Bonneville America Forums Forums Off Topic Discussion Forums Lounge Anyone want 100lbs of scrap metal?

After losing most of the good summer riding due to a combination of work and the R3 being in the dealers for 6+ weeks having the engine and gearbox re-built (1st to 2nd gear change issue and neutral problem), I decided 'screw it' and I added the Tuesday after the bank holiday onto our Florida trip to go out riding.

After the re-build, I had done about 40 miles on the R3 and it was all good - the gear change problem is obvious after a couple of seconds on the bike.

I had ridden for about 10-15 minutes when I could hear some almighty clanking sounds - thought it was an old Audi I was overtaking as it got louder as I approached.
Turned out it was me
Imagine ... shake a metal bucket full of spanners. That's the sound it was making.

Outside lane of the A38 north doing about 70 and power went. Eeeek!

Luckily there was a lay by in front so pulled in.

Anywho, after 3.5 hrs, RAC got me home and took the bike to the dealers.

They just called and it seems the replacement parts from the re-build had some sort of 'manufacturing defect' and there are 'bits' flying around the engine that shouldn't be there ... namely the crank has disintegrated due to some sorta oil issue.

Lucky for me the engine didn't seize up riding along eh?

No doubt they will have it ANOTHER 6+ weeks to sort this.
I know Triumph won't do the obvious thing (ship out a new engine) but will, instead, send a box full of bits for the dealer to re-build again.

I think an arsey email to warranty and the dealer principle is in order ...

And a free loaner bike to use in the interim. That's terrible service!

I don't recall hearing any similar tales about Speedys or Americas... Maybe the R3 is an inferior machine?

I don't track the R3s history. Are they known for transmission issues?

One of our guys had a similar issue seems he had a tiny small sprocket in the main drive which has a notch that locks it onto the shaft this leaves the metal extremely thin and of course with all torque it went bang this led to other bits going bang along with it. Since then I have eard of a few having similar issues.

Another thing is the oil dont be tempted to change or use different oil if its not the correct grade of fully synthetic this will cuase all sorts of gear problems as well.

And finally over heating there are two different radiator caps get the wrong one and your bike over heats and has problems as well. This is what has been told to me I can only say that the information given is not as accurate as I would like.

The oil & radiator situation is 100% accurate I know the mechanic who solved those problems.

I can see the first rebuild even if the dealer had it a bit long to redo the trans waiting for parts etc... Now on this 2nd failure I would push for a replacement engine since it was a manufacturers defect and you don't know what other damage may have been done in there. I would want to inspect the inside myself if they refuse to replace the engine. The mechanic can do the work but I would want to see what damage was done and if it looks bad push even harder for a new unit. Might ask if they want to analyze the failure too in order to prevent this on someone elses bike.

Great idea with this suggestion Ian!

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Might ask if they want to analyze the failure too in order to prevent this on someone elses bike.

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Wow Adey, sorry to hear of this. While I have heard of a few transmission issues with a few of the R3s out there over the years, this is the first time I've heard of this kind of engine problems with 'em.

My first thought here was for you maybe utilize your Lemon Law over there and get a total replacement R3 instead, however I've just Googled "British Lemon Laws", and unfortunately it appears you guys over there don't have such an animal.

Good Luck with this, and I hope it won't be another 6+ weeks before you're back on your Rocket.

bad406, Charlie, had the same issue. (not your subsequent lockup snafu)

I'm with Ian on this one too. Personally, I'd want to see the inside of the engine and inspect everything myself. Your situation would leave a lot of room for doubt!

Well, I sent the arsey emails.
Only reply so far is from Triumph warranty with a 'sorry to hear this so soon after the last repair blah blah will sort it as quickly as possible blah blah waiting for details from the dealer blah blah'.
The way the email reads is that they will authorise a repair.
I don't like the idea of a dealer mechanic re-building it again.
During the factory tour we get to see these engines being built and stuck into some cabinet and pressure tested etc etc.
Dealers can't do all this!
Back when I bought it, I was talking to the dealer (no longer Triumph) and he said they would never send out a complete engine, but just the bits to re-build one. This seems totally ridiculous to me and leaves the door open for something like this happen again.
Surely it would cost them less for them to build one in, say, an hour at the factory than to pay a dealer the labour cost for a mechanic for possibly a day or two days!!
I think I'll just turn up unannounced, camera in hand, at the dealership tomorrow to see what the situation is

Well that's just silly. There's no way the Rocket III engine only weighs 100 lbs.