anonstarter wrote:Globs wrote:I read that as 15 service intervals to 42,000km, or in the south about £150 x 15 = £2250, comparing to a Piaggio X10 with an estimated 5 services at £150 x 5 = £750. I.e. buying a SYM is a false economy. I used to think it was a device to keep the dealership happy until I spoke to them about getting hold of parts etc which turned out to be a major irritant.
You must live in an incredibly affluent area!
£150 to do a basic service/inspection? It should be a lot less than that, even if they've handed it over to the trainee school leaver with a ticky list. We can only assume
Around Cambridge, so high rents, high business rates, decent wages needed just to pay the rent.
Putting a valve check in pushes it above £100, so if they are only every 6,000km instead of the current 3,000 that does make it cheaper. My last Joyride service was at a different garage and was a nice long thorough 6,000km one that cost me about £165.
Then of course I have to spend time getting there and leaving the bike, often that time I spend costs me more than the service because I get paid by the hour too.
anonstarter wrote:I can imagine it is a challenge time-wise to source some replacement parts - in common with most other brands - but not consumables. Oil, air filter, spark plug, belt, rollers, tyres, bulbs etc...
You need a better imagination, over the past couple of years of ownership buying an air filter for a GTS300 or a Joyride 200 was a major research project. Now there are one or two firms popping up with spares too, I'm still mystifies as to why I can't just download the tech. manuals and buy the bits direct (or via Amazon/eBay) from SYMUk. Finding a SYM dealer is not always easy and as I said the last one I spoke to was praising Suzuki service (next day on any part) and switching scooters to Kymco because their support is very good. And how many people here know Isotta sell great screens for the Joyride and GTS? Less than if they were on the main SYMUK site I can assure you. Those screens make a HUGE difference in comfort for riding, I would have moved on to another brand long before had they been unavailable.
anonstarter wrote: to point out the alleged false economy of ownership over
42,000km using the prices you've been charged in the past.
It's simple enough maths. I have covered 18,500km in two years, 42,000km is an easy target for 4 years when I'll buy a new scooter. A four year lifespan doesn't seem unusually long to me. So we're still talking about £1500 difference. If each service was half price we'd be at £750 price difference - still enough to make SYM uncompetitive. I can effectively sit on a Piaggio and knock £1000+ off the price with no effort at all.
anonstarter wrote:I dread to think what you must pay to have your car serviced!
I always service my own (15 year old) car, and have now started to service my SYMs too because an effective 40mpg isn't good enough: it's supposed to save money. My car does 45mpg.
anonstarter wrote:I guess one of SYM's USP's - to dealers - is that after buying the Scoot customers have to bring it in every 6 months for 'servicing' to validate the 3 year warranty - regardless of usage.
I thought that too, go and speak to some SYM dealers and ask them what their biggest headache with SYM is. Talk to them about how easy it is to get parts, backup, diagnostics. Ask them if they have the latest technical manuals to refer to. Chat to them, they are people running a business - not aliens!
SYM produce some fantastic machines, but no one will notice them at Motorcycle Live because there won't be a single SYM there: SYMUK said they need a £50k stand to look big but they are _not_ big in the Uk, most people have never heard of them and my experience is that even basic parts are difficult and slow to obtain and it's expensive to keep to the service schedule. Most of this is NOT the fault of SYMUK, the company has exactly the same image in the US. Also the specs of the new GTS300 are wrong on the SYMUK site but are ALSO wrong on the global site: It's a SYM problem, not just a UK one. The best place to own a SYM appears to be Taiwan and Malaysia
If SYM wants to compete in the UK it has to actually compete, staying away from the shows is a very disappointing move that does not endear me to the brand. Even a small table with a single scooter and a pile of brochures would do - some presence is far better than none at all. I'll be sitting on the Yamahas, Suzukis, the new Kwak, WK, Piaggio, BMW/Kymco etc and considering my next purchase, and wondering if it's really worth the trip to Bolton (or Spain) to see the new GTS300.
