Missing side cases

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FJRJuice

Member
Joined
May 31, 2010
Messages
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Location
St. John's, NL, Canada
I recently purchased a new 2009 FJR. I reside on the island of Newfoundland, the most easterly landmass in North America. To shorten my story I will simply say that for economic reasons I purchased my bike from a Yamaha dealer on the mainland portion of Canada.

After buying the bike I next had to get it home. I debated flying to where the bike was and then driving it home (which Mr. Google tells me is a 2300km one-way trip over land and sea), versus having the bike shipped from there to here via several possible modes of transportation. While the roadtrip option was attractive, I ultimately decided to have it shipped via container ship to Newfoundland when a friend of mine, who happens to work with said shipping company, suggested I get a quote from them.

When I went to pick up the bike, I discovered it was shipped in a standard steel-frame motorcycle “crate” with just a large cardboard box covering it. As you can see in the pictures, I was lucky there was no damage as the box was in shreds. The bike itself was absolutely filthy. The dealer insisted there would be no assembly necessary, just take it out of the box and drive away. I should have known better, but I took him at his word. Luckily, another friend who I brought along with me is very mechanically minded and we managed to put the relatively undamaged bike together so I could drive away.

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The only problem with my shipment, other than a minor scuff on the tank and in my opinion a lacklustre attempt by the dealer at taking care of my bike, was the fact that I was missing the matching side cases. I picked up the bike late on a Friday evening. I immediately called the dealer and left a message about my missing bags. I called again the next day and his story was that he wasn’t sure where the bags were and that he would check with his guys and get back to me on Monday. I made yet another long-distance call on Monday, only to have him tell me that his guys insist the bags were in the crate, they were nowhere to be found at the dealership, so I should contact the shipping company.

I contacted the shipping company and their first response was that they only took the job as a favour to my friend, that they don’t normally ship motorcycles, and the insurance I paid for only covered a total loss in case the ship sank or the bike was lost overboard, not individual pieces that may or may not have been there in the first place. That was the first time either of those points were ever brought up to me.

The present state of affairs is that I am in the process of making an insurance claim to recover partial cost of the bags. I initially paid $170 for insurance and there is a $500 deductible. So at a price of $685 per replacement bag, if I am awarded the insurance claim I will still be out the price of one side case. I love the new bike, but the whole side case issue has sort of put a sour taste on it all, partially because I’m not 100% convinced that the bags were shipped at all by the dealer and that he is just trying to screw me over. If you look at the pictures, there is very little room inside the crate to fit in 2 side cases. I don’t know the exact measurements of the side cases, but the dealer insists that they were in their original Yamaha cardboard boxes, he estimated a size of about 30”x20”x20” per side case, and that they were somehow tie-wrapped to the frame. The front wheel was tie-wrapped to the rear of the frame, at the point where there is a piece of cardboard wrapped around the steel frame member. That tie-wrap had let go during shipping and the wheel was not secured in place when I picked up the bike. I don’t know if 2 more relatively chunky boxes would have fit elsewhere in the crate.

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If anyone can offer suggestions on how they would proceed I would greatly appreciate it. Maybe someone knows the exact dimensions of the box that a side case arrives in. Do you think I should continue to make an insurance claim? (I requested documents from the dealer over a week ago to include with my claim and I am still waiting, after 2 verbal phone requests and one email). Or do you think I should go after the dealer and insist he send me a set of side cases? Will threatening to go to Yamaha Canada scare him? The dealer I bought the bike from is a certified Yamaha dealer, they have 3 locations and are listed on Yamaha Canada’s website. In my early email discussions with the dealer about buying the bike, I quickly learned I could not ask any more than one question at a time because he would only ever answer the last question I posed.

All in all, it has been a frustrating experience. Like I said I love my new bike, I think it is a great machine, and I look forward to putting a lot of happy km behind me while riding it. I only want my side cases. Any comments or suggestions welcome.

 
If anyone can offer suggestions on how they would proceed I would greatly appreciate it. Maybe someone knows the exact dimensions of the box that a side case arrives in. Do you think I should continue to make an insurance claim? (I requested documents from the dealer over a week ago to include with my claim and I am still waiting, after 2 verbal phone requests and one email). Or do you think I should go after the dealer and insist he send me a set of side cases? Will threatening to go to Yamaha Canada scare him? The dealer I bought the bike from is a certified Yamaha dealer, they have 3 locations and are listed on Yamaha Canada’s website. In my early email discussions with the dealer about buying the bike, I quickly learned I could not ask any more than one question at a time because he would only ever answer the last question I posed.

All in all, it has been a frustrating experience. Like I said I love my new bike, I think it is a great machine, and I look forward to putting a lot of happy km behind me while riding it. I only want my side cases. Any comments or suggestions welcome.

If I recall correctly, the side cases are shipped seperate from the bike. Not in the crate. There was a problem in 2006 when the side cases were not arriving at the dealers at the same time as the bike. (back in the days when you had to pre-order your bike)

 
Correct on the 06 side case issue, mine came in about a week after the bike arrived at the dealer. According to my dealer at the time, side cases for all the Yamahas, not just the FJR are shipped separate from the bike.

