My Adventure Moto Story

Hey guys, I feel compelled to tell my story about my recent transactions with Adventure Moto.
As a consumer I wished I’d known what I know now before they stuffed me around and ruined my holiday, and maybe with some forewarning they won’t ruin yours.

It started early in 2018, about March/April when I decided that I would buy a new KTM 500 and adventurize it. The first things I knew I had to buy was a seat and tank, and after some research I decided on a Seat Concept Seat and IMS tank. The only place to buy in Australia was Adventure Moto and I was happy to buy local and support a local company.
The strange thing was that neither part was ever in stock on their web site. I wasn’t in a hurry as I hadn’t even bought the bike yet, I had other bikes to ride and my plan was a big ride to the high country in mid 2019.

As many would know Adventure Moto send out promotional emails pretty regularly with varying discounts and each time that prompted me to get on their site to order these parts but as usual there was no stock. After another promo email at the end of June 2018 I rang up to find out why there was never any stock on what was becoming a pretty popular adv bike. They told me that they were having trouble with their suppliers but there was stock turning up shortly and suggested that I buy gift vouchers at a 10% discount and keep an eye on the web site, which I did.

I bought the bike within the next month and a month after that rang again to see why there was still no stock, I was told that the IMS tank shipments were selling out before they landed and I would have to make an official order, which I did. I told them I also wanted to buy a seat and they said that they should be here not long after the tanks arrived. I received the tank a little over a month later, which by now was late Oct. Even though this was a drawn out process I was not particularly worried as my trip was still 6 months away.
While I was paying for the tank I asked about the seat, they said they were having some trouble with suppliers (a familiar excuse I had heard before) and that I would have to make an official order and not just wait for their normal stock order. Which I did. At this point I would have normally told them to fuck off and just bought it from the States myself but remember they conned me into buying the gift vouchers with the promise the goods were on their way. Most of us probably know when a supplier wont sent any goods there is usually a very common reason.

Anyway I waited patiently over the next few months while I built up my bike for traveling. Around early Feb 19 I rang to find out what was going on, they tried to just brush it off as normal overseas business but I didn’t come down in the last shower and I started to demand some explanations. Luckily I was talking to an employee and I cornered them into revealing that they use a freight forwarder and a local “buyer” in the States and this is why they claim they don’t know exactly what stock they are getting and when it will be shipped. They said that there will be a shipment leaving the States in the next week or two.
So I gave them a ring in a fortnight and got a different person, I told them I was expecting a seat and was wondering whether they knew the ETA. She said the shipment was expected in a couple of days “if my item was in the first shipment” Of course my item is in the first shipment, I’ve been waiting for nearly 5 months I said. She went and checked… “oh sir I’m sorry your seat is not in this shipment, it must be coming in the next one.” Obviously I went off and demanded that she give me my money back immediately so as I could buy the seat from another supplier as my holidays were only weeks away. She told me she was sitting with her accountant at this very moment and the accountant said she was unable to refund any money. Of course I went off again and told them to sort my refund and hung up. About 2 hours later I receive a phone call from yet another guy, “oh sir we have actually found that your seat is in this first shipment, we’ll give you a call the moment it gets to our shop.” I thought to myself that they have taken someone else’s order who has been waiting longer than me but has not whinged as loud as me, so as to shut me up and not give my money back. Anyway crisis averted.
When they rang a few days later requesting payment, I was still dubious and untrusting about what was going on and asked the woman to read out the model number of the seat she was about to send me. Of course it was not the seat that I had ordered, “but sir we think you will like it.” But you just knowingly lied to me and tried to scam me, I said. WTF! I wanted to speak to the boss but he was conveniently out and I demanded again that I get my money back.

It was too late for me now, I was screwed as far as getting another seat before my holiday. Steve the boss was too gutless to talk to me instead sent via email a link to his policy about not refunding money on gift vouchers. I just had to put it down to a bad experience and never shop there again.


I rang back a day or two later and just so happens that Steve answers the phone, he tried to brush my dramas off again as just a normal business transaction and nothing was his fault, but when I wouldn’t accept it he eventually agreed to refund my money but during this conversation he then suggested to get Seat Concepts to send my seat directly from their US warehouse to me. No way did he want to give me my money back! I agreed, I had no choice. In true arrogant form he did not contact me to verify this had indeed been organised.

I went on my 8000km holiday with a std EXC seat.

I eventually received the seat after I got home from my trip but I could see that it came via Adventure Moto not direct as promised.

Bought gift vouchers 30/6/18
Received seat 16/5/19

I only did 3500km of my planned 8000km trip due in part to me not being able to put up with the standard seat.

Take what you will from my experience and shop accordingly.

