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Registered
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Freeport, NY
Posts: 48
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Bmw Reliability?
Traded a KRS because of Shaft Failure. Lost my rear suspension on the highway when the bolt holding the paralever broke.
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08-09-2004, 07:48 AM
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Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: WI
Posts: 779
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Ouch!
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08-09-2004, 07:57 AM
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Registered
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: VA-DC area
Posts: 5,405
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da-yum...on a brand new S at that. think i would want a new rear end just for good measure.
repoe3
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I couldn't repair your brakes, so I made your horn louder. 2009 GSXR 750 2004 Tuono 2004 R1100SBX |
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08-09-2004, 08:01 AM
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Hang Ten !!!
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: Central Virginia
Posts: 521
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 This is no good. The paralever on this model seems to be prone to touble. Which bolt is it that failed. 
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08-09-2004, 08:01 AM
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Living on borrowed time!
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Tacoma, WA, USA
Posts: 7,020
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Again I say modern BMW reliability is a joke; fundamental systems that have no reason to fail on a modern motorcycle, properly engineered. BMW, are you listening? Of course not, you're too busy making excuses for poor engineering and blaming the rider when the fault is a fundamental engineering flaw. When was the last time you saw a japsikkle with a major system failure (not a nickle-and-dime failure, but a major)
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Better a has-been than a wanna-be 'I am John Andrew Moffett of the Clan Moffat and by god I live, love, seek, fail, grieve and die as I so choose and I call no man master save me'. |
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08-09-2004, 08:07 AM
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Registered
Join Date: May 2004
Location: triple digits
Posts: 214
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jony
they just recalled all zx-10's for poor casting on the front wheel. the HESD on the 1000RR is useless crap. friend of mine's zx6 just sucked two valves into the 1st cyl. try mounting cases to the subframe of a hayabusa... friend completely destroyed the primary ring gear and shaft while shifting into second on his v-max... saw an exuast blow itself in two on a gsxr1100- um- show me a motorcycle manufacturer that has built a maintenance free motorcycle. You can't. It's luck of the draw. My beemer has never failed me in 44k miles. My yamaha sits broken in my garage, with coolant in the 1st float bowl somehow and a long list of others.... 14k miles Have you never had a problem with a jap bike? doubt it. an engineering problem for bmw are their wheels. pretty but wayyyyyy to soft. The stories of easily bent rims never end, maybe it's marketing. gilbmw sorry to hear of your troubles...that's the paralever bearing (the big 12mm) isn't it. Haven't heard of one of those ever failing. Was it serviced lately? My vote is for poor techincal work not engineering. If it were poor engineering-how many other failures have happened precisely like this on the board? good luck
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I ride. |
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08-09-2004, 09:09 AM
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Registered
Join Date: May 2000
Location: Madawaska, Ontario
Posts: 593
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My bikes,
Honda Hawk, defective crankcase bearings XL600, cam chain snapped, bent valves My worse was a 1983 Suzuki GS1150, 2 blown CDIs,Alternator twice, fairing parts regularily flew off, both mirrors at various times flew off at speeds above 200kph 1981 Suzukii GS550, too numerous electrical problems to mention. 1999 BMW 56,000km, no problems. But , yes BMW does not want to listen sometimes to obvious design faults, they are almost as pig headed as KTM. My Ktm blew up so often people would fight to ride behind me to watch the ensuing carnage. |
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08-09-2004, 09:27 AM
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Registered
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: chicago
Posts: 666
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same thing happened to my S as well, when it was running anyway. luckily none of the internals got messed up.
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2005 R1200GS |
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08-09-2004, 09:39 AM
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Registered
Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: Virginia, USA
Posts: 172
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Hey, guys, lighten up. When you consider what we demand of a motorcycle, how we impose weight/size restrictions, ... it seems to me they do a pretty fair job. When was riding a motorcyle ever problem-free? Branding something as "crap" or manufacturers as "non-responsive" does not advance the cause.
When customers come to me with legitimate issues and no chip on their shoulder, I listen (mostly). If they come in with an attitude, I usually respond in kind. |
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08-09-2004, 09:46 AM
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Registered
Join Date: Oct 2000
Location: Bozeman Montana
Posts: 3,063
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I agree
 I now have over 26,000 miles on the R11S, With one problem and that was and input shaft seal on the trans. and that was at 8,000 miles and the dealer fixed it. My old R100S had problems too, everybody thinks just because it's a BMW it has to be perfect. 
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Dyno'd 104Hp 74.3 ft lbs torque at the rear wheel 1150 cylinders 12:1 pistons/ race cams, Lennies induct, Laser Boxercup II Exhaust, Ohlins shocks, Dymag Carbon Fiber Five Spoke wheels, Crossover tube removed, heads ported and polished Bigger valves installed intake and exhaust! SJ power filter, motoyoyo clamps , HID
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08-09-2004, 09:58 AM
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Barback King
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: Now it's Nevada
Posts: 12,032
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Zzxx!!ssss...
This is really starting to bug me. After 20-something years of riding Beemers, I'm starting to think there is something very wrong here...
