Reasonable (or unreasonable) dealer fees for a first maintenance service

[Duddy03]

Recently I had my first maintenance performed by the dealer.  The oil was only $5.99 but for 6.4 oz of gear lube, I was charged $8.99!  He also changed me $3.00 for a new CR7HSA spark plug with only 182 miles on the odometer.  Does anyone know if this is common practice?  I was also charged $5.10 for shop supplies.  I wondered what that included after checking the bill once I got home.  The invoice stated that they replaced the oil filter and inspected the cooling system.  But that must have been a part of a “canned” invoice.  The hourly rate was $85.00 and the total bill was $108.08 before state sales tax.
Is this is line with what others have paid for their first trip to dealer service?  I can’t think of anything that I will not be able to perform myself in the future.  Perhaps I will purchase a diagnostic set at some point.

[CROSSBOLT]

Some on this forum have reported 300-600 bucks for first service. I may be incorrect, old guy, bad memory, need to check the history here. The first service is pretty easy and can be done by anyone with a 12 mm, 17 mm and 24 mm wrench or equivalent. There is little difference between first and subsequent services. Your dealer seems pretty reasonable compared to others on here. His quality of work may be good or bad. You have to judge. I am usually "spring loaded" to accuse the dealer mechanics of poor quality since that seems to be the norm. There are exceptions however few. That is why most of us do our own work.

Karl

[Stig / Major Tom]

Sadly KYMCO does not seem to have a service work schedule for each model of scooter.
I think the shops kind of have set fees for certain maint. services for their scooters, bikes and 4 wheelers.

$9 for gear oil, $3 NGK, and $5 for shop fees and $108 +tax  out the door for your first 200 mile service seems reasonable. It means they spent about an hour working on your scooter. They did not check the valves for that price. I wouldn't want them spending any less time than that on my first look over and plug & oil change.

My dealer wanted @ $370 for my LIKE's first service. He printed out a copy of it for me - it's with the title & stuff as a hx document! He explained that this included  a "couple of hours to get down through all the plastic panels" to do the valve check and new plug.
It was here that I learned that this dealer had never done a valve check on a LIKE200i  --- because it takes a layman about 20 mins to get those panels off and spark plug and valve cover exposed. A Burgman 400 or Forza 300 could take that long - but not our simple LIKE.

They'd been selling LIKE's for a couple of years - but had never done a valve adjustment on one!
They weren't trying to cheat me - but without a KYMCO labor time schedule - they were flying by their pants.

As with all warranties - you can do your own work - don't screw it up, keep records of miles/date when work done, receipts for oil and parts bought. follow the serv. schedule printed in the owner's manual. CHECK the tightness of every fastener you can reach!!~!

The LIKE200i is a particularly easy scooter for DIY servicing - anything that is likely to need servicing is very easy to get to. Spark plug, engine and gear oil changes, oil screen, valve adjustment.
The CVT/belt area cover is a   m o t h e r  to get off the first time (but you won't need to go in there for many miles) - use the two pry tabs and maybe a putty knife to work it off the first time. Have a new cover gasket ready....though some skip that. I use a pizza cutter to ease apart the handlebar cover panels to replace the brake fluid.(it would have been nice if they hadn't hidden the reservoirs under plastic - some don't!)
Buy a cyclepedia book or on-line service manual for the LIKE200i - not perfect but helps a lot!

To sum up - $100 first service isn't bad.
You could do a lot of it yourself, now.
Buy a gal. of good oil (per the manual) and do lots of freq. 1Qt engine oil changes! Treat it to an NGK Iridium spark plug.
Stig

[Duddy03]

Thanks for the feedback.  I wasn't really complaining about the dealer fees - just curious. It does bother me that they may not have done the valve adjustment.  I consider that important.

Is the iridium plug the NGK   CR7HIX (# 7544) Iridium IX?

[Stig / Major Tom]

Thanks for the feedback.  I wasn't really complaining about the dealer fees - just curious. It does bother me that they may not have done the valve adjustment.  I consider that important.

Is the iridium plug the NGK   CR7HIX (# 7544) Iridium IX?

Yes on plug.
On scoots with very hard to get at valves.....like Honda PCX....owners often argue that valves don't need checking if running and sounding ok.
Kymco LIKE200I is crazy easy.
Might ask dealer estimate for this service....or scooter friends could show you how.
Please watch youtube video done by our member in Canada couple yrs ago. If comfortable maybe do it yourself? ?
At least you will see why dealer should not charge more than one hour labor for valves on like200i
Stig.

