My little Honda wave

[Davehappen]

Hi all, firstly I am near Korat, so any answers should reflect that area. My little Honda wave (f1) has sieved me and the misses well, it's 6 years old and I would like to give it a full service, I know people will say why, it's a wave, well back in Blighty I had vintage bikes the oldest being 1923, with good maintainance it still ran like a dream, I had a garage fully tooled up and was able to maintain all my bikes myself. I went to the local Honda dealership, which has a maintainance section and ask for a full service, how long I ask, oh about an hour, an hour I ask, yes he says. What do I get for that, check tyre, oil and chain, ok I say and leave. What I would like is a full service, oil, filter, check fuel injection, fork oil. The full monty, people will I'm crazy to spend money on a wave, but that's me. 

Anybody know where I can get this service????????

[ktm jeff]

Nothing wrong with loving your bike.  A Wave is a very simple bike to service , and if you dont want to do it yourself , id sugest asking around for recomendations for an independant mechanic ( im in Chiang Mai )  , not a Honda "service center".  Assuming the waranty is now of no concern. Make sure the mechanic CLEARLY understands what you want doing , such as fork oil , new chain / sprockets , injection cleaner additive in fuel ( DIY )  , brake fluid , plug , air filter etc.  Good luck.

[fullcave]

Any authorized Honda dealership can do this work. Must be thousands in Thailand.. 

[ktm jeff]

1 minute ago, fullcave said:

Any authorized Honda dealership can do this work. Must be thousands in Thailand.. 

Hes already had an "experience" with the Honda "mechanics" , thats  why hes looking elsewhere.

Spoiler

 

[Davehappen]

That's what happens when people do not read the post properly, many thanks for pointing that out, ( senior member, eh!!!)

[Davehappen]

Ktm Jeff, it is a simple bike to work on but with no tools, it's  neigh on impossible to do anything. 

 

P.s didn't know I triple posted, oops 

[ktm jeff]

Dave , you sound competant enougth to look after this bike yourself ( if you managed it with vintage bikes ). Is it not worth spending some money on tools , too DIY. Job satisfaction , and all that. The moderators will be around soon , to confiscate your laptop. Triple post indeed !!.

[denkiblue555]

4 minutes ago, ktm jeff said:

Dave , you sound competant enougth to look after this bike yourself ( if you managed it with vintage bikes ). Is it not worth spending some money on tools , too DIY. Job satisfaction , and all that. The moderators will be around soon , to confiscate your laptop. Triple post indeed !!.

 

I agree - As I mentioned on one of the other 2 threads with suspiciously the same thread contents - A Honda Wave has a very simple engine and you have some experience. So:

 

1. Go to a Honda shop with someone who speaks Thai and give them a list of things you would like them to do - I'd be surprised if they said no. OR,

2. Get an online manual, watch Youtube and just do it all yourself - it's a 110cc single-cylinder air-cooled engine yeah?

 

Although KTMJeff is right about the cost, the convenience and peace of mind is great if you don't live nearby a decent workshop.

 

[Davehappen]

Many thanks your replys, when the guy at the local Honda shop was asked to do the work I wanted, he nearly fell over shaking his head. Seems they're  only trained to do simple checking. I would love to do the work myself, but without tools not sure.

[fullcave]

15 hours ago, Davehappen said:

Many thanks your replys, when the guy at the local Honda shop was asked to do the work I wanted, he nearly fell over shaking his head. Seems they're  only trained to do simple checking. I would love to do the work myself, but without tools not sure.

 

 

Yep, like I said..;) Try the local honda shop at least you'll be getting real parts and authorised service and the price is not so much more..

[thaiguzzi]

Forget getting anything like that at a Honda dealer that sells mopeds (small bikes).

# they are not interested.

# they are not qualified.

#  the mechanics are not trained up, even in anything as simple as a fork oil change.

Ditto other brand name bike shops ie Kawasaki servicing a KLT 110 or Yamaha servicing a whatever.

Either DIY or find a good independent corner shop. They do exist in most cities and market towns. Bit like restaurants, if there are plenty of people eating there, the food is generally good. Ditto a good bike shop. Plenty of customers, and bikes outside, positive local feedback, and generally you'll get a mechanic who is half decent and knows what he is doing.

[Briggsy]

I completely agree with the last poster, thaiguzzi.

 

Posters are bringing their experiences from the West and expecting something similar here.

The business model is very different.

