Differential woe's (Lawsuit???)

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MaxPower

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I took my 85 Max to Hitching post in Hopkins to get a rear tire installed. It took the tech 4 1/2 hours to install it. During that time I watched him remove the rim and replace the tire. He then proceeded to assemble the bike and push it off the lift. As he was pushing the bike off the lift i saw him stop and listen to the rear end as he was pushing. He then proceeded to put it back on the lift a disassemble it again. Then reassemble it and push it while listening to the rear end again. He then put it BACK on the lift and tore it back apart.

Well he proceeded to so that assembe/disassemble dance SIX MORE TIMES! Eventually a parts guy came and installed it and they said it was good. The guy who got it in said the tech had trouble getting the driveshaft in correctly and if it popped out I could "kick his ass"

Skip to 1 week later and I get a clicking noise from the rear as I'm pushing it into my garage. I go drive it and there is a horrible howling noise you can hear coming from the diff area when I kill the ignition while coasting.

Needless to say I brought it back to them and they tell me I need a new diff and that it's because my bike has 35K miles on it and it's only a coincident that it happened after they worked on it.

They tell me it's $1300 + 1 hour labor but he'll give me 15% off. I am not paying for them to fix it that's for sure.

What should I do? What can I do? What would you guy's do?

I am sooooo fricken' mad I can barely type this!
 
I would research how long a differential lasts. Try to get something from Yamaha that indicates differentials are designed to last more than 35K.
Then you'll have something to go back there and say it was their fault and they owe you a differential.
I find it hard to believe a differential only lasts 35K.
At the very least it was apparent the tech had no clue what he was doing and they should refund all the labor they charged you!
 
Ive changed my own tire a couple of times and never once
did I have to pull the drive shaft? Theres proably not much your going to be able to do to get them to fix it. if there blaming it on something eles. (like 35000 break in miles) Ive seen rear ends go for 100.00 or so on ebay. Or maybe Sean Morley (hes
on here alot) can help you out. There not hard to change you might want to try it yourself. Well good luck with what every you decide to do
 
Was it a stock tire? If so, no reason to remove final diff at all! Some have to remove it to fit a larger, say 170 series file. I would try to take it to a different shop and see if they can determine if it was installed incorrectly. My stock diff lasted to over 68,000 miles. Only reason I got a new one was because the bolt holding pinion gear sheared off.
 
+1 on checking with Sean. I would buy used and replace it yourself. I also agree with Cowboy, see if you can get any supporting documentation on the longevity of the differential. Sounds like another Stealer Mistake. Sorry for your troubles.

Chris
 
Was it a stock tire? If so, no reason to remove final diff at all! Some have to remove it to fit a larger, say 170 series file. I would try to take it to a different shop and see if they can determine if it was installed incorrectly. My stock diff lasted to over 68,000 miles. Only reason I got a new one was because the bolt holding pinion gear sheared off.


Agreed.

That is one point to make to them if you even want them to fix it.

A NEW differential is only 500.00. Thier full of shit.

I would just cut your losses and buy a used one for 100.00 from here or ebay and move on.
 
Yeah I changed my tire no problems . I have a 170 on it . the only thing I can think is maybe they did not have the ring gears meshed properly or what ever you call the rear diff mating gears on the rear rim .then I could see premature wear . Definately take it to another place and get there opinion before proceding . good luck
 
That stinks...what a bunch of newbs working on a max.

The used pumpkin and DIY swap is the only way to go. With simple hand tools you could be done in under an hour for about 1/10th of what they quoted.

Even with my 200 series tire, I only have to remove the rotor and loosen the pumpkin bolts, not remove it completely.

These guys at least need to install a used one for free if you buy one.

Ummmmmmmmm...Scratch that..........I would never let them touch my bike again!

I'm sure someone here would be glad to help you in finding and installing the pumpkin. It's really very simple to do!

Sorry again!!!

Neil

PS. Give everyone the heads up, so they know where not to go!
 
I think I will be the devils advocate here. I really don't see how his removal or reinstallation of the rear diff would effect it going bad. I suspect that it was purely coincedental. I know it sucks but I have seen them go bad earlier then that but many do last longer.

I have both Venture and Vmax rear diffs on hand. I typically get $150 for a vmax diff and $200 for a Venture diff. Shipping sucks on them though since they are heavy.

