C50 first maintenance

[kraft]

Am new to this forum, purchased C50 in Feb,05 and scheduledfor first maintenance. Suzuki owners book says to change oil and final gear oil at 600 miles which I will do myself and to "inspect" valves. There are Suzuki authorized dealers in my area and I get a different answer from each.

Should I pay them 150-200 dollars to "inspect" or not and as far as changing the final gear oil, it seems simple but is there anything to be aware of? (besides not putting in enough oil)

This is my first bike in nearly 20 years and look forward to getting info from this forum.

[c50tiger]

$150 to $200 is awful high, but at the initial service they are should be going over that bike with a fine tooth comb... aside from checking valve clearance they should also be checking every nut and bolt to make sure nothing's vibrated loose.

[mr_resistible]

Hey welcome.... I am actually going to take my bike in to have the valves inspected. I hear that is a prety involved process. I think my local Suzuki guy said 3 hours. you have to tear down a lot to get into the engine enough to even get to the valves. So I am going to leave that to the professionals. But as far as just changeing the oil and the gear oil. Its prety easy. The gear oil you just drain it then fill it up till it starts to run out of the hole. There is no such thing as not putting in enough. Cause when its full it runs out. Make sure you use oils that are aproved for your bike. Dont use automotive oil. The worst part about changing the engine oil it that the filter is on really TIGHT. I broke one wrench trying to take it off. I recommend a socket type wrench and not a strap type. Also the Suzuki oil filter is a strange size and if you try to find a wrench to fit it in an autoparts store, you wont find one. You probalby have to order one from your Suzuki delaer. Its like a 51 or a 52 millimeter. Once you get the filter off, and install the new one. They say: Spin the new filter on till the gasket touches the engine case then turn it 2 full turns. I could only get mine on about 1-2/3 before my strap wrench crushed and bent up my shiny new filter. My dealer said $75 for a valve inspection and $125 for the whole deal.

[kraft]

thanks for the responses. I did contact a dealer today and they will do a valve inspection for $87 so that sounds reasonable.

[easyrider]

THanks for starting this thread. I purchased my 2004 three weeks ago and the dealer did not have a owners manual at the time. They sent off for one and said they mailed it a 1.5 weeks ago. I am still waiting. Since I purchased the bike from a dealer 300 miles away, I can't knock on the guy's door. The local dealer is also the HD, Yamaha and Polaris dealer, if you are not a HOG rider, good luck finding parts. I use to own a Intruder 1400 and the local dealer was running a record of 2/12, and this covered everything from bolts to filters to bolt on parts. I always had to order the parts. I finally found a good web page with OEM part numbers, but lost the bookmarked page when I rebuild my computer.

So thanks for the quote from the manual. I am just over 500 miles. I will schedule my 600 mile service appointment at a small dealership in the town 50.

[Faust294]

Checking the valve clearance only requires that you remove the tank, and is not as involved as the dealers want you to believe. Most of them just listen to the engine. The reason it takes so long is that hte bike needs to be completely cold before they do anything. So most dealers will ask that you leave it for at least 4-5 hours. If not over night.

[scarygt]

My dealer told me that they quit doing the valve inspection a few years back.. he said that the valves on these are good 99% of the time. I'm pretty sure he didn't check mine.

He did adjust all of my cables and checked all of the bolts. Also changed all of my oils.

I only took mine in to build a relationship with this particular dealership and to ensure that my warranty was still in tact. Plus they are alright with my aftermarket pipes!

[mr_resistible]

I talked to the mechanic that did mine. He quoted me 3 hours and he honored the 3 hour quote. But he said. "Next time I wont make that mistake again." It took him 4 hours and he was telling me how once you get it apart and pull the valve covers off you barley have any room to check and make adjustments. My front cylinder was good but all 4 valves on the back one were tight.

Awww man I just realized that I could saved a lot of money. I took my tank off once to install a light kit.

[BobandMary]

Originally Posted by mr_resistible

I talked to the mechanic that did mine. He quoted me 3 hours and he honored the 3 hour quote. But he said. "Next time I wont make that mistake again." It took him 4 hours and he was telling me how once you get it apart and pull the valve covers off you barley have any room to check and make adjustments. My front cylinder was good but all 4 valves on the back one were tight.

Awww man I just realized that I could saved a lot of money. I took my tank off once to install a light kit.

Are you saying it is hard to adjust the valves or what?
The tank comes off easily.

BobandMary

[av8r77]

That's why I bought a three year maintenance plan. It was an extra $1500 and it includes all my maintenance and extends the warranty to 36 months.

