

Harley has been moving the direction of a disposible engine for some time now, used to be you could rebuild them forever. Lifter blocks went away with the EVO, now the lifters run in a bore which is part of the block. When it wears past its limits you can sometimes find an oversized lifter or someone who can bush it. The other alternative is a new right side case half or paying the dealer to remove the engine and ship it off to be remanufactured.

I'll sure be watching to see how many of the 07 and later Twin Cam engines make it to 100,000 or more miles without any top end work. I don't think as many will make it as the 06 and earlier engines have.

 

[Buddy WMC]

Well stated Mike and I finally made it over to this forum!!

 

[Keystone]

Good to see you over here Buddy. Stopped going to the other place some months back.

 

[eighty80]

Man-o-man, what's all this Triglide bashin? Do I need to go buy a Honda now? Geeesh......

 

[Oldmsocko]

Man-o-man, what's all this Triglide bashin? Do I need to go buy a Honda now? Geeesh......

We are not bashing them. I love my TG but at times it is a love/hate relationship. I agree with M3 my TG is no where near the quality my 06 Ultra was. If I had to buy another trike to day I would have do alot of soul searching on what I would purchase.

 

[Chazzman]

Yep there are a lot of issues which we don't know, the dealerships and the manufactures keep it tight lipped. This is with all makes and models... If you get: It is a normal characteristic or operating to factory specs you know your in trouble, LOL.
I been on the car side for 30+ years, same thing.

 

[msocko3]

Man-o-man, what's all this Triglide bashin? Do I need to go buy a Honda now? Geeesh......

Naw, no bashing. For some the Triglide is a great way to go, it does have a lot to offer. I see alot of the short coming of where Harley Davidson is going because I wrench on them and try to stay on top of the changes they make from year to year. Quite a few of the problems they have with the Triglde they also have with their 2 wheel touring line, the front half is essentialy a 2 wheel touring bike. The only difference is the Triglide frame is beefed up to be a trike.

 

[homer]

i just went out and put the twist in the trunk cables. now it works like it should have!

 

[Mr.Wizard]

i just went out and put the twist in the trunk cables. now it works like it should have!

Funny.... I did the same thing right after he told me this. I also found it in the supplement manual. Now my right hand side cable works as it should. The left side was fine.

 

[GARYD]

garyd,what local did u work out of? Sounds like you know how it is on the shop floor!

What did I say that gave you the impression I worked for a union or worked on a shop floor?

Was it something I said that offended you? Sure don't know what.