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The answer to that is pretty damned obvious. Their commitment to profit is greater than their commitment to quality. The cost of sealing the seams and painting the (non-visible) underside of the fenders is greater than the cost of replacing the ones that do rust prior to the warranty period expiring, when you consider that they charge almost $1,000 dollars for each painted fender if it is purchased outright, like when you need to replace it and your warranty has expired. The fact that my new front was exactly like the old one on the inside, when they have been dealing with this issue for a couple of years now, tells me that the bean counters win in almost every case.
Yeah that sucks! I guess if they replace enough fenders under warranty that will drive them to change their process.
 
Discussion starter · #22 ·
Here is some info I found so far. On the Indian site I found this info that tells me I am covered by a 24 month Manufacturer's Warranty. (I have a 2015). I was concerned that I only had a 12 month warranty. I think I still have a chance the rust will be repaired. As far as the extended contract, the best I can determine is it only applies to mechanical issues not paint.

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Indian Motorcycle® stands behind our products in many ways. One way is to provide a manufacturer's warranty for a period of time, which starts on the original date of purchase.

  • The first-to-own Indian® Scout™ holds a (24) 24-month warranty and a 3-year ESC promotion.
    (Any Scout outside of the First to own promotion will have the 24 month Manufacturer’s warranty.)
  • 2015 Indian® motorcycles have a (24) twenty-four month manufacturer's warranty.
  • 2014 INDIAN motorcycles were offered a (12) 12-month manufacture warranty and 4-year ESC as a first-year promotion.
INDIAN MOTORCYCLE will stand behind and offer warranty reimbursement on work done by any authorized INDIAN MOTORCYCLE dealership. INDIAN MOTORCYCLE will not reimburse for work done by the consumer themselves, nor any third-party service center.
 
One of the other things that surprises me is the number of people that have after-market paint jobs applied to the bikes and don't get the seams taken care, thus eliminating the chrome strip - and the problem...

I get this is an issue for how they are assembled, primed and painted. It should be better. But having the cost of a custom paint job, and then applying the same strip seems a little strange to me. I get there is an aesthetic at play here, as well as extra cost (not to mention having a talented fabricator that can weld it or lead the seams) but still...
 
Discussion starter · #26 ·
Color me happy. Dealer just called and said Polaris will cover the cost of a new fender. I asked if they offer any type of undercoating to help prevent this is in the future. Sounds like they do so I will be getting that applied to fender before installations, at my costs. I would almost be tempted to get there Rhino lining stuff put on to help but don't want to do anything to cancel warranty.
 
I've decided at this point to have my bike custom painted so everything is done correctly. I love my bike but I can't stand the paint issues or the thought that the same problems will happen again.
 
Color me happy. Dealer just called and said Polaris will cover the cost of a new fender. I asked if they offer any type of undercoating to help prevent this is in the future. Sounds like they do so I will be getting that applied to fender before installations, at my costs. I would almost be tempted to get there Rhino lining stuff put on to help but don't want to do anything to cancel warranty.
I brought this up to the Indian rep I know and he stated that any undercoating applied to the fender would not effect the warranty. I would not go overboard on the under coating. The Rhino stuff adds quite a bit or weight. It may cause cracks to show at the fender attach points. Just a coat of good undercoating would work.

One thing to note. The fender rusting is only for the remainder of your two year warranty. So if there is three months left on your two year warranty and your new fender rusts in four months, no coverage. Dean
 
I've decided at this point to have my bike custom painted so everything is done correctly. I love my bike but I can't stand the paint issues or the thought that the same problems will happen again.
We should not have to do this due to there bad design. That said I've painted main with underseal and filled the gaps in the seams, and on the outside with wax oil.
 
I also have the extended warranty until 12/18. Polaris is still telling me they're not giving me a rear fender. I plan on having an extensive chat with then again Monday. My shield doesn't rattle as much now that a bought the long ride shield battleaxe. Works great, too.
I was looking at the battleaxe how do you like it I'm 5'8".
 
Rust issues on my 2014 Chieftain. I had surface rust around the fuel filler and Polaris replaced it under warranty. Now I notices rust in the lighted warbonnet on the front fender- which gives the Indian Head some "color," but obviously not desirable. My dealer has put in a warranty claim. Good to have that 5 year warranty.
 
While we shouldn't have to do it, you should be able to remove the rear fender Eyebrows and fish oil the seams from the exposed area.bit will run down and should pemetrate. You could even use a syyringe and inject it ito the seam.
The front seam is completely covered by the stick on trim but it might be possible to injet tbe oil in a few places with a hypodermic needle. Fish oil gets in so it should work.
Probably need to do it annually to stay protected.
 
I don't think that WD-40 would work as well as fish oil, I think the WD-40 would dry out quickly. The instructions with my wife's horse trailer says to oil the seems annually (must get on and do that), to protect against rust. Fish oil was what I was told to use and I do know that it is very good for rust protection.
 
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