[mr_resistible]

If you know what your doing it can be easy. But its still time consuming. I could have actually done it myself. My mechanic had never done one before and in his labor manual it stated 3 hours for a valve inspection. And I would rather have him do it. I was just making a comment to the guy that said all you need to do is remove the tank. Well if thats the case. I removed my tank once and I must have acidentally checked my valves in the process and didnt even know it. Yep. And it sounds good to.... Consider them valves checked

But I think the guy that posted that has a Volusia. They don't have as much stuff piled on top of the engine as the C50. So they probably are eaiser to work on. I guess nobody needed my smart comment, but I couldn't resist.

[Suzuki new guy!]

I got my bike back last week after the 900 mile first maintenance service.
All was well except the clutch was very stiff. It had to be all the way out before the gears grabbed. I've gotten used to it but is this correct?
Please let me know.

[Faust294]

You can adjust the clutch so it lets out a little sooner. Just pull back the rubber sleeve on the clutch. There's a "wheel" under there that adjusts the clutch position. Just turn it till you get to the spot that's comfortable for you.

[fjm3rd]

I just picked up my bike from the dealer tonight for it's 600 mile checkup. I asked about the Valve adjustment during the 600 mile checkup and they told me they don't do the valves at that time. They say to have them checked and adjusted at the 7500 mile service and every 7500 miles after that. I asked the cost and he told me around 200.00 to check and adjust the valves. As for tonight's bill for just adjusting the cables and checking the bolts, oil filter and oil change and rear gear oil that came to 143.00. They got the first oil change I can change it from now on.

[ArmaghKev]

Called my local Dealership about the first service (600 miles), got a quote of $150, the dealer I bought my C50T from was asking $250? He also said valve inspection was not done at this service, even though the manual states it should be done??? Whats the low-down on this anyone, nessacery or not?

[fjm3rd]

Forgot to mention my service manager said when I asked about valves tapping and making noise. It's better if you can hear the valves then if you can't, explaining that the valves would be to tight if they aren't tapping a little and tight valves would be bad.

[mr_resistible]

Originally Posted by fjm3rd

I just picked up my bike from the dealer tonight for it's 600 mile checkup. I asked about the Valve adjustment during the 600 mile checkup and they told me they don't do the valves at that time. They say to have them checked and adjusted at the 7500 mile service and every 7500 miles after that. I asked the cost and he told me around 200.00 to check and adjust the valves. As for tonight's bill for just adjusting the cables and checking the bolts, oil filter and oil change and rear gear oil that came to 143.00. They got the first oil change I can change it from now on.

WOW!! Do you have an owners manual? Page 7-4

It says after 600 miles Inspect the valve clearance, then inspect it at 7500 and 14500. They don't say you have to adjust anything. But if it is out of spec it needs to be adjusted. But they do need to be instected. All 4 valves were tight on my rear cylinder and that can cause all kinds of premature wear on a new engine.

And that price sounds outrageous. It might be worth it to find a service manual and a competent motorcycle mechanic somewhere else. Thats what I would do. I think mine cost $83 If I had to pay $200 I would buy a service manual and some feeler gauges and do it myself.

[fjm3rd]

Originally Posted by mr_resistible

WOW!! Do you have an owners manual? Page 7-4

It says after 600 miles Inspect the valve clearance, then inspect it at 7500 and 14500. They don't say you have to adjust anything. But if it is out of spec it needs to be adjusted. But they do need to be instected. All 4 valves were tight on my rear cylinder and that can cause all kinds of premature wear on a new engine.

And that price sounds outrageous. It might be worth it to find a service manual and a competent motorcycle mechanic somewhere else. Thats what I would do. I think mine cost $83 If I had to pay $200 I would buy a service manual and some feeler gauges and do it myself.

Well they get 59.00 hr. I'll wait till 7500 miles and see if there noisey or not then decide on what to do

[mr_resistible]

I have been reading arround on this topic, and I read somewhere they set them up a little on the tight side. Everyone I have talked to said theres were tight. I wouldnt let mine go that long. I don't know what that would do with the warranty. It also might wear out the cams. But I would shop arround for a mechanic. Maybe find a guy that is willing to accept side jobs and pay him $50 bucks and a case of beer.

[NeilM]

My dealer quoted $180 for the first service on my C50. It's worth the expense to have the "experts" go over the bike with a microscope since the first service can often turn up the hint of problems. And after paying $250 for the first service on my wife's Burgman 400S, I don't feel so bad.