Rich’s Yamaha

Living out in Lockport there are few local places to get parts or service on my bike. Went to Rich’s to get some parts for my GSXR1000 and was directed to John in the shop. After a short breakdown of what I needed within a few minutes I was handed the bolts I needed, also coated with locktite (at no charge) and on my way. Great service and knowledge followed by excellent customer service. Highly recommend.

Just bought my very first motorcycle that was brand new and not used. Honest upfront pricing, very friendly, made it a pleasurable experience and put me at ease. It was a great deal, but spending that kind of money always makes me nervous. Need a bike, repair or gear go check them out!

This place is very friendly and well informed professional bunch. I was well taken care of not taken advantage of and got the bike I wanted at a price and loan I could afford with all the toys I needed and wanted. Would buy again in a heartbeat

I’ve never had a more pleasant and fun experience buying snowmobile gear in my life. Misty was more than helpful picking out the perfect bibs without pressure. She considered my needs more than ringing up the high ticket items she could have. It was an absolute pleasure working them and I’ll gladly spend my money there again.

I have had my Yamaha RSV serviced at Rich’s, and recently purchased a SXS. Rich’s treats you like family and Mike and his staff provide outstanding customer service. Prior to making my recent purchase, I visited just about every dealer in the Chicago area (I considered Honda and a few others before settling on the Viking) and found that most will throw you a low number and then add on taxes and so many little fees that the end price is greatly inflated. Visit Rich’s and you will get the best price on your new machine and also have a great selection of accessories courtesy of Misty.
Unlike many other dealerships, Rich’s also has a nice open area in the rear which is great if you are like me and want to try out your new machine before making that large purchase. Many dealers expected me to purchase their vehicle without ever getting to start it first!
I would recommend shopping around and then stopping by Rich’s Yamaha for a great experience. After all — you are purchasing something that is a blast to ride, why not make the purchasing experience as easy as possible?

I have purchased 4 bikes from Richs Yamaha. They always have the best deals and I won’t go anywhere else.

As a single female rider, I have felt as if I have been taken advantage of, when my bike needed to be repaired. I decided a change in venue was in order and called up Rich’s Yamaha. I spoke with the mechanic, John, about my negative experiences at other places and he was very receptive, and respectful, over the phone and in person. He explained everything and there were no surprises when I was handed the bill. The ladies working there are friendly, and made me feel very comfortable, also.
Lady riders, this is the place for you! Thank you, Rich’s Yamaha, you have a new customer.
Reviewed by a 30-​something, educated, female. Three years on two wheels.

This is a family owned and operated dealership and you pick up on the friendly/​professional atmosphere as soon as you begin to work with any of the staff. Mike and his daughter Misty were very helpful during the purchase process and helped me decide on the right accessories for my new bike! I purchased my new 2014 Star Stryker from Rich’s Yamaha one week ago today. This dealer offered the best price on any motorcycle in the Chicagoland area. Some dealers I called wanted $ 1,250 — $ 3,000 more for the same exact cycle than what I paid at Rich’s. Some of the other dealers I contacted told me that I wasn’t even able to test ride the cycle I was interested in buying!!! How can you decide to buy a motorcycle if you’re not allowed to test ride it?! I’m so glad that I found Rich’s Yamaha… I feel I got the best price and was treated so nicely.
I stopped by yesterday to have a windshield installed and the service manager, John, was very friendly and helpful. I told him this was my first motorcycle and he spent about 30 mins or more educating me and answering my questions about the maintenance, extended warranty features and anything else I could possibly think to ask. There are several other Yamaha/​Star dealers in my immediate neighborhood, however I will travel the 33 miles from St Charles to Lockport to continue any maintenance, repairs or whatever I need for my new bike!
Thanks Rich’s Yamaha… you’ve earned a customer for life!

