Major Failure Poll

[wncbmw]

You realize of course, the flaw with your poll is that the majority of folks who have not had trouble will skip right over this thread and not vote in your poll!

People who have had problems will be more likely to vote.

My suggestion, as always when the subject comes up, is quit worrying and ride!

[mamboride]

I have a 2002 r1150r with 30k. Last year at 27k I lost the clutch slave cylinder, shaft and a slew of other parts. (I barely made it across the Queens midtown tunnel in NYC when it happened) Cost a painful $2,200 which was tough considering the other problems that could occur..FD... ABS.
Its in the shop getting a full service now including a RECALL of the instrument panel. Wish the previous owner had taken care of the ABS when that recall happened.

Other than that (and replacing the R-turn signal assembly) its been pretty good going to work & taking us to a couple rallies.

Hopefully I can squeeze another year out of it before getting a r1200.

Vince

[ColumbiaBMW]

You realize of course, the flaw with your poll is that the majority of folks who have not had trouble will skip right over this thread and not vote in your poll!

People who have had problems will be more likely to vote.

My suggestion, as always when the subject comes up, is quit worrying and ride!

I did realize that most people with no problems won't vote, and never claimed this poll to be a scientific one. Just wanted to get some rough idea of how many of us it's happened to. I'm not too concerned with it as I have the bike paid off now, so if anything does happen I'll just sell if for a couple grand or whatever I can get, and go get the R1200R and start the whole payment thing over again. I posted this a few months ago though when I was in the beginning stages of planning a several thousand mile trip this summer out west, so I just wanted a little reassurance that these are good bikes. Which for the majority of us, it does seem to be a pretty good, trouble free bike.

[R4R&R]

I'll vote (already have). No major problems. 2004 R1150R with ABS, original owner. I'm just under 95,000 miles and plan on blowing past the 100k mark by this fall season. The bike's been great to me, and I still can't find another motorcycle that I'd rather ride as much as this one. My wife keeps telling me to get another bike, that I'm due but I don't want to sell this one. I still can't decide on what to get that covers an area that the R1150R really lacks in.

BTW, My bike is not babied; the 95,000 miles are in all kinds of stuff: winter cold, summer heat, driving rains/thunderstorms, low speed traffic, high speed blasts on the interstate, loaded up for "light duty" touring, unloaded for a day of fun in the mountains, often hitting that rev limiter! Maybe because the bike never really sits for a long period of time helps?

All I've done was the regular maintenance, at the specified intervals. I'll use synthetic oil in the warm months, and maybe a synthecic blend in the winter.

Now, back to deciding on the next bike...

[wncbmw]

My wife keeps telling me to get another bike

Good woman there!

[mnnden]

A little over 50k on the "R" no problems, it has been maintained well, my only concern has been the oil consummation, (you would have thought I had a leak!!!) went on synthetic at about 6k and it sucked oil, Last fall I went back to Reg. oil (I wasn't expecting much) but for the last 5k it has really slowed down & getting better. I have read about these bikes using oil up into the 20k or so, but when I passed 20k-30k-40k, I had about given up, but it looks like there is hope!. I must say, I have really enjoyed the "R" it is a "sweet ride" mnn

[grwrockster]

I have an '04 Rockster with just approaching 22,000 miles (I got it at just 3 yrs-old with 2k miles). Touch wood, I've had nothing except the Fuel Disconnect on the Return line fracturing on a 250 mile ride home 2 weeks ago.

However, as I have done hundreds of wheelies on it (changing through 1st & 2nd, and sometimes into 3rd) so I'm no doubt asking for trouble in terms of accellerated wear - if I'm going to get problems, then they'll occur at a lower mileage than if I was working it less hard. So I shan't be able to blame the bike (but I'm remaining optimistic ).

I don't beat the clutch up with my antics, (used to wheelie my heavy old Yam XJR1300 through the 'box and never wore out the clutch or the chain & sprockets in 30k and literally thousands of monowheel tomfoolery - and the press always claimed those bikes had a weak clutch, so I'm hoping that this translates onto the Rockster) - my guess would be that due to having all of the bike sitting on the final drive bearing, that this would be the primary candidate for premature wear as a result of my own tomfoolery.

Despite probably coming across as a mechanical butcher who deals out cruel and unneccessary punishment to my poor old Bimmer, I do look after the oily bits. I do really like the bike and have no plans to change it - there's nothing out there that really flaps my flag enough right now to make me wish to spend money I don't really have anyhow (although I will admit that I think the Moto Guzzi 1200 Sport is a cracking looking bike - never ridden one though).

BTW - I saw a well used 03 R1150GS pull up in Abergavenny the other week with 123,000 miles up along with an R1100GS which was just shy of 100K miles - both were scruffy, clearly not treated with kid gloves and both were running sweetly - so big miles on these engine/tramsmissions is definitely do-able. Part of me wants to keep this bike v long-term and find out if I can be lucky and get big miles on my Rockster.

[CNorris]

My '02 R1150R with 63K on it suffered spline failure, for what it's worth. My thread is back in July, I believe. I now ride a Kawasaki ZRX1200R and have no regrets. I loved the R and got good use out of it but I am a bit disappointed, to be honest. If you're one of the lucky ones, good for you! If not, well, you'll be weeping in your expensive parts, as I am...

[n9owk66]

02 over 50.300 miles and no problems at all

[drPete]

Sorry, late to the post.

2004 92k, clutch slave failure <30k. Nothing else but wear parts. I replace the final drive fluid more often than recommended with synthetic, it is always a bit black. No chunks on the plug magnet.

I've begun to feel a bit of a surge in the ABS - left side disc heats slightly more than the left, and the power assists whines intermittently. But that is a different issue. Cruising the boards to research the cause.

Pete

[foobar]

I voted other.

2002 R1150R w/ 33k miles.

Used bike. Bad wiring in the headlight for whatever reason. Unprotected electrical circuit. The main wiring harness fused together into a solid mess. It is a $1500 part, but the insurance co stepped up. Be careful messing with the electrical system.

[eduardobelmonte]

R1150R 2004.
55K miles.
No problems with clutch nor with the final drive.
City driving solo, highway two up loaded cruiser speed 80 mph.

[brownj]

02 1150R with 40,000 mi.
No major failures yet. Had the fuel filter disconnect about 5-6 years ago. think thats all.