From ibmwrNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com Mon Jul 21 21:46:42 1997 Date: Mon, 21 Jul 1997 18:40:30 -0700 From: Greg Hutchinson To: Skipper Brown Cc: airheadsNoSpam@NoSpammicapeak.com, bmw-gsNoSpam@NoSpammicapeak.com, bmwmcNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com Subject: Re: BMW: Transmission leak X-Priority: 3 (Normal) Reply-To: Greg Hutchinson Skipper Brown wrote: > > Bike - R80 G/S 1981 > > Problem - leaking fluid from the left side of the case where the > shifter > attaches. > > Need a solution - hoping that it is an o-ring or gasket (cheap and > easy). > If a seal, can it be done without pulling the transmission? > > Thanks in advance... > > Skipper > Phoenix AZ > > 1981 R80G/S - PD (Work In Progress) BOOF #21 Courtesy of Friends (?) > AIRHEADS, AMA, BMWMOA, BMW RA, IBMWR, VI > > "Don't Panic" as inscribed in big friendly letters on the cover of > The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy > ----- ---------------- --------- -- ---- --------- Sounds like the seal. Tip the bike over on the right side...helps to have minimal gas in tank!.. and remove shifter assembly. Make sure bike is WAY over..tranny fluid is REAL slippery. Carefully pry out the leaker and replace. Torque to spec and check the fluid...when bike is back on center stand. From ibmwrNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com Tue Jul 22 01:08:45 1997 From: davidebsmithNoSpam@NoSpamjuno.com To: bmwmcNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com, bmw-r1100NoSpam@NoSpamcinnamon.com, lentiniNoSpam@NoSpamazstarnet.com Subject: Re: BMW: R11 Spark plugs yet again (longish) X-Juno-Line-Breaks: 0-1,8-9,12-18,20,22,24,26-28,31-32,36-40,42,44, 46-48,50-53,55-61,63-71,74-79,81,83-84,88-96 Date: Tue, 22 Jul 1997 00:48:24 EDT Reply-To: davidebsmithNoSpam@NoSpamjuno.com Thanks and kudos, Rob!!! After installing the Autolite 3923's the improvement was so phenomenal I re-installed some new BMW plugs to see if I was imagining it. Nope, the surging came back. Again installed the Autolites and went for a long test ride. With the bike hot and sitting in city traffic, there was still a touch of surging -- but you wouldn't notice if you weren't looking for it, and its not bad enough to subject my bike to the local BMW wrench (who says the r11s don't surge and that crunching on 2nd->3rd is normal). Also curiously, the BMW plug removed from the right cylinder was black and damp, while the left one was clean (after a short test ride, in both of two sets). Both Autolites showed the same beginning of a nice tan. But enquiring minds want to know -- what's up wit dis? Bob Morrow wrote: > So, a "Bosch" spark could flow across one gap during > one ignition event, across the other gap during another ignition event, and > maybe even across both gaps simultaneously now and then. Different ignition > points = different flame front characteristics = surging. Champion sparks > flow consistently across the single gap. Same ignition point = same flame > front characteristics = less surging. I found that the out-of-the-box BMW plugs were gapped to about .7mm on one side and .85 mm on the other; both within specs, but a pretty big difference that makes me wonder if both sides will consistently spark? And by the way, the BMW plugs are almost impossible to re-gap. I bent my Sears plug wrench before the electrode would move. Of course, the factory surely uses the rare Bosch Sparkpluggapenwrencher to carefully gap the plugs on each bike within .001 mm before shipping Rob Lentini wrote: > My sense is that the engine works better with the standard gap > configuration---that is the longitudinal (up and down) gap of the standard > electrode plug versus the sideways gap of the OEM Bosches. Perhaps there's > better flame propagation, or whatever... Heat range sure doesn't matter in > this case since both are so close. Could it make a difference that the gap is more fully exposed in the combustion chamber AND is slightly further in, or away from the valves? Roozbeh wrote: > Now why would Bosch put two paths in their plugs if all this design did was > to provide inconsistency? Seemed like a good idea at the time? Brian Fisk Ct. wrote: > Just a thought here on the new plugs. Could it just be that