BMW R1200R R1150R/T F800 K1200R R1100R/T R1250R RnineT Message Board

Hi people,

I rode to work today, beautiful weather here in the northeast 75 degrees and clear. My issue is that after the ride home I notice a knocking sound coming from the left side cylinder, others heard it also, it's like metal hitting metal when I turn it off and start it up again it subsides then returns ,,,,,in october 08 I had the 6000 mile check up done at cliffs in danbury, ct. A motorcycle mechanic (who works on harleys) mention to me that this is unusual Beemers should sound smooth......Is this a cause for concern? 7000k on the clock 2004 blk 1150r.....That was around 5:45 pm I added some oil 10 minutes ( did not see oil in site glass) later. Just Started it at 6:30 knocking only happens when twisting the throttle when released knocking subsides......BTW knocking not so loud after oil added......

Enlighten me O' great riders of the roadster

peace

Could be left cam chain tensioner. Mine (2004 R1150R Rockster) makes loud clank noise under these conditions

• hot summer conditions - above 75 degrees
• fully warmed up after riding at least 20 minutes
• pull up to a stop sign with engine at idle. Sometimes I also notice when I start up with hot engine.
• Anything thinner than 20w50 oil. I never noticed this until I switched to 10w40. I now run Mobil 1 15w50 and it occasionally makes noise.

There is an improved tensioner that many have installed which corrects this. If it happens above idle I'd be more alarmed.

A long time ago, when I actually had a Roadster that ran, I'd get some knocking/rattling from the left jug on start up or very occasionally if I lugged it in higher gear. The cam chain tensioner upgrade fixed it. Fairly inexpensive - the parts are about $70 and you can do the work yourself.

Now, if I could just get that new harness in there . . .

Charlie

The knocking noise is not unusual at all. It is nothing to be very alarmed about. If it really bothers you, buy the upgrade cam chain tensioner.

Are you familiar with the "oilhead oil level checking dance"?

The sight glass can show a "false empty".

the dance:

1. Ride the bike fairly hard for over twenty minutes. Stop and go conditions are probably best. Get the engine HOT!!! (be reasonable... don't destroy the thing) This is important*** The bike must be HOT.
2. Shut bike off and put on SIDESTAND for 5-10 minutes
3. Put on Centerstand for 5-10 minutes
4. You can now check the sight glass...for the TOTALLY most accurate results...wait over night for the engine to cool.


***If the engine is not HOT enough to open the oil coolers' thermostat, oil will remain in the coolers and give you a false empty reading on the sight glass.

+1 on the left cam chain tensioner. My bike was sounding like a diesel truck while waiting for the stop light to change on a hot day. The idle seemed rough as well. After reviewing a few posts on the subject, I deciced to do the upgrade as Boxer described viewtopic.php?f=18&t=4657&start=0. I was able to replace it without removing the throttle body. Just follow the recommendation in the second page of the thread. Since I wanted to torque it to the proper setting, I simply unscrewed and raised the air intake enough to get my old beam style torque wrench in the space with a straight extension. Now it's very quiet and the idle is smooth.

I see that you are in NY. Max BMW carries the new replacement. Their fiche even provides a link to the ADV-Rider writeup on how to replace it.

-mc

Thanks people as long as it is nothing serious. My thinking was this is a problem cam shaft tensioner upgrade it is,

Oil and air cooled bikes seem to make more noise than their water cooled cousins due to the lack of a sound insulating water jacket. Push rod engines seems to also make other noises that most people don't consider "normall".

I've grown used to many of the sounds my bikes have made over the years.