Are you worried ...

[nixdsg]

about final drive failures, battery failures, EWS failures?

I now have my second fuel gauge failure. I haven't called the dealer yet but I expect they wont have a fix from BWM yet.

I'm worried about the final drive. Too many stories about unexpected failures, specially during trips far from home.

And I'm not so keen on my local dealer (2 hours away and the quality is questionable).

Thinking about selling I like the bike (except the fact I can't get a wind shield that works), I like the power, 50 mpg is cool, fits me, does wheelies. What's not to like? Oh ya, the fear of a final drive failure, a gas gauge that doesn't work, and a dealer that is less then quality. Hummmm.

Nic

[lewellen]

about final drive failures, battery failures, EWS failures?

I now have my second fuel gauge failure. I haven't called the dealer yet but I expect they wont have a fix from BWM yet.

I'm worried about the final drive. Too many stories about unexpected failures, specially during trips far from home.

And I'm not so keen on my local dealer (2 hours away and the quality is questionable).

Thinking about selling I like the bike (except the fact I can't get a wind shield that works), I like the power, 50 mpg is cool, fits me, does wheelies. What's not to like? Oh ya, the fear of a final drive failure, a gas gauge that doesn't work, and a dealer that is less then quality. Hummmm.

Nic

Am I worried? Yes, yes and yes.

I already had a battery fail on me (I do NOT like being left stranded), and the steering damper was already replaced under warranty due to its starting to rust and leak oil.

The stock seat sucks. I did a 100-mile ride in one sitting on Sunday, and at the end all of my fundamentals and sensitive bits, were in pain.

I also wish I got 50 mpg ... which I haven't seen since the break-in oil was drained and 20W-50 put in. I usually get more like 33 - 35 city when commuting, maybe 40 highway. (Then again, I live in CA where the gas blends change all the time, usually for the worse as far as my bike's performance is concerned.)

Not having a dealer you're comfortable with is a big deal, I agree. Fortunately I'm not unhappy with mine, and they're only 40 minutes away. :-/

That being said ... there's still not a bike on the market that has the combination of features that I wanted, other than the R1200R ... and I do really like the bike itself. You see, when I moved back to CA I decided to just have the bike, and not get a car, and I've been rather happy with the choice for the past 1.5 years or so. (That being said, I am going to move my pickup truck out here from IL next month, but still expect to use the bike 95% of the time.)

You have to make your own choice, and I wish you well in whatever you choose to do. Were I to go back and do it again, and relax some of my criteria such as "must be shaft drive" I'd be seriously looking at some other models. But *shrug* no real complaints so far, and 7800 fun miles under the tires.

Good roads,

- Lewellen

[mogu83]

Basically no.
There must be hundreds maybe thousands of R1200 type bikes with the rear drive that the R1200R uses and how many people have actually reported a R/E failure. Personally (and I know a lot of Beemer riders) the only 'almost' failure I've seen was a rear drive seal failure that was seeping oil on the rear rim. The rider was able to ride over a hundred miles to the dealer with minimum leakage and the dealer fixed it in a day. Rob Nye, on a GS lost a rear drive on a fairly new bike during the Iron Butt and that was the start of the great R/E failure scare.
The battery seems to go in the first year or not at all, same with the EWS.

I ride mostly alone and sometimes far from home and I'm not going to let worrying about something breaking spoil the fun.

BTW: I see you like the wheelies so apparently you must think the rear drive is pretty strong. After all you are slamming 109 HP against that supposedly weak ring and pinion hard enough to lift the front of a 400 + pound bike off the ground .

[kay bill c]

Yell-No, Been riding since the 60's now their was a time to worry, but never even thought about it much then.Most of these bike's today are pretty dependable. Borrow someone's 60's or 70's Harley stop at the car wash to rinse it off or ride in the rain and stop and try to restart it, beside's the sore leg from kickin it over and no spark from the dampness you'll learn just how dependable these new bike's are.Didn't mean to pick on Harley's I had plenty of other make's then with there own quirks also,still have a 1973 Yamaha 650 I take out every so often just to remiind of those days.Enjoy your bike,Buy a new Batt. if it ease's your mind.I'll still take my chance's and follow basic Maintance.Has not let me down for the most part

[deilenberger]

Absolutely no.

25,000 miles. No warranty claims. Had the EWS campaign and the brake line recall - and that's it. Still on original battery, gone through a lot of tires - and look forward to riding whenever I possibly can. Most reliable vehicle I've ever owned. And after draining the rear-drive fluid at the 24,000 mile service (it had last been done at the 600 mile service) and seeing it drain out looking exactly like what I was going to put in (BMW 75W-90 synthetic) - I have no worries about the rear drive.

I believe I've only heard of 1 R1200R that suffered a rear-drive failure.. and I'm not sure of that one. It doesn't seem to be a problem, and it certainly isn't keeping me from making big-ride plans for this summer (both nationals with almost a week of exploring in between..)

Forgeddaboutit and go ride it..