Dealerships sell bikes, arrange finance, put the fluids in a new bike and will do very basic maintenance such as oil changes.

Repair shops do repairs and maintenance.

Accessory shops sell and fit accessories.

Don't expect dealerships to do the last two as the majority are not set up to do that. Their raison d'etre is making a margin on selling bikes and arranging finance.

You need to find a repair shop and then try them out with small jobs and see if they are able and willing to do jobs as requested.

[AllanB]

Na! These guys work on these bikes morning, noon and night, I use a local Yammy dealer and my 5 year old Wave is A1.

 

The main dealers here all use stock parts, decent oil, with just the exception of proper chain lube, which meant my chain only lasted 20,000km...wow!

 

If you want to do this sweaty work yourself fine, I can't be asked for the 200baht labour costs.

 

I just bought a S/H 8 year old Fino for 7k baht, had Dee service it, including a new elastic band and it runs like new.  I use it every day now, as I am too lazy to kick start the Wave and change gear.... no perhaps you should do it yourself.

 

Keep Calm and don't worry.

 

[Davehappen]

Lots of suggestion there, would like to do the big service myself, but don't want the hassle of buying loads of tools, so just need to find a competent bike repairer.

[Happy Grumpy]

At 6 yrs old, just get them all replaced instead of being 'checked'.

 

Order the following:

 

oil and oil filter.

spark plug

air filter.

fork oil and seals

chain and sprockets

brake pads or whatever the Wave uses.

lube and adjust the cables

 

 

 

Find a parts manual online and print up a list of all the parts and their numbers.

 

Take to a dealer, get them to order and fit. Done. 

[AllanB]

37 minutes ago, Davehappen said:

Lots of suggestion there, would like to do the big service myself, but don't want the hassle of buying loads of tools, so just need to find a competent bike repairer.

 

Find what you think is a good dealer and then stay there and watch them throughout the entire service, I always do. If you don't like what they are doing, stop them momentarily and have a very polite word. Then tip them afterwards. As a result my local dealer now puts me in front of everyone else.

[In the jungle]

Add brake caliper sliding pins to your list.

 

Much as I dislike sliding caliper pistons they can work adequately if maintained.

 

I have just done this job on a Wave 110i so I can tell you the rubber seals are 100 Baht the pair.  I had to replace mine because one was split.

 

The correct grease for the pins is harder to find.  I am still getting by with the stuff I got with a Toyota brake seal kit years ago.  It's some moly based stuff made by Dow Corning.  Standard LM grease would be a bad idea on brake systems.  

[fullcave]

On 8/19/2016 at 7:02 PM, Briggsy said:

I completely agree with the last poster, thaiguzzi.

 

Posters are bringing their experiences from the West and expecting something similar here.

The business model is very different.

Dealerships sell bikes, arrange finance, put the fluids in a new bike and will do very basic maintenance such as oil changes.

Repair shops do repairs and maintenance.

Accessory shops sell and fit accessories.

Don't expect dealerships to do the last two as the majority are not set up to do that. Their raison d'etre is making a margin on selling bikes and arranging finance.

You need to find a repair shop and then try them out with small jobs and see if they are able and willing to do jobs as requested.

 

To the contrary. Just like with automobile dealerships service is their bread and butter business, the mechanics are trained and certified by Honda and the premises has to be kept to a minimum standard in order to qualify as a dealership. Hell, they are even required to wear a uniform and show certification credentials!

 

Though there may be a couple of exceptions, by in large, the local repair shops are sub-standard with untrained uneducated mechanics, filthy working conditions and offer no warranty.  The local repair shop can be used for very basic maintenance, however,  just be wary as even when doing the most basic oil change they tend to overfill which will lead to the seals leaking and of course they don't use a pressure gauge after replacing/repairing tires. 

[BaldPlumber]

Nowhere near you, but I took my wave to a little non franchised shop where they advertised a full service.

So, they did the following

New chain
New sprockets, front and rear
New pads, new shoes
New air filter
New spark plug
Oil

About 1300 baht

Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using Tapatalk

[fullcave]

2 hours ago, BaldPlumber said:

Nowhere near you, but I took my wave to a little non franchised shop where they advertised a full service.

So, they did the following

New chain
New sprockets, front and rear
New pads, new shoes
New air filter
New spark plug
Oil

About 1300 baht

Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using Tapatalk
 

 

 

Wow, that's cheap. 

[cornishcarlos]

14 minutes ago, fullcave said:

 

Wow, that's cheap. 

