Left head rattle!!!!!

[homerr1150r]

This is where I am at, I have this rattle on the left head thats driving me nuts! When I start up nothing, ride for about 5 mins and it starts to rattle, when I say rattle its like a tinny sort of tapping noise. I can play with the throttle a bit when riding and lose the noise but when I accelerate or just in a cruise its rattling all the time, to be honest its quite embarrassing! I have upgraded the cam chain tensioner, adjusted the valves but still there. This morning I decided to start the bike in the normal way, flick the choke thingy up and run while I put my gloves on then away I went, normally I flick the choke off 200 yards or so down the road but this morning I left it up for the whole ride to work about 6 miles. When stopped at the light lights it was idling at about 1200rpm which was a lot smoother than normal, normaly its at about 1000rpm. Anyway long story short although the rattle was still there it was loads less noisy, actually you could hardly notice it. Do any of you have any suggestions what the hell is going on? I am almost at the stage of selling it as it is p***ing me off so much, also I am a little worried when riding it especially when giving it a hand full in case the engine seizes or something and throws me off? I love this bike its so nice to ride and looks so cool but I am a man in despair, it just doesn't seem right a BMW that sounds like sh*t.

Thanks

Nigel

[boxermania]

Nigel,

Since you didn't post the year or the mileage it is hard to diagnose, the description seems to point t an event that is both heat and engine load related. Let me suggest some things to look at:

1) Valve adjustment
2) Rocker arm clearance (vertical)
3) Loose shaft on Throttle Body (from the engine side of the TB, check for movement within the bushing(s)

Good luck and keep us informed

[homerr1150r]

Hi sorry the year is 2003 and its done nearly 10,000 miles. I have adjusted the valves last week, I have no idea what you mean about the rocker arm clearance and how to adjust that or the throttle body and how to check for movement there either. Any instructions or guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Nigel

[beemerboy]

I am having the same problem, and its fairly loud, i can hear it through my helmet even at highway speeds. mine has 4500 on it and its an 05

[bmwr1150rbmw]

I'll add that I have a similar rattle and I have recently had the valves adjusted. No change after they were adjusted. It seems that after the bike is warmed, the rattle coming from the heads is noticeable when I release the gas at rpms above 3K rpms. When I accelerate, it goes away and no rattle when cruising on the highway. I remember the gentlemen saying when I bought the bike, "Noisy pins are happy pins." I always wondered what the heck he meant. Thoughts? He had a lot of catchy sayings. So, I've had the rattle since I owned the bike. It has not gotten worse. And, I assumed it's one of those things.'

[CycleRob]

The other rockerarm adjustment is the end play clearance. BMW calls it the end float. That's the up/down movement you'll feel moving the rockerarms up/down (literally) at TDC. The spec is .05mm---.40mm (.002"---.0157") I would use .06mm to be safe. Tighter than minimum clearance can cause $eriou$ parts damage (seized rockerarm + bent valves, tagged piston crown, etc), especially with an overheated engine running dino oil . . . . so heed my warning. Checking/Adjusting the end float is not for novices to mess with as a torquewrench, patience and some expertise is req'd to get it right. You may not have the feeler gauge fully in position and set a zero clearance, so be careful!!! On my bike, I reset the end float at the 600 mile check. After finding them all on the loose side of the spec and setting them to .003" (the minimum spec +.001") I expected a noticeable noise reduction . . . . . but it sounded the same.

The rattling noise you hear is the camchain tensioner (allowing) cycling back-n-forth. It comes and goes with a change in RPM's. Slowly accelerate in 1st gear from idle and you'll hear the sound come and go 2 or 3 times before 4,000 RPM. The solution is to replace the left tensioner with the one for the R1200R HexHead. It has a 15mm bolthead. The stock, older version that came with your bikes has a 17mm bolthead.

