Honda Motorcycle Warranty Issue.

[KIWILEE]

A year ago I purchased a CBR 150 motorcycle which I am delighted with (although another 500cc would be nice for passing sometimes) and over that time I have had it cleaned 4 or 5 times. Recently I noticed that the plastic face to the speedo was becoming crazed with small cracks and now in some lights it is getting hard to read. A couple of months ago I took it back to the dealer and was told that it was normal and caused by sunlight. However it has become worse and I have asked for it to be replaced under warranty. This time I am told that it is my fault as the cleaners have used a wax product on it and therefore it is not covered. They also said that if wax has been used on any parts of the bike they will also crack. At this stage no other parts (fairings, headlight and tail light) have shown any signs of cracking yet. I have disputed this as at no time have I ever been advised that a wax product should not be used. Can't find it anywhere in the handbook. Is this just part of the normal Thai consumer guarantee or is there some truth in this. Has anyone else experienced this? They want me to pay B1200 to replace it with a glass one.

[petermik]

They are just trying it on,try calling their bluff and tell them you will contact Honda direct with your complaint if nothing is done under warranty by them otherwise pay the 1200 baht

[Peterw42]

The very fact that a "glass" replacement even exsists would imply that there is an inherent fault with the original plastic face. If there is nothing wrong with the plastic one and they dont deteriorate etc why would it ever need a glass replacement.

[johng]

12 minutes ago, Peterw42 said:

If there is nothing wrong with the plastic one and they dont deteriorate

The plastics will deteriorate if left in the sun for a long time...it should last a bit longer than 1 year though...so maybe they had a bad batch of plastics without enough of the chemicals to inhibit UV damage ?

 

Sometimes the crazing can be polished out  with just ordinary "car wax" soft cloth and a lot of "elbow grease"   it will come back after a while, try to park in the shade or cover the bike while parked and of course wax the paintwork regularly.

[johng]

30 minutes ago, KIWILEE said:

This time I am told that it is my fault as the cleaners have used a wax product on it and therefore it is not covered

Its possible they used something that damaged plastic...I don't let anyone but me clean my car or bikes a few reasons 

1  you get to check for things loose  missing rusty paint chips etc

2 you dont get zipper/button scratches  and swirly scratched paint where they used a gritty cloth.

3 no jet blasting water into  places it shouldn't be  and  applying  "tyre black" all over the tyres so you slide and crash on the first corner ????

[fruitman]

Just mail/call Honda thailand.....so at least they know of your issues. Show them a picture as well.

 

But everything (also big brands) sold in Thailand is of inferior quality so the price can stay low....

 

And plastics can't stand the Thai sun so better keep the bike in the shade.

[malt25]

On 11/29/2018 at 12:52 PM, Peterw42 said:

The very fact that a "glass" replacement even exsists would imply that there is an inherent fault with the original plastic face. If there is nothing wrong with the plastic one and they dont deteriorate etc why would it ever need a glass replacement.

Get a grip ! Inherent fault... rubbish. All parts are available for all bikes & cars. You think a lens or such never breaks or gets accidently scratched ?

[malt25]

On 11/29/2018 at 1:14 PM, johng said:

The plastics will deteriorate if left in the sun for a long time...it should last a bit longer than 1 year though...so maybe they had a bad batch of plastics without enough of the chemicals to inhibit UV damage ?

 

Sometimes the crazing can be polished out  with just ordinary "car wax" soft cloth and a lot of "elbow grease"   it will come back after a while, try to park in the shade or cover the bike while parked and of course wax the paintwork regularly.

Correct. If you don't have a cutting compound or good polish try toothpaste. Hand polishing will be a long process but it will work. A small cloth type buff on a drill will do the job much quicker.

[Cricky]

My PCX gauge screen is plastic and has become hazy, I use this item, it’s a shoe cleaner I’m told.

 

Sorry to change the subject but I have a 2015 PCX 150.

Several months I had a noisy rear wheel bearing at 24,000 kms so it was replaced at my cost, also they replaced the Variator and belt.

Is the Variator part of the schedule service at 24,000 kms?

 

Also would anyone have details of PCX servicing intervals and work schedule?

