H-D dealers, do they still work on Evo's?

[Shooter1]

I've recently read some posts that state some H-D dealers no longer work on the Evo's. I assume that means if you want to have them do service work on one, they just flat tell you "no, you gotta take it elsewhere". Is that true??? I've got an '89 FXRS-Sp and a 2000 FXDX. I probably go to the local dealer 2 or 3 times a year for maintenance stuff, oil, filters, etc, and that's it. There's been no reason for the dealer to actually work on the FXR for years with the exception of mounting new tires. I know my local dealer offers a restoration service where they will restore your old shovel/pan/whatever and I've seen some of their work and it's very nice. Maybe they do that because the type of people that will pay a dealer to restore a bike may have more disposable income to throw at a restoration and that makes it worth while for the dealer, but maybe servicing Evo's isn't worth the trouble anymore. Damn, I'd hate to think my old FXR is considered obsolete by the MOCO but maybe it is. Bastards! I know a couple guys at my local dealer and I'll call them next week and see if they still work on Evo's  just doing regular maintenance and report back. I'd be interested in other peoples experiences and if they have been told to take their Evo's  elsewhere for service.

Thanks
-Harvey
#1017

[Ed Y]

Some do and some don't.

[Mark222]

From what I have seen, I would say some dealers do and some don't. I have 2 Evos, but neither have ever seen a dealer (or indie shop) other than for a state inspection as long as I have owned them.  But I have a few buddies who use others for service work.

My first thought when I heard that they would not work on them was WTF, but then they told me that a Ford dealer would not work on a Model T today if you took it to them, even if they did make it.  Well, I thought HD was a little better than this, since these are not that old, and they only make a few changes over the years.

My guess is that some dealers have older techs, and it is no problem, other have only techs that know TC bikes and computers?

Or maybe business is just so good they figure they don't need our money?

In any case, I figure this will become more the norm, not many dealers are prepared to take a shovel in for service, but I bet there are a few who welcome that business too.

Mark

[HV]

I guess it depends on the Store ... we work on anything...but Ive been there for over 40 years so an EVO is not that old to me  ...you get some Dealers with all kids in the shop and most think a TC is old school ( over ten years you know ) ...they cant tell an EVO from a TC ... most Indy's work on EVOs after all 90% of aftermarket engines are EVO Based 

[Ultrashovel]

As said above, some dealers will and some won't work on Evos. That said, why would anyone take their bike to a dealer to have it worked on?

[marc]

Many of the ^*~<lers I have talked to will not...Many of the younger techs. are just not familiar with them, not that much demand anymore, some say parts are harder to find and they are afraid of snapping a bolt that has never been touched...One guy will work on them if he sold you the bike and has maintained it and another will work on them but you must sign a disclaimer first kinda like before you have a dyno tune...

[Dan89flstc]

As said above, some dealers will and some won't work on Evos. That said, why would anyone take their bike to a dealer to have it worked on?

Ummmm...some folks don`t do their own mechanical work maybe?

And some folks don`t like using independent shops.

[Rags722]

In all fairness, if someone showed up with a well worn EVO at a local dealership and the dealer had never seen the bike before ( IE: was not a regular customer that they did all the work for ) and the guy wanted an oil change or spark plug change, the very first thing that would go through my mind is.  "Ah ha... he's stripped out the hole and wants to try and drop the problem on me."   Maybe I just expect the worst in people, but if I was a dealer/shop owner and had a good base of older bikes I repaired on a regular basis, I'd have no problem continuing to do so as long as I could get parts for my CUSTOMERS.  However, every time an older unknown bike showed up with a local address, they would be signing a release form so I would not be eating a lot of busted stuff that my guys didn't bust.  Just saying.

Sure, the same thing could happen on a TC, but at least with a TC you have half a chance of sourcing a part without it costing the dealership an arm and a leg.

[Princess Butt]

It may not even be those things. How much space is it going to take up while you invest resources in hunting down obsolete or near obsolete parts?

I don't blame the dealers. They know what they are willing to take on, and what they are not willing to take on.

One local dealer won't work on a Evo unless it's a bike they know. Another one will work on Shovelheads. Go figure.

[iconicbikesrider]

One of the dealers in my area will do work on any H-D regardless of age or gender...but at a price.