[jtfbb]

Interesting to note that BMW Australia is now telling dealers to offer rear-drive oil changes at each 10k service with a mandatory one at the 20k service - also newer rear-drives have drain plug at the bottom to allow for easier draining. Nothing helps the diff like fresh oil. PS just picked up new r1200r last week.

[WILDPIG]

ABSOLUTELY, WAY TO MANY FAILURES ON MY 08 R1200R. CURRENTLY HAVE AN ACTIVE COMPLAINT UNDER CONSIDERATION TO BMW/NA FOR CONFIRMED INSTALLATION OF 75-140 WT OIL IN FINAL DRIVE BY DEALER AT 600 MILE SERVICE. BE INTERESTIN TO SEE BMW'S RESPONSE. IN THE OPINION OF THE MOST KNOWLEDGEABLE BMW MECHANIC IN NORTH CAROLINA AN I HAPPEN TO CONCUR--- YER SEALS I GUARANTEE ARE WEAKENED AN WITH OUT A DOUBT HANGIN ON BY A THREAD. NOT TO MENTION THE HEAVIER WT OIL AN THE DRAG CAUSED DURING THE USAGE. I HAVE ALL THE COMMON FAILURES AN THEN SOME. SEEMS QUITE APPARENT TO ME THE BULLET PROOF BMW OF EARLIER YEARS DOES'NT EVEN CARRY OVER TO PRESENT DAY.

[WILDPIG]

Thinking about selling I like the bike ------ NIX--- AS I'M SURE YOU ALREADY KNOW,, THE MOMENT YOU RIDE THAT BMW OFF THE DEALERS PARKING LOT-- YOU'VE LOST A MINIMUM OF 20-30%. NOW I'M QUITE SURE MANY DIE-HARDS HERE DON'T WANA ACKNOWLEDGE THAT FACT-- BUT THERE'S A VER GOOD REASON BMW'S HAVE SUCH A POOR RESALE VALUE. I MUST ADMIT, THERE'S A TON O PROBLEMS WITH THE R12'S AND ALL THE ABOVE POSTS MENTION SPECIFICALLY ISSUES WITH THIS LINE OF BOXERS. IF YOU'RE WILLING TO EAT THAT 25-30% LOSS ON A RELATIVLY NEW BOXER YOU CAN PROLLY TURN IT., IF YOU KEEP IT AN IT'S OUTTA WARRANTY--- IT COULD EASILY BECOME A NIGHTMARE FROM WHAT I'VE SEEN OF THE MAINTENANCE COSTS INCURRED WITH OWNING A BEEMER. I'M BOUT CONVINCED THE BEST WAY TO OWN A BEEMER IS MAKE SURE YOU HAVE ONE UNDER WARRANTY.

[deilenberger]

WILDPIG - mebbe we can all HELP YOU SELL THAT POS. Give us all the details, how cheap you're willing to go (50% probably - right? Hell, they depreciate to poo as soon as you take it outta the dealer) and MEBBE we can relieve you of your misery (and ours.)

Send the info. Contact means. I'm not kidding - I'd REALLY like to see you pass that bike on to someone else and get back to your hogs.

[deilenberger]

Interesting to note that BMW Australia is now telling dealers to offer rear-drive oil changes at each 10k service with a mandatory one at the 20k service - also newer rear-drives have drain plug at the bottom to allow for easier draining. Nothing helps the diff like fresh oil. PS just picked up new r1200r last week.

Based on what I saw when I drained mine - they are reacting to past problems with an over-reaction. I would be quite comfortable doing the rear-drive oil change at 24,000 mile (40km) intervals. The oil that came out was clear, no contamination (shouldn't be - the rear drive is a sealed unit), and looked to be the same viscosity as what I was putting in (just based on the unscientific basis of watching how it drained out..) I actually think in looking at it - that a much extended change interval is NOT unreasonable on the rear drives once the initial 600 mile change is done. Since my bike was one that was touted as having a "lifetime" fill - they can't void my warranty for extending the change interval to what I'm comfortable with (24k miles), and that's where I'm going to keep it until I see a reason to do otherwise.

[WILDPIG]

E BURGER -- I DONT SELL AT A LOSS,, NOT EVEN A BMW.... U NEED A LIL MORE RIDIN TIME AN A WHOLE LOT LESS PUTER TIME...... COURSE I SPECT YER BMW IS--- PERFECT?

[deilenberger]

COURSE I SPECT YER BMW IS--- PERFECT?

Pig, yes - it is. PERFECT. BTW - how many miles you got on that bike now?

[ErikM]

Don, I think you once mentioned to me: Don't wrestle with a Pig, you just get muddy and the (wild) Pig enjoys it

[mogu83]

PLEASE EXCUSE THE THREAD THEFT

Erik, DeSimones BMW in Marlton,Nj is having an open house on Saturday May 2, Don will most likely be there all day. I would show up but I'm riding in the MotoGiro USA. Three wonderful days of riding my 125cc over mostly dirt back roads in the Catskills, living in my van and rain in the forecast for all three days -- great fun.

Now back to your regular entertainment.