I'm not sure why my variator was replaced, faulty or due to servicing.

[Kinnock]

I can't see normal auto wax having this effect.  Sounds like BS from Honda to me.

 

I think Honda have an issue with their plastic not being sufficently UV stable.  They also have an issue with their car headlights yellowing due to sunlight.

 

A friend working in replacement (non original) car parts in US mentioned the car headlights issue, and since then I've noticed older Honda cars with yellow headlights.

 

I bought a new Supercub last year, and looked at older Cubs and Waves to see what parts need protecting as my bike sits outside all day when I'm at the office.  I noticed many Waves and older Scoopys with crazed speedo plastic.  Yamaha's seem to last better from my non-scientific study.

 

So I used the UV protector/plastic polish on the dash plastic and on all the black plastic (which goes white in the sun).  I also use wash/wax additive to wash the whole bike once a week.

 

Lot of effort for a Cub I know, but it's my daily commute bike.

 

Anyway - 18 months old, plastic all OK.

 

Honda need to make their products more resistant to sunlight in my view, and stop blaming their customers.

[jchfriis]

48 minutes ago, VYCM said:

My PCX gauge screen is plastic and has become hazy, I use this item, it’s a shoe cleaner I’m told.

 

Sorry to change the subject but I have a 2015 PCX 150.

Several months I had a noisy rear wheel bearing at 24,000 kms so it was replaced at my cost, also they replaced the Variator and belt.

Is the Variator part of the schedule service at 24,000 kms?

 

Also would anyone have details of PCX servicing intervals and work schedule?

I'm not sure why my variator was replaced, faulty or due to servicing.

Yes, the belt should be replaced at 24000 kms.

Here's the manual: http://www.hondampe.com.au/docs/owning_a_honda/owners_manuals/motorcycles/PCX150.pdf

 

 

[toofarnorth]

58 minutes ago, malt25 said:

Correct. If you don't have a cutting compound or good polish try toothpaste. Hand polishing will be a long process but it will work. A small cloth type buff on a drill will do the job much quicker.

Brasso is good too , I use it on my shades when they pick up too much road filth . every few months I use it on the visor.

[stubuzz]

On 11/29/2018 at 12:45 PM, KIWILEE said:

A couple of months ago I took it back to the dealer and was told that it was normal and caused by sunlight.

When you say dealer, i think you mean reseller. I stopped buying Honda scooters because i had so many problems that they would not fix under warranty. I bought a Yamaha and have had no problems at all.

[connda]

Actually, just contact Honda's main office directly and let them sort it out.

[The Theory]

They just don’t want to do anything under warranty unless it is very obvious defective part.  

I had problem with squeaky noise with my front disc break. They told me that I have used disc lock and it has damaged the disc. It was real crap reason since those discs are “machined cast iron” and they don’t get bend by little pressure, but high temperature. 

Anyway, I had to pay B650 for disc replacement and still had the same noise. ????????

Bunch of ignorants and geniuses at dealer. Bigger mouth, less knowledge. 

????????

 

[zaZa9]

4 hours ago, Kinnock said:

I can't see normal auto wax having this effect.  Sounds like BS from Honda to me.

 

I think Honda have an issue with their plastic not being sufficently UV stable.  They also have an issue with their car headlights yellowing due to sunlight.

 

A friend working in replacement (non original) car parts in US mentioned the car headlights issue, and since then I've noticed older Honda cars with yellow headlights.

 

I bought a new Supercub last year, and looked at older Cubs and Waves to see what parts need protecting as my bike sits outside all day when I'm at the office.  I noticed many Waves and older Scoopys with crazed speedo plastic.  Yamaha's seem to last better from my non-scientific study.

 

So I used the UV protector/plastic polish on the dash plastic and on all the black plastic (which goes white in the sun).  I also use wash/wax additive to wash the whole bike once a week.

 

Lot of effort for a Cub I know, but it's my daily commute bike.

 

Anyway - 18 months old, plastic all OK.

 

Honda need to make their products more resistant to sunlight in my view, and stop blaming their customers.

I agree with the above.

Your dealer is just another Thai outlet who doesnt want to honour warranty.

