Fell off the bike while doing 40 mph

[LERecords]

Not me, but my givi top case...

story: I was riding up in the berkshires (MA) and nothing out of the ordiniary. I made sure before i rode that the case was secure, there was prolly only 5 - 10 lbs in the case... was prolly about 2 hours into my ride.. road had a bunch of bumps and I felt something bump my back.. looked in the mirror to see it at an angle and then fall off and slide down the road.. thankfully there was no one behind me.. I reattached it and it seemed locked in once again.. I really didnt look at the damage untill i got home, and freaked out the whole way back thinking it was going to do it again.. I checked the mounting plate and it seems solid as ever, the two slots on the bottom (non locking part) seem solid too as well as the lock.. i really pulled hard on it when i got home and for the life of me cant figure out how the hell it came off..

I would still recomend givi to anyone due to awsome quality, but i was wondering if this has happend to anyone else.. I mean, I have gone over tons of bumps at just about every speed and have never had a problem.. don't know if i should call or email givi to get their take on it. the case is probably only like 4 -5 years old.. just dont want to have this happen again, especially on a highway or somewhere where it will get run over.. I use this thing on EVERY ride too...

damage:

 

[Norbert]

what rack do you have? please provide photo or model number.
just curious. thx

 

[CHEMIKER]

Good to hear that it was just your case and not you!

 

[Geoff]

Sorry to hear about the strange thing that happened. Impressive that tr cases didn't take too much damage.

 

[novaks47]

Don't scare us like that! I thought it was you that fell when I read the thread title. Glad that wasn't what happened.

Considering the pounding the thing took, it looks pretty darn good! Maybe a safety tether is in order? And a little paint, and it'll look good as new.

 

[wolfe1down]

Brutal. Glad it was just the case, and not you! I have never had any issues with my Givi top case coming loose, and I have put some decent weight in it. When I hit bumps, I just hear the cargo rattling around

Check the two plastic mounting tabs on the case itself. Do they appear worn out? That to me seems to be the only weak part of the Givi design. Maybe you had them partly lined up when you installed it, and they worked their way loose? It's a long shot, but you never know...

Definitely contact Givi though, and see what their thoughts are...

 

[Erci]

That sucks, but at least it's still fully usable.
Unless you see something obvious on the mounting plate or the bottom of the case, there's obviously no way to tell if this was a Givi failure or you just didn't click it all the way in.
This is definitely the first time I've seen this happen.

 

[Smersh]

Glad to hear you are ok, and it's just the case. Hope you can find out the problem - how is the condition of the latch on the block?? I've had this case for only a year and to be honest, I've been overloading it quite a bit - never a problem, I'm clicking it in and out every day. Been on a couple of bumpy roads w/o an incident.

 

[LERecords]

well.. the latch and mono plate (rack) seem compleatly fine... wolfe1- i thout it was those 2 tabs too and not the lock part.. one side definitly seems a little "loose".. once again, not bashing givi or anything, its just plastic and it does look like it gave a little.. the 100 mile ride home and everything else was fine.. my phone and camera (among other things) was in it when it fell and both are compleatly fine.. a testament to the build quality.. some family members were talking about how givi should do this and blah blah blah... but once again.. not a dig on givi.. the case did not open and everything was fine.. definitly not looking for a hand out from givi, but if the thing needs to be replaced (not like i have the cash right now) then it will get replace with another one.. seems like one of those "fluke" incidents... ill put some pics up of the underside of the case and the monoplate, but even when i snapped it back on, it seemed very very secure.. sometimes "it" happens right.. :thumbup: just was an addition to an already pretty crappy day..

edit: Im gonna send a nice email to givi and let them know what happened.. ill post up what i write and post up their response..

 

[Red Wazp]

Man I was all set to read how you left the bike at 40mph and lived to tell the story. Damn glad to read it was your top case and not you.

Very rare for this to happen with a Givi. Lots of us have them on our FJR's with no problems. Keep us posted on their response.

 

[Alterin]

I had one of my givi side cases randomly open while making a turn. Luckily it was empty, and I havn't been able to repeat it. Doesn't make any sense considering, you can't take out the key without it being latched down? Oh well, I worried about it for a few months, and now I don't think about it.

 

[LERecords]

This is what i sent givi this morning.. I'll give them a call if i dont hear from them in a few days...

"Dear Givi,

I had a major issue with my top case yesterday. It is a v46 top case and I have the mono rack for an 05 Yamaha FZ6. Before my ride, I made sure that the case was locked in tight and fillied it with about 5-10lbs of stuff. I had locked it all up and started my ride. After about 2 hours in, I felt something hit my back and when I looked in my side view, I watched my case come off the rack and proceed to fall off the bike and slide to the side of the road. When this happened I was going about 40 mph and had just hit a bumpy patch on the road. The case never opened and for the life of my, I can not figure out how it could have come off the rack. I have pictures of the case and rack if you need me to send them to you, but I am just concerned that this could happen again. I use this case every time I ride my bike, as I put my cell phone, wallet, and camera (among other things) into it. The case and rack are approx. 4 years old, and up until now I have never had a problem. I am more than happy to send you the case and the top rack plate if needed. Please let me know.

