Reliability

[philm35]

The only problem I've had with my bike was a leaking fork seal.

--Phil

2004 R1150RA (silver)

[johno]

Several times on this forum,I have noticed people comlaining of excessive engine braking wearing out there clutches.
What a load of BULL!
The only time the clutch will wear out is taking off, and changing gears.
Other wise the clutch is positively engaged, and is not moving at any different speed to the flywheel, and the pressure plate, so cannot wear.
It is only when drive is broken that wear will occur.
Anyway, bar my rant, I have had not real issues with my 4 oilheads.

[UniMatrix]

When I just bought the bike in November 2005 I had a full service done because I didn't know when was the last time it had service and I wanted to be sure about the condition of the bike.

Turned out the Throttle Position Sensor was broken, it was replaced, cost: about 85 euro's. Jerky throttle response explained!

Last spring I noticed some play in the bearings between the final drive and the paralever arm and I had them repaced for about 200 euro's including labour.

[TicTac50]

July 1st 2001 model, none ABS. Bike was purchased in the first days of September 2001.
2000 miles - Heated Grip (right side) failed - was replaced under warranty.
In the spring of 2002 bike had 6000 miles and was parked in the garage for over 2 years. Started riding in December of 2004.
25000 miles - license plate illumination bulb. (not the same as on 2002 models)
27000 miles - Hall Sensor (I think it was my BAD. Drove in the heavy rain or turned the ignition ON while the AirMan was pumping flat rear tire)
30000 miles - Head light bulb went bad.
Battery was replaced in 2005 with the PC680 Odyssey.
38000 miles - Found some oil on the rear wheel and in the drive shaft boot.
Replaced the oil in the Final Drive with the Red one (to see where it is leaking from). It looks like it is leaking oil not from Final Drive but from the front of the drive shaft.
I am still checking on this one since I did not see any oil on the wheel in the last 2000 miles and the gear box is still full.
Front Break Pads are still original. I do all the maintenance my self.
I am using Synthetic Amsoil 20W50 and I change it every 6000 miles.
I think I added 6oz of oil in the first 6000 miles. Usually I put in 4 quarts of oil and the glass is dark. 6000 miles later the oil gets to the mid of the glass. This bike burns 3-4oz of oil every 6000 miles, no matter how I drive it.
In my opinion: "it is a very reliable and versatile driving machine".
I will never buy another brand new BMW and in the future will look for a used K1200GT but by that time I will be too old to ride it.

[riceburner]

should have been a multiple choice poll....


have had a few problems, but seeing I'd done a total of roughly 60,000 miles in 3 years (with about 2-3 months off the bikes included in that) it wasn't so bad.

Besides - a breakdown is an opportunity to test ride other bikes...

[ProductUser]

'04 R1150 R -- Bought new (August '03).

Mileage: just over 48k miles

1 -- Burned out headlight somewhere around 25k
2 -- Replaced the battery a month ago.

That's it.

ProductUser

[Just-Beeming]

04 Just under 20k...no problemo.

I get all my routine service as recomended...so yeah that can be a little pricey....maybe that is what people talk about when they whine about reliability and price. But C'mon......brakes, batteries and tires are not supposed to last forever. Replace them as recomended before they have a problem and get over it.

I don't care what it costs. If It is not taking food out of the mouth of my babies or costing me the shelter over my head. Worth every penny.

[Xray28]

The bike runs great, looks good, and makes me happy.

[Lion_Lady]

Bought my R1150R Rockster in April of '05, brand new.

Now with 21,000 miles. NO problems.

Ridden to Tennessee (1600 miles rt) with hubby, and to Atlanta (1450 miles rt) with my daughter as pillion. As well as manymanymany day trips of various lengths.

Just upgraded OEM shocks to Ohlins two weeks ago and the bike just keeps getting better.