I have a question...where are all the H-D sold in the last 20 years? I see mostly "newer" bikes on the road. Where do old bikes end up?
If H-D have sold an average of over 200K per year, in the last 20 years is more than 2 mill bikes. Just to show, here in this forum (and thank God for the knowledgeable guys here, they have helped me solve a lot of problems saving me a great deal of money thank you thank you thank you) the majority of the questions come from "newer bikes. less than 10 years old...so, where are all those "older" bikes?

[Dan89flstc]

One of the dealers in my area will do work on any H-D regardless of age or gender...but at a price.

I have a question...where are all the H-D sold in the last 20 years? I see mostly "newer" bikes on the road. Where do old bikes end up?
If H-D have sold an average of over 200K per year, in the last 20 years is more than 2 mill bikes. Just to show, here in this forum (and thank God for the knowledgeable guys here, they have helped me solve a lot of problems saving me a great deal of money thank you thank you thank you) the majority of the questions come from "newer bikes. less than 10 years old...so, where are all those "older" bikes?

There were a lot fewer Evos and Shovelheads made than TC`s.

And maybe these bikes are owned by a different generation of riders, the generation of riders that learned to work on their bikes as they learned to ride. At least it is true in my case, I have never had anyone else work on my bikes but me, other than removing and replacing tires on wheels, and balancing wheels.

If you started riding before the mid 70`s you had to learn to do your own mechanical work, because the bikes always needed something. You were always at someones garage or driveway, drinking beer and working on bikes.

Duh...I think I went a little off the subject...

[Rags722]

  I think the rule used to be about an hours worth of wrenching for each hours worth of riding.  At least for those of us that owned Triumphs.  I don't think any of my Triumphs ever got to see the inside of a Triumph dealership after I bought them.  My only Yam went back to the dealers once, and that was for a blown motor in the first year of warranty.  I think out of my first 6 Harleys, the only one that ever went back to the dealer was a 74 Sporty that I just could not get the clutch adjusted right no matter how many times I tried. Then again, I was at an age where hanging around a garage with a couple of good friends and some beer just made for a great afternoon before we hit the streets. 

[Ultrashovel]

One of the dealers in my area will do work on any H-D regardless of age or gender...but at a price.

I have a question...where are all the H-D sold in the last 20 years? I see mostly "newer" bikes on the road. Where do old bikes end up?
If H-D have sold an average of over 200K per year, in the last 20 years is more than 2 mill bikes. Just to show, here in this forum (and thank God for the knowledgeable guys here, they have helped me solve a lot of problems saving me a great deal of money thank you thank you thank you) the majority of the questions come from "newer bikes. less than 10 years old...so, where are all those "older" bikes?

There were a lot fewer Evos and Shovelheads made than TC`s.

And maybe these bikes are owned by a different generation of riders, the generation of riders that learned to work on their bikes as they learned to ride. At least it is true in my case, I have never had anyone else work on my bikes but me, other than removing and replacing tires on wheels, and balancing wheels.

If you started riding before the mid 70`s you had to learn to do your own mechanical work, because the bikes always needed something. You were always at someones garage or driveway, drinking beer and working on bikes.

Duh...I think I went a little off the subject...

No, that is the subject. It's not whether the dealer will work on an older bike, but rather why can't the owners do it themselves? If a person can't or won't work on his or her own bike, they need to have the very newest all of the time.

For me, 80% of the fun is owning a bike and knowing how to work on it and, whether it needs to be worked on.

I suspect that one reason why a dealer wouldn't want to work on an older bike is that they don't have the parts for them and the technicians are not trained for the earlier one since many of them are new and younger.

So here's to the back yard, basement and garage mechancs among us! 

[PoorUB]

author=Dan89flstc link=topic=50471.msg530013#msg530013 date=1335130959]
There were a lot fewer Evos and Shovelheads made than TC`s.[/quote]

I think it would be a safe bet to say that HD has built more twin cams than all the previous years put together. I may be wrong, but in the 90's HD finally topped over 100,000 units per year, in the 2000's they have built 200,000 bikes per year, or more. If you look it it that way the dealer that refuses to  work on Evo and earlier bikes is really not giving up much business.

[Ultrashovel]

author=Dan89flstc link=topic=50471.msg530013#msg530013 date=1335130959]
There were a lot fewer Evos and Shovelheads made than TC`s.

