I definitely can change the battery, and would not mind paying a good shop for it given the economic benefit to the shop. I belive in supporting local independent places, but that is exactly the type of place that jacked me on the oil change. This is a big Harley area and they all overpay for their service around here. I have had the bike for 5 years plus and have not had to do a thing to her. My kids are from 13 to 5 with a 10 and a 8 in the middle. They would love to ride with me, but I don't have the proper gear for them and I will not even consider putting them on it.

My time is better spent with them at one of their functions, if I need to pay 400 bucks to not have miss time with them, it is worth it. I likely do not have the specific tools nor do I want to "learn" while fixing my baby.

I am not sure if the dead battery is a result of a bad R/R, but after using the search feature, on here it seems cheap insurance to frying other stuff and a new battery. The carbs could be negotiable, but I am always leery of taking it to a stealership that just adds cost as "necessary"

The bike also needs to have the fuel gage looked at. It won't do anything but flash as if it is empty. It has since the first day I got it. The dealer I bought it from said the fuel level was just low. It was 200 miles away and I got no where with them when I called them to dispute the low fuel level.

Thanks for the responses, I hope to get her back to running near new. That is why I love Hondas. They usually are bulletproof.

 

My advice, buy and swap the battery yourself, and adjust and lube the chain... That's regular maintainance, so that's not cost effective to have a shop do at all... And it's a matter of minutes to do, so it won't really cut into the kids time... Just swap one ride for it... The tools needed is as basic as a philips head screwdriver and a couple of open-end wrenches...

Have the shop work the carbs, but since it's a small shop likely, that never worked on a VTR, either be very specific on what you want them to do, as in google the site, and print out a "manual"... Or, be prepared to spend big money on re-doing and fixing the things they messed up...

The R/R is a kind of inbetween thing... A shop is unlikely to want to do anymore than swap an OEM part... And that's not really a "fix" or "upgrade" it's just delaying the problem really... So, it's most likely you will have to tackle that one on your own if you want it done right...

As for the fuel sender unit, check the wiring, it's very common for the wire to become pinched, or disconnected at the plug, when people work on the bike, and if you are lucky, you just need to plug it in, or worst case, fix the cut wire... The whole testing procedure is laid out in detail in the repair manual... Same thing, only basic tools needed, and if you are lucky it's a half hour procedure, so it's well worth the time IMHO...

With those things done at home, spending the money to get the carbs done, and if you can find a shop willing to do the R/R wiring, I'd say it's a lot easier to justify the money spent there...

 

Personally I can see where you are coming from. I don't have 4 kids, but between work, home ownership chores, family, and community service commitments, it really would be helpful if there was a service shop that was trustworthy and fair where I could also take my bike sometimes. I mean if you think about it for a minute, what you're asking for is not the least bit unreasonable... just unlikely.

In my case as much as I'd be willing to pay someone more expert than myself I end up doing my own work just because our bikes are so uncommon and I can't just throw money and hope at it.

But maybe if you're patient enough you will find someone like that near you. Seriously the R/R should really be replaced with a better design(MOSfet) from another brand and the associated wiring done too. That approach might be very difficult to find at a repair shop. Good luck.