Thanks,"

 

[LERecords]

well.. after looking over the case this morning, i think i have found where the problem is.. one fo the pints where you lock the case in (not the locking point, but the sliding connects) looks like it was "marred" (like if you were to pull 2 connected plastic peices).. the pictures dont do it justic, and i dunno why the camera wouldn't take a good one, but ill post them up anyways.. I mean, i realize this thing is just plastic, but hopefully givi can sell me a new bottom peice or what not..

whats circled is the problem.. it almost looks like a part was sheared off, which probably happened when the case "popped" off.. I honestly would never believe that this could happen unless it happened to me.. I dunno if it was from the few times i overloaded it (not by much) or from just continued use.. either way, i would have no problem replacing it with another givi.. quality products and im sure this is just a fluke sort of thing.. :thumbup:

 

[wolfe1down]

well.. after looking over the case this morning, i think i have found where the problem is.. one fo the pints where you lock the case in (not the locking point, but the sliding connects) looks like it was "marred" (like if you were to pull 2 connected plastic peices).. the pictures dont do it justic, and i dunno why the camera wouldn't take a good one, but ill post them up anyways.. I mean, i realize this thing is just plastic, but hopefully givi can sell me a new bottom peice or what not..

whats circled is the problem.. it almost looks like a part was sheared off, which probably happened when the case "popped" off.. I honestly would never believe that this could happen unless it happened to me.. I dunno if it was from the few times i overloaded it (not by much) or from just continued use.. either way, i would have no problem replacing it with another givi.. quality products and im sure this is just a fluke sort of thing.. :thumbup:

In you pics, are you showing the area where the case to rack locking mechanism is? Or is that the plastic mounting tabs area of the box (hard to tell)? If it's the case/rack locking mechanism, can you tell me if your locking components are metal or plastic... On my E470, case/rack lock is all metal and snaps onto the rack with an audible click. But it's sometimes hard to line up the two plastic mounting tabs (near the front of the bike when the box is mounted) as they're at an angle that makes visualization difficult. As I said before, that portion seems to be the weakest part of the Givi setup...

 

[LERecords]

no your absolutly right.. its the tabs section toward the front of the bike.. up close (pictures for some reason do not come out) you can see it took some of the plastic off when it "popped" off.. whatever the thickness of the tab is, its now like half of the thickness of the other ones.. I can honestly say that i will probably just save up this winter and buy a new one.. $250 off twisted throttle.. might even upgrade to a bigger one.. i really just want to know 2 things from givi.. how could this have happened, and what can i do to prevent it in the future.. ya know.. was it from possible overloading a few time or what not.. i really was just more down then pissed.. i really love my top case and now its all scratched to hell.. but either way i still stand behind their products.. they put alot of r&d into them and im sure it was something I or the previous owner did that allowed this to happen .. oh and my lock part is plastic.. :thumbup:

 

[Norbert]

When you normally place the topcase on the rack, is it ever loose?
Does it move up and down slightly?
Maybe it wiggled up and down a lot and, overtime, stressed those plastic tabs that are in the photo.

Also, try standing farther away from the case and then zooming in with your camera, jeez dude! All I see are coupons for Papa Johns......

 

[LERecords]

no.. when clicked in, the case does not move at all.. I almost tipped the bike off the side stand when i reattached and really tried to get it off... and those are coupons for shop-rite.. they just put one in my town. new pics below.. this first one is where i think it has a problem now.. looks liek some of hte plastic got chewed away. second one is the side i think has the problem.. third one is the other side... thanks for the picture taking tips omg_wtf

 

[LERecords]

email from givi and my reply

Gary,



Here are the pictures I have of the case. I do not have a copy of my proof of purchase, but please understand that I am not looking for a hand out. Just want to get your take on the problem and any ideas on what to do to make sure that this does not happen in the future. From the pictures, I can see one side does not look like the other side. Once again, I have no problem sending you the case for evaluation. If that is something you would be interested in, please let me know where and to whom to send it to.

Pic 21 is the side where I recall popped out first. Pic 19 would be a shot of the other side. Pic 18 is a side shot of pic 21. The rest of the pictures are what happened to the case. It did not open during the "crash" phase. To me it is a testament to the build quality of your products.



Thanks again for all your help.



-



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: RE: Contattaci
Date: Thu, 30 Sep 2010 10:29:20 -0400


Mike,



I can understand your concern.



In order to evaluate and ultimately rectify the situation we would definitely like to see the pictures that you have and get a copy of your proof of purchase. If you can do without the case and are able to send it to us for a more comprehensive evaluation that would be great.



Thank you for Choosing GIVI Products.



Ride Safe.



Gary Adreon

GIVI USA Inc

Charlotte NC

P: 877 679-4484

F: 704-679-4133

Motorcycle Cases, Hardbags, Side Hardbags, Motorcycle Soft luggage, Tank bags, Spoiler







GIVI USA Inc

Charlotte NC

P: 877 679-4484

F: 704-679-4133

Motorcycle Cases, Hardbags, Side Hardbags, Motorcycle Soft luggage, Tank bags, Spoiler

 

[Norbert]

Hmmmmm. Well if the topcase is secure in its rack then I'm out of ideas.
How does the rack look? Mine has plastic hooks that go into the topcase. Does yours? Are those hooks ok?

 

[LERecords]

yea.. hooks are solid.. if you could look at the case in person, where i circled, you would probably come to the same conslusion i did.. if you look at the left side of pic 2, you'll see how the plastic is a little less of a width than the pic #3.. hey its plastic and i honestly didnt expect it to last forever.. and that could have happened when it popped off anyways.. reminder to others with givi cases, check them out and make sure that they still look solid.. i was lucky and was on alone on the road, but man if i was on the highway.. waiting to hear back from givi if they want me to ship it out so they can look at it.. i already looked at twisted throttle and im thinkin new v46 with the color matching top... now if they only made color matching tops for my e21's :thumbup: