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5 Tips to ensure proper motorcycle service,
It's easy to advice, painful to experience!
Not all the motorcyclists know how to maintain their rides. A few who do, are usually enthusiasts or mechanics themselves others rely on the authorized service centers blindly.
So, why is it so important to take good care of your motorcycles or all vehicles in general?
As we don't want:
A. The motorcycle to knock off in the middle of your ride.
B. To face expensive service.
C. To sell the motorcycle at less market value.
Almost all of us love our vehicles, it's more than a machine to commute on; IT'S FREEDOM!
Why can't we trust authorized service centers?
It's just another opportunity for them to take money.
“There has been a case recently in some part of India where the car given for complete servicing, came out with mere wash and was delivered to the customer with a bill of INR 8k odd. The customer was smart enough to have installed the dash-cam in his car”, perhaps not all of us can do the same .
Many of us get fooled without realizing the value for money, as our faith in the word "Authorized" relieves us from all doubts.
Now let's see how not to get cheated?
1. Click good quality pictures
Just for our own reference, usually, we forget this important task; a camera phone will do the needful. Why is it so important after all?
We can check - before and after results with our own eyes to check new damages after getting it serviced.
Innocent until proven guilty!
By comparing the pictures, you can prove the after-service difference.
2. Make your own checklist
That's how you would know what was asked to service and what all is done. Well, it needs a little study to understand your motorcycle better. Perhaps, it's not so hard. YouTube can educate us, so as blogs and websites. As we aren’t masters of knowing-it all, however we are blessed with widely spread internet to gain some insights.
WHAT TO CHECK FOR-
✓ Oil condition- the color and roughness of oil can tell you it's unhealthy for the engine.
✓ Speedo/ Odo-meter reading- To make sure vehicle wasn't used for more than 5 kms at the service center.
✓ Brake pad replace- If needed. Check the brake setting at the wheel-hubs.
✓ Electrical working- Horn, Indicators, headlight, tail-light, battery, aftermarket fitments if any.
✓ Condition of the switches and knobs.
✓ Tyres and Wheels- photograph to refer to the condition before and after servicing. If the condition of the tyres are good, we might get fooled as swapping all your vehicles new tyres along with the wheels with old ones is a piece of cake at the service centers.
If you see that the tyres are in better condition than what was given, check if it’s invoiced. If it’s not invoiced, you know, you got lucky!
3. Go through Clicked pics and vehicle condition at the time of check-out.
4. Take a test ride before making the payment
There are service centers offering free pickup & drop services, it becomes convenient for service centers to charge more/ not service thoroughly. We tend to trust and take the key without checking.
It’s a good habit to test ride even at your door-step. Since, you know your motorcycle better than anyone, don’t hesitate to show the faults to the service center coz you are paying for it. If it’s not properly done, ask them to rectify it then and there. Don’t fall for suggestions as Next-service, tomorrow, unavailability of parts etc.
5. Keep track of service history
We would want to know which parts were changed or serviced previously and are repeated or not again. Every part has certain and different life-span. The replacement of the parts which can last for 20-40 thousand kms, are getting replaced at every servicing (8-10 thousand kms), can put a big hole in our pockets.
Well, it may seem to be a lot of information to digest. It’s going to save good amount of money, the painstaking trouble of going through the harassment of after-service “Authority”.
On a personal note-“I have been through rough experiences with well-known service centers perhaps, being a mechanical engineer and an entrepreneur myself, I make sure the work is done correctly on my vehicles.”
Not all the motorcyclists know how to maintain their rides. A few who do, are usually enthusiasts or mechanics themselves others rely on the authorized service centers blindly.
So, why is it so important to take good care of your motorcycles or all vehicles in general?
As we don't want:
A. The motorcycle to knock off in the middle of your ride.
B. To face expensive service.
C. To sell the motorcycle at less market value.
Almost all of us love our vehicles, it's more than a machine to commute on; IT'S FREEDOM!
Why can't we trust authorized service centers?
It's just another opportunity for them to take money.
“There has been a case recently in some part of India where the car given for complete servicing, came out with mere wash and was delivered to the customer with a bill of INR 8k odd. The customer was smart enough to have installed the dash-cam in his car”, perhaps not all of us can do the same .
Many of us get fooled without realizing the value for money, as our faith in the word "Authorized" relieves us from all doubts.
Now let's see how not to get cheated?
1. Click good quality pictures
Just for our own reference, usually, we forget this important task; a camera phone will do the needful. Why is it so important after all?
We can check - before and after results with our own eyes to check new damages after getting it serviced.
Innocent until proven guilty!
By comparing the pictures, you can prove the after-service difference.
2. Make your own checklist
That's how you would know what was asked to service and what all is done. Well, it needs a little study to understand your motorcycle better. Perhaps, it's not so hard. YouTube can educate us, so as blogs and websites. As we aren’t masters of knowing-it all, however we are blessed with widely spread internet to gain some insights.
WHAT TO CHECK FOR-
✓ Oil condition- the color and roughness of oil can tell you it's unhealthy for the engine.
✓ Speedo/ Odo-meter reading- To make sure vehicle wasn't used for more than 5 kms at the service center.
✓ Brake pad replace- If needed. Check the brake setting at the wheel-hubs.
✓ Electrical working- Horn, Indicators, headlight, tail-light, battery, aftermarket fitments if any.
✓ Condition of the switches and knobs.
✓ Tyres and Wheels- photograph to refer to the condition before and after servicing. If the condition of the tyres are good, we might get fooled as swapping all your vehicles new tyres along with the wheels with old ones is a piece of cake at the service centers.
If you see that the tyres are in better condition than what was given, check if it’s invoiced. If it’s not invoiced, you know, you got lucky!
3. Go through Clicked pics and vehicle condition at the time of check-out.
4. Take a test ride before making the payment
There are service centers offering free pickup & drop services, it becomes convenient for service centers to charge more/ not service thoroughly. We tend to trust and take the key without checking.
It’s a good habit to test ride even at your door-step. Since, you know your motorcycle better than anyone, don’t hesitate to show the faults to the service center coz you are paying for it. If it’s not properly done, ask them to rectify it then and there. Don’t fall for suggestions as Next-service, tomorrow, unavailability of parts etc.
5. Keep track of service history
We would want to know which parts were changed or serviced previously and are repeated or not again. Every part has certain and different life-span. The replacement of the parts which can last for 20-40 thousand kms, are getting replaced at every servicing (8-10 thousand kms), can put a big hole in our pockets.
Well, it may seem to be a lot of information to digest. It’s going to save good amount of money, the painstaking trouble of going through the harassment of after-service “Authority”.
On a personal note-“I have been through rough experiences with well-known service centers perhaps, being a mechanical engineer and an entrepreneur myself, I make sure the work is done correctly on my vehicles.”
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