[Teknol]

I recently moved to MN and the two closest dealers to me are the two Bison dealerships. Looking for reviews/opinions on them. I need to have a 5K mile service plus the safety recall performed. TIA.

 

[Peace Pipe]

I can't speak for service, as I have a Gilroy Chief and they won't touch it. Sorry.

There is a new Indian dealer in Lakeville attached to MotoPrimo Motorsports as well, if anyone has experience with them.

 

[wasichu34]

I’ve had a lot of experience with Bison in Rogers. Nigel is great to work with and has been very thorough and completely understands the service side of things. I like the guys at Motoprimo, they just haven’t touched my bike.


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[meangrn1800]

Bison’s only has the St Paul store, don’t believe Nigel is at Bison. Lakeville’s being aggressive on Service. I’d go to Mies in Watkins, MN. Marc is the head of Service. You will not be disappointed. I do all my business there.

 

[wasichu34]

Nigel is at Bison in Rogers. They do service out of the second building that didn’t catch fire. Bison had 2 locations until the fire. Now the original location just does service. The St Paul local was their second location.


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[meangrn1800]

Nigel is at Bison in Rogers. They do service out of the second building that didn’t catch fire. Bison had 2 locations until the fire. Now the original location just does service. The St Paul local was their second location.


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Sorry, my mistake

 

[spaz78343]

I bought mine from Bison Thunder in St. Paul, great service and everyone there is super nice.

 

[Djhiltz]

I have bought two bikes from Bison Thunder in St Michael, Nigel runs the shop there and is a great guy.

 

[Iron1967]

I took my Dark Horse to Bison (St Paul location) a few years ago to get the same 5,000 mile service. From the time they brought it into the shop, until they told me it was ready, was less than 30 minutes. I spent about $350 at the time and really questioned how they could have completed such a detailed inspection service in such a short amount of time (although they claim there were 2 techs working on it at the same time). I had been to the other location in Otsego a couple of times and loved my experience there. The $350 for 30 minutes of service left such a bad feeling, I have not been back since.

I have purchased a Victory bike, and other accessories/parts from Mies Outland in Watkins, and just spring-checked a snowmobile last month. Their location is at least 90 minutes from my house, but I was reminded again, about their excellent service shown to me. Peace of mind matters a lot in my book, and I feel like Mies Outland does a great job of listening to you, and trying to do the best job to take care of their customers. Besides, the travel through the beautiful countryside just to get there, makes it worth my time!

 

[wasichu34]

To be clear and maybe you’re saying this....the experience you had at St Paul location was not then run by Bison. It was run by a different group. They sucked to put it mildly. They were closed down for a variety of reasons. 18 months later Bison took over that location as a second to their Otsego/Rogers spot. Glad they did.


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[Iron1967]

To be clear and maybe you’re saying this....the experience you had at St Paul location was not then run by Bison. It was run by a different group. They sucked to put it mildly. They were closed down for a variety of reasons. 18 months later Bison took over that location as a second to their Otsego/Rogers spot. Glad they did.


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No, it was the Bison ownership when I had my service completed in 2018. Like I mentioned, I had a couple of services done in the Otsego/Rogers location before Bison ever reopened the St Paul location, and it was a very good experience. I felt I did not get the service I should have for the 5K mile inspection, as it felt rushed, and there was no way to know if they did or did not actually do anything. There was also an oil change done, with the 5K inspection, in less than 30 minutes. I just got a bad feeling and questioned it at the time, but felt I got a "brush off" answer. This is just one experience, and this is my opinion, as I am comparing to my past history with them, as well as my experience with a competitor.

 

[Hendu]

Lakeville’s being aggressive on Service.

I'm curious as to what you mean. This is my closest dealer and where I got my 2020, so I was planning to get my 500 mile service there in the next week or two.

 

[meangrn1800]

I'm curious as to what you mean. This is my closest dealer and where I got my 2020, so I was planning to get my 500 mile service there in the next week or two.

They are concentrated on making your experience to notch. Friend of mine got a great deal on new tires last fall. For myself, it’s Mies in Watkins...

 

[POE]

Is the showroom open in St Michael yet? (no one has mentioned St Michael, but it's the same location everyone mentions as Rogers)

 

[meangrn1800]

Call the St Paul location for the straight scoop!