This review is a long time in coming, but I just found some paperwork today from a purchase back in 2010. As I had recently been filling out some Unilocal reviews for other merchants, I am deciding to leave this as it is long overdue.
I purchased a bike back in 2010. Along with the bike, Rich’s was to install for me some aftermarket parts: chrome, air filter, cobra pipes, etc. I did my best to purchase these parts through Rich’s, even though their prices were higher than many places I could purchase online. Some of these items couldn’t be procured by them — either they couldn’t find the pieces I wanted (and thus I *had* to buy online myself) or else they told me that the time to get them was exceptionally long. The Cobra pipes were of the latter variety, so I purchased them myself through a third party vendor and had them shipped to Rich’s.
When I finally went to pick up the finished bike I noticed that the pipes didn’t look like they were installed correctly. They were mean to be «shotgun» style and the two exhausts should have lined up flush with each other. Instead, they were installed in a staggered fashion. I had owned a previous model year of this same bike, with the same pipes — so I know how they were supposed to look.
I was told by them that this is how the pipes were meant to be installed, and anything that was wrong with the installation was because the pipes were «defective» but that they had installed them properly. As they seemed unwilling to do anything at the time, and because I didn’t have any way to prove their statements then and there, I took the bike home. I followed up with Cobra, send them pictures of the pipes and they reinforced that the pipes seemed to be installed incorrectly. Cobra wanted to make sure that all the part numbers were right and doing that required that I needed to partially dismantle the pipes.
I took it upon myself to download the installation manual and attempt to see what I could do. Sure enough, when i had taken off a few of the bolts I was able to *easily* see that there was a problem with how the billet tips were installed that caused the pipes to be staggered instead of flush. It probably took me 30 minutes to take them off, fix the issue, and reinstall. I didn’t even know what I was doing at first — I’m sure something like this would have taken the guy’s at Rich’s 5 minutes to fix if they gave a damn about their work or the customer.
I gave Rich’s ample opportunity to fix the issue even though they were located over an hour from where I was. They adamantly refused to do anything — even look at the bike again. I believe the service manager who I dealt with was a Mr. Matijevich. After I fixed the issue myself (wasting hours in the process of dealing with all this), I decided to file a claim with my credit card company to contest the labor portion of the pipe installation. The card company, after seeing all the evidence sided with me. After all, how could they not given the above facts and what Mr. Mike Venziano’s of Rich’s wrote to the credit company:
«Mr. [Redacted]‘s complaint is strictly about the esthetics [sic] of the exhaust that he bought to us and is not a failure on our part to install them correctly. Rich’s Yamaha strives for customer satisfaction, and this issue has us frustrated because we cannot take responsibility for anything we do not have control over.»
So they were either blatantly lying or incompetent — since they did have complete control over how they were installed. Also, they seemed to believe that the issue was an aesthetic one and that poor installation cannot possible lead to an aesthetic problem… so it had to be a problem with the product. The whole time they tried to weasel out of the situation because I bought the pipes through a third party who could deliver them in an acceptable time-​frame.
I’m giving 2 stars here because I think I got a good deal on the bike and felt I was treated fairly until I picked the bike up and they started to feed me all the BS above. It is really sad because it was such a stupid little installation problem that they could likely have fixed in 5 minutes when I mentioned it at pickup. Instead, they had to act like they were the know-​it-​alls and I was just some poor idiot who was inconveniencing them and couldn’t possible be right.
My advice. If they have a good price on a new bike… probably go for it. But don’t have them service your bike because they clearly either don’t know what they are doing, or else they don’t care (about the bike or the customer).

Had a similar experience as Jerry did below. I was visiting Downtown Chicago and rode my ’05 FJR 1300, trip from (Knoxville TN-​Lexington OH to Chicago — then on to Milwaukee to ferry over to Muskegon then to Ludington for the forth… then to Indy and Nashville to make our way back home to KNOXVILLE)… I was half way on my 1800 mile trip. When I rolled into town, the heat evidently caused my bike to not start. So stranded in downtown at the Felix Hotel Chicago… guess it could have been in a worst place… Now I had to find a motorcycle shop. So I went to ‘Yelp’ for help! Wow… it was Sunday and thinking that I was stuck until Tuesday… which I thought would change our trip plans… until I found Rich’s Yamaha!!! First off I couldn’t believe they were open on Monday… then calling & talking with Misty I couldn’t have had a nicer person answer the phone. under this stressful experience. I had my battery tender with me and once the bike cooled off and chg’d it started… but felt like I needed it checked out. Rich’s Yamaha was my saving grace… John the technician, said let me look at it and get you going before the rain… he was so welcoming and stopped what he was doing and began checking the electrical system. My blood pressure dropped:). Unbelievable service!!! He shared some good info., very knowledgeable wasn’t pushy… and Misty was very pleasant showing me the new FJR while I waited… very cool. This place definitely sets the Barr for MC shops! It was a 30 mins. drive from downtown Chicago but well worth it for the Great service. I received! Thanks for making my trip up north even better!!!

