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Safety Recall


Guest ROUSE

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Datapoint:

Recall parts ordered April 1st. They are in now. I dropped the bike off yesterday and I should get it back tomorrow.

Point is, wait until the service guy says he has the parts in hand before surrendering your bike!!

I would have but he would not order the parts without my bike being there i even tried giving him the vin # but no dice

Guys,

On the recall letter, there's a Honda Customer Service number.

Use it! It helped expedite my order.

It did also help that my local dealer did not want to store my bike yet was willing to order the parts with my Vin#. They are running a VFR waiting list at their shop. (Kudos to Mission Motorcycle in Daly City CA)

After 3 months of being on the waiting/backorder list I called the Cust.Service line. They were very professional, apologetic even, recorded my information assigned a case number and proceeded a parts tracking with weekly callbacks of status.

It took almost 3 weeks from that point (they said they were tracking an order from overseas, sounds believable based on the posts)

My local dealer called to set an appt. and it was done, front and batt. harness on the day I dropped it off. (About 2 weeks ago)

I was not experiencing any shorting or burnt wiring leading up to this but have gained a peace of mind knowing it is done as we roll into the heavier riding season here.

I have proceeded to install a set of heated grips using a relay running off the lic. plate light. So far so good!

Regards,

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Ok, I finally convinced the local dealership to order the part without having my bike in their shop! They said they'd know within 5 days if the part was on backorder. The also told me about the PCV safety recall and said they would perform that test when they were putting on the harness. They were kind enough to inform me to be prepared because if the bike fails the PCV test they must keep the bike until it is repaired and they will have to order the part.

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Pretty much took the standard 3 weeks to get it done, but mine has finally had the warranty work done. (I was in the 'back ordered' category.) It figures, I took the bike in when the roads and temperatures were barely acceptable for riding, and the very next week the warm weather arrives with a vengeance. And to give the dealership the benefit of the doubt, they were hampered by the same thing as the Red Sox (which some of us suspect also has exaggerated the truth) with many key employees out with the flu.

I had the bike's oil changed while it was there, so the comparison between before & after is not as controlled an experiment as possible, but it definitely feels like its running better when the flat spot @ 4K RPM not as flat as I remember. Low end snatchiness is also a little better, but still there as I discovered in the parking garage this morning (nothing like watching a concrete pillar suddenly dart towards you to get your attention). I really have to do something about that this year, starting with double checking the throttle cable slack.

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Ok, I took my bike in and they said the harness recall work had already been completed? I purchased my VFR from the original owner and we had specific discussions about how he had NOT had the recall completed and he even provided me with the recall letter that Honda sent him. The mechanic told me that the recall harness looked different (he said different colored connectors and additional connectors?). I called Honda Customer Service and they showed that my VFR needed the recall work still. Customer Service called the dealership and when the mechanic explained what he saw Honda agreed that the work had been performed??? Can anyone tell me if the new harness does use different color connectors or how I could visually tell for myself if the work has been completed (I don't see how the original owner wouldn't have known)? The original owner says the only electrical issue ever fixed was the R/R. Did that fix change the harness at all? The mechanic was comparing the harness on my bike to one he had removed from another VFR for the recall. The way it looks/sounds, my VFR is going to end up with out the recall but with Honda thinking it was done.

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Guest viffer05

Finally got my bike back after a week. According to the zero dollar amount invoice I received, this was a 1.3 hour job. Apparently I was victim to poor scheduling on their part. :blink:

Looks like I got the front harness and the main fuse wiring replaced.

A tank of gas later and I have noted that the VTEC engagement is smoother. Is that weird? Other than that, it seems to be a successful job!

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Guest Keondgo

Well, I went to Triangle Cycles in Danville, VA in February. Told them I wanted to get the recall done. The service guy looked it up and said yes we need to order the harness. I am 1.5 hours away, so he graciously said "we'll get the part and give you a call and you can ride up here , we'll put the harness on and you can go home that day to keep from driving so far twice." This would work out great. They called me 2 days later and let me know know that Honda was telling them it was backordered until May. A couple of weeks later I got a call that they had the part and would make room for me on that Friday. (80 degrees and sunny) This was mid April. My only bad experience was watching the tech take my bike apart to get to the harness. It took 3.5 hours to change and check out the other wires. I can honestly say he didn't take a break while working on it. It was pretty involved. Great ride home too. Even though this dealer is 1 hr more away than 2 other Honda dealers I will return. Great guys.

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<snip descr. of harness swap.> Even though this dealer is 1 hr more away than 2 other Honda dealers I will return. Great guys.