[deilenberger]

PLEASE EXCUSE THE THREAD THEFT

Erik, DeSimones BMW in Marlton,Nj is having an open house on Saturday May 2, Don will most likely be there all day. I would show up but I'm riding in the MotoGiro USA. Three wonderful days of riding my 125cc over mostly dirt back roads in the Catskills, living in my van and rain in the forecast for all three days -- great fun.

Now back to your regular entertainment.

I'll be there from around 9:30AM until 2ish. Then I head north to New Brunswick, for the fund-raiser for John Ryan's attempt at breaking the Prudhoe Bay AK to Key West FL ride. But anyone want to come harrass me in person (or just say HI) is welcome to, and to come for the flea-market/swap-meet the NJ Shore Riders and New Sweden Riders are running.

There will be demo rides, FREE FOOD and DRINK, and all sorts of deals and bargains at DeSimone's.

Here is a map to DeSimone Motorsports: http://www.desimonemotorsport.com/map_hours.asp

[Lost Rider]

WILDPIG - mebbe we can all HELP YOU SELL THAT POS. Give us all the details, how cheap you're willing to go (50% probably - right? Hell, they depreciate to poo as soon as you take it outta the dealer) and MEBBE we can relieve you of your misery (and ours.)

Send the info. Contact means. I'm not kidding - I'd REALLY like to see you pass that bike on to someone else and get back to your hogs.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
NOW THAT THERE IS SOME DOWN RIGH FUNNY CRAP YA HEARS! IZ THINKIN I WULD LIKE TO HELPS OUT WIT DAT DER SALE 2 YA HERE? DAT DERE FANCY BMW BIKES GETTIN SOLD SHURE WOULD MAIK DIS A BETTER PLACE FOR DEM DAM DANG YANKEES. HECK, I BETS DAT EVEN THOSE THERE CIVILIZIZED FOLK IN DA SOUTH WOULD BE GOOD WIT DAT.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[ErikM]

Wish I didn't have to work on the 2nd, but have fun ya'll

[thepeacebullgrunt]

Geeez this thread is SCARY !

At a point I just called my dealer to check on their computer if they did the rear drive oil change at the 600 miles servicing... he confirmed that rear drive oil change has been performed.

Now the only thing I heard by a mechanic about the rear drive was "Don't do any Wheelies s.h.i.t ! on parkings for hours ! just because you don't know where to ride"...then he said "Just f.u.c.k.i.n.g RIDE it relax absolutely everyday & everywhere".

And by the way... ABOUT BEING WORRIED !
Two cops pulled me over last night I was riding 95mph on the 605 freeway with a chewing in my mouth to hide the smell of a single Grey Goose Dirty Martini I really enjoyed 1.5 hour prior to ride. They asked me if I was coming out from a bar so I said "NO I am coming out from a friend place".
Then they I asked me if I knew at what speed I was riding and I said the truth "I was too fast and around 90/95Mph".
Then they asked me a few thing about my bike registration and what I was doing in US...
they looked at the bike and my gears...both became friendlier and started to provide the usual safety advices and story's of motorcycle messy crashes they have to deals with on the scene.

Nicely they gave me back my Id's and shown me the way to ride back to the freeway.

NO TICKET ! all we need is love !
I am sure my Marathon Steel Vendramini boots ultimately sealed the deal in my favor.

In Los Angeles everybody say that if the cops pull you over its mean you can be sure you'll get a ticket...
I was LUCKY this time for the second time in 8years leaving in Los ANGELS !

[famousperson]

about final drive failures, battery failures, EWS failures?
Nic

Not at all. I if I start getting reliable information that final drives are failing I will start changing the oil back there religiously. My battery is fine so far. Chitown had his R in places where he couldn't even get cell service and didn't seem to worry about his. My EWS has been replaced. My gas gauge is fine, but I hardly ever use it, anyway. If my tripmeters failed I'd be pissed, but so far I I haven't heard of that happening.

My Harley Sportster and little old Suzuki Savage where both rock solid and I have no reason to believe that a BMW would be any less so. Yes, some people have had a few problems. Teething trouble as far as I'm concerned, and once straightened out their bikes will run like clocks, too.

I've owned bikes for 45 years and know what a pos is, believe me, and the R1200R ain't one of them.

[Lost Rider]

Oh yeah the OP..
No worries or problems with 45,000 miles on mine. Get Over Your Silly FD failure fear and stop watching FOX news!!!
I ride lots of wheelies, shift without the clutch often, constant full on/off on the throttle, take my bike up the intake in water, generally just ride the piss out it, and sometimes I'm thousands of miles late doing maintenance because I'm in the middle of nowhere trying to get lost. Not a problem.
I'd like to think that BMW related problems are more of a Karma thing... I stay away from bad juju.

I do change the FD oil every 12,000ish miles regardless of what BMW says and do all my own maintenance.

To think you would deny yourself the joys of the BMW 1200R because of gas gauge failures, or BS internet hype on FD's is quite silly.
Personally, I could care less if you keep yours or not, but posting things like this perpetuates the BS rumors of FD failures on a 12R and aren't accurate...

Show me the people online who have a ROADSTER not a GS, not a RT, a 1200R'f FD fail....

Just ride frikin' the bike and enjoy!