Finally!

[Boog]

Well my 15 R3T (with 500 miles on it) developed an oil leak so I had to put it in the shop for some warranty work. Turns out it was a leaking head gasket. I took the bike in the day after Thanksgiving and did not get it back till Dec 30th (they blamed Triumph not getting them the parts, techs that quit, etc.) missing over a month of, for the most part, great riding weather. Glad to say I have been able to ride every day since then even though the weather has not been the greatest (well, for us). Better late than never I guess. I am glad to be among the riding class again!

I had to check the date again considering where you are; I thought the only bad weather there was between late May and September...

 

[Azisbest]

I had to check the date again considering where you are; I thought the only bad weather there was between late May and September...

We do have a few days here and there where the weather is not the best in winter. But what i call bad weather is probably pretty fair in other locations. The good thing is that even during our miserably hot months you can leave early in the morning and be in the cool pines in a couple of hours making year round scooting very viable. But make no mistake, fall winter and spring are the prime seasons in the desert.

 

[alpental]

Well my 15 R3T (with 500 miles on it) developed an oil leak so I had to put it in the shop for some warranty work. Turns out it was a leaking head gasket. I took the bike in the day after Thanksgiving and did not get it back till Dec 30th (they blamed Triumph not getting them the parts, techs that quit, etc.) missing over a month of, for the most part, great riding weather. Glad to say I have been able to ride every day since then even though the weather has not been the greatest (well, for us). Better late than never I guess. I am glad to be among the riding class again!

Head gasket or valve cover gasket? The gasket leaks on newer Rockets are typically right behind cylinder 1 on the exhaust side.

 

[Azisbest]

Head gasket or valve cover gasket? The gasket leaks on newer Rockets are typically right behind cylinder 1 on the exhaust side.

The dealership told me it was the head gasket and they did replace that according to the paperwork. So the valve cover gasket is suspect as well? I have not looked for the origin myself. Could the tech have made an error in his diagnosis?

 

[Ishrub]

Or if the tappet cover gasket is now leaking they screwed it up when refitting after doing the head gasket. Over-torquing tappet cover or mis alignment could possibly distort gasket.

How many shop mechanics/apprentices use torque wrenches with CORRECT specified value on every bolt? Probably Nil, nada, zilch.

 

[breeze]

Before they were bought by Ridenow they were Arizona Superbike. They were never a very good dealership but they used to have a great head mechanic. He left to start his own shop, his name is Kyle. Unfortunately since you're still under warranty you are stuck with one of the dealerships. You could try GoAZ in Scottsdale. At least they're not owned by Ridenow. The best dealership was on 7th Ave in Phoenix but they closed years ago. If you need anything out of warranty I'd go to Kyle's shop. Here's a link:

2 Guyes Garage | Valley Motorcycle Service Shop

highly agree kyle and /or adam do run a very good shop in my opinion i travel all the way there(5 to 6 hour ride one way) if and when i need any work done that i dont want to or cant do myself.once again two very stand up fair knowledgeable mechanics

 

[TRIIICK]

All I ever hear when members on here talking about Triumph dealers is just nightmares. I hope that there will never be a problem on my bike that I can't fix myself. If it's beyond my capabilities then I will have to take it in. However there is a place called Motorcycle Technologies less than 3 miles from my house. He mainly works on Harleys. However I've been in the back and talked to the guy and he seems real knowledgeable about bikes working parts. At the time he had a Harley that the rod broke and showed me the damage. I might ask him to fix my bike if needed. I'm trying to get him to buy a dyno but he seems reluctant to buy one. He seems to be on the fence about it. His business was less that 100 yds from my house at one time but he moved and bought his own location instead of renting a place.

I understand that it takes time to receive parts since 95% places don't stock Triumph parts. If I order something from BikeBandit it takes 3 weeks or more to get the parts. I would assume a Triumph dealer might receive their parts expedited compared to a regular joe but I could be wrong.

Finding a good dealer is like finding a needle in a hay stack. When you finally get one your comfortable with they either go out of business, retire, are over 100 miles away or they stop working on Triumphs. That's been my dilemma since 2005. Anything goes wrong with the RK.."you can pick it up in a day or two"...Kinda like a mail order bride from Russia you may be in love with her but you have to go the extra yard to be happy..!

 

[Rick Morris]

I am in the same boat as TRIIICK when it comes to a solid Trumpet dealer. The one close by in Halifax closed, we have one near the RI line that doesn't stock any parts and is a used car and Suzuki dealer, the other is north of Boston. But at this point everything that has had to be done I have done it. Ordering parts can be tough, I use Bike Bandit and they take forever to deliver. I have to do a valve cover gasket now as it has popped out in the front right hand corner I see so often on here. But overall it has been a great bike so I haven't had a dealer service issue yet. Knock on wood, or simulated wood.

 

[TRIIICK]

I am in the same boat as TRIIICK when it comes to a solid Trumpet dealer. The one close by in Halifax closed, we have one near the RI line that doesn't stock any parts and is a used car and Suzuki dealer, the other is north of Boston. But at this point everything that has had to be done I have done it. Ordering parts can be tough, I use Bike Bandit and they take forever to deliver. I have to do a valve cover gasket now as it has popped out in the front right hand corner I see so often on here. But overall it has been a great bike so I haven't had a dealer service issue yet. Knock on wood, or simulated wood.

I really miss that Halifax dealer,he had everything and sent his mechanics out to school just for the Rocket. I've been going to Plympton Cycle off Rt.106 they have that special jack for changing the tires. They are experienced mechanics and reasonably priced. A&C Motorcycles - Motorcycle Sales Service & Accessories A&C cycles in Middleboro has a couple Rocket clients that swear by him...

 

[NCJack]

Head gasket or valve cover gasket? The gasket leaks on newer Rockets are typically right behind cylinder 1 on the exhaust side.

Hello alpental, I have a 2013 R3R, and the slight oil leak I'm experiencing is just as you describe. Oil appears to be seeping out around the cam cover gasket at the front corner on the exhaust side of the engine. I'm tempted to replace the gasket myself. I have a shop manual and have done light mechanical work over the years, but I haven't done this particular job on any of the Rockets I've owned. Would you advise me to leave this job for a Triumph mechanic? Thanks!