the plugs are NEW > and slightly HOTTER!!! That's why I tried brand new BMW plugs. They were as bad as the old ones. Cliff Barnhouse wrote: > No pinging up to about 90 or so.. Does that mean pinging after 90 or, topping out at 90, no pinging at all? I will be riding through Montana soon, and the daytime speed limit of "reasonable and prudent" might just turn out to be more than 90! HOWEVER, I do detect one potential problem with these alternate plugs: Mike Caicedo wrote: > I fired up the bike and the i noticed right away a slight improvement on the idling. At that > time it started to rain, so I only had a chance to take it up the block and back. Both Friday and Sunday, as soon as I installed the Autolites, it started to rain. Please do not install Autolites or Champions if you live in a flood plain. Perhaps we should all ship our bikes to Rob so he can get rich making rain in Arizona. ------------------------------- David E.B. Smith, Chicago, Illinois davidebsmithNoSpam@NoSpamjuno.com or 74017.3363NoSpam@NoSpamcompuserve.com 1997 R1100RT Sine(us) Blue "No name" 1992 Subaru Legacy Wagon "But it's also a Boxer" Chicago IL From ibmwrNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com Tue Jul 22 07:47:11 1997 From: Stringer Roderic To: airhead_list , BMW mail list Subject: BMW: BMW - high security locking only petrol caps Date: Tue, 22 Jul 1997 12:32:00 +0100 X-Priority: 3 Reply-To: Stringer Roderic Beware someone is listening to you ... The scene: At a friends 150 mile from home. He had borrowed the bike for the weekend in return for doing a few jobs while I go away. It 11:30pm and I'm kitting up. HIM: "I had a bit of trouble with the petrol cap" ME: "I never lock it, it's sometimes difficult to unlock. I've also heard on the mail lists that they sometime fail locked. [THIS WAS THE WRONG THING TO SAY :-) ] Action moves to outside ME: "I better check this unlocks " ME "f****** B****** W***** thing" tried wiggling, tapping, spray lube, physical force, more physical force and extreme force (build a good petrol cap do BMW) -- zero impact on cap. .... lots of time passes ... Finally set of home at 2:30am ! SERIOUS BIT: In the end we did work out how to defeat the lock with only minor cosmetic damage to the clip on plastic lip where we removed it to try and see how the cap was constructed. It turns out this is not actually required. Method (Cap is type fitted to an 83R80RT) -------------------------- Tools: Hand or battery drill with 1/8" bit A nail to fit hole made by drill 1) Lift recessed handle 2) At the inside edge (edge closest to the centre) of the handle recess drill a hole at 45 degrees, heading in towards the centre X section NoSpam@NoSpam - key hole \ - drill here handle recess \/ ________ ______NoSpam@NoSpam________________ | | \ | | | -------------- | \ / \ / | | | | threaded bit | | | | 3) Drilling steadily you will feel when you break through the "inner" cap about 3/8 - 1/2 inch 4) Drill a little further into the "outer", say 1/16" 5) Place nail in hole and press in while turning cap 6) Remove nail and cap is "locked", fold handle down and hole is hidden Hope this helps someone out there as I seem to remember other methods suggested for this problem were a bit destructive Rod Stringer '83R80RT MORAL: keep you big mouth shut! From ibmwrNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com Wed Jul 23 12:52:23 1997 Date: Wed, 23 Jul 1997 09:31:41 -0700 From: "jerome N. Harris" To: pwendellNoSpam@NoSpampsych.mc.duke.edu Cc: bmwmcNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com Subject: BMW: R1100 things to watch Reply-To: "jerome N. Harris" The two main things to watch on your new '96 R1100 are the oil consumption and the transmission. Oil consumption during breakin can be 1 Qt per 1k miles, and if it is like my R1100RSL and about 5 others built the same period that were sold through my dealer, the oil consumption doesn't get any better. It smoked on startup when cold *(like big blue cloud) and at 4000 miles, BMW changed the oil back to the lighter breakin oil used during the first 600 miles. At 5k miles, they finally authorized a tear down and redo of the top end with new rings. All 6 bikes I know of with this problem were torn down and had oil and carbon fouled