My own stupidity?

[drowe531]

So I just recently purchased my first bike, and possibly out of my excitement and stupidity I may be having to pay half the bike in just one maintenance bill.

I bought the bike in the beginning of June for 1900. Its a 2004 Ninja 250 but the problem that I overlooked was there was 11,500 miles on it. So i got an estimate from Reynold's on the 12,000 mile maintenance and its going to cost around $800 for it. The guy was nice when I bought it from him and said I could call him if there were any problems but i'm now just unsure how I should go about asking him about this. He knew it was my first purchase of a bike so i didn't know everything.

So how would you go about talking to the guy or am I just stuck?

[JohnnyV]

What is involved in the maintenance? I owned a Ninja250 from 6k-20k miles and all I did for maintenance during that period was regular oil changes, carb cleanings, plugs, and valve adjustments and the bike ran mint for the entire time I owned it.

It is a very simple bike to work on. Don't take it to a dealership. Pick up a repair manual, acquire a basic metric tool set and some feeler gauges and take care of the repairs yourself for short money.

[RyanNicholson]

There are a million and one ways to go about getting service done on your bike on the cheap... learning to do it yourself will save you thousands down the road as well. Also unless the bike is having serious issues, don't worry about hitting the 12k service on the dot... just know certain things will need to be checked on.

Pick up a service manual, it'll explain how to do everything... and find a buddy thats mechanically inclined to help you out. Grab some beers and enjoy!

Congrats and welcome to the world of riding man!

[OreoGaborio]

Wirelessly posted (Samsung Lube.... Er, Glyde: Mozilla/5.0 440x240 Samsung SCH-U940 NetFront/3.4)

You're probably gonna pay 800 bucks for an oil change and inspection. That bike is still a baby at that milage. Take your money elsewhere.

[obsolete]

I'd be more concerned with the rapage that dealership is trying to put on you. You've already got the best advice in this thread. Go forth and spin wrenches.

[Jaynnus]

Save your money...and ask for some help. Some basic maintenance and your good to go.

[Kitt]

you got a good deal, prepare for laughter if u call the seller, get a maintenance schedule from the owners manual and post up for tips - there's nothing too complicated or time consuming for that maintenance interval.

[drowe531]

Thanks for the answers, I guess that takes car of my other question of how necessary is it also? Anyone in the Portland, area that may be willing to help me out, cause lets just say i'm far from mechanically inclined

[elissama]

Do the maitenance yourself. Spend $50 on a shop manual for it and get valuable experience.

[DucDave]

Thanks for the answers, I guess that takes car of my other question of how necessary is it also? Anyone in the Portland, area that may be willing to help me out, cause lets just say i'm far from mechanically inclined

Best question yet....if you don't have the knowledge or ability don't fuck around without some good guidence...else, the 800.00 might seem trivial if you fuck something up really good. Even draining the oil can lead to big problems if you're completely clueless.

If you haven't got anyone near you that is at least a little knowledgable, than consider calling a couple of other dealers. Ask for a price for an Oil and Filter change. THen ask about a tuneup and what's included. Finally, ask when valves need adjusting and what they'd charge for that.

And, if you don't have the owners manual which shows recommended service intervals, at least get one of those so you know what's recommended when.

[JohnnyV]

Thanks for the answers, I guess that takes car of my other question of how necessary is it also? Anyone in the Portland, area that may be willing to help me out, cause lets just say i'm far from mechanically inclined

You should be able to find someone here somewhat close to you that could guide you through the maintenance the first time around.

I will say however that as simple as it may seem, when doing an oil change BE SURE TO USE A TORQUE WRENCH on the drain plug when putting it back in. It is VERY easy to strip the threads even using a small socket wrench, and a $10 oil change could easily turn into a $100 repair to fix it.

[RyanNicholson]

You should be able to find someone here somewhat close to you that could guide you through the maintenance the first time around.

I will say however that as simple as it may seem, when doing an oil change BE SURE TO USE A TORQUE WRENCH on the drain plug when putting it back in. It is VERY easy to strip the threads even using a small socket wrench, and a $10 oil change could easily turn into a $100 repair to fix it.

done that

[BLACK SQUIRREL]

Thanks for the answers, I guess that takes car of my other question of how necessary is it also? Anyone in the Portland, area that may be willing to help me out, cause lets just say i'm far from mechanically inclined

PM Kurlon On the Forum He is local to you and is a Damm good Wrench I am sure He would help you if you pay him a little

He like Hambugers and Cola

[Kurlon]

Call Moto Milano in Windham, see what they quote, that'll give you an idea of a more reasonable shop charge. As a bonus, they'll actually DO the work they charge for if you go that route. I don't know if Street Cycles in Falmouth will work on a Kawi or not but they're a decent shop, Power Wheels in South Portland and Maine Cycle in Auburn I can't comment on as I've no experience with either for repair/maint. I haven't heard anything bad about them so...? Reynolds is just as likely to wipe down your valve cover and oil filter, wave their magic 'valve adjustment wand' over it, and send you on your way walking funny and bleeding in an unusual place... The only thing I'll go to Reynolds for is to sit on their inventory. If I'm going to buy something, or have it worked on I'll go somewhere else.

Edit: I assume the bike is running OK otherwise, yes?

[drowe531]

Well unfortunately i did take it to them because the bike was having problems starting up, and i hadn't found this forum yet and didn't know other motorcycle shops but they were just fixing the issue of the bike not starting up properly, i did cancel them doing the 12,000 maint. So i believe after they fix the starting up issue the bike runs fairly normal. Thanks for the advice and i'll go some of those guys a call

[Kurlon]

Have you gotten an explanation for the hard starting yet? And what was it doing, not wanting to turn over, turning over but not firing, the "Insert Credit Card and ok the charge" light flashing on the dash?

[drowe531]

Unfortunately I went with a partial insert credit card option. If i remember correctly it was a carb issue. I'll take it as a learning thing this time and reach out sooner next time for help I need. It was nice to find a forum for the area with people very willing to help. Like I said i just got my licence May 31st (birthday gift ) and then got the bike a week later. So i still have plenty to learn and this was just one thing i learned

[Pittenger5]

EX Maintenance: Put gas in it, ride it.

[drowe531]

I've been trying to ride it but its been a little bit wet up here. I think June was something like 26 days of rain. I started going stir crazy just getting the license and bike and seeing nothing but rain

[Honclfibr]

Many people sell vehicles at or around major maintenance intervals. If I told you I just had an $800 service performed a week before I sold you the bike, would you believe me? Would the bike then be worth $800 more to you?

[richw]

If the valve adjustment is bucket shims then some skill and expense needed

If its screw adjusters then its a total rip off

800 that would be 10 hours plus parts ridiculous in any case.

There are guys here that would do it for short money just drag it there in a pick up

[Honclfibr]

Barbie explains how to adjust the valves on an EX250

[schleppy]

Everything, and I mean EVERYTHING you'd need to know about the EX250 is here:
http://faq.ninja250.org/wiki/Main_Page

Enjoy!

[SVRACER01]

oh shit! theyre screw and lock nut? psshhh do it yourself. get everything you need (feeler gauges, wrenches, etc.) and ill drive to Portland and help ya. its only an hour or so for me.

[kbroderick]

I've put about 17k on my 250, and I've done all the maintenance myself. As noted above, ninja250.org is an awesome resource. Valves scared me the first time and now take about three hours if everything goes smoothly. The kawi tool does help.

If I can be a resource, just drop me a line.