Sigh. Thank goodness I have a warranty!

So last Saturday I got my tires changed. On Monday I bring the bike into work. Seems to work fine on the way in and back from the shop. When I go to leave, the speedomotor and odometer are both not working and the FI light comes on. Some quick googling showed me something about a speed sensor and replacing that would fix the issue. Well, that's what warranties are for. Since it's still rideable, I ride it into work today....

And I feel something wierd in the back brake pedal and how the bike is handling. No loss of fluid, pad seems fine (a little thin, but they told me that). Then I go to back the bike up and realize the back brake is dragging. Had to pump the brake pedal a bit and it seemed to let go so I could back it into a parking space at home. Sigh. Maybe when they put the wheel back on the bike there was a bit of an angle or something and it's causing the pad to hit a part of the rotor it wasn't hitting before? Maybe my wheel's been on crooked the whole time and the pad wore in at an angle and they put it in right causing the rub?

Either way, it's really REALLY frustrating when your bike is working perfectly fine, and you go in for routine maintenance, and all of a sudden &^$% starts breaking.

Alexi

Back brake dragging and needing to pump pedal to move it around are indicative of the secondary master cylinder not working correctly.....have it checked soon....good luck, ff

Sounds like the shop put either the spacers or brake pads in wrong, or both.

Secondary master cylinder bolt is always too tight after the local shop installs a new front tire on my 06'. Causes the back wheel to lock up. I now take a wrench to untorque the bolt when I pick the bike up, to prevent the rear wheel locking up problem.

With all due respect for the above replies, I don't think any of them are related to the problem of speedometer and odometer are both not working and the FI light comes on. I'm not sure if this would be related to your problem either, but you may want to check the clearance to the ABS wheel sensor if your bike is so equipped. I think the owner's manual specifies what that clearance should be. If the FI light is coming on, you can find the error code that it blinks at you quite easily, look for other posts here pertaining to the FI light. Hesitate to ask you this, but are you sure it's the FI light coming on, not the ABS light?

Could possibly the brake pad slipped out of the clip or they bent the little tang on the retention clip causing the pad not to nest properly in caliper.

Is this a Honda shop?

I would check the black brake caliper bracket pivot bolt to make sure was re-installed and tightened... if not, braking would pinch the brake line and cause it to drag.

The front spacers not being on the correct side would cause the front some issue and maybe even rear issues if it caused the SMC to stick in the forward motion.

I've never heard of an incorrect tire change resulting in no speedo/odo or FI lights on a 1300, that one almost sounds like a battery.

Dropping bike off tomorrow. I'll come back when they fix it and let whoever may see this thread what my problems turned out to be. Thanks for the tip on the master brake cylinder. No idea what that is, what it looks like, what it does or what bolt could be overtightened, but hey! There's still time in my life to learn!

I sure am anxious to hear what you learn

sfalexi said:

So last Saturday I got my tires changed. On Monday I bring the bike into work. Seems to work fine on the way in and back from the shop. When I go to leave, the speedomotor and odometer are both not working and the FI light comes on. Some quick googling showed me something about a speed sensor and replacing that would fix the issue. Well, that's what warranties are for. Since it's still rideable, I ride it into work today....

And I feel something wierd in the back brake pedal and how the bike is handling. No loss of fluid, pad seems fine (a little thin, but they told me that). Then I go to back the bike up and realize the back brake is dragging. Had to pump the brake pedal a bit and it seemed to let go so I could back it into a parking space at home. Sigh. Maybe when they put the wheel back on the bike there was a bit of an angle or something and it's causing the pad to hit a part of the rotor it wasn't hitting before? Maybe my wheel's been on crooked the whole time and the pad wore in at an angle and they put it in right causing the rub?

Either way, it's really REALLY frustrating when your bike is working perfectly fine, and you go in for routine maintenance, and all of a sudden &^$% starts breaking.

Alexi

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Stories like yours are why I always do my own work when I have the tools and/or skills available.

1. Check your battery and cable connections, a low battery or bad ground can cause all kinds of weirdness.
2. Check the secondary master cylinder
3. Check pad installation

any update?

tbullivant said:

any update?

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Too soon I think. I dropped it off Friday, they're closed Monday. I hope to hear by middle or end of this week.

Although he did ask when the last time I flushed the brake fluid was (and quoted 50 bucks to flush it plus paying for the bottle of brake fluid as $50 is just the labor). Somehow I don't see the rear brake dragging being an old fluid issue, but I'm not a mechanic.

i'll update hopefully later this week. I got rid of my Victory cause the service was horrible and went with a Honda to hope that the bigger, more well known (and probably more reliable) brand would give me better service or at least more places to choose from with warranty work. Looks like this is the first test (of hopefully not too many tests) to see if I chose well!

Alexi

UPDATE

I called them yesterday. Gave them about a week and a day. They responded with "no one has looked at it yet" and when they looked in whatever tracking system they have it "hasn't been assigned to any of the techs yet".

Wonderful.

This is the same issue I had with my Victory branded motorcycle which is WHY I sold it and got a Honda figuring that at the very least, a bigger brand name and larger dealer base SURELY should mean that they would at least have slightly better customer service.

But haven't even looked at it yet?

Ok. So side question.... IS there a brand of motorcycle which has customer service that actually looks like your bikes soon and doesn't assume your bike is an infrequently used toy and doesn't assume that you're ok missing day after day of commuting and riding?

I'm pretty pissed off over my past few years of experience with motorcycle dealers and shops and their lack of timely customer service. I ride upwards of 20k a year and don't want my bike to spend week after week in a shop NOT EVEN GETTING LOOKED AT for issues!

