Austin Moto Classics

Walked in to ask a simple question about getting a piece for my bike that could have been pulled off of any motorcycle that would even be junked. Ignored upon walking in the door and didn’t even make eye contact with the guy behind the counter as he was to busy to acknowledge my existence, his recommendation was to travel «just up the road» to a place that was all the way across town and didn’t even give me any sort of explanation as to why for some reason they’re not carrying something that is so easy to pull off of a junked motorcycle. I give it a second star because some of the things they had in the shop for sale were good for the price the customer service of the man standing behind the counter with sour.

Friendly people. I try to do most of my own maintenance but sometimes you have to pay someone else for their experience and resources. The first time I went through these guys was to put new tires on my TW. I brought the wheels and new tires in. They said that they weren’t supposed to swap tires without the whole bike in the shop but they’d do it just this once for me.
This makes sense, you don’t want a dumb customer to poorly affix a wheel back on a bike just to wreck a mile down the road, leaving a family to seek compensation from a negligent shop.
Next I brought the TW into their current location after attempting to unjam the chain from the sprocket. If you don’t tension the chain it slackens quickly due to gear braking, resulting in a chain wrapped around the axle. I couldn’t get the side cover off and just wanted the bike ready for the beautiful weekend. I brought it in on Friday and got it back Saturday morning with a new chain and oil.
And lastly, I brought in my Suzuki Intruder for new fork seals and oil. While I was having them take care of that I asked the owner where I could go to get the vinyl seats re-​wrapped. He suggested Cardenas Upholstery. I just picked up the seats and bike today and am happy with the work. Now I just need some sunshine.

Pulled in for an inspection sticker and an oil change and they knocked it out while I waited in less than half an hour. The staff up front and the mechanics were friendly and professional. The $ 90/​hour labor fee is slightly higher than some outlying locations, but it would take a LOT of labor to recover the cost of cab fare and lost time getting there and back.

Don’t bother with this place unless it’s dire. And it was for me. Quoted ~$ 120 to get my bike running (I don’t know much about bikes) and $ 800 later I rode it off the lot. Main gist was that they replaced the fluids, brake pads gave it a check up. For $ 800. Two days later bike wouldn’t start. I asked my question on an online bike forum and was told that for bikes like mine, it was a battery issue and I should get a $ 40 trickle charge. Viola! Bike starts and runs fine now. Thanks for nothing AMC!

Service date: 09/​23/​2014
Service performed: Motorcycle diagnostic
Model: 2005 Kawasaki Ninja 250EX
Problem: Cuts off when accelerating
I have never been to this place, but it was the closest to where I lived, so I gave it a try. I saw bikes lined up outside the front of the building. I went through the garage to speak to someone about my bike. He listened to my problem and then brought me inside the store to get a work order started.
The other guy inside the store wrote up the work order and stated, «Next time you come in, check in through the store. You can’t come in through the garage like that. That’s like going to a restaurant and going to the kitchen to order your food.»
I explained to him that I thought the bikes that were outside the store were for sale, and that this part of the building was for selling motorcycles which is why I went to the SERVICE department. The reality was that the motorcycles in front of the store are all bikes needing to get fixed. Had I known that, I would have entered through the store entrance instead of the garage. He didn’t have to make a rude comment like that, though. Very unprofessional, in my opinion.
BREAKDOWN:
$ 90/​hr for labor
My bike took 1.5hrs = $ 135
What they did: Replace a $ 12 sparkplug
They said that my back tire was leaking air as well, and they would be able to replace it for $ 190 ($ 120 for the tire, $ 70 for labor). I declined, and ordered online at
for $ 60, and had another guy put it on for $ 40.
Next day, bike was running. However, within a week, my bike had a flat tire. I ordered the tire, then had it put on about a month later. Within ONE week, the bike had died on me AGAIN! I took it to the same guy who replaced my tire, and he found the REAL problem: My bike was running on WATER. I have inclinations to believe Austin Motos had something to do with this, considering they were the last business to work on my bike.
Austin Motos did not help diagnose the problem or fix the issues I had paid for. Overpriced. Poor communication. Misdiagnosis of problem. I would NOT recommend this company to anyone.