Just been told £2000 to repair my FZ1S

[Streetbudgie]

After uttering every swear word possible this is what happened:

On the way home last night I noticed a high pitched whirring noise, I was only a mile form home so kept going, got home checked a few things and started her up again and all seemed ok.

Started it this morning seemd ok, got about a mile down the road and the engine light came on, turned round and went home but it dies after about 100 yards, pushed it home and called breakdown.

Breakdown have taken it to a main dealer who has just phoned and said that the generator has come apart and broken up and quoted me £800 for parts (generator / regulator / battery) and it wil be another £1200 labour - so a total bill of around £2000 plus they are not willing to gaurantee the work as they said parts of the magnets from the generator could have got in the engine and will cause more damage.

So I could agree to the work, they do it, then start it up and the engine is damaged further and I still owe them £2000

Obviously I'm not happy and a 2007 35k miles FZ1S is not worth investing another £2k in for a 'might fix it' solution.

They've emailed me some pictures which I'll try to post below.

Does this sound feasible to anyone?

Anyone else had a generator break up and ruin the engine?

How much does a replacement generator and rectifier really cost?

I am gutted beyond belief as I wanted to keep this bike until I retired and that would have been my last big bike.

[FILZ6]

Fowlers parts list shows :- Rotor £655.
                                      Stator £345.
                                Regulator £236.
Ouch.  :eek [size=78%] There is more than likely after market Regulators available, but don't know if you can get aftermarket Stator or Rotor. Possible used from a breaker?[/size]
A very quick internet search found a Rotor for £268. A Stator for £47. ?? Regulator £80. But you need the exact model for proper comparisons.


If the magnets have broken up who knows where the bits might have ended up.


Be interesting to see the photos you have if you can post them.


With the aid/help of a workshop manual could be a diy job? Some other foccer may have experience with this, and offer some advice. With a bit of luck.

[Streetbudgie]

How do I post pictures?

[Dudeofrude]

I'd personally source a replacement engine and be done with it. I'm sure it would be a fair bit cheaper than any of that
Anyone with a bit of common sense and some spare time can swap a full engine so wouldnt need to pay stupid labour costs.

[Streetbudgie]

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[Streetbudgie]

I understand the suggestions to DIY and swapping an engine yourself but I don't have the knowledge or time to do a job like this at all, so it's going to have to be a garage job.
I suppose my question now is, is it worth it or should I just walk away and get a bus pass?

[BBROWN1664]

My first thought was how would the magnets get into the engine? I have only ever seen them outside the oily areas before, but having seen the pictures, the FZ1 is obviously different.

As for spending £2K to fix a £3K bike, only you can decide that.

If it was me I would look at how much I could get a replacement engine for and then add on £5-600 for the local garage to fit it if I couldn't do it myself.

[Streetbudgie]

Yeah I guess so, I'm not really on a position to afford the £2k and buying another bike is out of the question so I reckon my days on a big bike are done.
It must be worth something as a breaker?

[FILZ6]

Apparently this is not unknown to happen on the FZ1. There are some old posts on this and other forums. Doesn’t help your predicament I know. But there might be others out there who can help, don’t lose hope just yet.

[His Dudeness]

All you're getting from them for the £2000 is a new stator and rotor fitted. And even after that's done the engine could still be ruined from metal contamination so your £2000 would be a waste of money. It might make more sense and be cheaper to fit a used engine. You might even get a guarantee on the used engine.

Or you could take the sump off check for metal contamination. If it doesn't look too bad get a used stator and rotor off ebay or from a breaker and fit them yourself. It looks like a very easy job. No pullers or special tools required. Have a look on Youtube. Flush cheap oil through the engine a few times to get any metal out and if you're lucky the engine will be ok. It would cost the price of the used stator and rotor, a sump gasket and a few bottles of oil

[ogri48]

thats a shit thing to have happen mate, I do feel for you. Id look out for another lump or buy a wrecked bike from a breaker (obviously with a good engine) New parts prices are ridiculous. Cant believe that did that at that mileage. I thought modern bikes were pretty much bulletproof nowadays

[Streetbudgie]

It gets worse - I booked bike transport via delievry quote compare.com  to get it out of the dealer who wants £2k and over to a local garage who said they'll look into used parts.

I've been trying to call the transporter since 4pm and they've just emailed me to say 'office closed at 6pm, ring in the morning', so I replied that it needs picking up tomorrow as I specified when I booked it and they emailed me back to say they can't do it until Friday!
He then had the cheek to email and say I should have checked with him before booking it - but you don't get their contact details until you've paid! I pointed that out in an email and asked how I can get a refund as Firiday is no good and guess what - no response.

So now I'm trying to get my money back through the credit card company. Steam is coming out of my ears.