Ladies and Gents… I have never had any type of dealership as professional as this one. Family Owned. Mike and his kids are wonderful. Dealt with Misty most of the time, and she was fantastic. I recently bought a V-​Star motorcycle from Rich’s and I couldn’t be more happy. I received a great deal that was hard to refuse. Next thing you know I am picking out accessories. They are very experienced in this field and make you feel like family. John, the mechanic, is top notch and doesn’t BS you. His work on the passing lights was clean and tucked so well. Wish they sold cars, because this was easy. I hope they read this and know that they made me one happy customer. Remember, keep Rich’s on top of your list to visit because their deals are almost unmatched. Believe me.

great mom and daugher place. always happy smiles and great products and will help you with all your needs. this has real people working not people putting on a fake smile so make sure you go into this place with a smile.

Good honest guys that treat your bike like their own. Good quality work, Very helpful. And they stand behind it. Would not hesitate to recommend them and I will be returning for all of my needs in the future. John (Who runs the service department) is knowledgeable, helpful, and customer service focused.

Just purchased my new Yamaha motorcyle here. I’d have to say this was the most pleasant «dealer» experience I’ve ever had. Ever.
Before even visiting this dealership, Misty was super friendly and helpful on the phone. Didnt matter how often I called asking questions. Once my bike was in stock, I headed over.
Their sticker price was $ 800 lower than everyone else in Illinois for the model I wanted. At first I thought there was some kind of typo or catch, but that was the price they advertised and honored.
Mike took care of my paperwork, and this was a completely smooth, no BS transaction. Within 30 minutes I was done and ready to ride home.
Before I took possession though, John went over the bike with me, we covered things like maintenance schedule and just overall an informative general overview. He assured me they take pride in their shop and he personally handles any problems or concerns any customers might have in the shop.
This place takes pride in their business, and cares about their customers.
If only all dealerships could be run like Rich’s Yamaha.
Thanks Misty, Mike and John!

My father and I get parts from them all the time for our Hondas, Kawasaki’s and Yamaha’s.
Not sure if the girl behind the counter is the owners daughter or just a girl that works there but she is really good at what she does. She finds the parts you need at the right price and doesn’t mess around doing it.
I’ve been riding for 11 years now and most places I go to are elitist and stuffy, the people here treat you right.

Just bought a new motorcycle from them and it was an awesome experience. Mike was informative and really showed that cared about his customers. I had some special circumstances for getting the bike and he was patient and understanding the whole time and handled my trade-​in without issue. I never felt any pressure. When I picked up my new bike, another customer who had bought the same bike was there and he talked to me about the quality of the bike and how great Rich’s has been to him. That sort of talk from another customer said a lot to me too.
Overall, the best experience I had with any shops in the area and better then where I bought my first motorcycle. I would highly recommend them to anyone.
Updated on service side: I have had my motorcycle in now twice for work. The first was for my 600 mile service and that went fine. The second time I had to take it in for service was because I needed a new rear tire (yes, with only 1200 miles on it due a nail) and they replaced that and got me a really good deal on it. However, the even better part of the service was that I had scuffed up my front fender pretty good when putting the bike in the back of my truck. I asked them to look at it and amazingly they were able to clean it up to look like new. I thought for sure I would need to have it touched up by a paint shop, but they were able to restore it to that like-​new look. Exceptional work.

The ONLY Yamaha Pro Specialist dealership in Illinois!