Disappointed in Yamaha Service

[ccrayjr]

I have a '13 242 LS..(I bought the boat in '14). As with a lot of '13 242 LS models, I have the issue with the speakers. My boat has been at the dealer for 3 weeks on Saturday and they do not know when Yamaha will ship the new speakers for my boat. I spoke with Yamaha Customer Service and they could not tell me when the parts will ship or when I will have my boat fixed... back ordered they say. I am starting to loose my patience and confidence with the Yamaha product and support. It is looking like it might take an additional 3-4 more weeks to get all the parts in to fix it... I am I wrong to think this is a very excessive?
I spoke to a real nice poster today (MikeyL) and he raved about the new '15 242 and went real in depth with me on the features and upgrades (his knowledge is excellent), which I was considering upgrading within the year. If Yamaha cannot fix a my speakers in the boat, what will happen if something very serious happens??

 

[biglar155]

The biggest complaint I've heard about Yamaha is their poor customer service.

The good news is, there are a lot of folks here who will help you fix things yourself. The bad news is, if you want something fixed under warranty, you've got to deal with this garbage.

I brought my boat to a dealer for its first oil change and a few minor warranty items (at the END of the season) and was not impressed with the way things were handled.

For me it's a non-issue because I'd much rather work on the boat myself anyway (sometimes I enjoy tinkering almost as much as I enjoy actually using it) but I can see where for "normal" people this could be a real turn-off. Considering the cost of the new boats, it IS rather disheartening that things don't seem to have improved much.

I'm curious - a lot of guys here have bikes and 4-wheelers: Does Mother Yami have the same reputation among the motorcycle crowd for service as it does among us boaters? Inquiring minds want to know.

(I once had an '89 350 Warrior but I never brought it in for service so even though I've had other products, I've still had few dealings with their customer service.)

 

[ccrayjr]

This forum is an incredible resource with get members wanting and willing to help! I also like to tinker and have access to a lot of great machinery, but I can't do anything when it's a warranty issue. I personally think the time to fix is very excessive.

 

[Julian]

Your warranty experience will vary from dealer to dealer. The only warranty work I've had done was handled by Nielsens in Fox Lake IL and I was very impressed. I also had a situation where I had our boat in Canada and the key switch broke. Mother Yamaha wanted me to take the boat to the nearest dealer...but when they found out that I was out of the country and 8 hours from the nearest dealer, they worked out shipping via fedex to the border (an hour away) and paid for it all! AWESOME customer service.....

So your results may vary.

@ccrayjr - have you considered getting your boat back and having them call you when the parts are in?

 

[rkgdmd]

The short answer is....expect a very long wait. I just blew the starboard engine on my 2013 Limited. Had it one year, bought it new (leftover). 44 hours on the clock. Spun a rod bearing, so they tell me. Need new crankshaft, rod, piston, some valves and various other parts. Minimum 6 weeks....IF no parts on backorder. Apparently backorders are very common, so 6 weeks may not happen. That was six weeks after waiting one week to diagnosis the problem. Conceivably, you could lose a whole season with a major repair like this. Yamaha's service network...at least for boats...seems to be lacking. Parts availability is spotty at times and it seems many dealers just don't have the space and capacity to deal with the service side of the vehicles that they sell....at least that seems to be the case with my dealer. I ended up trading my 2013 on a 2015 Limited S. Hope I have better luck with this one!

 

[Bruce]

Why wait for the dealer to replace $20 a pair speakers. The old ones were poor speakers, the new ones will be just as bad only newer.

I would replace them with something you enjoy.

Service experience does vary from dealer to dealer. There probably are dealers who would offer you credit toward better speakers.

 

[spaz1868]

I was going to suggest what @Julian just suggested. I am currently waiting for a rear cushion for my boat that the dealer ordered under warranty. They let me keep the boat while the part is on order. That way I do not miss any boat time. And when the item arrives, I will take it to the dealer possibly even in the water to have them put the part on. Just another excuse to put the boat in and ride to the dealer.

 

[ccrayjr]

Bruce... It's kinda a principle thing with me... It's not the way I treat customers in my business. I really don't think I should have to put a full audio system in a $50k+ boat that is not a year old. The dealer is a good 2+ hours pulling a boat from my lake house one way and I travel a lot for work, so it is difficult to get there. From the way Yamaha treated me today, if they can't get it fixed... They can have it back.

 

[ccrayjr]

Julian.. I have considered that, but from what I understand all the speakers, audio etc have been removed. Also I'm looking at 8+ hours of total there and back pull time to do that. Not to mention $200 with of fuel.

 

[Julian]

Julian.. I have considered that, but from what I understand all the speakers, audio etc have been removed. Also I'm looking at 8+ hours of total there and back pull time to do that. Not to mention $200 with of fuel.

That's a good reason to leave it! If you are only waiting for replacement speakers, why not have them ship them to you? They are about the easiest things to install...