Sean
 
I agree with Sean,theres really no way to screw up the differential by taking the wheel off if the spline of the drive shaft doesn't lineup the wheel wont go on Ive removed and put on a rear wheel about twenty times its easy you put the differential on the wheel and roll it into the swing arm turning the wheel to get the spline engaged correctly piece of cake!
 
I'd call Sean and get another diff.

What makes those guys think they can install the whole pumpkin in an hour when they took 4 1/2 to change a tire??? I'd also ask them why they thought they needed to remove it in the first place.

The only tricky part is getting the splines on the shaft into the ujoint. This is a piece of cake thanks to the hole on the top of the swingarm. A piece of ribbon or twine looped under the shaft will help you slide it in with ease.

Hell, I'd do it for you for free if you lived in Central Kentucky. It's that easy!!!

Neil
 
Just wondering what these guys charged you to change the tire. If anything, I would definitely ask for it back, go buy a used rear diff and cut your loses.

Whether they did it or not, that kind of service is sad. After the second reinstall, a good mechanic would know there's a problem with the diff.

Mike
 
I don't understand why they had to remove the pumpkin in the first place. I'm going to sort of agree with Sean on this, and expand upon it as well. It's quite possible that it was already starting to go bad when you had the tire put on, and that when the tire changer reassembled it, he heard the beginnings of it going bad, but rather than recognize it for what it was, he thought it was something HE did wrong, which would explain the on and off dance. Then the last guy that installed it either didn't hear the noise, or heard it but didn't care, or something.

Or it's possible that the mechanic DID screw it up. I don't really know, as I'm not a mechanic, I'm just giving you some other thoughts.

Finding a good mechanic seems to be one of the hardest things to do. Either they're incompetent, or just outright crooks, or a mixture of the two. So far with bikes I've had fairly good luck with mechanics, but when it comes to cars, I've found nothing but liars and cheats here in Florida!

I just had a 180/55ZR18 tire on a modified Vrod wheel installed fairly recently, and the mechanic didn't need to remove or even loosen the pumpkin, all he had to do to fit it in was to drop both rear shocks, and deflate the tire.

-MikeS
 
I took my 85 Max to Hitching post in Hopkins to get a rear tire installed. It took the tech 4 1/2 hours to install it. During that time I watched him remove the rim and replace the tire. He then proceeded to assemble the bike and push it off the lift. As he was pushing the bike off the lift i saw him stop and listen to the rear end as he was pushing. He then proceeded to put it back on the lift a disassemble it again. Then reassemble it and push it while listening to the rear end again. He then put it BACK on the lift and tore it back apart.

Well he proceeded to so that assembe/disassemble dance SIX MORE TIMES! Eventually a parts guy came and installed it and they said it was good. The guy who got it in said the tech had trouble getting the driveshaft in correctly and if it popped out I could "kick his ass"

Skip to 1 week later and I get a clicking noise from the rear as I'm pushing it into my garage. I go drive it and there is a horrible howling noise you can hear coming from the diff area when I kill the ignition while coasting.

Needless to say I brought it back to them and they tell me I need a new diff and that it's because my bike has 35K miles on it and it's only a coincident that it happened after they worked on it.

They tell me it's $1300 + 1 hour labor but he'll give me 15% off. I am not paying for them to fix it that's for sure.

What should I do? What can I do? What would you guy's do?

I am sooooo fricken' mad I can barely type this!

Man, that really sucks! :damn angry: I'm pretty sure there is nothing you can do, legally, although 4.5 hours for a tire does highlight the incompetence of the technicians. There is a Product Review section here that includes Dealerships and Garages, maybe you could add your review there. As for the diff, go with what others are telling you, grab a used one and put that on. If you're not sure how to install it, we can can help you out here! :cheers:
 
Sorry to hear about the diff. Stuff breaks. Snag one from Sean and move on.

My only recommendation is to look for a dealer with a guy that has ridden/worked on the Max before. They're out there, for those times you can't do the work yourself.
 
I wonder how much torque was put on that axle nut by the technician? Don't need as much as the manual says. I'm running a venture rear drive that has over 100,000 miles on it with no problems.

Now too much torque on the axle,thats a possibility.
 
I wonder how much torque was put on that axle nut by the technician? Don't need as much as the manual says. I'm running a venture rear drive that has over 100,000 miles on it with no problems.

Good point! When it is too tight, the diff runs really hot.
 

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