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Lemon Law Advice/Experience?

KTM North America a-typically has not returned my call since asking about a buy-back. I emailed the California Lemon law Group this morning but they don't open for a bit.

I figure that I got the safety issue pretty well covered - The head gasket failure had me sitting on top of the k-wall with one leg on each side while trying to be thin on a stretch of freeway w/o a break down lane during rush hour. Scary! Cars really target fixate on that. A CHP motorcycle cop finally had to block traffic to get me out of there.
 
The California Lemon law group responded asking if I had gotten a "No" about a buy pack from KTM and that I should hold off with them until I do. I said that I'd keep trying and called KTM North America again. ...and got sent back to voice mail. I left my info, asked for a buy back and commented that they suddenly seemed to have stopped returning my phone calls. :(

UPDATE: Debbie @ CLLG wants me to give KTM 30 days to respond to my request for a buy back. So, unless KTM responds that's it until August 19th. I'll keep pestering them in the mean time. Does anybody have an email address for KTM North America?
 
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Don't just call. Write. It's more formal, and then you'll have documentation of exactly what you sent them, when you sent it to them and what you asked for. In the letter, give them a realistic deadline (not just a day or two) of when you anticipate receiving a response from them. Bold the date so that it stands out.
 
Whammy said:
KTM North America Inc.
East
1119 Milan Avenue
Amherst, Ohio 44001
Customer Service Phone: 1-855-215-6360
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rick said:
Does anybody have an email address for KTM North America?
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Maybe if your bike can make it here:
38429 Innovation Ct, Murrieta, CA 92563

CA Corporate office

Drop it off on the front lawn with a note? Have you tried nice but firm Facebook posts or tweets? (some companies have responded to those quicker) perhaps direct them to the posts here and mention that there are A LOT of potential customers who read these forums and it would be in KTM NA's best interest to resolve this issue quickly for you.
 
Dmitriy said:
Maybe if your bike can make it here:
38429 Innovation Ct, Murrieta, CA 92563

CA Corporate office

Drop it off on the front lawn with a note? Have you tried nice but firm Facebook posts or tweets? (some companies have responded to those quicker) perhaps direct them to the posts here and mention that there are A LOT of potential customers who read these forums and it would be in KTM NA's best interest to resolve this issue quickly for you.
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Park it (legally) in front of their office, and stick a really big sign on it that says "lemon" and hang around :)

Seriously though, I hope you get this sorted - good luck!
 
rick said:
UPDATE: Debbie @ CLLG wants me to give KTM 30 days to respond to my request for a buy back. So, unless KTM responds that's it until August 19th. I'll keep pestering them in the mean time. Does anybody have an email address for KTM North America?
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This seems like poor advice. I would not give a company that won't return your calls another month to sit on their butt doing nothing. Call again on Monday. Press '0' until you get to an operator, then ask to be connected to someone who can help you. If you end up in a voicemail box, call back immediately and repeat the process. Do this continuously until you either 1) manage to talk to a human who sounds like they know what they're doing, or 2) get frustrated enough to call a lawyer.

Another option would be to call your local KTM dealer and ask the dealer for the name and direct phone number of the person they deal with at KTM for issues like this.
 
7 on your side :0)
Seriously though, document everything, even phone calls. Time and date when you called, who you talked to, what you asked and what their answer was. Log everything you can.
 
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Mike Cooper from KTM-NA left me a message over the weekend. It seems they're still swapping parts from the least expensive to the most expensive to try and fix the current Low Oil Pressure warning light issue. They're up to replacing the entire dash which is what the internet has lead me to believe is the most common cause.

He also said, with a sigh, that we should probably talk and asked me to call him today. The google says that he's KTM North America's Customer Service Manager so, I'm guessing that my buy back request has gotten to where it needs to go. I tried him on his extension this morning but he didn't answer and I left a voicemail.

I am kind of struggling with what I want from them. There's nothing else in that category that I want particularly, even the R3 is having more that it's fair share of issues. In terms of a replacement, the 2016 RC390 has a 2-year warranty. I could hope to get a good one. I suppose a buy back gives me the most options.
 
After some phone tag, I finally spoke to Mike Cooper at KTM North America for about 20 minutes last night.

It was weird.

I naively thought that he was going to apologize and ask what they could do for me with a simple statement of facts: it's been broken down 125/298 days (41.9%), left me stranded multiple times and I would like a buy back.

He seemed completely unimpressed with how many days it's been broken down so, I took a different approach emphasizing how unsafe it's been mainly focusing on the Head Gasket Failure that left me sitting on top of the K-Wall on the freeway until the CHP blocked traffic and I was able to run to safety. That didn't interest him either so, I tried talking about how much excessive wear it's been through and how even if it was to suddenly be trouble free it still wouldn't have a normal lifespan. Nothing.

It wasn't until I hung up that I realized he never agreed or even grunted in agreement with a single thing I said. It was like he was following some sort of corporate policy or legal roadmap that only he could see and he was meticulously avoiding saying certain things or words but, also pushing hard for me to say some specific key words. Made me wish I did have a lawyer.