 

[ccrayjr]

I believe there is something else that is being done to it... Something with the wiring of the speakers. I am going to see if they will help me out with a different set. I think it is probably a good time to look at the new Chap Vortex 243... Change might be good.
I guess the biggest thing is the disappointment in the lack of anyone trying help from Yamaha. I will bet a full audio system will go out in a new boat tomorrow, but unwilling service an existing customer in a reasonable timeframe... That's what looses you a customer.

Thank you for all the ideas and help... You guys are priceless!!!

 

[ccrayjr]

Julian... I just noticed you are in Raleigh. I was there a couple weeks ago on business. Next time I'm in town, I owe you a beer! Thanks!

 

[robert843]

The biggest complaint I've heard about Yamaha is their poor customer service.

The good news is, there are a lot of folks here who will help you fix things yourself. The bad news is, if you want something fixed under warranty, you've got to deal with this garbage.

I brought my boat to a dealer for its first oil change and a few minor warranty items (at the END of the season) and was not impressed with the way things were handled.

For me it's a non-issue because I'd much rather work on the boat myself anyway (sometimes I enjoy tinkering almost as much as I enjoy actually using it) but I can see where for "normal" people this could be a real turn-off. Considering the cost of the new boats, it IS rather disheartening that things don't seem to have improved much.

I'm curious - a lot of guys here have bikes and 4-wheelers: Does Mother Yami have the same reputation among the motorcycle crowd for service as it does among us boaters? Inquiring minds want to know.

(I once had an '89 350 Warrior but I never brought it in for service so even though I've had other products, I've still had few dealings with their customer service.)

I have had 10 motorcycles in the last 17 years. In 2005 I bought a brand new Yamaha r1. Three months later it wouldn't start. The dealer had it 2 months and never figured out what was wrong they said it was electrical but that's all they knew. Traded it on a Suzuki Gsxr Im currently on my 6th Gsxr never lost one day riding to anything other then regular maintenance. That was my first and last Yamaha bike but as for the water toys they are supposed to be the best when it comes to reliability. Service from any of these dealers that sell boats and bikes can be bad or good I really think it all based on the dealer and how much they care. I agree with an earlier statement contact the dealer and see if u can work out a deal to upgrade them.

 

[OrangeTJ]

I certainly understand the frustration. When you spend good money on something like this you expect it to be perfect. Unfortunately, the reality is that boats from $20K - $20mm have problems. What is the "speaker problem"? If it is a bad speaker/speakers, it probably cost as much/more to tow it to the dealer than it would to just buy a better set of speakers and spend 45 minutes installing them in your driveway. These are not complicated audio systems by any stretch - a head unit and a pair of positive/negative wires to each POS stock speaker. The stock speakers in my SX210 were crappy enough that they may as well have been blown from the factory.

 

[Bruce]

Seems like this dealer is providing particularly bad service. I agree with asking them about upgrading the speakers. I know others have been able to get their dealers to credit Yamaha's warranty payment toward the purchase of a better head unit.

 

[TN888]

Even Yamaha has poor CS with dealers. Had $800 worth of warranty work done last year and Yamaha didn't reimburse my dealer till 4 months later. .....my dealer even agrees Yamaha can be difficult n slow at times.

 

[ccrayjr]

The 242 LS models has Polk speakers and had some speakers, head unit and speaker wiring issues. I understand there will be issues, but with anything there is a responsibility to repair warranty in a reasonable timeframe, thus the lemon law was created. If I try and pick it up and take it back to the lake and do it again when parts are ready, I'm looking at 8+ hours in transit. I have young twin girls, so family time is very important.... Not to mention I travel all week for business. I really like the new '15 242 LS and I was considering trading up, but seriously doubt I will buy another Yami. I purchased the 4 year YES EXTENDED WARRANTY, but I am having serious doubts on warranty parts and serviceability. Frustration and disappointment definitely describe how my kids feel, now that we won't have a boat for the third week now.

 

[Boat Crazy]

If you aren't getting the service from your dealership call mother Yamaha yourself, get a status of your situation from them. I personally, while talking with them would see if they would settle a set price towards you putting in an upgraded system. Not all dealerships are the same. The good ones will push mother Yamaha or work with the customer to resolve the problem quickly. If I can get an oil cooler replaced in 1 & 1/2 weeks from time of drop off to time of pick up, certainly they should be able to get a stereo and speaker problem resolved.

 

[ccrayjr]

Wow, 4 months to reimburse. I thought I was being treated like a mushroom.

 

[ccrayjr]

Boat Crazy... I called Yamaha CS today and they said they would expedite the parts, but could not give me a ship time... Back ordered. If you have another number, I would greatly appreciate it! They guesstimated 3-4 more weeks for parts! I will call Yamaha again tomorrow and see what they will do/help to upgrade and fix the speakers.