New 2015 NC700XD Radiator broke after 2 months - Denied by extended warrenty

[Joecamel]

hello,

I bought a 2015 NC700XD with the no clutch / ABS option in September 2015 from the dealer with an extended warranty from Honda.

In November 2015 I get to work and the bike is leaking coolant. The dealer towed the bike to the shop, the radiator broke. They said the repair is likely not covered as it was due to me "riding the bike" but they would try to submit it under a "good will" program.

The bike sat in the shop 3 weeks waiting to hear for a response, Honda denied the repair and left me with a $1000 repair bill.

I love my NC 700 I have about 5k miles on it now but this experience with the radiator was really upsetting. My commute to work is from Rancho Santa Margarita, CA to Irvine, CA which is a 15 mile stretch on VERY well maintained roads. Bike was never off road or dropped or any type of accident.

Is there anything I can do as far as reaching out to Honda to try and be reimbursed ?

 

[Fuzzy]

First we need some information on just what broke. Did a pipe break, did you get a hole in it from a rock, did a weld fail......?????

A lot of us have guards in front of the radiator and or extended fender on front wheel to protect it from debris thrown by the front wheel. If it was from impact from something off the road you are probably out the money.

 

[Joecamel]

i have no idea if anything hit it but would appear to be a small rock ?

is this this worth anything ? can i sell it to off set my cost ?

 

[Joecamel]

i did install one of these guards after it broke

 

[Beemerphile]

I can't see a warranty covering road damage, however, a new radiator is just under $500 and it would take less than one hour to install it. I don't get the $1,000 charge for the repair. Used radiators on eBay are under $300 and the replacement is pretty easy for a home mechanic.

 

[tallman]

+1 easy install $500! insane. Are there any radiator repair shops left?

 

[tallman]

I just answered my own question. I Googled "Orange County Radiator Repair". They're all over the place.

 

[RinconVTR]

I can see why you are upset Joecamel, but I hope you understand why the coverage was denied.

It's the same as a windshield being hit by a rock when you leave the dealership lot for example, the damage is not covered by any OEM warranty.

 

[ronsaw]

As a long-time Service Advisor and Manager (not MC's, Autos and Heavy-Duty Trucks), I will give some input. The damage due to outside influence would deem the repair "Customer Pay" and not Warranty (Honda would laugh when the radiator was inspected after returned for Warranty credit). Now, can the dealer help out on their own with some Goodwill Policy or discounting - perhaps, and not necessarily a bad idea, especially to a customer that may have recently purchased from them. Did they buy the motorcycle from our Dealership? Where will they service it? Do they buy parts/accessories from us? Are they true to our store? These are things I take in to the equation when considering opening my Dealer's wallet to keep a customer happy and help cover the cost of a repair that the factory will not.

As for as radiator repair shops- there are many. Not so sure on motorcycle radiator repairs, but I can tell you that in automotive and heavy duty trucks, the side tanks can often be replaced. A re-core is possible at times as well, but whether there are cores for a NC radiator - plus the additional cost in labor to do it - might kick the cost up close to installing a new or used replacement.

The best answer here is to install a guard. I am guilty myself and will put that on my "to do" list. An ounce of prevention...

Best of luck, ride safe.

 

[Joecamel]

the dealer quoted me $1000 but i bought a new radiator online for 500 and they charged me 100 for the install and coolant

i'm just disappointed that the bike has such a vulnerable spot , if it's a known problem which it is Honda should issue a recall to install protection and not have their customers find out the hard way by replacing their radiator 2 months in

other than the radiator guard my NC is 100% stock so i'm hoping i dont need any other modifications to enjoy my bike

 

[dduelin]

Sorry to hear of your misfortune.

Many motorcycles of many brands have exposed radiators not just Honda.

 

[Joecamel]

I can see why you are upset Joecamel, but I hope you understand why the coverage was denied.

It's the same as a windshield being hit by a rock when you leave the dealership lot for example, the damage is not covered by any OEM warranty.

i do understand damage with a small rock cracking windshield , i don't however understand a small rock hitting my brand new bike breaking a vital engine component and breaking down

sorry for being stubborn but really its a honda and the last place i wanted it to be was in the shop 2 months later with repair fees

 

[Beemerphile]

THIS is a vunerable radiator. Two in fact. The upper is an $800 radiator and the lower is a $485 oil cooler. No guard in sight. But I have never seen one over a few weeks old that didn't have an aftermarket guard and usually a fender extender.

 

[MZ5]

Sorry for the damage & expense.

Car radiators are similarly exposed; they're right out front and very little is between them and debris coming at them from oncoming traffic. A car's tires cannot kick up debris and throw it into its own radiator, however I'm not sure your front tire kicked up whatever went through your radiator. Naturally I can't know for certain. Perhaps you were 'lucky' it was the radiator that the projectile hit, rather than your leg or hand?

I'd have expected a good radiator shop to be able to re-core our radiators for a very modest sum, but I haven't ever called the radiator fabrication shop we deal with at work to ask about the bike.

It's extremely peculiar that your dealer wanted $1,000 for parts + labor, but list price is apparently only ~$500 for the parts, and they only wanted $100 for the labor.

 

[dduelin]

Lots of bikes have radiators, oil filters and oil coolers exposed to foreign object damage. Many brands, many models. It wouldn't seem like it should be like this (easily disabled due to a small rock) but some of the appeal of motorcycles is that most of the mechanical components are visible and part of the styling elements.

 

[L.B.S.]

I too, echo the others with sympathy about your unfortunate luck there, joe.

I cringe at the thread title though, and how really misleading it is.

 

[670cc]

The thread title refers to the extended warranty, but are you not still within the 1 year standard Honda warranty period? It doesn't likely change the outcome, since it would still likely be ruled road damage, but rather would change which entity made the decision on the coverage.

 

[RinconVTR]

i do understand damage with a small rock cracking windshield , i don't however understand a small rock hitting my brand new bike breaking a vital engine component and breaking down

sorry for being stubborn but really its a honda and the last place i wanted it to be was in the shop 2 months later with repair fees

You're not stubborn. You are scorned. I get it. And no one here will take offense.

Another example;

My cage commuter is a 04 Accord, which has notoriously been known to have condensers (similar construction as a radiator, and sits in front of the radiator on vehicles with A/C) destroyed by simple road derbies because there was no protection, like most stock motorcycles. Call it s design flaw or lack of consideration by Honda during those early years...I dont know...whatever you like...but they have since added better protective screens. Not one (via forums) has ever been covered under warranty that I know of.

 

[chinchill]

I agree that this is a bit of a design defect, but it's a weakness shared by many makes and models of motorcycle. This thread makes me eager to receive and install the fender extender I order last month!

 

[drdubb]

I ordered a altrider guard after reading this.