heads. The new rings fixed the problems and oil consumption got better, but at 10k miles, I still use about 1 pint in 800 to 1000 miles (my old '86 k100 never used a pint in 3,000). The transmission is another sore point. At 5k miles, my transmission started slipping in 5th. The symptom waS that when riding about 70 in 5th gear and under slight acceleration, the bike would jerk like a bad miss in the engine, which I thought it was. But the bike shop found it was the transmission and got a new (?) one from BMW. From the day it went in, the bike would not shift 2nd to 3rd without grinding gears. No amount of speed changes and methods of shifting would get around this. So the dealer suspected that BMW might have sent in a refurbished transmission as the warranty replacement and asked for a 3rd new transmission direct from Germany. So at 6k miles, the 3rd wnet in and fixed the problems, but there is still an occasional unsmooth shift in the 2 to 3 gear change. A friend with a '95 R1100RS is also on his 3rd transmission in 100k miles, getting about 40k per transmission. Another friend with a "96 R1100RT is also running into the 2nd to 3rd shift problem, which may be an inherent bad tolerance problem with the shifting forks or shaft alignment. I would like to hear how many other R1100 have had transmission problems.! Also note the considerable discussions on thie bmw mail about speed surge and corrections by changing to the Autolite or other plugs. I have not had any bad surge problems on mine. But hey, its under warranty for 3 years or 36k miles, so you have plenty of time to sort out problems and decide whether to make it a long-term ride or trade it in on a K bike after the first K1200 problems get sorted out. Meanwhile, enjoy and just try to keep the rubber side down! Jerry Harris 96 R1100RSL (Black, of course) 73 R75/5 Toaster (burned toast) From ibmwrNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com Tue Jul 22 22:32:23 1997 From: "JOHN SHELTON" To: Subject: BMW: 3923 used it and abused it Date: Tue, 22 Jul 1997 21:21:34 -0500 X-Priority: 3 Reply-To: "JOHN SHELTON" Tonight I installed the magical 3923 plugs in my R1100RS. Around here none of the auto shops carry them so they were a special order item. Tried to make me take the whole box of ten that was shipped to them, told them I didn't need ten-only two, they said take the ten, told them to keep the ten-we compromised-I bought the two and promised to try to find 4 more R11 riders. Anyway--- Once I put the plugs in the bike ( and yes I had the right plug tool in the tool kit ) I found that it idled smoother than my gold wing, pulled harder than a V-Max, wheelied in 4 gears and doubled my gas milage. But I immediatly notice a new wind noise from my helmet visor shield - can Autolites do this? Make wind noise that is. Seriously-- I was a non believer when I installed the plugs tonight, there wasn't any difference at idle when cold but once warmed up there was a small improvement, and did seem to run smoother at anything over idle-warm or cold. On my way back from my ride was where I noticed that there was a definate reduction in the surging I had experienced, it was never bad but it now ran much better For what it's worth guys-I'm sold. Thanks Rob. Papajohn From ibmwrNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com Wed Jul 23 06:41:11 1997 From: beemerriderNoSpam@NoSpamjuno.com To: oilhdbobNoSpam@NoSpamerols.com Cc: bmwmcNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com Date: Wed, 23 Jul 1997 06:15:59 -0400 Subject: BMW: Re: Spittin, Sputturin, Airhead X-Juno-Line-Breaks: 0-17 Reply-To: beemerriderNoSpam@NoSpamjuno.com Bob ryan writes: > >Hello List, > >I need your help!! My 1988 R100RST is acting up. The bike cuts out, >like >you hit the kill switch and then picks right back up. Replace the ignition switch. This happened on my '86 R65 and I've heard of several others since. As the monolever airheads age, this is becoming more and more common. It comes on so gradually and intermittently that it's hard to believe, at first. Chris Stoddard Bloomfield Hills, Michigan From ibmwrNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com Wed Jul 23 21:09:01 1997 From: "Sobczyk, Joe" To: "'bmw list'" Subject: RE: BMW: Tuning an