 
I don't see any place inside that crate where a pair of sidebags would fit, regardless of how they were wrapped. I would contact Yamaha directly and ask them how they are shipped.

Perhaps there is someone on the forum who lives near the dealer you bought from who could make an inquiry in person for you.

 
Glad you got that poor thing outa that cage. Breaks my heart to see it so mistreated like that...

 
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Having read this board for a few years, I have seen it stated many times that the bags are packed and shipped separately from the motorcycle. My dealer also stated this when I picked up my 2006 - I rather doubt it has changed in the last 4 years. As well, bags are not standard in all markets, so it makes sense they are not shipped with the motorcycle.

Suggest you do the following - call Yamaha Canada offices to try and get some assistance. Call one or more large dealers to verify that 1) bags are standard equipment in Canada (not much doubt about this), and 2) they are packed/shipped separately.

Did you use a credit card in this transaction? Consider disputing the charges. Given the dealer has willfully failed to ship your complete purchase, you have been defrauded as well. Consider contacting the constabulary in your and/or their locale - nothing lights a fire beneath a recalcitrant businessman faster than the prospect of legal problems.

 
Bags are shipped separately, each in its own box, but their lock cylinders are on the bike under the seat. (That way the bags work with the same key. Should find three locks, one for each side case, and one for the optional top case.) Dealer setup involves installing the windshield and front wheel, and installing the locks into the side cases. Those screws on the lock cylinders require blue Loc-Tite or they will eventually vibrate loose and fall out.

Your bags exist, it's entirely possible they haven't arrived at the dealer from Yammy, yet.

The crate you received is how the dealer recieves it. They didn't pack it like that, it comes in that crate from Yamaha. We can only assume it didn't look like that when the dealer received it, but we really have no way of knowing.

 
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Bags are packaged and shipped separately so keep on the dealer with the knowledge that somebody lied at the dealer. I've found that due to the low volume, many dealers know little to nothing about the FJR. I've had to do some educating of my Yamaha Dealer.

Not to make light of the situation but there may be a set of new, still in the box, '09 FJR sidebags coming up for sale on ebay! :rolleyes:

I trust that the savings over buying local were substantial so take solace in the fact that you are still ahead.

See you at CFR2011! :D

 
Same as the others have said here. The bags for my 07 were shipped separately, in fact my dealer wouldn't let me take delivery for a week until the bags arrived.

 
Make sure you get the soft bags with your hard bags
That is, there are also fitted luggage liners that go inside the side cases, and come with them. All of which is shipped separately from the bike.
The dealer is a dipshit, the luggage always come separately. Partly because they don't fit in the crate with the bike, partly because they were (originally) an accessory (although I believe they're standard equipment in all markets now).

 
Make sure you get the soft bags with your hard bags
I'm not sure if this is still true, but Canuckistanian FJRs did not come standard with the soft bags inside the hard cases at one time...it was an optional item for the boys and girls up north.

Maybe that has changed??

 
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Make sure you get the soft bags with your hard bags
That is, there are also fitted luggage liners that go inside the side cases, and come with them. All of which is shipped separately from the bike.
In the US, the saddle bag liners are typically part of the total package for a new bike along with the saddle bags themselves. Unless Yamaha Canada has changed their policy in the last year or so, that is not the case in Canada. Here, you have to purchase the saddle bag liners separately.

 
Thanks for all the encouragement folks. Today I sent an email to Yamaha Canada customer service via their website, asking if the bags are shipped separate from the bike, their response was:

"The side cases are shipped separately from the actual unit. I would not recommend trying to fit them in the crate."

My next move will be to call the dealer and nicely tell him that the jig is up, you owe me a set of side cases, and a topcase for all my pain and suffering.

As for the side case liner bags, as far as I know they are not standard equipment in Canada, unlike the US unfortunately.

Thanks again everyone. This forum is a great resource.

 
Well, after this initial bit, I'm sure you're gonna enjoy that bike.

Come down and visit us in the States sometime...your brethren often do...and we don't mind 'em one bit...'cept that one guy...you know the one...that drinks too much. :D

 
I recently purchased a new 2009 FJR. I reside on the island of Newfoundland, ...for economic reasons I purchased my bike from a Yamaha dealer on the mainland portion of Canada.I ultimately decided to have it shipped via container ship

When I went to pick up the bike, I discovered it was shipped in a standard steel-frame motorcycle “crate” with just a large cardboard box covering it.

The dealer insisted there would be no assembly necessary, just take it out of the box and drive away.

I was missing the matching side cases.

Any comments or suggestions welcome.
As everyone has said: the sidecases (luggage) are shipped separately in big cardboard boxes (probably by UPS?).

The crate you received is how the dealer recieves it. They didn't pack it like that, it comes in that crate from Yamaha.
'wfooshee' is correct -- which brings up a larger issue: the selling of a new highway-use motor vehicle without dealer assembly and prep. I think the selling dealer could lose his franchise and may have run afoul of federal law, too?

AFAIK, it is forbidden by Yamaha (and other manufacturers) to sell to the public factory-crated, unassembled and checked over, motorcycles? (not to mention the little speech they're obligated to deliver, in-person, to help insure proper operation...).

 
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