That should have been covered by warranty without any questions whether or not you went to the dealer for its 1st service. There is nothing in the manual (atleast my manual) that says you must take the machine to a dealer for its first service to have breakdown covered by warranty.

Change the oil and clean the filter yourself. Buy a Clymer manual and adjust the valves yourself. It's not that big of a deal. 90% of it is having the right tools for the job.

Thats my 2c!

 

Then again the dealer could say you put the oil filter in backwards, stopping oil flow causing the motor to seize.

Yes it is possible, And traceable

What is piece of mind worth to you?

It's the call of the dealer, and customer receipts.

If you choose to go down that path it better be documented.

 

Guys, just remember if you paid $50 or less for a first service then you probably are the ones who got ripped off. You get what you pay for!!! I would simply ask the question of what were the clearances on the valves and what are the manufacturer's specs. Most dealers are honest but I agree there are questionable ones out there. Let the dealer do the first service. The documentation alone could pay for itself ten fold.

Something else to consider is without occasional visits to the dealer and at least knowing the service mgr you will have no access to updates that come from time to time from the manufacturer. These updates can often put your machine at risk. Unless it is a recall you won't know and believe me there are lots of updates or bulletins on most of the products each of you own.