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Warning: Daylight & headlight scam

8K views 58 replies 35 participants last post by  Yellerbike 
#1 ·
Hi guys! FNG here with a problem AND a warning. I bought one of those Harley "Daylight 7" headlights for the wife's Heritage at the beginning of the season. She loved it, (not that she EVER rides at night!).
However, three weeks ago she and I were out on the scoots when a rock jumped up and BROKE the outer bezel glass! Shattered the whole damned thing. Now, to clarify, we're talking about the EXTERIOR PROTECTIVE glass, not the actual LED lenses behind it.

No problem, I'll just head down to the Harley dealer and order a replacement.

Wanna Bet? At Harley I was told that if you break the bezel glass, (actually quite flimsy IMHO), you have to replace, (READY?), THE WHOLE DAMNED HEADLIGHT ASSEMBLY! Yup, the whole $525 shebang!!!

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!!!

Now, I've been riding Harleys for something in the vicinity of 45 years. I've seen my share of "Parts Guys" that can't find their posterior in the dark with both hands. I didn't believe them, that couldn't be right. I began a search to find the part on my own. No joy!

It seems that this particular item doesn't have a replacement! I got that directly from HD's customer service guys in Millwaukee.

This part fastens just like all the previous non-sealed-beam headlight bezel glass parts. It's a formed glass plate that is held in place with a metal bezel piece. There's nothing special about it except that it's apparently irreplaceable!

Wow! What a concept! Sell a really vulnerable item that costs a boatload of bucks to folks and then collect again and again for the entire original part as they keep breaking the shitty front glass that should be a relatively inexpensive part to replace!
BRILLIANT!
Anyhow, my post today is two-fold, 1.) Warn off anybody who is entertaining buying this POS, AND...Query anybody here about any possible solution to this problem.

Any ideas? This isn't the first time I've gotten the feeling that those boys over at Harley don't have my best interests at heart. I don't mind paying a little bit more than standard for HD, but I'm beginning to get real pissed about getting screwed JUST because it's a Harley!
 
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#8 ·
Are you making a prediction? The OP was only a couple hours ago. You assume he's gone already?

You may be right. We shall see.

Sucks about the lens, man.
 
#11 ·
One of the reasons I didn't want a Daymaker, this isn't the first I have heard this story. Love my HID's for a 1/4 of the cost.
 
#14 ·
Broke the lens on my Yammi dirtbike. Asked part for a replacement. Nope I need to get the whole light. I cut a piece of lexan and screwed it on the housing and sealed it with silicone. Granted it is a rectangular light but it works.
 
#26 ·
Lots of great people and first class B&M here!

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:D
 
#22 ·
It's a feature...LOL. hd pulled the same stuff with me for the original crap rear led turn signals...they were junk...one led and leaked water...they told me the originals were served to a new part number and you had to buy a whole new kit of two minimum for 550 bucks...your what hurts...
I had a SERIOUS professional discussion with customer service...they then replaced them...
Stupid stuff like that is why I don't buy ANY new hd...too many other quality options available...
 
#23 ·
I love my truck lite phase 7....... For a whopping $200.


Obviously the clown of an OP didn't even bother to research that the manufacturer of the "Harley Dalylight 7" is actually JW Speaker. They could have replacement parts available on request, though it is a long shot.
 
#29 ·
Pecos, I'm on it. I used to do some plastic fabrication. I'm presently looking up old contacts in hopes of getting the use of a plastics Vacu-form table.
Kainam, my unit has GLASS, and not very thick glass at that. It was bought just over a year ago. Maybe the newer ones are Lexan? Wish MINE was! And one can buy the corresponding glass for a Jap bike with similar designs all day long. I did a repair on a neighbor's Kaw for just this type of situation this summer.
Thunder, sorry I annoyed you by finally having something to contribute/ask. I'm not much of a joiner, but I've been monitoring this site for years. That's why I "Joined". Thought I might find someone here who had a solution. And I might be right, Harley couldn't tell me who actually manufactured the item for them, but YOU did! I will be contacting JW Speaker asap.
 
#31 ·
Glad you did come back. And Forty2366 actually dug up the info.
I just added to it.

If you have been around the site\any site for a while then you know that 1st time posters that pitch a bitch are not usually given much credence.
We get a few complaining about all sorts of things. Some may have legit gripes. Others.....not so much. But they are one`s and done`s.
Without knowing you we do not know your intent.
Hope you get your problem solved.
 
#33 ·
Okay, new info. Thanks to Thunder's input, I was able to speak to JW Speaker, the actual maker (assembler) of the headlight. I was told by a very sympathetic fellow who advised me that yes, it was a replaceable part, if they were allowed to sell it as such, (He agreed that they SHOULD!), but their contract with HD doesn't let them do that. They are to refer ALL queries about any parts sold to HD for resale back to HD. Again no help there. (His off-the-record-quote: "Why should Harley make the cheaper part available when they can sell you the whole thing new again?"
However, he DID inform me that the very same headlight assembly can be had without the HD name on it online way cheaper although it does require a mounting kit as well. The gizmo is called the JW Speaker Model 8700 Evolution headlight, Pt# 0549711 and the mounting kit is Pt. # 3156351.
He said that I could save quite a bit on a replacement if I looked around a bit.
I did so and sure enough, found the item for $315 at a site called KBcarsandstuff.com. I found it on Amazon as well for a bit more. Just in case anyone is interested.
Me, I'm pissed now. I'm going to fabricate a solution and use the original light assembly. And just maybe I will be doing that crusade to let everyone know just how much Harley cares about customer satisfaction as opposed to that ever important profit margin.
 
#35 ·
No one enjoys having a situation like that but be realistic about it at least. Harley buys the assembled light; not the parts. Coming from someone who actually has first hand experience in dealing with inventory; it takes a lot to just add an extra part. Especially a part that most people won't ever purchase. There is no money to be made by having every single component that could POSSIBLY break available to every customer. You may feel it is Harley having no interest in their customers but if you had any experience in this; you would understand why they don't. If a button on your TV remote stops working, are you mad at Vizio for telling you to buy a new remote instead of them selling you a single button?

I have a 2002 sporty and guess what; parts available for my bike are getting harder and harder to find. I'm not mad at Harley for that, it makes no sense to keep making parts for a 12 year old bike. It makes much more sense to keep up with the current bikes.

Welcome to the forum, glad to see that you joined up.
 
#44 ·
I have a 2002 sporty and guess what; parts available for my bike are getting harder and harder to find. I'm not mad at Harley for that, it makes no sense to keep making parts for a 12 year old bike. It makes much more sense to keep up with the current bikes.

Welcome to the forum, glad to see that you joined up.
Just to play devil's advocate, don't you think older bikes will need more parts than newer ones? Some of the newer ones don't have the same quality, so it's an extra liner for MoCo's pocketbook.

If I had a newer bike, I'd be pissed if something quit that was supposed to be built to last.

I've had no trouble finding parts for my 78 Shovel, even though some of them are aftermarket.
 
#36 ·
Welcome to the forum. Sorry about your problem. And I really appreciate the effort you're going thru to fix the problem. I'd a just bought a new light. Not worth the effort. Keep us posted.
 
#39 ·
When i was researching led lights, I was shocked at the price of DayMakers. $525.00 for 7"headlight and $400.00 each for aux. lights. The maker J.W. Speaker was a little less. The Phase 7 fitted my pocket the best. I am very pleased with them. Unless a I need a HD specific part, I'll go after market.
 
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