Nice rant. Well put together, literate, readable and with a message.
I’m giving you an 8 out of 10.

iddy

I would get rid of the 500 and buy a bike with a seat for touring. Maybe a DR or KLR

I have never had a problem with Adventure Moto and regularly spend my money there.

I make it a habit not to order things unless they are in stock nowadays for the above reason, once bitten if you know what I mean.

When you own a small business with one or two staff you can keep your finger on the pulse. But if you do well it grows into a monster and your flat out treading water trying to keep on top of everything. Large corporations have millions to spend on staff training and infrastructure and still get it wrong from time to time. The small growing business can end up in the flat spot of too big for the owner to manage, but not big enough to implement the infrastructure needed to keep it running as smooth as possible. Catch 22.

I think the biggest mistake small business owners make in this situation is their reluctance to refund. It's a false economy. It is much cheaper to give someone their money back and even throw a couple of freebies and keep them as a customer. It's called goodwill and goes a long way. Besides I like a stress free life and it's worth giving a few dollars to fix the problem and have a stress free day. As I've often said to my staff, "I don't need the drama over a $100 give it back problem solved".

Everyone has good and bad experiences from buying online.
I've had both from that store. As previously mentioned, I won't buy unless instock.
Unacceptable what happened to you though.

I haven't bought anything off them for 6 or 7 years.
They were good to deal with back then and stock seemed to be coming in fairly quickly.

I'd acquired a few things over the years from them with no dramas, stuff was in stock and arrived in a decent time frame, including an Earth X battery for Big Berg, until......

I decided I wanted an Earth X battery for my DR project. One working great in my Berg, so why not one for the DR. It duly arrived and sat on the bench for a couple of months while I built the battery box and sorted the bike to take it. These lithium batteries are supposed to hold their charge, and this one didn't seem to. I checked the voltage from time to time, and when I thought it was an issue, documented it. After an email I called and expressed my concern to Steve who said it'd be fine. Hmmm, OK, maybe. So bike was finished and battery installed. And it wouldn't crank the bike after a day or so. More emails and phone calls and he was in denial. I got a lecture about how customers with issues are a real problem for small businesses, a classic Sir Humphrey new Hospital speech. He then as a last resort suggested I contact Earth X direct, which I did. I immediately got an email back saying not to use the battery, uninstall it immediately and they'd despatch a replacement to me immediately, which they did. It turned up about 4 days later. I note that ADVM no longer sells Earth X batteries.

They sell good stuff, often at fair prices and its all good until its not.

Actually re reading it I'd give 10 out of 10. I and I think a few others could change the name of dealer and tell same story.

That's a very shit experience from Adventure Moto, and warns me enough to use discretion (ie. in stock only) thanks for sharing your story. Being suggested to buy gift vouchers when in this situation that's a ggf door right there.

I had similar problems with them when ordering a seat concepts seat for my F650GS. They advertised a special price, but when you went to order it wasn't in stock. It was only after I threatened to report them for false advertising that I finally got one at the reduced price. They lost my business after that.

Now how hard would it of been to go ‘Yep no worries mate send it back and I’ll shoot you another or give you a refund and here have t shirt and sorry for the stuff around’. You would then be on here saying ‘What a top bloke’. What’s he lost? Nothing really if he classes the refund as a ‘no sale’ he’s just back to square one, but he has gained a loyal customer, and it cost him nothing.

Businesses spend thousands upon thousands on advertising to try and get customers only then to loose them for the sake of penny pinching a few dollars.

The thing that really got me was the lecture about how difficult customers with problems like me made running his business.

A timely story... I was just considering 'ordering' a seat through them for the SWM.
Instead I am going to start 20 squats per day.

It's just cheaper and simpler to harden up!

I have had some very mixed communications with them.
Knowing the above story I will likely get the seat direct (if the squats don't work) and get Klim gear (if i can ever afford it) from a retail in the U.S of A.

Maybe have a read through the 18 pages or so here https://advrider.com/f/threads/adventure-moto.693682/

Ive been in small business too and my mentor drumed that philosophy into me from an early age.
The thing that made this situation worse was that at no time did he supply me with anything. It wasn't like he ordered a part and I changed my mind or I got it home and didn't like the colour. He put in zero time, effort and money to come up with minus atleast one customer.

Regarding your first paragraph, in this case I think its the opposite. The staff are only playing by the bosses rules and business ethos.

True, I recently made a complaint to an airline company and got someone who was trained in how to articulately blow customers off. Then there is always the staff member who decides he knows how to deal with it best, and dig a bigger hole.

I got that same bloke when he worked for the NBN co. He was very good.

Interesting as I was discussing with them ordering a seat concepts seat and the costing, potential delivery time and general vagueness about when I'd get it put me off.
As crash n Bern said this could have been a glorious free advert targeting their main market but for some honesty, courtesy and business sense.
I'm ordering direct from the states