Bad Week For BMW

FirstStrike

FirstStrike

Joined
Apr 14, 2008
Messages
16
Location
Southeast
First they announce a brake recall involving the 12 GS, R and ST. Brake lines failing on young bikes, OMG.

Now they're about to announce a recall for the EWS (immobilizer). Many 12 series bikes affected by this recall. Lots of reports of owners being stranded on the road, vacations ruined.

Nothing on final drives yet, even though the reports continue to come in of field failures, on relatively low mileage bikes.
 
What is the EWS? I know a guy that couldn't get his bike to start cuz the electronic key thing wouldn't let his key work.
 
Local police here are dropping the R1200 less than 2 years after they took them up. Citing exhorbitant running/service costs as well as repeated failures - 6 Engines in 18 months, numerous final drive and ABS failures.

We're about to get Yamaha FJR1300's for the first time in Oz History. We've never had Yamaha-mounted police here before, it's always been Honda or BMW.
 
We replaced our trusty Pans with RTs last year, big mistake. The 3 07 plates have been back for EWS failure stranding our officers in the middle of a duty tour, no good advert for BMW seeing police bikes on recovery trucks. The 2 08s have started playing up this week. Apparently there is an update that will only be done on failure. BMW also told us: 1. dont have the two keys near the bike at the same time, EWS gets confused and switches off, 2. Dont park up near a mobile phone mast or electricity substation, it gets confused!!!!. Fuel pumps have been playing up but BMW have now changed the supplier. The UK experience with RTs are burned out valves and premature cylinder and clutch wear. The Yamahas are not standing up to well either with clutches and 2nd gear failures, cracking bike otherwise though!! (FJR)
 
FirstStrike said:
Many 12 series bikes affected by this recall. Lots of reports of owners being stranded on the road, vacations ruined.
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Sorry, but that is a very broad assumption... what I know of this (from gleaning info from bmwsporttouring.com) that this pretty much is confined to certain 2007-2008 build date models and that BMW has issued a service bulletin on replacing these units within that range with a new EWS part, before any issue arrises, much like the two recalls on my ST that I had performed. The majority of bikes are running fine I am sure... if "many" as you say is the case, the storm would be much bigger.

BTW, my RT is running great, no problems after 18K in just over a year.
 
FirstStrike said:
Nothing on final drives yet, even though the reports continue to come in of field failures, on relatively low mileage bikes.
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Naaw, the drives are fine :crackup

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End BMW bash...
 
tdeboeser said:
Another 18k to go before the final drive goes ...
:D

I had to, sorry. A little joke there, very little.
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To quote Han Solo:

"Laugh it up, Fuzzball.":D

Hey, if it happens, it happens. Odds are it won't, but if I have a problem, I have a great dealer that will take care of it and get me back on the road. I have had great experiences with my THREE RTs and they haven't let me down in over 100,000 miles of smiles.
 
Chris Parker said:
Sorry, but that is a very broad assumption... what I know of this (from gleaning info from bmwsporttouring.com) that this pretty much is confined to certain 2007-2008 build date models and that BMW has issued a service bulletin on replacing these units within that range with a new EWS part, before any issue arrises, much like the two recalls on my ST that I had performed. The majority of bikes are running fine I am sure... if "many" as you say is the case, the storm would be much bigger.

BTW, my RT is running great, no problems after 18K in just over a year.
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There is a real long thread over at advrider about the EWS failures. There have been about 5 different part numbers with #247 being the latest and greatest, but only time will tell if it holds up. As for the FD, one guy there had his go out on an 08 GSADV with 106 miles. AFAIK, there have been no reports out of BMW of upgrades to the FD (lot of this went on with the 1150 and continues with the 1200 series and changing the FD fluid regularly isn't the fix either) that would bring confidence to owners. If I was this guy and knew they were replacing my failed FD with one just like it, I might question how my trust in the new FD could be built up.

I post this just because I really like the RT and would like to add one to my "stable" with the ST, but reliability is crucial to me so I will choose not to do that unless I can stick my head in the sand and buy a large supply of Kool Aid :eek: .

JDP
 
Tor said:
Naaw, the drives are fine :crackup

248271178_cb1da74683.jpg


End BMW bash...
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Tor ... You should be ashamed of that comment ... everybody knows that BMW Motorad sells high quality BMW duct tape and triple the price - slap some of that stuff over the offending part and you're good to go ....

Sorry, mods... couldn't help it....:D
 
jdpfms said:
There is a real long thread over at advrider about the EWS failures. There have been about 5 different part numbers with #247 being the latest and greatest, but only time will tell if it holds up. As for the FD, one guy there had his go out on an 08 GSADV with 106 miles. AFAIK, there have been no reports out of BMW of upgrades to the FD (lot of this went on with the 1150 and continues with the 1200 series and changing the FD fluid regularly isn't the fix either) that would bring confidence to owners. If I was this guy and knew they were replacing my failed FD with one just like it, I might question how my trust in the new FD could be built up.

I post this just because I really like the RT and would like to add one to my "stable" with the ST, but reliability is crucial to me so I will choose not to do that unless I can stick my head in the sand and buy a large supply of Kool Aid :eek: .

JDP
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JD
"Reliability is crucial to me", to a casual observer reading headings in this forum you might get the impression there is a reliability issue with the ST eg:
Another high speed wobble accident,
ST1200 Fuel cap hanging,
Front Forks,
Whining (moaning ) noise,
Trailer to haul ST,
Stock seat really uncomfortable,
Hard to start after new plugs,
Broke down on road to Westoc,
ST will not start,
Electrical trouble on trip,
Brake problem,
Front brakes rub,
I think the ST and RT are fine bikes, I think there is a lot of mis information about BMW maintenance costs and reliability, no one seems to start a thread on any forum with "my bike is running fine".
Ian
 
If it is true it is too bad. When I picked the ST1300 my final three were it, the FJR and the RT1150. I hope they get there QC under control. We have BMW to thank for getting Honda off their collective butts for the GL1800 and the ST1300. Without BMW's outstanding sales numbers in the late 90's and early 2000's Honda wouldn't have budged much on their product line.
 
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IanW said:
That's it, only a small number of 1200's affected.
Ian
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The thing is BMW's sell in small numbers. A small number of bikes recalled is a large percentage of the range. BMW manages to sell about 100,000 bikes a year worldwide with a whopping 13,000 in the US or about 1% of the US market. While that is great for exclusivity it might explain why the number of US BMW dealers are shrinking.
 
IanW said:
JD
"Reliability is crucial to me", to a casual observer reading headings in this forum you might get the impression there is a reliability issue with the ST eg:
Another high speed wobble accident,
ST1200 Fuel cap hanging,
Front Forks,
Whining (moaning ) noise,
Trailer to haul ST,
Stock seat really uncomfortable,
Hard to start after new plugs,
Broke down on road to Westoc,
ST will not start,
Electrical trouble on trip,
Brake problem,
Front brakes rub,
I think the ST and RT are fine bikes, I think there is a lot of mis information about BMW maintenance costs and reliability, no one seems to start a thread on any forum with "my bike is running fine".
Ian
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Well, we don't usually hang around the BMW sites looking for the complaints of owners but we could if you want us to. :)
 
:trolls

Dave said: Well, we don't usually hang around the BMW sites looking for the complaints of owners but we could if you want us to.

I did just that, and a quick search I found many 'issues/problems' that riders were reporting on their BMW's. Every machine is going to have some mechanical issues to get worked out, some more than others.
 
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FirstStrike said:
First they announce a brake recall involving the 12 GS, R and ST. Brake lines failing on young bikes, OMG.

Now they're about to announce a recall for the EWS (immobilizer). Many 12 series bikes affected by this recall. Lots of reports of owners being stranded on the road, vacations ruined.

Nothing on final drives yet, even though the reports continue to come in of field failures, on relatively low mileage bikes.
Click to expand...
BMW is also quietly replacing warping front brake rotors on K1200GT's. I know two owners in my local club with this problem, one on his second set. Not a big deal under warranty but BMW limits its warranty to 36K.
 
IanW said:
That's it, only a small number of 1200's affected.
Ian
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Is this about the same number of GS's with oil seal leaks owners report in ADVRider threads and polls?
 
2. Dont park up near a mobile phone mast or electricity substation, it gets confused!!!!.

Another reason I have now to run an ST as I work in a power plant and commuting on a bike was one of the main reasons for the new ST.
 
IanW said:
JD
"Reliability is crucial to me", to a casual observer reading headings in this forum you might get the impression there is a reliability issue with the ST eg:
Another high speed wobble accident,
ST1200 Fuel cap hanging,
Front Forks,
Whining (moaning ) noise,
Trailer to haul ST,
Stock seat really uncomfortable,
Hard to start after new plugs,
Broke down on road to Westoc,
ST will not start,
Electrical trouble on trip,
Brake problem,
Front brakes rub,
I think the ST and RT are fine bikes, I think there is a lot of mis information about BMW maintenance costs and reliability, no one seems to start a thread on any forum with "my bike is running fine".
Ian
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Ian,

You're playing in THEIR sandbox here and they are going to give you heck here for talking about some of the ST1300's problems you have noted... you and I can talk until we are blue in the face, but in the end we like our RT and they like their STs, warts and all. And in all actuality, most of the comments deriding the RT are done in fun, with little malice (and also from a position of misinformation, as you put it, especially if they haven't officially drank from the "Kool Aid" by owning one).

Their comments about the problems they hear or experience themselves about BMWs isn't going it dissuade you from enjoying your RT just as your pointing out the ST's faults isn't going to keep them from enjoying their rides any less.

They are both fine bikes, I have had both, and I enjoyed both, with me giving the nod to the RT for all the reasons I have stated in the past. Seems you have the same perspective.

Let's quit swimming upstream and enjoy the ride.
 
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