He offered me a warranty extension twice and, strangely, a new piston once. The only emotion he expressed was when I continually asked for a buy back. He seemed to get angry and say things like, "Do you want to get legal involved?" I said that I didn't know what he meant by that but he wouldn't explain. Clearly he wanted me to keep that bike but wasn't willing to offer anything to address any of my concerns.

He concluded the call by saying that if I wouldn't stay on the bike then it would have to go to KTM's legal department and that it would be a much longer process and that I'd be hearing from them (or him?) next.

I don't mean to imply that that he was ever rude - it was just weird. :-/
 
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Stop talking to people on the phone. You're spinning your wheels. See post 17, wait for a response within the time allotted in your letter and then bring everything to a lawyer. The first thing a lawyer will ask to see is a copy of your demand letter. That's how civil court works.
 
What a headache, this never happened when we raced Ninja 250's.
 
rick said:
I don't mean to imply that that he was ever rude - it was just weird. :-/
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Weird? It sounds like the KTM guy got everything he wanted: you still haven't called a lawyer and they haven't had to pay to buy back the worthless pile of shit you purchased from them. If you're happy with this arrangement, that's fine. If not, it might be time to get some advice from a lawyer...
 
Jumpin' Jeebus, all this for a bike that cost KTM probably less than $3000? How much would they fight over a 1290 Duke?
 
Gabe said:
Jumpin' Jeebus, all this for a bike that cost KTM probably less than $3000? How much would they fight over a 1290 Duke?
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it's not just the one bike-it's a whole bunch of them.
 
fubar929 said:
Weird? It sounds like the KTM guy got everything he wanted: you still haven't called a lawyer ...
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:confused Huh? I am following the advice of a lawyer. It's just gonna be slow like all legal things and her advice seems to be right in line with the other lemon law stories here on barf.

EDIT: In my limited experience, lawyers will give you a list after your initial consultation of things to document and general instructions on getting your ducks all in a row. It's not like they just take over and you kick back and wait. I'm plugging my way down the list and one of the items is that I have to give them 30 days from once I've asked for a buy back for KTM to respond. Then we escalate. The only thing that short circuit's that is if they say, "No" which ends that clock immediately.

Apparently, we're making "good progress" FWIW :)
 
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rick said:
:confused Huh? I am following the advice of a lawyer. It's just gonna be slow like all legal things and her advice seems to be right in line with the other lemon law stories here on barf.
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Calling KTM without a specific action plan or list of demands doesn't seem like sound legal advice to me... Perhaps your free legal advice isn't worth what you've paid for it?
 
We need to do more as a collective group in situations like this....
(Yes I am a child of the 60's).....
As a group we should write and call both the dealer and KTM and let them know that we will not buy their product until they improve their response to situations like this.
I have run this approach by a very high level motorcycle exec and if they get a critical mass speaking to a problem they listen and things get dealt with.
He told me of a guy who got a tv consumer show to run his story about his - year old bike that was down 60% of the time. Within 3 days he had a full buy back and an apology.
Yes the lemon law will work but in reality it takes too long and they just take their time because a lot of people just give up.
I had a similar case with Ducati.
They responded in a reasonable time and took care of the problems and gave me an extended warranty and money towards future service.
Whole thing took only 3 weeks and I was satisfied.
You should be given a buy back no problem.
Good luck and keep us posted.
 
this post has pretty well scared me off of owning a KTM

seeing the fustercluck that people went through with the faulty electrical gremlins on the hypermotard has me pretty skeptical about a Ducati.

Pretty sure my next bike is going to be Japanese (sportbike) as a result of this cavalcade of incompetence from KTM.
 
After owning a Duc my two new bikes are now Japanese.
Happy, happy, happy.
RC
 
rogerc said:
After owning a Duc my two new bikes are now Japanese.
Happy, happy, happy.
RC
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Sigh. My MTS has been in the Motor Cafe since July 9 because of a CEL that turned out to be a failure in the gear sensor, which, in turn, is a 1-2hr job. Nice way to waste the summer. This would not be that bad if the Ducati dealerships provided loaner bikes. As it stands, this is a major PITA. If 21 days is a trigger for the lemon law, I'm not that far from it on this one...
 
I see a Ninja 300 in your future... Mine never skipped a beat
 
The KTM was supposed to be my primary commuter: fuel efficient, nice and thin for lane splitting and fun in the twisties (80 miles/day - half twisties). It's been in the shop so much that I've been leaning heavily on my Ducati 848 SE to get the job done. It's been rock solid.

So much so, that I'm considering an older 2-valve air cooled monster as a replacement for the KTM. I hear those engines are super reliable and very easy to maintain. Maybe a S2R or M695?
That or I just play it safe and buy a Honda CBR650F for commuting duty. I'd love an electric but, the most affordable one that can make the distance is $19K-$22k out the door. That or one of these:

...assuming I could get my hands on one ;)
 
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