I told the storey about my buddy's 2002 RS....: Metal found inthe rear drive, replaced under warranty... Has the bike for 3 weeks, rear main seal starts to leak, replaced again... Has the bike 1 week and oil liak from tranny/driveshaft seal... Still in the shop. He's giving up the Mark after 20+ years... Then there's this po' fool.. http://www.bikersoracle.com/rs/foru...hread.php?t=340 Now you've all read my paranoic blather about my driveline...pivot bearings etc... As you know I had my pivot bearings replaced with good results. Rode the bike a couple weeks an this weekend pulled the wheels to put new skins on for my trip...there's oil leaking from the reardrive now... What the fack! O.K., I can deal with this...I'm stopping at Ozzie's in Chico to have an eval/repair session on the way north. I want to know what is up with these rear drives! My bike has 23K miles on it! Bought new, 1978 R100/7 - 110,000 miles, NO reardrive or driveline problems EVER! 
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R11S CNC BARBACKS |
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08-09-2004, 10:03 AM
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Living on borrowed time!
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Tacoma, WA, USA
Posts: 7,020
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Well, they advertise BMW's as 'reliable' don't they? Isn't part of the 'cachet' of a BMW it's supposedly bulletproofness? I bought my first BMW motorcycle partly on this aura (as opposed to the objective reality) of reliability. I don't have a chip on my shoulder about it, but I do think modern BMWs tend to eat MAJOR parts as opposed to 'minor' issues,a nd yes, I understand everything mechanical has failures, but I think the rate of major parts failure (like transmissions that break input shafts!!!) is kinda high for a 'reliable' motorcycle. As I've stated before, I love my S but I'm not blind to it's faults and I think it tends to break what I would consider 'major' pats a lot for a 'premium', 'reliable' brand. My $.02, but BMW won't sell me another scoot until it gets the unacceptabel QC or design flaws under control.
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Better a has-been than a wanna-be 'I am John Andrew Moffett of the Clan Moffat and by god I live, love, seek, fail, grieve and die as I so choose and I call no man master save me'. |
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08-09-2004, 10:07 AM
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Registered
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: WI
Posts: 779
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BMW diffinately has the reputation for quality, real or not. Were airheads all that reliable? Or were they just a lot better than the Nortons and Triumphs of the day?
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08-09-2004, 10:24 AM
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Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Tyler Tx - The Rose Capital
Posts: 297
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This reliability thing is so elusive. I know other brands have their problems too. It's just that BMW doesn't seem to acknowledge, AND FIX THEM, with the same stories we read again and again. Wouldn't it be nice to see a chart of the major brands and the various MTBF rates?
THAT would be GOLD.
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The great modern mistake " The mind equals reason and the heart equals emotion" Last edited by SparkyBlue; 08-09-2004 at 10:34 AM.. |
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08-09-2004, 10:30 AM
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Barback King
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: Now it's Nevada
Posts: 12,032
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I can't speak for pre /7 bikes...but yes. I had ONE failure on the road and twice the same weak link, the alternator stator. The OEM ones had ba windings in them.
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R11S CNC BARBACKS |
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08-09-2004, 10:30 AM
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Join Date: Jun 2000
Location: Durham,CA USA
Posts: 1,100
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In todays golden days of shareholder value the bolt was probably made in poland,or taiwan..;-)
BMW reliability?On 40K hard miles my boxer till has the first part to break;knock on wood...;-) If you talk about reliability issues don't forget Harleys TC88 cambearing failures and Harley only fixes them when you are already stranded on the road instead of issuing a recall. Or the new Honda VTEC VFR that has alternator problems or breaking rearframes or $500 valve adjustments. Ducati electrics that are worse than the old Triumphs even they are not made by lucas;prince of darkness. Breaking Hayabusa rearframes,new R1 clutch recall. Shareholder value for sure is a nice thing...;-) But nothing lasts forever and those greedy times where we customers buy junk for inflated prices to satiesfy our image egos (if I wasn't right Harley and Ducati would be long out of business if it wasn't for 90% of their lifestyle idiot base who buy all that price inflated junk) and qulity will prevail again! I have a dream... Chris |
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08-09-2004, 10:59 AM
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Barback King
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: Now it's Nevada
Posts: 12,032
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good thoughts Chris...
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R11S CNC BARBACKS |
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08-09-2004, 11:07 AM
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Living on borrowed time!
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Tacoma, WA, USA
Posts: 7,020
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I guess I was just spoiled or lucky that all my japcrap ran fine and rarely broke anything even minor (I'm not counting the stuff that broke due to my hamfistedness or engine mods that blew reliability out the window). I just paid what I considered a lot of money for a scoot that isn't any more reliable than anything else ( must have bought the 'BMW is better' BS subliminally), and yes, I realize any brand is just metal, rubber and plastic and that everything breaks.
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Better a has-been than a wanna-be 'I am John Andrew Moffett of the Clan Moffat and by god I live, love, seek, fail, grieve and die as I so choose and I call no man master save me'. |
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08-09-2004, 11:09 AM
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Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: Virginia, USA
Posts: 172
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Now that I think about it some: Seems to me that anything made in Europe seems to need a greater amount of routine maintenance. This is true of my S and also my Volvo. Maybe Europeans regard frequent maintenance as "normal". Ditto pricy parts. Perhaps that is why Jap. bikes seem to outsell anything from Europe.
Just a thought. |
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08-09-2004, 12:00 PM
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Registered
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: Phoenix
Posts: 2,649
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I'll weigh in again as I have other threads discussing this topic...
45k miles of flogging and not a single problem aside from my fuel pump failing and needing to be replaced.
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Check out BMW Forums at http://www.bmwforums.net/forums/index.php Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, martini in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming,"'WOO HOO! What a ride!" |
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08-09-2004, 12:09 PM
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