I think it would be a safe bet to say that HD has built more twin cams than all the previous years put together. I may be wrong, but in the 90's HD finally topped over 100,000 units per year, in the 2000's they have built 200,000 bikes per year, or more. If you look it it that way the dealer that refuses to  work on Evo and earlier bikes is really not giving up much business.

That's true. I hardly ever see an Evolution on the road or outside of a dealer anymore.

[fleetmechanic]

A passing note on the evos.  When they came out in 1984 it was probably the only thing that kept HD from falling into a black hole with Shovelheads like Indian did with the Flathead 3 speed chiefs in 1953.  As a pursuit and escort bike the evos were night and day from the shovels but they did have some minor issues.  Replacing cylinder base gaskets on them was almost routine in our fleet and when I went to HD Police mech classes in 1992 they were on the 14th version of that gasket since 1984.
The twincams are the most reliable service bikes we've ever had requiring fewer trailer rescues than any others including KZs and BMWS.  We remember where we came from so there are plenty of pans, shovels and evos sitting here that don't go out much.  But they could.

[CaptMike]

Let's see where the chips lay in about 20 more years.  I say the Twinkies will be the lowest price, least sought after engine H-D ever made.   

I guess some of you haven't read... http://www.hdopenroad.com/guest-articles/harley-evo-vs-twin-cams-the-sweet-years/

[Ultrashovel]

Let's see where the chips lay in about 20 more years.  I say the Twinkies will be the lowest price, least sought after engine H-D ever made.   

I guess some of you haven't read... http://www.hdopenroad.com/guest-articles/harley-evo-vs-twin-cams-the-sweet-years/

Arrrrrr, Cap'n, sorry I can't be agreein' with ye.

I've been riding Harleys for a while, starting with a '35 VL, a couple of Knuckleheads, four 42 45's, a Model KK, a Servicar, one Panhead, a Shovelhead, two Evos and two Twin Cammers, a 2004 and a 2011.

The 2011 Dyna that I have is the best of the bunch. It's got the best motor, the best transmission, best brakes, best clutch, lowest vibration and best finish of all of them. It's a turnkey machine that starts, goes and stops like it should. What's not to like?

There's no possible way that I would want another Evo. As good as they were, they had issues. The '93 that I had managed to pull its cylinder studs and blow head gaskets until I figured out the problem and fixed it myself (Out of warranty, LOL).

To each his own. Your opinion is as good as mine, but I'm not buying another Evo.  Arrrrrrr.

[hbkeith]

In all fairness, if someone showed up with a well worn EVO at a local dealership and the dealer had never seen the bike before ( IE: was not a regular customer that they did all the work for ) and the guy wanted an oil change or spark plug change, the very first thing that would go through my mind is.  "Ah ha... he's stripped out the hole and wants to try and drop the problem on me."   Maybe I just expect the worst in people, but if I was a dealer/shop owner and had a good base of older bikes I repaired on a regular basis, I'd have no problem continuing to do so as long as I could get parts for my CUSTOMERS.  However, every time an older unknown bike showed up with a local address, they would be signing a release form so I would not be eating a lot of busted stuff that my guys didn't bust.  Just saying.

Sure, the same thing could happen on a TC, but at least with a TC you have half a chance of sourcing a part without it costing the dealership an arm and a leg.

wow i agree ,you expect the worst in people

[HV]

I guess some haven't seen the EVO from day one.....first ones blew head gaskets regularly .... most blow base gaskets and need work to prevent this... oil carry over was a constant issue ... cracked crank cases were common in some years... Harley brought out new top end gasket material every 6 months ... Ign boxes went out when they felt like it... timing plates over heated and randomly crapped out
Still a good engine... but not with out issues by any means

[CaptMike]

Let's see where the chips lay in about 20 more years.  I say the Twinkies will be the lowest price, least sought after engine H-D ever made.   

I guess some of you haven't read... http://www.hdopenroad.com/guest-articles/harley-evo-vs-twin-cams-the-sweet-years/

Arrrrrr, Cap'n, sorry I can't be agreein' with ye.

I've been riding Harleys for a while, starting with a '35 VL, a couple of Knuckleheads, four 42 45's, a Model KK, a Servicar, one Panhead, a Shovelhead, two Evos and two Twin Cammers, a 2004 and a 2011.

The 2011 Dyna that I have is the best of the bunch. It's got the best motor, the best transmission, best brakes, best clutch, lowest vibration and best finish of all of them. It's a turnkey machine that starts, goes and stops like it should. What's not to like?