Comparing notes with other 6th Gen owners here in the People's Republic of Massachusetts, I've found that some dealers are definitely better at this recall than others. Admittedly, my bike was the first one done by the dealer nearest me, and had I known that, would have gone elsewhere, because at my age, I put a dear price on my patience. Meanwhile, my bike has run like a top since I've gotten it back, so no complaints on the quality of the work. But definitely, if you can find a dealership who's done the recall before, seriously consider that service department over those that clearly haven't done it before.

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Wish me luck. I drop mine off after work tomorrow.

They've had it a full day and haven't even started it yet. :fing02:

Got it back today. So far the only complaint is that they didn't reset my clock. I've only driven it 5 miles and haven't had time to look it over in detail, but everything appears to in working order.

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The wire harness replacement has been completed on my '03 -- not by a dealer, but by me. Why, you may ask, would I do that?

Read on......

First, a little background. The main wire harness was replaced under warranty in June 2004, due to the usual symptoms of no headlights, relays buzzing, and engine cut-out when the turn signals were used. That is the only time my VFR has ever been back to the dealer, and, since then, I've had no electrical problems.

But, with the wire harness recall, I'm thinking that I ought to get it done, because there are changes in the front sub-harness that should improve reliability. So, I contacted the dealer where I bought the bike, and they agreed to order the harness and call me when it came in. In a few days, I called the dealer and was told that the harness was not available. Now, I knew from reading the posts on vfrd that the non-availability problem affected the 2004-2005 models, but I wasn't sure about the 2002-2003 models. So, I called the Honda Customer Service number as a double check and was told that there were several kits available for my bike.

OK, back to the dealer, and I politely told them they had been trying to order the wrong kit. One strike against them.

Since I never had the proportioning control valve (PCV) recall done, I thought this would be a good time for that, too, even though I had already accomplished the PCV inspection several times and found it to be within spec. I made this clear to the dealer, but they ordered a PCV valve before completing the inspection, which is in violation of the service bulletin.

I'm thinking that this is not a good sign, and it may be a case of the dealer wanting to get paid for 2.9 hours for the PCV inspection and replacement, rather than getting paid for 0.7 hour for the inspection only. The idea of taking my bike to the dealer for anything causes me great anxiety to begin with, much less tearing into it for unnecessary work, with all the risk of screw-up’s and damage that that entails. Strike two against the dealer.

I made it clear to the dealer that they were NOT to change the PCV valve without my specific authorization. Oh, and I didn't want any punch marks anywhere on my bike (Remember that thread?), as called for by the service bulletin procedures. Certain uncomfortable tensions were developing at this point between me and the tech who would do the work. To make a long story short, I became annoyed and concerned to the point where I canceled the appointment. Contributing to this decision were all the stories I had read here about unsatisfactory experiences with the dealers.

At this point, I said screw it and ordered the harness kit from Service Honda, part no. 06320-MCW-305. The cost was $121, plus $9.00 shipping. The harness and the battery cable have been installed by me, and I'm a happy camper. The out of pocket cost was worth it to me to avoid having to deal with the dealer and incur whatever anxiety and risk that entails. You have to understand that this dealer is very small with only one qualified tech, and when tensions developed between me and him, there was no way I felt even remotely good about taking my bike in for the recall work. I could have taken it to another dealer, but I really didn't have confidence in any of them at this point. Plus, the overriding consideration, I suppose, is that I am the paranoid type and prefer to do my own work when at all possible.

So, am I the only one here who has done the PCV and wire harness recalls themselves?

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I'm glad to hear someone else did this for themselves. I've had some bad experience already concerning the harness recall (one dealer kept claiming they couldn't get the harness and the other tells me it has already been completed and of course they tell me this after they order and have the parts...it hasn't been done). I've been contemplating ordering the kit and doing it myself. So much so that I priced the kit and I have the service bulletin outlining the repair.

Do you have the service bulletin for the PCV work? Could you send me a copy? The second dealer did perform the check but I'd prefer to see it pass for myself.

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I'm glad to hear someone else did this for themselves. I've had some bad experience already concerning the harness recall (one dealer kept claiming they couldn't get the harness and the other tells me it has already been completed and of course they tell me this after they order and have the parts...it hasn't been done). I've been contemplating ordering the kit and doing it myself. So much so that I priced the kit and I have the service bulletin outlining the repair.

Do you have the service bulletin for the PCV work? Could you send me a copy? The second dealer did perform the check but I'd prefer to see it pass for myself.

zx5go,

I've sent you a PM.

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Okay, Here's my own story....

Didn't know about the recall even with frequent visits in this site (slaps forehead) anyway, it was revealed to me when I was getting a new key (lost one of the originals). They checked it all as required, and the bike only needed the front harness done. I checked it out myself and agreed that there wasn't any sign of scortching in the plug. This was about March. They had no trouble getting the parts and the recall was done about a week later.