 

[Anthregi405]

I bought my 2020 from Bison, St. Paul. Sales was outstanding. I had my bike in for the 500mi and they did a great job (last fall). I have been to the parts counter a few times and when I walk in, they know my name and what bike I own (Tony - with the orange '20 Chieftain Limited they say). Michael at parts always drops whatever he is doing and talks with me about anything I have questions about. I would have zero problems or regrets about referring anyone to Bison St. Paul. I actually met the owner the day I picked up my bike and he thanked me for my business.

 

[Iron1967]

I bought my 2020 from Bison, St. Paul. Sales was outstanding. I had my bike in for the 500mi and they did a great job (last fall). I have been to the parts counter a few times and when I walk in, they know my name and what bike I own (Tony - with the orange '20 Chieftain Limited they say). Michael at parts always drops whatever he is doing and talks with me about anything I have questions about. I would have zero problems or regrets about referring anyone to Bison St. Paul. I actually met the owner the day I picked up my bike and he thanked me for my business.

Good to hear you have a good connection in St Paul. I felt that way in St Michael, before they resurrected the St Paul location. For me, St Michael was great, St Paul environment ...does not cut it for me. I ended up buying my Challenger from Zacho Sports in Chippewa Falls. Very good experience and worth the extra ride

 

[Timps27]

New FTR rider in MO/MN (frequent rides in WI, IL and IA as well). My primary ride is a 2012 Triumph Tiger 800XC, I do all my own maintenance but if I ever do need anything I use MotoPrimo.

I was a little concerned last year when a buddy made a tire appointment and even though it was all arranged ahead of time they didn’t have the tire he wanted when they got there. They put a Pirelli on instead (a bad one IMO) and within a few thousand miles it was bald. He was, understandably, upset and wanted nothing to do with MotoPrimo. He has since moved to western WI, and I urged him to give them a chance to make things right before he gave up on them. Sure enough, not only did they pick up and drop off his bike an hour away, they also discounted his invoice the amount of the crappy Pirelli and service. Long story short he is still a happy MP customer.

I have no experience with the other dealers, just putting out my experience with MP. They have been great every time I have used them, and obviously not perfect as my buddies example shows, but they made things right which is the most important part in my eyes.

 

[pope]

Additionally, The Rogers/St Michael BT location has moved. They are now located at I94 and Hwy 101
right next to the Mcdonalds. Just west of Cabelas. Its a much better location for visibility. The new showroom is not finished out yet, but the shop is open for business. I like to wrench where I can, but I had my forks rebuilt there a month ago, and I'm excited to see what the build-out will look like.

One thing I do like about the MotoPrimo/Indian dealership is more riding gear than only Indian brand on offer in the same location.

Stay warm brothers

 

[Joegopher]

I have dealt with all three of the dealers in the area and this is what I can add:

Mies is outstanding. I bought my first two Indians from them and Marc is always great to work with. At the time, I lived downtown and while 70 miles for service is a bit of a haul, I was OK with it. Now that I am in Burnsville, it just doesn't make sense for me.

Bison has good people working there and for the most part, they always treated me well. Nigel is very knowledgeable about the bikes and always handled things well. Only gripe about Bison is their labor rates are higher than any other dealership I have been to and they generally don't discount parts even if you bought the bike there. I did buy a Springfield from them and they had worked on all of my bikes at one point.

Indian of Lakeville (Motoprimo) is about 2 miles from my current house. I hadn't had much experience with them prior to moving from Mpls. but thought I would give their service a chance. Kurt is the Service Manager there and is an Indian owner and rider. He has taken care of me on many occasions whether standard tires/oil changes, or dealing with the gear selector switch recall. I just had them do the 116 kit in my RM this past winter and while I haven't ridden it yet, they found a couple of other things to fix while they were taking care of it. Labor prices are reasonable, the service has been top notch, and from a location perspective, it's perfect for me.

Bottom line, if you live close to Mies or don't mind the extra miles to get there, they are fantastic. I am sticking with Indian of Lakeville for now based on the way things have gone there. Service at Bison will be good and you can't go wrong, it's just been my experience that it's more expensive. Like $200 for an oil change expensive.