I'm looking at getting a major service (30KM) on f 800 gs in the north of Mexico, before going back into the US, and to save mucho dineros.

Has anyone had any experience with bmw dealer north of Mexico city ?
Do they speak english ?
It would be a plus, as I will have to describe some technical issues.
thx

If you mean BMW Lerma then I would say they are as good as most and better than some. At least 2 guys there speak English.
If you are comimg to Mex City and need a place to stay please tell me. I live about 45 mins from BMW Lerma.

Garry

BMW in Mexico is a hit or miss affair. You should read the following, understand it, or ignore it a your own peril.

Don't expect stellar service from any of them. Motorrad Mexico will also not give a damn if the dealers screw you or screw something up.
Some things are going to be a lot more expensive, other things will be the same price. Don't expect that a fully factory trained mechanic will be working on your bike. BMW dealers pay their mechanics dirt wages and the mechanics usually ride small Chinese scooters or maybe a Korean pizza bike. Few, if any, actually own a BMW motorcycle.

You will have zero consumer rights or protection if anything goes wrong.
Not so long ago on this forum, a rider took his bike in for service at a Mexico City dealer and ended up with enough problems to fill a page or two of ongoing drama.

The service at 30,000km on an F bike is a fork oil change apart from the normal oil and filter change. The valves are done at 20,000km intervals (inspection) and then there is the "annual" service which is usually a bunch of costly things a dealer adds on that are not always necessary.

The 30,000km service is not a "major service" per se.

You can get a Hi-Flo oil filter and 3 liters of Castrol motorcycle oil for about $400 pesos with tax and do it yourself. Then you can get the forks done by certified BMW tech and be good to go. The dealer will charge you about $800 to $900 pesos for the oil change and more if they have to drop your aftermarket skid pan if you have one. They will use the exact same oil you can buy anywhere however they will charge you about $30 pesos or $40 pesos more per liter. Sometimes it is in a fancy bottle with BMW on it, sometimes it is just a normal liter bottle of Castrol 20W-50. Do not expect them to have any other oil than that in stock.

If you skipped your 20,000km valve check, good for you, I have never heard of an F800 or F650 needing the valves adjusted at the 20,000km mark. I have been running an F650GS here in Mexico for the past 3 and a half years and more than 50,000kms. I had to use BMW dealer services during the full warranty period or the warranty was invalid. That is how things are here.

The dealers will also use the long snout new oil filter which interferes with some aftermarket engine protectors leaving you without the engine protector if it was built for the bike when only the short, stubby oil filters were available.

Major services can be done by independent factory trained mechanics who are worth seeking out. These guys usually own their own shop and actually have ridden and owned a wide range of BMW bikes. Rafael Lago at Motopits in Veracruz is one of the best all around bike mechanics in Mexico, he is probably in the top 5 of BMW mechanics in Mexico, fully factory trained and independent.

Make really sure you need the service or perhaps you can wait. There are is one full on BMW dealer in Arizona that you can trust and there is an excellent independent BMW mechanic in Daly, Texas. The MotoHank shop run by Hank Arriazola. Google him and you will see what a real BMW mechanic does, or visit Rafael, here in Veracruz.

You might get lucky and be fully satisfied with your treatment by a Mexico City dealer or a Mexican BMW franchise dealer in another state, but the odds are against this. You will see some dealers fall all over some customers, the high rollers that have bought many bikes from them and use the dealer for changing a light bulb on their bikes, that is quite common. You will also see things like poorly bled brakes, untorqued fasteners, stolen parts, swapped parts, billing for work not performed, waiting on parts, failure to meet delivery time to customer, etc...

If you opt for any dealer in Mexico, prior to paying your bill, relax, and go and take a very, very good look at your bike from top to bottom and stem to stern and inspect as much as you possibly can. Remember, you will be paying a tax rate of 16% on your bill, which can be pretty high if they decide that something is wrong and just has to be changed etc... and 16% on top of an inflated bill is just more money down the drain. Dealers sometimes are famous for delivering bikes at the last minute at closing time and rushing you through the payment process making you anxious to get on your bike and leave. Resist this.

Just a heads up. I have been living permanently and riding on and off road here in Mexico for two decades and have known the country since 1978 and there are very few shops and/or mechanics I would trust. Remember, large capacity motorcycles, including BMW's are fairly recent arrivals in Mexico due to import restrictions in the past. It has only been within the past two decades that large capacity bikes were being purchased here on a regular basis by normal citizens and not fleet buys like Harleys for Mexico City bike cops. Even today, dealers do not carry a full range of bikes, many models are not available, however BMW dealers do carry the complete range of products but will not regularly stock parts for all of them. Yes, you can wait 3 days for an air filter.

For the record, about 15 years ago, Arlen Ness, the noted San Francisco bike customizer, bought a used fleet of Harley cop bikes, thinking he would have the bases for some interesting bikes he could build with them. What he got was a pile of junk he could barley scrounge for anything. The bikes were beat to hell and very poorly maintained, nobody gave a damn as long as they started and could move. Yes, this is a Harley example, but don't expect anything different from BMW.

Hope your experience is a good one.

Go to texas or Areizona, ride safe chris

cheers
Taz

+1 on that great essay reply Mike .
As you say , about the only place where a real saving could be expected is
on the low cost of labour , and if things get screwed up it is not worth it. Caveat emptor. Parts may be unavailable and a standard response was a month or two wait for them to come from Germany!

Now Chef ,I am curious and a bit confused by your distance terminology which seems to be a bastard offspring of two systems.
By " 30 KM " what is it you really mean ?
Is it 30 kilometers. Unlikely
Do you mean 30 000 kilometers
Or, by borrowing an incorrect use of metric symbols ,
do you mean 30 000 MILES , or as you imply 30 kilo - miles
I know, I know the USA is not officially metric , but technically it
already really is .
Just , everybody, be clear in what system you are using and stick
to agreed upon international standard symbols to avoid confusion.
Google that video on Orange County Choppers on Why we use Metric
Funnneeeeee

__________________
http://advrider.com/index.php?thread....207964/page-5 then scroll down to post #93

Thank You Mike for that lengthy post, you could not be any clearer as for the potential problems ahead.
I have 2 very good experiences myself at 2 bmw dealers, 1 in guadalajara
and 2nd in Oaxaca few months back, but i have to admit that it was rather simple procedure both times, bleeding brakes, and oil change, and it was done with bmw courtesy and knowledge from the mechanics as I was with them both times.
But I do agree that for more complex work like my oil forks at 30,000k and brake pads and few other little things, yes I might have to wait then for Phoenix, Az.
As for the confusion about the metric and imperial, well you are right Sjoerd
it is 30,000k but as I have to admit my origin which is French, we do in Europe use the KM, but since I have been living in Canada for over 25 years, I should know better :confused1: but now I know better,thank you