Honest dealer

Bartender, I'm buyin', and nothing but top shelf for everybody. Wake
up that drunk passed out in the corner up and pour him one too.

Short version: Marv, the owner of the HD dealership in Napoleon, Ohio
treated us right.

Long version: (Good news, Bad news, Good news, Bad news, Good news)

Good news:

Last summer, the wife and I made a loop around the country, from
California to Florida to Maine to Washington and back to CA, about
12,000 miles in all. Me on my '00 Road Glide, she on her '97
Sportster. We were havin' more fun than the law allows. For most of
the trip, we stayed on the back roads, avoiding the superslab as much
as possible.

Bad news:

On a day we needed to cover some ground, we were crankin' it up on the
Ohio turnpike when the motor in my wife's bike started making ominous
noises. Sounded like a pissed off troll with a big hammer was tired of
livin' inside the cases and wanted out real bad. She had about 65,000
hard miles on it at the time. We had to stop on the side of the Ohio
turnpike on a Saturday afternoon. I called the closest dealer, about
50 miles away, which happened to be HD of Napoleon Ohio.

Good news:

Although it was almost closing time for them, Keith, the service
manager told us someone would wait for us to get there and check it
out. By the time we got a tow truck, loaded the bike and got to the
dealer, it was well past closing time, but Marv, (who we didn't
realize at the time was the owner of the shop) was waiting for us. He
took the bike in and immediately started checking it out, hoping it
was something simple he could fix and send us on our way.
Unfortunately, it wasn't simple, it was a rod bearing, so Marv
volunteered to take us to the local motel til Monday, when they could
tear it down and start repairs. We spent a little time in the
dealership, where Marv had a great collection of antique bikes he had
restored and pics of him riding and racing bikes, starting waaaay
back. He has been a dealer and rider for many years.

Their shop was full and booked up with local bikes, but, seeing how we
were on vacation and just passin' through, they moved her bike to the
front of the line and tore it down Monday mornin' and ordered the
parts, including new rods + bearings, pistons, etc. They did a
complete rebuild of the motor and transmission (they found some worn
tranny parts that had been the cause of a shifting problem the wife
had been living with for a while) and had us back on the road by
Saturday, all for what I considered a very reasonable price. We
thanked them for getting us back on the road so quickly, and hit the
back roads, taking it easy on the fresh motor.

Bad news:

About 6 months after we got home, the motor in my wife's bike started
making the same kinda noises it had just before it got real bad. It
had about 5,000 miles on it since it had been rebuilt in Ohio. We took
it to the local dealer, and he determined that the bottom end was
going out again. We called Napoleon HD, explained the situation, and
they told us they would reimburse us for the cost to have it rebuilt
again. We were more than a little skeptical, but considering our
options, we told the local dealer to go ahead and rebuild it. After it
was done, I wrote a letter to Napoleon HD, with copies of the work
orders from both shops attached, and asked for a refund. I halfway
expected a run-around, or at best a partial refund.

Good News:

I was very pleasantly surprised when I got a check from Napoleon HD
for the FULL AMOUNT we had spent for the rebuild there, including the
tranny work, which was still ok. Although I would have been happier if
we hadn't had to get the motor rebuilt the second time, it was great
to get a full refund for the cost of the first rebuild. And, although
the first rebuild wasn't right, I have no doubt that it was a fluke,
and not representative of the quality of work normally done by
Napoleon HD. Having turned a few wrenches in my time, I know that
sometimes shit happens, and the best wrench can make a mistake
occasionally.


Anyway, I commend Marv and Napoleon HD for getting us back on the road
as quickly as possible when we broke down, and then reimbursing us in
full for the work they did that didn't hold up.

Bartender, another round for the house and pour one for Marv too, an
honest man and an example all Harley dealers should aspire to.