There's no possible way that I would want another Evo. As good as they were, they had issues. The '93 that I had managed to pull its cylinder studs and blow head gaskets until I figured out the problem and fixed it myself (Out of warranty, LOL).

To each his own. Your opinion is as good as mine, but I'm not buying another Evo.  Arrrrrrr.

I've never rode a TC but just like you I've owned a dozen H-D's since 1974 ('57, '65, '68, '73, '74....   '97, '98).   Neither my '97 or '98 have had any gaskets replaced.  (39k and 34k)  I base my opinion on a couple of things.  The TC is a throw-away.  You won't put a set of rods in out in the "Shed" (unless you just happen to have a 400 Ton press).   It's not meant for Owner repairs.  H-D accomplished several things with the TC engines and two of the three was to take $$$ out of the owners pocket and put in theirs. 

From all the TC posts I see here there's lots of people who are Not Happy with their TC's for one reason or another.  Fuel mileage, heat or lack of power.   

H-D knows less riders today do their own service/maintenance.     

I can tell by the replies that no one read "The Sweet Years". 

I am 100% sure, if I bought a Brand New TC today it will outlast me.  I hope we're all still here in 20 years. 

Harley's current problem is "US".  The average age of owners rises every year.     http://money.cnn.com/2010/09/17/autos/harley_davidson_fall.fortune/index.htm


I can't imagine why I would take one of my bikes to a/the dealer for a repair.   

[tomcat64]

we work on EVO's all the time and i believe all the dealers in MN are still working on them, we still work on a few shovels but only the one that were bought new from us years ago and there aren't too many left.

i see that the article mentioned above is almost 2 years old, and yes, the age of the average buyer is a problem, but HD is making strides,, #1 in market for ,, Young adult, women, hispanic and African american sales,, alto the numbers are much smaller in thise segments but i think some of the MOCO's marketing is working..

t-c

[hd06myway]

we work on EVO's all the time and i believe all the dealers in MN are still working on them, we still work on a few shovels but only the one that were bought new from us years ago and there aren't too many left.

i see that the article mentioned above is almost 2 years old, and yes, the age of the average buyer is a problem, but HD is making strides,, #1 in market for ,, Young adult, women, hispanic and African american sales,, alto the numbers are much smaller in thise segments but i think some of the MOCO's marketing is working..

t-c

Agree 100%... some think HD is going to end when they do, ha!  They've survived for what 110 yrs and still going strong.  Many new YOUNG (20-30'S) riders wearing colors showing up all over my neighborhood... I don't know if it's vets, or what, but MC's are popping up all over, and they aren't old geezers, they're young kids looking for the Harley life and the club brotherhood.

[Shooter1]

I talked with my local dealer asking if they still serviced the older Evo's and Shovels. They matter of factly said yes, but if it's a big time consuming job they try to push it into the winter when they are slow. He said they didn;'t have any set rules about only working on bikes they sold or new the history of. I kind of got the vibe that they were not too jazzed about working on a neglected gut shot rat bike, but would probably still do it. This is a family owned dealr that's been in business for decades and does have a few older techs so that may make a difference. Many of the employees have been involved in racing for years as well so that may play into it. However, I can see that as dealers like this evolve, and maybe the family and older techs retire, the policy could change. I guess for now, it's all good if you ride an older bike, but a few years from now..... it could all change.

-Harv
#1017

[Harpo]

Just because someone is CALLED a "mechanic", or a "tech", doesn't mean much.  It's sort of like the commercials that you see for graduates of some tech school that now makes them a bonified computer tech and they're saying that they've always been interested in ELECTRONICS???  Knowing how to change out a bad power supply or put in some memory sticks requires ZERO knoweledge of electronics.  Likewise knowing how to plug an analyser into a data port on a bike requires ZERO knoweledge of the mechanical workings on a bike.

The majority of issues with newer bikes is ELECTRICAL related (electrically analysed, diagnosed, and "solved"), whereas most of the issues with older bikes are MECHANICAL related.  Lot and lots and lots of dealers have only TECHS working for them, and only a very few of them have any actual MECHANICS.  Most TECHS are barely qualified to change oil and plugs.  So to answere the original question, if a dealer has one or two actual mechanics working for him, then chances are he'll work on the older stuff.  Good luck finding them.