[Duddy03]

Thanks for the advice.  I used to set the values on my Honda Super 90 many years ago.  There isn't much to it and I agree with you (on a previous post) that you don't need a special tool.  Rotating the engine 360 degrees and a quick re-check with the feeler gauge is all you need.  In time, I will become familiar with the removing/reinstalling of the panels.  For now, it's caring for my grandchildren in London!  I have the Cyclepedia Maintenance Manual and my hobby, at this point, is reading "technical stuff" and checking on this forum.

[TroutBum]

My dealer has been in business since the 70s and sells primarily BMW MC and Piaggio/Vespa Scooter. Their shop rate is $85/hr.

My first service was $212.35. That included replacement of engine oil and hub oil, inspection of air filter, check of steering head for play, safety check (lights, brakes, tire pressure, road check) removal and inspection of spark plug, including gap, throttle play adjustment, and inspection and tightening of fasteners.

Your price was reasonable given the service, but there was no need for them to replace the spark plug. 

[Abner_Bjorn]

Building lease, worker's comp premiums, utilities.  You're complaining about a $3.00 spark plug.  One sure way to beat the shop's rates is learn to work on it yourself.  No mark up  on parts, no one to blame but yourself when the spark plug goes in cross threaded and no need to drop it off and pick it up later. 

[Duddy03]

I agree with you, Wallboard, that doing maintenance yourself saves money and makes sure the work is done right.  I was told that the first scheduled maintenance should be possibly done by the dealer.  Later, I learned that one hour may not have been enough to time to include the valve adjustment.  I'll recheck the valves myself.

Some members have been concerned about miss-treading a spark plug.  Many years ago I tried to remove the spark plugs from my rotary-engine Mazda.  One of the plugs broke off with the treaded portion still in the engine.  I almost freaked out but was able to eventually remove it with a reverse thread bit.  From that experience I learned whenever working on an aluminum engine to let it cool down completely and to always use anti-siege lubricant on the spark plug threads.  It has become a must-have "tool" for me.

[Stig / Major Tom]

I agree with you, Wallboard, that doing maintenance yourself saves money and makes sure the work is done right.  I was told that the first scheduled maintenance should be possibly done by the dealer.  Later, I learned that one hour may not have been enough to time to include the valve adjustment.  I'll recheck the valves myself.

Some members have been concerned about miss-treading a spark plug.  Many years ago I tried to remove the spark plugs from my rotary-engine Mazda.  One of the plugs broke off with the treaded portion still in the engine.  I almost freaked out but was able to eventually remove it with a reverse thread bit.  From that experience I learned whenever working on an aluminum engine to let it cool down completely and to always use anti-siege lubricant on the spark plug threads.  It has become a must-have "tool" for me.

Boy, that's a handsome scooter !
I had a 67 Mustang convertible which split apart a mechanic's pro socket when trying to change the plugs one day.
As far as I know that plug is still in there!
Used to do VW Beetle tune-ups for friends and co-workers ....until I came to a elderly lady's VW that had two spun plugs and oil so thick it I had to poke it with a screwdriver to get it to drain. I quit while I could.

As for the anti-seize paste applied to the plugs - I read on one of the plug web sites that these new plugs with a silvery finish are thus coated so as to prevent the threads from seizing. Still, they are so small - they make me nervous.

Panels for valves on the LIKE are pretty simple.
For your enjoyment :
Always thought this one was nice, too. I still think every kind of scooter should be offered in this RED!

Stig

[Duddy03]

Stig: The red Like is stunning!

My brother had a '67 Mustang.  I thought it was the best looking Mustang Ford ever made.  Also, my wife had a '65 VW which would often not start.  We became pretty good at "popping the clutch."  Once we became too frustrated with it, we traded it in for a '66 Ford Falcon with a 289 V8.

Sometime in the future we will have a long discussion of why (IMHO) cars back then didn't last forever. As a new-be, I'm not quit ready to step up on the soap box.  The discussion will pertain to motor bikes, too, like the KYMCO Like 200i.

[starorb]

I thought the first was comp??

[MJR]

I thought the first was comp??

Maybe if you bought a BMW.