Ron

On 25 May 2004 03:29:57 -0700, deadhawg.DeleteThis@excite.com (Ron) babbled:

=>Bartender, I'm buyin', and nothing but top shelf for everybody. Wake
=>up that drunk passed out in the corner up and pour him one too.
=>
=>Short version: Marv, the owner of the HD dealership in Napoleon, Ohio
=>treated us right.
=>
=>Long version: (Good news, Bad news, Good news, Bad news, Good news)
=>
=>Good news:
=>
=>Last summer, the wife and I made a loop around the country, from
=>California to Florida to Maine to Washington and back to CA, about
=>12,000 miles in all. Me on my '00 Road Glide, she on her '97
=>Sportster. We were havin' more fun than the law allows. For most of
=>the trip, we stayed on the back roads, avoiding the superslab as much
=>as possible.
=>
=>Bad news:
=>
=>On a day we needed to cover some ground, we were crankin' it up on the
=>Ohio turnpike when the motor in my wife's bike started making ominous
=>noises. Sounded like a pissed off troll with a big hammer was tired of
=>livin' inside the cases and wanted out real bad. She had about 65,000
=>hard miles on it at the time. We had to stop on the side of the Ohio
=>turnpike on a Saturday afternoon. I called the closest dealer, about
=>50 miles away, which happened to be HD of Napoleon Ohio.
=>
=>Good news:
=>
=>Although it was almost closing time for them, Keith, the service
=>manager told us someone would wait for us to get there and check it
=>out. By the time we got a tow truck, loaded the bike and got to the
=>dealer, it was well past closing time, but Marv, (who we didn't
=>realize at the time was the owner of the shop) was waiting for us. He
=>took the bike in and immediately started checking it out, hoping it
=>was something simple he could fix and send us on our way.
=>Unfortunately, it wasn't simple, it was a rod bearing, so Marv
=>volunteered to take us to the local motel til Monday, when they could
=>tear it down and start repairs. We spent a little time in the
=>dealership, where Marv had a great collection of antique bikes he had
=>restored and pics of him riding and racing bikes, starting waaaay
=>back. He has been a dealer and rider for many years.
=>
=>Their shop was full and booked up with local bikes, but, seeing how we
=>were on vacation and just passin' through, they moved her bike to the
=>front of the line and tore it down Monday mornin' and ordered the
=>parts, including new rods + bearings, pistons, etc. They did a
=>complete rebuild of the motor and transmission (they found some worn
=>tranny parts that had been the cause of a shifting problem the wife
=>had been living with for a while) and had us back on the road by
=>Saturday, all for what I considered a very reasonable price. We
=>thanked them for getting us back on the road so quickly, and hit the
=>back roads, taking it easy on the fresh motor.
=>
=>Bad news:
=>
=>About 6 months after we got home, the motor in my wife's bike started
=>making the same kinda noises it had just before it got real bad. It
=>had about 5,000 miles on it since it had been rebuilt in Ohio. We took
=>it to the local dealer, and he determined that the bottom end was
=>going out again. We called Napoleon HD, explained the situation, and
=>they told us they would reimburse us for the cost to have it rebuilt
=>again. We were more than a little skeptical, but considering our
=>options, we told the local dealer to go ahead and rebuild it. After it
=>was done, I wrote a letter to Napoleon HD, with copies of the work
=>orders from both shops attached, and asked for a refund. I halfway
=>expected a run-around, or at best a partial refund.
=>
=>Good News:
=>
=>I was very pleasantly surprised when I got a check from Napoleon HD
=>for the FULL AMOUNT we had spent for the rebuild there, including the
=>tranny work, which was still ok. Although I would have been happier if
=>we hadn't had to get the motor rebuilt the second time, it was great
=>to get a full refund for the cost of the first rebuild. And, although
=>the first rebuild wasn't right, I have no doubt that it was a fluke,
=>and not representative of the quality of work normally done by
=>Napoleon HD. Having turned a few wrenches in my time, I know that
=>sometimes shit happens, and the best wrench can make a mistake
=>occasionally.
=>
=>
=>Anyway, I commend Marv and Napoleon HD for getting us back on the road
=>as quickly as possible when we broke down, and then reimbursing us in
=>full for the work they did that didn't hold up.
=>
=>Bartender, another round for the house and pour one for Marv too, an
=>honest man and an example all Harley dealers should aspire to.
=>
=>Ron

cool... what a great ending to a great story. I have to confess, I'm
more than a little envious of your ride around the loop... one day I'll
have the time... one day...


Dr. Quin

'74 Whizbang (gone, but not forgotten)
multitude of trashed jap bikes and one '66 beezer
Lowriders:
'81 (sold to a bud @ 88k), '82 (sold to Dunedin stealer @155k), '85 (still going strong @145k)