LOF + Valve Adjustment = arm & leg ?

[mod4]

Called the ONE local Suzuki shop. Asked for pricing on oil change and valve adjustment for my 94 750 with slightly over 11,000 miles on it (just got it).

Minimum $310 plus tax I was told. That was a little higher then I expected, actually the phrase that ran through my mind had something to do with higher then a giraffe's private areas ... but since I am a car guy, I figured that might just be fair labor. After reading on here, it still sounds high. When I asked if I could get a small reduction if I removed and replaced the fairings myself, the guy got flustered with me. Our price is our price, etc.

So ... asking opinions. IS the price quoted too high, or am I being a jerk?
The next shop is 45 miles away, and no local guys work on anything but Harleys .... if I burn my bridges with this shop it might cause problems down the road ....

(ps - was told later that this shop prefers to *only* work on new bikes under warranty, and they openly discourage their service guys from taking in older bikes for work - but that was just from one other rider who said that - truth level unknown).

As far as doing the work myself, car racing season starts for me next week (I race dirt modifieds) and it will be 6-8 weeks until I think about working on the bike myself, I'm willing to pay what the job is worth.

Thanks in advance for advice !

[tzortn]

I was just quoted $450 for a valve adjustment and carb sync.

[woobie]

That sounds about right. Stripping the bike down to get at the valves and putting it back together is probably an hour, maybe and hour and a halfs worth of labour right there.

I was quoted about $400+ cdn to get the valves done up here, I ordered a service manual on the spot. It is well worth the money. If you have the basic tools, a spot to work on the bike preferably in the garage, you can do the valves easily in an afternoon if your resonablely mechanically inclined.

My bike has the nut adjusters so there's no messing with shims and having to run to the shop(if need be) to get other sizes, Not sure if your bike has shims or not.

BTW many shops have that attitude it seems about prefering to work on newer bikes.

[mod4]

thanks guys.

*deep breath*

when I have the time to do my own work, I will. one of my problems is whenever I start a mechanical project, I find more and more things to play with, and if I go this route now my "afternoon project" will have me off the bike for 75 days, lol.

My next 8 weeks will be hectic enough with cars, I'll let the paid pros play with my bike for now.

thanks again.

[Trigger]

As you are finding out Motorcycle parts and labor are on the high side.
Mechanics (shops) get around $70-90/hr for labor (my area),
Parts: Oil is 3 times more, filters are 5 times more, and sparkplugs are 8 times more.


I'm not saying that their not worth it, I just saying I might be in the wrong business. Maybe I should open a shop and charge 1/2 of what the big guys charge and still have time to ride. NO CREDIT

[Omegaman]

Hence my amazement.

How can they not have come up with a system that does not require all that labor for valve adjustment?

I mean really, all the millions$ put into engine development and you still have to have some questionable mechanic tear everything down and hope that he/she is skilled enough to do a decent job?

Carl-

[md86]

Some bikes have valves that don't require as much attention .

[skasner]

is a valve adjustment really that critical? (i have a 99 600)

i asked around and alot of the older bike guys i know said not to worry about it.

[KansasKat]

My 2005 Kat 750 was $263.47 for valve clearence check, carb-sync and re-jet.

My brothers 1996 Kat 750 was $285.52 for the same service.

The difference was the pre 98 uses shims and the 98+ does not.

[trinc]

is a valve adjustment really that critical? (i have a 99 600)

i asked around and alot of the older bike guys i know said not to worry about it.

the first 2 are VERY important - after that they don't need much adjustment ( you could probably double the interval ) but the older kat with the shim & bucket will be more stable than the nut & screw.

tim

[The CyberPoet]

How can they not have come up with a system that does not require all that labor for valve adjustment?

You can easily buy a bike that doesn't require that kind of service cost associated with a valve adjustment...
First they could leave the engine readily accessible -- but you bought a bike with full fairings. That would drop about 40 minutes off the service totals (20 minutes to remove all the plastics, 20 to put 'em back on afterwards). That's a good $50 off right there...
Then they could use hydraulic tappets like many older Honda engines did at the end of the 70's and beginning of the 80's -- but then you'd have to have a redline around 5k or 6k RPM, since hydraulic tappets can't handle very high RPM levels. So knock down the top speed and power... My first bike's adjustment was really uninvolved: you put the bike on the centerstand, started it, let it come to idle without choke, then loosened one bolt (cam tensioner), let it idle for 5 minutes and retightened the bolt. Done. No plastics meant you could get to the bolt very easily. But it did have a top speed around 80 mph...
They could make the interval much longer, so you'd only have to get it done every 15k or 30k miles or some such (like certain Honda and Yamaha engines), but that would call for use of more expensive materials and a higher initial purchase cost.

And before you want to complain any further, consider that many bikes have much more expensive services.
A GoldWing is a real PIA and pretty much involves a ton of work just to get at the valves (about 4 times the amount for a Katana).
A late model Honda VFR (VTech) engine requires about four times as complicated a procedure to adjust the valves, pushing the service cost way up.
If you were riding a Desmo-engined Ducati, not only would there be the valve adjustments, but also replacement of the timing belts, and failure to get it done in reasonable time usually means self-destruction of a very expensive engine (if one of the belts break for example).

The labor also represents a bunch more than just adjusting the valves. As I mentioned, it covers removing and reinstalling the plastics. It involves checking and setting the torque on some 30 bolts for your safety. It involves cleaning and lubing the chain. Changing the oil and filter. Blowing out the air filter and possibly replacing it. Checking the brake pads and brake operations, and a number of other safety checks.

Around here $310 - $320 is the going rate including oil, filter, spark plugs, sales taxes.

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

[md86]

The difference was the pre 98 uses shims and the 98+ does not.

My 93 750 uses screw/locknut , as should most OTHER pre 750's . 600's use shim/bucket .