Time for Service

My wife and I have owned our 2008 Yamaha V-Star 1300 for less than 8 months, but have already put in over 5000 miles. We purchased the bike with 3200 miles on it and as soon as it reached 3500 miles I took it to get serviced. Some people suggested that I could’ve saved money by doing it myself, but this is my first bike and I’m not very mechanically inclined. Also we live in an apartment building, so the DIY method is not exactly easy when you have constant traffic in and around the parking lot.

Last month we rode down to the Keys and on the way back at one of our stops I noticed that the rear tire was pretty worn out. The threads down the middle of the tire were almost all gone, so once we got back home I told my wife “no more riding until we get a new tire”. Unfortunately I had no idea bike tires were so expensive. Also you can’t just jack it up, take a couple bolts out and change it yourself (that much I did know..). So I went online as well as to a couple of local stores to get some quotes. Interesting enough the cheapest rear tire I could find ($145.00). That’s actually what I paid for two tires for my old Honda Civic.

To make matters worse, the bike is over-due for its regular 3500 mile service. So now I find myself having to buy a new tire, get it installed and get the maintenance done. The last time I did the maintenance the mechanic charged me $80.00, and the cheapest quote I got for the installation of the rear tire was $50.00 from Palmetto Motorsports. One of the Yamaha dealers in the area wanted to charge me $250.00 just for the maintenance. Talk about a rip-off.

So now I’m looking at a total cost of $275.00. In any other time of the year this might not seem like much money to spend on getting your bike in top condition, but for my wife and I the first 3 months of the year is usually the time when we are the tightest with money. If it’s not one thing it’s another, but spending $300 on the bike right now is not possible.

The sad part is that the weather here this time of the year is great for riding, and many of our riding friends are taking advantage of that and going on a few nice long rides. We had even thought about going to Daytona for bike week with a few friends and if it were just a matter of oil change I wouldn’t be too worry and gone, but with the rear tire so worn down, I won’t take that risk. As a matter of fact, after taking a closer look at the tire, I wouldn’t want to risk even going around town.

So it looks like for the next month or two we’re going to be cage bound. But I’m not too bummed out about it. I’ve noticed that this year a lot folks that normally go to Daytona have decided to stay home. The main reason of course is the economy. I expect to see a lot more short distance rides and events scheduled, and if we can’t get there by bike, well then we’ll just get there by car. After-all, it’s all about enjoying spending time with folks who have a common interest. Bikes!