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?