The new tensioner:
-- Has a built in hydraulic pressure check valve that "holds" the extended tensioner piston's "tight" chain adjustment, preventing the cycling. That one design change was the quantum leap required to finally cure the clatter. Essentially designed and behaving like a hydraulic lifter common to pushrod V-6 & V-8 car engines.
-- Has a slightly larger piston diameter, delivering a higher chain tensioning force from the same oil pressure as before.
-- Has a heavier internal spring that provides the zero oil pressure necessary startup tension and then adds to the operating tension from the engine oil pressure working on the internal piston.

They finally got it right (in the R1200R).

.

[Byrdguy]

Upgrading the left side tensioner is easy, not expensive and WELL worth the effort. Also, the throttle bodies will "clack" alot at low throttle openings, but you won't hear them under normal driving conditions. (as opposed to idling and just cracking the throttle. )

[boxermania]

homerr1150r on his first post indicated that he had already updated the left tensioner. After learning the mileage on the affected bikes I will have to agree that rocker arm end paly and loose clearance on the TB's shafts is not the cause.

What I know wonder is if the replaced tensioner is the "upgraded one" maybe someone will post a pic of the old and the new. If not PM Boxer as I know he was one of the ones that did the work....his mount has upwards of 70K miles.

[Boxer]

Did you ring?

Yes, I upgraded some time back based on BlackAdder's report of his upgrade. Its that old dominoe effect. Anyway, all the instructions and part numbers are floating around somewhere, and I originally got mine from the ADVRider board. Apparently there was one upgrade which cost upwards of $250 then a second upgrade came along with the two simple parts that Cyclerob mentioned above. The last one doesn't have the little spring loose inside. From your first post I think we all assumed you had replaced with that last tensioner upgrade. If you didn't, that might help your noise problem. Some folks are also adding some washers inside the RIGHT side tensioner to give the spring more uumph. That upgrade din't seem to make a whole lot of difference in mine, but you can try it. The posts are somewhere, but you remove the header pipe to access the tensioner bolt head and just pull it out and put about 5 little washers from Home Depot down inside the cylinder under the spring, then reinstall.
If you are sitting on the bike sometimes a clicking noise appears to be coming from one side when it really may be coming from the other. Try to get off the bike when you hear it and put the bike on the center stand then go to each side and listen carefully while its running. Don't do that for a long time or the bike will overheat! But it may help to isolate the sound that is driving you crazy.
Another suggestion. If you're using like 10w 40 oil in the summer heat it will get thin and the clicks will be more prominent. Use a higher weight oil like 15w 50 for really hot months. Depends on where you are I guess.

[MikeCam]

MIXR's version of Cam Chain Tensioner Upgrade is in the FAQ

http://r1150r.org/board/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=11874

[homerr1150r]

Guys thanks for all the replies, I have upgraded the cam tensioner to the piston model with the smaller 15mm nut and no spring. But this seems to make no difference. Maybe someone could explain why when I ride the bike with the fast idle switch up its fine, no noise, to me how it should be? Will riding it like this damage the bike or is it ok to ride it like this? I guess the fuel consumption will increase? I have no expertise in mechanics but it just seems that if I can increase the revs a little with a fast idle switch and ride, it stops the noise completely at all speeds and temperatures, so surely there must be something going on that you guys understand?

Nigel

[Boxer]

From your latest description Al may have hit on it with his third guess above.

3) Loose shaft on Throttle Body (from the engine side of the TB, check for movement within the bushing(s)

When the high idle lever is engaged there is a taughtness on the cable...POSSIBLY..keeping that loose shaft tight temporarily, then when it gets pushed down its free to rattle. Just speculation.

It just sounds like something to do with the throttle cable/TBs/junction box.

[hawkdad]

Hey Guys,
I just purchased an 03 r1150r three weeks ago with just under 7K on it and I'm having the same issue. Has there been any more work on the TB bushing ?

Thanks,
Hawkdad

[boxermania]

hawkdad

No reason to worry.....your bike doesn't have the mileage to even think about TB's shaft bushing wear. Enjoy your new ride, be safe and welcome aboard. Ride it like you stole it.....trust me....