Fast Forward to this afternoon. The bike is in for a 72K km service. Only comment.. Now the rest of the harness is trashed. The bike is fine at the moment while they await parts, but basically they are up for the recall again. They are going to redo the work they did last time, and replace the rest of the harness, and a new stator. My comment... "Well hope you enjoy it!" I can only assume that there was damage earlier on that was not evident from a visual check of the plug (where the main joins the front)

Not sure if there's a lesson there, but its something to keep an eye on.

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I took my bike in last Wednesday(5/21/08) and had a bit of a snafu. The parts guy asked me the year of the bike, got a harness in, took two weeks. Bike got there, wrong harness for mine. Called Honda, harness was shipped overnight and arrived the next morning. They get everything out of the box, and Honda didn't send the harness for the front section. Actually asked the dealership to take pictures because of the severely melted plug on the main harness. Overnighted the parts to repair everything, got her this morning, and now she is done. As a matter of fact, the dealership double checked for any other recall issues and found another one that I wasn't even aware of for an LBS issue.

All in all, they have been great. According to the tech that is doing the work, this is the 6th VFR they have had in for the recall. Said he has it down to a science, and they have had zero complaints. They are even working around my crazy work schedule to help me pick her up tomorrow morning. According to the tech, EVERYTHING has been replaced. Brand new harness all around, new main fuse section. They even saw that I had my o2 sensors unplugged and asked me if that was ok, or they wanted them to put them back together. He said they started her, and checked everything for me, and that she sounds awesome in the shop. Seems they like those Laser pipes, lol.

All in all, kudos to Action Honda in Hudson Florida. John in the shop over there has been great and more than willing to help out and make sure to get back to me any time I call there.

Later,

Jeff

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Guest oz-e
The wire harness replacement has been completed on my '03 -- not by a dealer, but by me. Why, you may ask, would I do that?

snip ....

So, am I the only one here who has done the PCV and wire harness recalls themselves?

I also did the wiring harness recall myself .. tho in my case I didn't have to pay for it. Found an obliging dealer that got the harnesses in & mailed them to me. :laugh:

Curt ... Could you also please send me the tech note on the PCV recall check? I would appreciate checking that myself also.

TIA

Dave

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The wire harness replacement has been completed on my '03 -- not by a dealer, but by me. Why, you may ask, would I do that?

snip ....

So, am I the only one here who has done the PCV and wire harness recalls themselves?

I also did the wiring harness recall myself .. tho in my case I didn't have to pay for it. Found an obliging dealer that got the harnesses in & mailed them to me. :laugh:

Curt ... Could you also please send me the tech note on the PCV recall check? I would appreciate checking that myself also.

TIA

Dave

Dave,

Lucky you! But I don't understand how the dealer could pull that off, unless they made a warranty claim with Honda for warranty work on your VFR that they didn't accomplish. I think Honda would frown on that, to put it mildly.

Sent you a PM regarding the PCV recall service bulletin.

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My saga continues. Curt helped me BIG TIME by walking me through some of the differences between the pre and post recall harness and even sent some pictures. With his assistance I have determined that the dealership I took my bike to for the recall was completely wrong is saying my bike had already had the recall performed. It's not worth arguing with them since I have zero confidence in them and wouldn't want them touching my bike anyway. I called Action Honda in Bentonville, Arkansas and explained the situation to them, including the fact that my VIN was marked. They looked my VIN up on Honda's site and it showed that my bike required the recall, to which he said, "that's all that matters to us". He even said the PCV recall still showed open for my bike even though the other dealership claimed they performed that work while it was there.

Action Honda is going to call when the parts are in and I'll let you know how it turns out.

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Thought that I would let everyone know, I got mine back this morning. Rode her home from the dealership with no body work on (and my girlfriend behind me in her Sheriff's car, smile.gif)

Not only did it get fixed, and all the wiring being completely brand new, they also saw that I had a bad headlight, and replaced it free of charge, along with noticing that I was missing a bolt, and replacing that too!

On top of it, they met me at the dealership an hour earlier than they open and had her ready to go right out the door.

They let me know to call them should I notice anything wrong at all.

So, I guess I can be one of the ones that says he has absolutely no complaints.

YAY ME! :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :ph34r: :fing02: :fing02: :laugh: :biggrin: :biggrin:

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Oh oh... After waiting 4 months for the wiring harness, it finally arrived at local Honda dealer this week. Maybe too late... I've noticed my VFR turning over slower in last couple of weeks. This morning, it wouldn't start - battery was dead. Will look things over tonight when I get home from work, but I'm worried there is electrical damage to the charging system. Maybe I'll be lucky and it will only be the battery, but based on VFRD Forum, I'm skeptical...

