Triumphrat

jimbo2807 · 06-27-2006, 06:21 AM

Hello, After nearly a year of looking at the forum, I now enter my first post.

My 53 plate Tiger is now about 2 years old but has only done 6000 miles. The Triumph service chart says she needs a 12000 mile/2 year service. Do most people tend to go on time or mileage ? A few Triumph dealers have implied that most people tend to go on miles. Any view from you guys, going on previous experience, as there is a huge difference between the 2. I was thinking of a 6000 miles service plus a change of brake and coolant fluids.

Quotes for both services from a number of triumph dealers seem to be much the same. My local ones are Onyer, Hughenden M40, 3 Cross and Taylor Racing. All are listed on the Triumph website so I assume that they are all fully approved, but does anyone have any feedback on quality of service etc from these dealers ?

"The more I ride 'er, the more I luv 'er"

Nelson955 · 06-27-2006, 07:21 AM

I think the answer depends on what services have been carried out up to now. Presumably the bike was serviced over the last 2 years to meet the warranty conditions?

iansoady · 06-27-2006, 09:02 AM

I bought my 04 about a year ago with 4000 miles on the clock, and the dealer did a 6000 mile service as part of the deal. I've done an oil / filter change at the beginning of this year at about 7000 miles and don't really feel that anything else should need doing till next year when I plan on doing the full 12,000 service although I'd guess it'll be around 10 - 11,000 by then.

IME valve clearances, fork oil and steering head bearings require attention as a function of distance rather than time.

pineygroveshop · 06-27-2006, 07:46 PM

Hey Jimbo,
Mileage is a good measure of what needs to be done if the bike has been ridden occasionally throughout the time period.
Pieces and parts do age if not used.

madmic · 06-29-2006, 05:11 PM

My take on this is go by the milage, unless you dont ride much and the bike is sitting. Then, you might want to go by the years...that my advice. -M

Diego · 06-29-2006, 09:09 PM

Well, Triumph's advice, clearly stated in your owner's manual, is specified time or specified mileage, whichever comes first.

Let's take just one item of service to see why--the oil change. Once your oil has been exposed to combustion products, it begins gradually losing its ability to neutralize acids and hold soot in suspension. It doesn't matter whether you ride it again during the remainder of that year or not; it's going to eventually not protect the metal very well. On the other hand, if you ride a lot, the long molecules which do the lubricating are going to gradually break down from use, regardless of the condition of the additives. This is where mileage (and temperature and RPM) comes into play.

In short, there are things that will wear from sheer age, regardless of use, and other things which need attention more because of use than age. That's why its time and miles, whichever comes first.

Nelson955 · 06-30-2006, 04:08 AM

I often wonder about why manufacturers insist on the full service schedule for a bike after a period of time if it hasn't covered the mileage to have the service carried out based on the mileage traveled. I fully understand the need to change the fluids as they deteriorate over time. But why the need for the full service? For example, if a rider does 6000 miles in 2 years, according to the Triumph schedule, he will need the 6k and the 12K carried out within that time. But why? Surely Triumph could produce an annual service schedule, which would be instead of the mileage based services? This would negate the need for an owner to have to have the full 12k schedule carried out at half the mileage when it clearly wouldn't need all that work carried out.

jimbo2807 · 06-30-2006, 05:21 AM

Thanks for all your feedback guys.
I've since called a few dealers for their take on the matter. I had expected them to stick with the Triumph recommendations and go with the 12k service, but most said that if they were in my shoes, they would go for a 6k service but also change the brake and coolant fluids, which makes good sense to me. It'll be booked in
immanently. I just need to decide where now !

FYI. One of the dealers mentioned that in their experience it was extremely rare that they had to adjust the valve clearences after 6000 miles and it was quite rare even at 12000 miles.

Then I'll be fitting some Touratech crash bars and my scottoiler and lubetube.

pineygroveshop · 07-03-2006, 08:01 PM

I do most service myself. When it comes to engine internals, I leave it to a mechanic.
When I was gathering the parts for my 30K service, my dealer's service manager told me that if my Tiger was running well, there was no need to have his shop check the valves.

tyrebyter · 07-05-2006, 08:48 AM

30k miles would be a stretch for valve ajustment. Indeed it will run OK until a valve fails to close completely. Then it's too late and a burned valve is on the way. If you want to skip some mainenance, skip all the fussing with the chain but don't pass the valve adjustment.