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@Stan M ..... first question, how long is your warranty? If it is one year I would have the 10 hour done by your dealer. After that it is up to you. I have a five year warranty and that is a different story. Many forum members will have different perspectives. I have close friend who is a five star certified Mercury/Mercruiser technician (they are rare). He was also an area representative for BRP Sea Doo, he also managed a Yamaha dealership and is now an executive with a big marine company. I'll paraphrase his thoughts on warranty work like this. Dealers don't really like warranty work. They rarely get paid their normal shop prices for the work and they often have a lot of paperwork and lobbying to do to secure claims..... and all this while their technician is being tied-up performing your underpaid warranty work - they are losing money again on full shop prices for another client so, in effect, they lose twice. If you have taken your boat to them for service they know its history and you have given them some business. If you bought your boat then took it somewhere else to have the work done why would they "fight" to get you a warranty claim? A friend's family owned a big GM dealership and he said exactly the same thing about automotive product. If you don't "leave something on the table" for the dealer they likely will be luke-warm at best lobbying for you. If you do decide to have the boat serviced at a marine facility other than your selling dealer at least make sure it is a certified Yamaha dealer or later problems could be denied by Yamaha.
no
@NeoBrew ..... agreed then there's reality.
@Dixemon.....yes, you have done exactly what I would recommend if you aren't going to use the selling dealer. Your documentation would demonstrate you had appropriately serviced your vehicle - hopefully the manufacturer would respond well. If I only had a 10 hour service and maybe one more service to do before I cleared warranty I might let the dealer have that then just do my own service or have a local guy do it. Who the dealer is and how "forcefully" the dealer approaches the manufacturer seems to be tremendously important as to what the manufacturer covers/approves. Even on this forum we have heard members say the dealers who were higher volume Yamaha buyers got the 2021s first. I've heard that where I live too.
Understood. This isn’t a debate thread, so I don’t want to get carried away, but my issue with that is that ultimately the consumers DO set the agenda for businesses. If we all tolerate that BS, then they can continue that culture. Businesses cannot exist without us. When they forget that, they should be reminded. First gently, then by taking your business elsewhere.
@haknslash - yes, this is not a debate but a discussion for the benefit of all members who - having purchased Yamahas are smart enough already to make-up their own minds. I noted in the above quotation: ....."qualified mechanic" ......"if a particular failure is caused by operation or maintenance other than as shown in the Owner's Manual that failure might not be covered under warranty".......and who do you think will make that interpretation.....and who will advocate for you - fi not your dealer? As also stated "each Yamaha boat dealer is held responsible for his setup, service and warranty work". So for the next five years my dealer can have a the cost of labor (peanuts) and a small mark-up on oil/filter and plugs once a year for service and take all of the responsibility for warranty.
I couldn't resist adding some paragraph breaks to your post. I agree with your points - but not all dealers are equal. Some have some insane pricing on parts and labor.@Stan M ..... first question, how long is your warranty? If it is one year I would have the 10 hour done by your dealer. After that it is up to you. I have a five year warranty and that is a different story. Many forum members will have different perspectives. I have close friend who is a five star certified Mercury/Mercruiser technician (they are rare). He was also an area representative for BRP Sea Doo, he also managed a Yamaha dealership and is now an executive with a big marine company. I'll paraphrase his thoughts on warranty work like this. Dealers don't really like warranty work. They rarely get paid their normal shop prices for the work and they often have a lot of paperwork and lobbying to do to secure claims..... and all this while their technician is being tied-up performing your underpaid warranty work - they are losing money again on full shop prices for another client so, in effect, they lose twice. If you have taken your boat to them for service they know its history and you have given them some business. If you bought your boat then took it somewhere else to have the work done why would they "fight" to get you a warranty claim? A friend's family owned a big GM dealership and he said exactly the same thing about automotive product. If you don't "leave something on the table" for the dealer they likely will be luke-warm at best lobbying for you. If you do decide to have the boat serviced at a marine facility other than your selling dealer at least make sure it is a certified Yamaha dealer or later problems could be denied by Yamaha.
A friend had a Yamaha dealer near where he lived that was only allowed to sell Yamaha boats. He wanted to take a new Yamaha PWC to them for first year service and they declined. They said they did not want to "poach" another dealer's service territory saying - we are same brand dealers and have to get along with each other. I had my new SX195 serviced by my selling dealer this year. I told them I already had the Yamaha oil filter and Yamaha oil for the winterizing oil change - but I was quick to add that I had purchased it from their parts department - to make sure I had it. IMO it's called "goodwill". I have purchased two Yamahas from them in the last three years and they have done my service. This year with my new 2020 SX195 there was a significant chip out of it when it arrived from the factory. Normal SOP for Yamaha is to order a gel coat "Spectrum Kit" for it. I wanted a better repair involving patching, sanding, fairing, priming and spray gel coat. That was a much bigger job. The dealer had to impress on Yamaha that this was the way to go - it took some time before Yamaha agreed. I am sure the "goodwill" I had established with the dealership was instrumental in them "going to bat for me".
In 2014 I bought a 38 foot cruiser. That was a $400K boat. A technician at the factory had sprayed the gel coat on too thick on most of the cabin and interior areas. There were spider cracks and even bigger ones everywhere. The repair was $25K and there was another $5K in other problems. Just one of those things. The dealer, who I had purchased a number of boats from and also had them serviced there, was tenacious - the dealership owner finally told the manufacturer to cancel all orders (and there were a lot pending) if my claim was not honoured. The manufacturer agreed and the work was performed by the best glass man within 250 miles.
I had a transmission go on a GM vehicle. The area GM representative met me at the dealer and was himming and hawing about the claim. The dealership manager came into the service manager's office and said, " Mr. X has been a long time GM customer. He is assiduous about following service and looks-after his vehicles which our technicians fight over when he trades. I want this transmission replaced at no charge to him." That was it. "Goodwill".That's my opinion for what it's worth.
@Julian - I agree 100% that some dealers are predatory. Hopefully forum members near one of those have an alternative choice. My dealer has a small mark-up on parts and his labor is very reasonable. I book a service appointment and I even get to be right with the boat while service is being done. The bonus for me is the dealer has to dispose of oil and filter and is responsible for all the work done. Plus, as I mentioned for the next 5 years I expect him to advocate for me with Yamaha if I have a warranty issue. He has already insisted that Yamaha repair a hull chip in the proper manner and that cost more - but - made me respect both the dealer and Yamaha.
