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Tourer
Posts: 400
| I asked my dealer if they would give me a loaner bike while my Vision was in for service. I live about an hour from my dealer, so it is difficult to arrange for a someone pick me up after dropping it off and then going back to pick it up. Car dealers do it, so I figured bike dealers would do it. I didn't think Insurance would be an issue since, once again, car dealers do it. I could tell my dealer did not like the question and tried not to answer it. I basically got the it's an insurance issue and that was it. Problem is, I had a fellow customer tell me a few months ago that he had to drop his bike off for maintenance a couple years ago and the dealership gave him a vegas to ride for the weekend since it was nice out and he had planned to go on a poker run. My issues are:
1) I tried to tell my dealer this would be a good advertisement for his dealership.
2) It would be a good advertisment for Victory. Victory is not too big in my area, and nobody has seen a kingpin, hammer or a vegas.
3) I asked if I could use a demo model, not a the most expensive thing on the floor or a ness model
4) This may be selfish, but paying $23,000 for a first year model and willing to put another $2K-$4K in bike for accessories, I figured the dealership would "want" to help.
5) I asked for a schedule that would benefit them the most. I was hoping for just an overnight loaner.
6) Victory Dealerships are not like Harley Dealerships. There isn't one on every corner.
Has anyone else experienced anything like this? |
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Cruiser
Posts: 76
| Not sure about anyone else but I have never heard of at motorcycle dealer giving loaners. Infact, I have never been to a dealer that allowed me to test ride the bike I was planning to purchase until I went to Victory. |
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Iron Butt
Posts: 721
| Unfortunately is seems to be a situation where it is left up to the individual dealer to set their policy on loaners. I know the service loaner program that is in place as a couple of my local H-D dealers (Woodstock and McHenry, IL) is one of the reasons that friends of mine have continued to stay with the brand, they can ride every day, weather permitting, even when their own bike is in for service.
I know that the Honda dealership that I have a very good relationship with will not give out a loaner no matter how many bikes, snowmobiles, atvs or watercraft you have purchased from them, it's just not their policy, yet, on the other hand they always have a demo bike from all the most popular new bikes on the market (they are a multi-line dealership carrying all the major metric brands plus Polaris ATVs (they dropped Victory 3 years ago), Sea-Doo, Ski-Doo, Bombardier, and Arctic Cat) that customers in good standing are allowed to take out for long rides. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 175
Colorado | Hmm complex request....
Victory Inc encourages or actually demands that dealers allow test rides. I have worked several events for dealers and what happens, at least in 10% of the motorcyclists who show up for demo days or open houses?
We have gotten a$$ holes who over rev the bikes and treat them like complete Shizzle and act as if they had the right to. Yet get off the demo bike and then baby their x brand bike as they ride away, how about a dealer who sends a staff member along to lead the test ride and then has to chase a rider or riders down as they break from the planned route and then see how far past 100 mph they can take a Hammer or Vegas. Not funny and its people like that who make it a high risk venture and will cost legitimate potential buyers who are responsible a test ride in the future. I can see why dealers don't do it..
Loaner ...if you offer it to one you have to offer it to all. Most dealerships carry all brands or multiple brands. Are you going to do it for just the Victory owner? How are you going to treat the lady who bought a Yamaha Virago? How many different bikes are you going to set aside for a loaner? If you use only the manufacturers that encourage test rides like Victory you are still stuck with situations in which your sacrificing a potential sale for a new customer because you sent out your demo with a guy who bought a bike and was in earlier getting a oil change?
not likely ...
Liability? Who pays for the bike that is abused or scratched? Dealer assumes the risk right? Are you going to sign off on insurance or maybe you depending on expecting your insurance is going to cover it? How many man hours does he have to spend getting the costs covered? Is it worth it? More than likely not......
Do I get a loaner? Yes by various dealers but I also spend a considerable amount of time working for Colorado victory Riders Association and have ridden with those dealers on their events and have developed a personal relationship in which I don't make unreasonable demands I.e.( ask for freebees, realize what is fair market price) Owners at least a percentage are looking for a free ride and willing to sacrifice everything for that bottom dollar yet turn around and then complain when a dealer doesn't give them the deal of a life time...
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Iron Butt
Posts: 619
Southeast Iowa | My dealer is willing to give me a bike to ride while mine is being serviced, but I'm not his average customer. I have done business with him for 6 years and spend a fair jag of coin there. We also know each other on a personal level and he knows how I treat my bikes. If you invest in a relationship with your dealer and don't mind him making a living too, he'll treat you right when you need it. |
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Cruiser
Posts: 256
Florida | It seems like a logical situation is to have a Rental Program as this would accomplish many tasks:
- Allowing Owners a method of using (renting) a bike when a bike is in service.
- Provide Rentals to potential purchasers who want more seat time than a typical test drive.
- Great for Victory owners who are traveling and would like to use a bike while out of town.
- Great for the factory as it can setup a network of Rental Dealers across the country and provide tours and other income stream opportunities.
- Gets people on a Victory who may have never considered purchasing one. If it's a good experience, they could become future customers.
I don't know the legalities involved in setting up a rental program, but H-D has done it successfully and I would bet that Victory is looking into it...especially now that they have a world class tour bike. It's a worthwhile program to build brand loyalty and grant riders an opportunity to ride in far away places they could not have done otherwise.
I don't blame the dealers for not providing loaner bikes to customers. I don't think it's an insurance/liability issue, I think it's an abuse issue. And, yes...imagine the arguments over a tiny scratch that may or may not have been there before the rental. If you think about it, the major car rental companies don't rent to folks under 25 years of age. I'm sure part of the reason is potential abuse.
When I purchased my Vision and learned about the frequent service intervals, I asked about the downtime time frame as I had become accustomed to H-D dealerships taking days or sometimes weeks to provide service, repairs or upgrades. As you know from my ramblings, I did not have great experiences with my three H-Ds. Walt from Victory of South Florida simply stated to make an appointment and they will have me out of there in an hour or two. What? I thought the engine had to cool to perform service. He advised that for basic service (oil, etc.) that was not necessary. This is one factor that let me to Victory of South Florida.
Another option is asking how much they would charge to pickup and deliver the bike when service is needed. I too, live around an hour away and it's nice to know this service is available if necessary.
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Loaner bike while the Visions in for Service?