I'm about one year away from trading to a Harley just so at the very least I have OPTIONS of dealers. In my job as a Soldier I move every few years and don't have the luxury of finding a good "home" dealer since I don't have a permanent "home" for the next 10 - 15 years.

Rant ended. Here's hoping they at least call me back early this week like they said they would and tell me at least that they've ASSIGNED the damned thing to a tech.

Alexi

sfalexi said:

UPDATE Ok. So side question.... IS there a brand of motorcycle which has customer service that actually looks like your bikes soon and doesn't assume your bike is an infrequently used toy and doesn't assume that you're ok missing day after day of commuting and riding?

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I know your frustration. But this problem is not brand specific. Nor is it motorcycle specific. It is the difference between a good dealer and a so so dealer. I've had this problem with cars, lawn mowers, power tools, you name it. And, since I have the luxury(?) of living in a large city and don't mind driving a bit to a good dealer/service station, its a case of fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me and I'm off and running to find another shop.

What I do now when I drop my car/mower/etc. off is ask when they will look at it. And on that day, I call and verify that we are on schedule. Doesn't always work, but it helps. I also bring all my cars to one mechanic - so I'm throwing a lot of business his way and I get better service because of this (not applicable for you).

You may not want my opinion here, but I'm willing to bet they will recommend a brake flush if you don't know when it was done last. You're supposed to flush the brake and clutch systems every two years. Brake fluid is hydroscopic - it absorbs water from the air and this will corrode the aluminum parts of the calipers. Had you seen my last bike's brakes (bought used) you would be a born again brake flusher.... So, if you have not had the bike for more than two years, this is a good idea - and do the clutch at the same time.

Update

Called the dealer today asking for an update. Good news is that they checked the warranty and talked back and forth with Honda on warranty stuff and it'll all be covered by warranty. Brakes, speedo sensor, and they mentioned something about that master cylinder a few of you had mentioned before. Bad news is it's going to take another week, maybe two as they get the parts (now that they know to get through through whatever warranty process it was).

Well, at least it's getting fixed up. But MAN does it suck to miss almost a MONTH of riding. I hope it pans out in the end and it's good for a LONG LONG time after this.

Alexi

Hate to say it, but this smells of a typical shop that throws **** to see what sticks. I spent thirty years in the Army so commiserate a little, but you're generally in one place for three years or more between transfers, you would be wise to get a few tools and learn to do your own basic maintenence..
I bought my ST with 30k on it and on my first long trip, 1000 miles from home I noticed some bad clunking in the front with low speed braking. I freaked out and got into the first shop I could find. This was my introduction to the ST's secondary master cylinder. Got home, studied here, a lot, spent $100 on a vacuum bleeding kit, and learned how to change brake/clutch fluids along with bleeding all 93 of the bike's bleeder valves. I hate wrenching, but learned years ago, I can do the basic stuff, brake pads, fluid changes, tire changes, batteries, etc, and those things save lots of money and give great peace of mind on the road.

Craig Miller said:

Secondary master cylinder bolt is always too tight after the local shop installs a new front tire on my 06'. Causes the back wheel to lock up. I now take a wrench to untorque the bolt when I pick the bike up, to prevent the rear wheel locking up problem.

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Thread steal here but something is not right if you have to do that. Those bolts should not lock up the SMC movement. Something must not be assembled correctly or is missing on your bike. You shouldn't have to loosen any bolts when you pick up the bike.

Please check it out for missing components. I haven't taken the time myself to know if it's all bearings or spacers but you need to research this.

I have to agree with Kendall about learning to do maintenance and minor wrenching yourself. You may not look on it as fun, but doing these things yourself is the only way you can get the job done on YOUR time frame and be assured that it is done right. There are lots and lots of folks here who can guide you through the maintenance chores and minor fixes. Once you've done them, you'll see how easy it can be. As an added benefit, you'll save one heck of a lot of money!

Having worked at dealerships as a tech (cage, not bike) I agree with the others- learn to do it yourself. While some of the technicians can be very good, dealers learn how to NOT lose money. For example, did you notice how when you talked to them, even before they looked at your bike, they suggested a fluid change? Odds are they wouldn't change the fluid at all, they were just looking for a way to get YOU to pay some of time it will take to fix whatever they did wrong.

Hopefully they have an actual clue what is wrong and aren't just throwing parts at it. Even new parts installed incorrectly won't help.

nhdiesel said:

Having worked at dealerships as a tech (cage, not bike) I agree with the others- learn to do it yourself. While some of the technicians can be very good, dealers learn how to NOT lose money. For example, did you notice how when you talked to them, even before they looked at your bike, they suggested a fluid change? Odds are they wouldn't change the fluid at all, they were just looking for a way to get YOU to pay some of time it will take to fix whatever they did wrong.

Hopefully they have an actual clue what is wrong and aren't just throwing parts at it. Even new parts installed incorrectly won't help.

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Yeah. I notice things like that too. I guess if I'm wishing, I just wish I could have more of choice of m/c repair shops (car repair shops are all over the place so it's much easier to find a good one).

Right now my time is very very tightly scheduled due to my personal goals and hobbies. Honestly, I would have toyed around and worked with this board to fix the speedo if I didn't have trouble with the back brake. The speedo problem was minor, but the back brake dragging was NOT good.

Either way, I've been doing my 4, 8, and 12k services on my own. I'll probably pay for the first 16k service (JUST the valves, I'll do spark plugs and oil on my own), and then after that learn to check the valve clearances myself.

Alexi