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Thought that I would let everyone know, I got mine back this morning. Rode her home from the dealership with no body work on (and my girlfriend behind me in her Sheriff's car, smile.gif)

Not only did it get fixed, and all the wiring being completely brand new, they also saw that I had a bad headlight, and replaced it free of charge, along with noticing that I was missing a bolt, and replacing that too!

On top of it, they met me at the dealership an hour earlier than they open and had her ready to go right out the door.

They let me know to call them should I notice anything wrong at all.

So, I guess I can be one of the ones that says he has absolutely no complaints.

YAY ME! :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :3: :ph34r: :fing02: :fing02: :laugh: :biggrin: :biggrin:

Again with a burned out headlight.....

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Guest pserve

Hi, I ride an '04 VFR ABS with almost 9K miles on it. Bought new, no mods, and no complaints. Went down to the shop to ask about the recall today. The guy said that they've done a couple and were waiting on parts for a couple more. So, I'm looking at about 2 weeks to get it done (due to their service backlog), assuming they can get a kit in for me before then. Now is riding time, and I'd much prefer to do that if everything looks like it will be OK. I've gotten the idea that this a progressive problem, and that I should be able to tell what kind of shape I'm in by checking for evidence of trouble. I pulled the covers off and looked at the white 3-pin connector on the right side, the big blue connector on the left, and the 30-Amp fuse block by the battery. The first two were fine, and the fuse still looks alright even though it's seems to be getting a little warm. Is there anything else I should check? Also, while I was looking at it, I found a plug (black with green/brown wires) just hanging out in the breeze under there. If anyone knows what that's for, can you let me know? Thanks!

vfr2.jpg

vfr3.jpg

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Add me to the list of back orders. I bought my 04' VFR last July and never called Honda to get my address on file. I missed the recall letter and found out about it when it was too late. I was 250kms away from home when my bike just died. All the wiring is fried and my battery is completely dead. It was an expensive tow ride home. The bike is now at a Honda Dealership waiting for that new wiring harness. I called Honda Canada to ask about a new battery and received quite a rude response! I finally asked to speak to someone else and he just put me on hold to talk to someone. Once he came back on the phone he was much nicer about it and the battery might be covered. I am worried about my stator and my RR as well.

Sounds like everyone else managed to get the recall completed before they ran into any problems.

I am hoping to get my bike back soon as I am taking a race course with it. If I am miss this course I am going to have to wait until NEXT YEAR to take it. That would be really frustrating. :laugh: I have yet to start my 2008 riding season! grrrrrrrrr

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Hi, I ride an '04 VFR ABS with almost 9K miles on it. Bought new, no mods, and no complaints. Went down to the shop to ask about the recall today. The guy said that they've done a couple and were waiting on parts for a couple more. So, I'm looking at about 2 weeks to get it done (due to their service backlog), assuming they can get a kit in for me before then. Now is riding time, and I'd much prefer to do that if everything looks like it will be OK.

Hi and welcome to VFRD! :laugh:

I didn't see where you lived, but I would ride it all season and have it fixed over the winter instead of loosing the best riding weather.

Your 30 amp fuse looks great, did you pull the blue connector apart? It doesn't usually show a problem until it fails. :laugh:

Worse case I would just do the ground wire fix and keep riding until winter if your worried at all, otherwise just ride it until winter. :goofy:

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Guest pserve
Hi, I ride an '04 VFR ABS with almost 9K miles on it. Bought new, no mods, and no complaints. Went down to the shop to ask about the recall today. The guy said that they've done a couple and were waiting on parts for a couple more. So, I'm looking at about 2 weeks to get it done (due to their service backlog), assuming they can get a kit in for me before then. Now is riding time, and I'd much prefer to do that if everything looks like it will be OK.

Hi and welcome to VFRD! :goofy:

I didn't see where you lived, but I would ride it all season and have it fixed over the winter instead of loosing the best riding weather.

Your 30 amp fuse looks great, did you pull the blue connector apart? It doesn't usually show a problem until it fails. :warranty:

Worse case I would just do the ground wire fix and keep riding until winter if your worried at all, otherwise just ride it until winter. :fing02:

Thanks Bailey, but I'm grounded until this is fixed. I was going to do the R/R test today (charging V @ 5500 w/ lights), so the bike was running when I noticed some vapors near the fuse block. It was getting hot enough to burn the insulation right there in front of me. Apparently the failure is not progressive, all it needs to do is get too hot once, and failure will follow shortly. I did pull the blue connector apart, and the inside was still fine. However, I had 15.3V from the R/R to the battery just at idle, so that's bad too. sad.gif

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