What can be done about dealers that don’t seem to give a shit about customers?

I am talking in particular this time about Clearwater Harley Davidson in Johannesburg South Africa.

We ordered a new FLHTK last year and took delivery in January of this year. The bike is stunning and a real step up from the previous FLHTCU, with a much better power band and pull-away from lights and junctions. The 103 motor is a dream for such a big tourer and we both love the bike to bits.

Anyway this is not a road test, it’s a moan at shocking service from those holders of what is (in my opinion) the best franchise in the world.

Back to ordering our Limited; after we ordered her (all bikes are females…not so?), we ordered some accessories including chrome lower fork sliders and a chrome inner primary cover; this was on 11 December 2009. The agreement with the dealer was that the accessories would be fitted prior to delivery or at first service dependent on delivery time from the USA.

We took delivery of the bike in late January 2010 around the 22nd as I recall. The accessories were not fitted but it was promised that they would be fitted at first service. On the same day the dealer was paid for the balance outstanding on the bike together with approximately $6,000 for the accessories we ordered.

I’m not sure about you but I always look forward to the first service, the new exhausts, the re-configuring of the EFI, the increase in power….. I digress again.

This wonderful event happened on 6 March 2010 after we received a call to say our accessories had arrived. A bit of background here….. we live about 200 miles from our nearest dealer and we can only deliver and collect the bike on a Saturday.

The following Saturday we went to collect the bike only to find that there were no chrome front fork sliders and no chrome inner primary cover. On enquiry we were told that the wrong sliders had been delivered and there was a pregnant silence at the mention of an inner primary cover.

The dealer promised to rectify the situation quickly and a series of correspondence ensued.

We went to the Africa bike week in April and we had a chat with Harley Corporate for the EMEA region who promised to have a chat with the dealer and get things moving along. The last e-mail I got from the dealer told me that some more accessories had arrived but not the parts in question, that was on 20 May, some two months ago.

I requested that the dealer provide the list of parts that were paid for and I am still waiting for that information.

So, the dealer has had an order for accessories for some 7 months, he was paid for these parts 6 months ago and now he refuses to answer my calls or respond to my e-mails.

I have felt it necessary to involve the services of a lawyer, but that is wrong on so many levels, why should I have to pay for legal services? Why can’t Harley Corporate do something about it?

Can any employees of Harley explain why this is?

I see that Harley do not have a complaint line or e-mail address to address these issues, so what do we do about it?

Since Harley do not have the facility to listen to complaints and reign in rogue dealers, what I propose is that we boycott such dealers until they either behave professionaly or go out of business.

The problem is to make everyone aware of who these dealers are.

Any ideas?

I have just returned home to South Africa after working in various foreign countries for the last 15 Years.

I did this at the request of the South African Government, who have an initiative called the “homecoming revolution” that is designed to encourage skilled South Africans to return home. Many skilled South Africans left the country as a result of a fear of an ANC government or because of the Affirmative Action policy that was initially poorly administered and that ensured that white South Africans were overlooked for jobs, thus causing an exodus of these people to countries that offered good employment opportunities.

Anyway, the initiative did encourage myself and my wife to return home (along with the global recession, we intended to return home in 2012 anyway).

On my last assignment in the U.A.E. I bought a Softail Custom (or rather my wife got it for my birthday) and I spent a fortune getting my bike as I wanted her. She has Arlen Ness wheels, a lovely Alligator skin seat from Christine LePera, Porker exhausts and many other changes including a chrome front end, she is fondly known as “Eish” (This is a South African expression of wonder).

I shipped her from Abu Dhabi to Johannesburg where the Customs department held on to her for over 4 months, using various excuses such as “they have not had time to check the frame number”. This dillitory behaviour by the customs people cost me $1,000 in storage fees; thankfully this was reimbursed to me by my company who I understand will recover the money from the taxpayer through the initiative I recently mentioned.

Having had the elation of getting my bike I then tried to register her with the traffic authorities, what a mission this is proving to be……
I got the Customs clearance papers showing that I paid my Customs Duty and taxes and that stated the bike could now be registered.

I got the Letter of Acceptance from our Beureau of Standards stating that the bike conformed to South African traffic requirements and could be registered.

I had the original receipt showing that the bike was paid for and owned by me.

I received clearance from the South African Police confirming that the bike was not stolen and could be registered.

I got Interpol clearance stating that the bike was not stolen from the country of export.

All the documents necessary to register the bike were in my possession………

The local registering authority told me I need to provide them with the original registration documents from the U.A.E.

Why? I asked

Because we need them they said.

I patiently explained that in order to obtain an export permit in the U.A.E. the authorities there require that all the original registration documents have to be surrendered.

Where is the export permit they asked?

Why? I asked

Because we need them they said.

I explained that the export permit was given to my export agent who then gave it to the U.A.E. Customs officials in order to export the bike.

Then we can’t register your bike they said.

So, after nearly 7 months of trying I am riding an unregistered bike, the local authority is not getting revenue from my licence and registration fees and no one is winning.

I am hoping to be arrested for my crime so that I can sub-poena the Minister of Roads and let him explain to the Judge why he has failed to register my bike.

My friends tell me that in their opinion the local authorities are deliberately making my life difficult and that if I offer money that these problems will go away and my bike will magically get registered.

What do you think, is this Beuracracy gone mad or is some petty official trying to make some extra money?

P.S. I hope all my American Brother and Sister Bikers have a great Independence Day.