We have many Hondas , and the ones showing the most propensity for speedo plastic degradation are the Scoopys. They can have that within a year or 2 if parked in sun.

This appears on the  Clicks much later - we are just seeing this on 5 or 6 year old models with 30k+ kms.

( The worst thing is we are now constantly facing LED odo/petrol bar  failure that Honda charges 3k to replace ! )

 

Your average 'waxy' coats and stuff like 'Armour-all' add a protective coating to scooter surfaces ... we use them constantly and their is NO degradation - quite the contrary.

So your Honda is full of BS.

[BritManToo]

On 11/29/2018 at 12:45 PM, KIWILEE said:

Recently I noticed that the plastic face to the speedo was becoming crazed with small cracks and now in some lights it is getting hard to read.

Mine have all gone like that in less than 5 years. Airblade, Wave, Click.

Click was the most expensive to replace, cost 350bht for a new 'glass'.

[malt25]

3 hours ago, stubuzz said:

When you say dealer, i think you mean reseller. I stopped buying Honda scooters because i had so many problems that they would not fix under warranty. I bought a Yamaha and have had no problems at all.

Where I come from & most parts, the Dealer is the authorised retail sales point. Wouldn't a reseller be a seller of second hand cars or bikes ? Sorry, but I don't get what you are trying to say.

I've also recently bought a new Yahaha & likewise NO problems at all... with the bike or the dealer.

[Cricky]

3 hours ago, connda said:

Actually, just contact Honda's main office directly and let them sort it out.

Wow, you are some optimist!!!

[johng]

I use this item, it’s a shoe cleaner I’m told.
 

Its not shoe cleaner [emoji3] (think KIWI )
But does do ok as a multipurpose clean/polish paste.

[johng]

I use this item, it’s a shoe cleaner I’m told.
 

Its not shoe cleaner [emoji3] (think KIWI )
But does do ok as a multipurpose clean/polish paste.

[Formaleins]

On 11/29/2018 at 12:52 PM, Peterw42 said:

The very fact that a "glass" replacement even exsists would imply that there is an inherent fault with the original plastic face. If there is nothing wrong with the plastic one and they dont deteriorate etc why would it ever need a glass replacement.

The speedo panel for these Honda's were prone to failure in the earlier models, however, it was usually due to the LED backlights being faulty and dying. They luckily usually fixed within the warranty period so Honda were having to replace quite a few. I have never heard or seen anything like the fault the OP mentions. In fact my Honda is a few years older than his (2012 - CBR 250 ABS) and it actually has glass covering the main speedo /tacho - Yes, I had dodgy LED's and repaired them but later bought s new gauge - not cheap either, you can pay anything from $130.00 USD all the way up to US $ 400.00 depending where you order it from.

[ragpicker]

zaZa9 is correct.  Wax does not destroy plastic...it preserves it.  These dealers here and service clowns will do anything to get out  of honoring their warranty.  I have a Suzuki Burgman that was manufactured with a defective seat hinge.  Mityon Pattaya tried to tell me it was normal!!   The seat eventually broke and the seat and hinge cost over 9,000 baht to replace.  Suzuki Bangkok would not reimburse me even after I sent them a long winded explanation including numerous photos. I eventually got my money back but I had to get the consumer protection people in Bangkok involved.  Took over 4 months!  I also had problems with my PCX shaking and again Mityon told me it was "normal".  I am currently also having service problems with BMW Motorrad Pattaya.   You just don't get good service here.  Forget about integrity, it's not in the Thai language.  

 

[Cricky]

3 hours ago, johng said:

 

 

Its not shoe cleaner (think KIWI )
But does do ok as a multipurpose clean/polish paste.

 

It can be found in tesco and big C shoe section. It's great to use on the bikes black plastic, makes it look like new. 

[johng]

On 12/1/2018 at 8:45 PM, VYCM said:

It can be found in tesco and big C shoe section. It's great to use on the bikes black plastic, makes it look like new. 

I tried it on some black plastic parts and it does indeed (seem) to do a good job rejuvenating the sun baked plastic ????

Edited December 3, 2018 by johng