P

[chris]

1 Fuel leak from the fuel pump mount, new plate, pump etc but BM paid for the parts despite it being out of warranty.

2 Slight leak at final drive which has now stopped? Gearbox and final drive both full of oil?

3 Intermittent clunky clutch noise when engaging disengaging which is driving me insane at the moment. Maybe they all do it and I only just noticed!

Other than that I still love it!

Any ideas about the clutch clonk appreciated tho!

[baltm604]

Johno,

the clutch takes abuse whenever there is a serious mis-match in rpms between the trans, clutch and the engine.

Maybe engine-breaking was the wrong word choice on my part. More likely it would be downshifting at higher speeds in order to engine brake that smoke my clutch.

Bill

[Paul Mihalka]

Well, I marked 4 spots, but it is a summary of one '99 R1100RT with 170K miles and one '02 R1150R with 70K miles.
Transmission: R1100RT clutch spline at 100K, R1150R clutch spline at 30K.
Final drive: '99 R1100RT worn bearings at 150K miles.
Ignition: '99 R1100RT Hall sensor at 80K miles.
Hydraulics: '02 R1150R clutch slave cylinder at 25K miles.

It could be worse, but it could be better.

[R601968]

I have had a 2002 R1150R no problems in 22,000 miles. Bike did not hold up well when hit buy a van.
New 2004. Clutch slave cylinder replaced at 17,500. Running stronger with each new mile.

[RideandDrive]

Mine is a 2004 with 44,000 miles.

1) Fuel Disconnect broke while riding and stained the tranny

2) Trans output seal replaced

3) Ignition Coil

[mqbenedict]

One of the heated hand grips went out, but otherwise, no problem. This is one reliable bike up to 18K.

[Arbee]

I have two Yamahas which have not stopped in 15 years of running
xs400, yzfr6.
i bought a R1100R rode it 5 metres up my driveway after the last owner dropped it off and there it remains just a dead lump of metal
definately the worst bike i have ever owned and will never buy another one, i am going to stay with the big 4 japos.

cheers
arbee

[latakia77]

2002, one owner, 26K miles

Fuel line quick disconnect leak, fixed with FI clamps.

It won't start if it is below 10 degrees Fahrenheit, (but I really don't like riding in that kind of weather anyway).

[Beemer1150]

03 RR - bought 2 years ago with 2,600 miles on the clock, now reading 13,600. Used for commuting, club runs and two-up French holidays

Intermittant 'Fault' light and ABS wouldn't cut in soon after purchase - dealer travelled 90 miles the same day, vanned it back to base (left me an 850R) and replaced sticky front brake light switch (which was fooling start-up check routine into thinking the brakes were on). All for free under his second-hand warranty. (CW Motorcycles in Dorchester, Dorset in case you want really good service!)

Leaky fuel clamps tightened by dealer for free at about 10,000 miles. A bit frightening at the time as I didn't realise then that 'they all do that sir'!

Throttle-body out of sync between services once.

One bulb in instrument housing failed at about 12,000 miles.

(And compared to my previous bike I've not had to adjust the chain once, nor get filthy cleaning it or lubing it, nor change the chain and sprockets. Think I'll stay with the Beemer...)

[The Velvet Monkey]

Hiedi's an 04 with close to 20k on the clock and the only problem I've had was a leaking fuel clamp that stained my case. All happily fixed and repainted under warranty by BMW. I wouldn't desitate to jump on it right now and go trans-coastal.

I think the "Jap bikes are perfect" thing is a myth. I have many, many friends with Japanese bikes and they have their fair share of problems, too. What those bikes lack, and will never be able to get, is any flava-flav. I'll take my quirky big-jugged gal over some generic cookie-cutter bike any day.

But hey, to each his own.

[yjleesvrr]

If anyone is going to bring out the flaws of a bike, it's a BMW rider. We put thousands of miles on the odo a year. And given the price of these things, we're going to be more demanding for the return on our buck than most bikers.

The nice thing about modern bikes are what's nice about modern cars. There are hardly any bad ones out there anymore. The biggest thing I worry about when I ride far from home is getting a flat.