centerstand good, sidestand bad?

[maericks]

So in talking to an owner of an airhead boxer, I was told that centerstanding the bike is much better for it than parking it with its sidestand.

I have a bit of an oil leak happening with my left cylinder, and I often leave the bike on its sidestand overnight. It is still leaking after having the head gasket replaced.

Might the oil leak and my sidestand parking have anything to do with each other?

Thanks,

[dfaber]

If your $14,000 BMW is leaking oil because you park it overnight on the factory-equipped side-stand I would strongly recommend you demand a warranty repair. Center-stand for a shaftie is kind of a moose -- hat rack situation. Remove the centerstand and the bike will gain a little ground clearance, lose some weight, and gain a few desperately needed style points. You may see a puff of harmless smoke in the morning, but that should be the only ill effect. FWIW I keep a foot-long piece of 2x4 in the garage which holds the bike plenty upright enough for oil level checks, etc., and prevents the smoke. For long term storage I screw the Centerstand back in loosely; takes about two minutes without tools.

[maericks]

I absolutely agree with the above post regarding warrantee repair. In fact, the head gasket was replaced under warrantee and that did not solve the problem.

The bike is going back for further diagnosis and repair (all under warrantee). Just thought I would ask if the centerstand/sidestand advice from my airhead friend is merely folklore or has a basis in fact....

[Spiralgalaxy5]

Don't know how relevant this is but several years into producing 'K' series bikes, BMW changed the head design to try and stop oil collecting "upstairs" when the bikes were parked on their sidestands (resulting in impressive plumes of smoke when starting)! Presumably older air-cooled boxers would also suffer from this & newer oil-heads don't!? My 'S' only has a sidestand...

Tim

UK