 

I paid 2,500 to have the above plus new piston and rings....

 

Nothing wrong with a local, messy mechanic as long as he knows his stuff..

 

You don't need a degree to work on scooters

[bramds]

On 21/08/2016 at 5:02 PM, Davehappen said:

Lots of suggestion there, would like to do the big service myself, but don't want the hassle of buying loads of tools, so just need to find a competent bike repairer.

 

You don't need that many specialized tools to work on a Honda Wave. It ain't rocket science.

[fullcave]

2 minutes ago, bramds said:

 

You don't need that many specialized tools to work on a Honda Wave. It ain't rocket science.

 

 

Yes, I hear you can rebuild one entirely only using a pair of vise grips and a hammer...  

[petermik]

1 hour ago, bramds said:

 

You don't need that many specialized tools to work on a Honda Wave. It ain't rocket science.

[thaiguzzi]

21 hours ago, fullcave said:

To the contrary. Just like with automobile dealerships service is their bread and butter business, the mechanics are trained and certified by Honda and the premises has to be kept to a minimum standard in order to qualify as a dealership. Hell, they are even required to wear a uniform and show certification credentials!

 

Though there may be a couple of exceptions, by in large, the local repair shops are sub-standard with untrained uneducated mechanics, filthy working conditions and offer no warranty.  The local repair shop can be used for very basic maintenance, however,  just be wary as even when doing the most basic oil change they tend to overfill which will lead to the seals leaking and of course they don't use a pressure gauge after replacing/repairing tires. 

To the contrary.

Just because they are a brand name dealership, i still would not neccessarily trust them. Even in my home country in England there are pure horror stories from main dealers, cars and bikes.

I've got quite a few friends in the car trade in England, some stories would make you weep.

My Vigo is nearly 10 years old, never been inside a Toyota shop since it left the showroom. Just don't trust 'em. Recently done cam/timing belt change - myself. Parts were genuine Toyota, but the work, nah i'll do it myself before Toyota trained Somchai is let loose under the hood.

[fullcave]

3 hours ago, thaiguzzi said:

To the contrary.

Just because they are a brand name dealership, i still would not neccessarily trust them. Even in my home country in England there are pure horror stories from main dealers, cars and bikes.

I've got quite a few friends in the car trade in England, some stories would make you weep.

My Vigo is nearly 10 years old, never been inside a Toyota shop since it left the showroom. Just don't trust 'em. Recently done cam/timing belt change - myself. Parts were genuine Toyota, but the work, nah i'll do it myself before Toyota trained Somchai is let loose under the hood.

 

 

 

Personally, I feel your fear is unjustified and besides doing the work yourself voids the warranty.

 

Also, my time is worth way more than what I pay a certified mechanic with all the necessary tools to change the timing belt.

 

But OK, congrats on being able to change a timing belt yourself, not everybody has time for that. 

[Monkeyrobot]

You would think seeing a Farang wanting his bike serviced would be jumped at by these mechanics to give the Farang price. 

[Happy Grumpy]

3 hours ago, fullcave said:

 

Personally, I feel your fear is unjustified

 

BMW use the name of a Spanish city, one that's good at football, they have a dealership in Chiang Mai. Google that about the customers that had to get onto Munich after their bikes were stripped, done up with used and fake parts, and given back, during their routine service......... even the highest company authority in the country was doing nothing about it.... and this was brand new BMW's getting their first services. 

[AllanB]

22 minutes ago, Monkeyrobot said:

You would think seeing a Farang wanting his bike serviced would be jumped at by these mechanics to give the Farang price. 

I think we are getting a bit carried away here, there are no timing belts involved here, or anything complicated. We are talking changing oil, spark plugs and filters, inflating tyres, how hard is that? Plus as I have said before, you don't need to trust anyone, just watch while they carry out the service.

 

26 minutes ago, Monkeyrobot said:

You would think seeing a Farang wanting his bike serviced would be jumped at by these mechanics to give the Farang price. 

Dee knows us very well, we get charged the posted prices and he seems to cover everything, I give him a 100-200 baht tip. Had the chain changed on the Lifan (wanted a Jap one) and he charged me for the 1 1/4 boxes he used, plus 4 wheel bearings. He had a proper chain splitter and a proper extractor for the bearings. 

[lemonjelly]

Just had the air filter and spark plug changed and valve clearances done..... definitely worth it; can feel the difference.