R11GS Date: Wed, 23 Jul 97 20:47:00 PDT Reply-To: "Sobczyk, Joe" >Where does the R11GS get its glorious low rev oomph from? Is it mainly >the gearing, or the motor? > >The reason I ask is that I'm looking for high value, low risk ways to >tune my GS, mainly for the road but also for occasional fun days on >slow, twisty race tracks. I want more acceleration right through the rev >range, especially when loaded with passenger + luggage, and a nice even >power delivery without any big steps. Plus, it's my only bike, and I >don't want it endlessly off the road for adjustments and buggering >about. Yeah, well, me too. The perfect engine Gearing doesn't really give you more low end power. It gives you more low end leverage, essentially, changing not the power peak but simply at what speed it occurs. Tuning (and gearing, for that matter) is always an art of compromise. Short of doing a big bore and stroke job, you cannot substantially change the peak power without changing where it occurs in the rev range and how the power curve arcs. It all boils down to how much gas and air you can get into the engine. You can shove more fuel/air into the cylinder by increasing the passage way or by increasing how many times the piston pumps. Same with gearing. Lower will make it accelerate quicker, but top end will be cut. It may be that gearing is your solution. All that said, you can make improvements by getting the heads polished and tuning it within an inch of its life. But big jumps aren't available without changing the power characteristics. Joe Sobczyk Washington DC 81 R65 85 K100RS SobczykNoSpam@NoSpamWashpost.com The opinions are my own, etc. From ibmwrNoSpam@NoSpamworld.std.com Thu Jul 24 13:11:47 1997 X-Sent-Via: StarNet http://www.azstarnet.com/ From: "Craig Littlefield" To: "BMW newsgroup" , Subject: BMW: R1100 things to watch Date: Thu, 24 Jul 1997 09:45:28 -0700 X-Priority: 3 Reply-To: "Craig Littlefield" >I would like to hear how many other R1100 have had transmission problems.! >Jerry Harris Your note was interesting. I have had many BMWs, all the old R design, and had transmission or rear end problems on most of them. I now have a very late 1994 R1100RS. It is off warranty in December 1997. I have been trying to decide if I should keep it or trade it in. Might even get a different brand bike this time. I think that problems during warranty are only a sign of more to come. I would prefer a bike or car that has no problems during warranty as a sign it will continue to be trouble free.. I have 25k on my RS. I have not had oil burning problems or transmission problems. Oil use was moderate even when it was new. I have had several small problems.. ABS relay main power relay dimmer switch Valve cover gasket split Leaking left side rocker inspection hole cover Excessive rear brake wear Broken speedometer cable Craig Littlefield Date: Fri, 31 Oct 1997 05:32:32 -0600 (CST) From: Paul or Voni Glaves Subject: BMW: BMW R Tech - clutch splines >Date: Thu, 30 Oct 1997 11:28:15 +0000 >From: wjacksonNoSpam@NoSpammail.island.net >Subject: BMW: BMW R Tech - clutch splines > >Howdy. I've decided to do something I've never done before on my '73 >R75/5, lube the clutch spines. I kinow I could take the tranny out >and do it proper, butt, is there an easier way? Would it work to pull >the swingarm pivots and let the whole thing move back without >disconnecting the drive shaft and replacing the bolts? I'm not even >sure it needs lubing. It's only got 130,000 miles on the clock and >isn't shifting any worse than it always did (G). >Wes Jackson >Nanaimo BC Yes. You will need to loosen the clutch adjusting bolt so that the lever on the transmission does not bind against the frame cross tube. You will be able to use a long screw driver - or better, a flux brush on the end of a screwdriver to apply lubricant. What you will not be able to do is clean any old lubricant, metalic dust, or other contaminants off the clutch hub or input shaft. Doing the shortcut is usually better than not doing it - but not as good as doing it completely with the transmission out. And yes, I've had considerable experience with the shortcut - but understand it's shortcomings before you do it! Paul Glaves Date: 26 Nov 1997 07:57:00 U From: "Diaz Jon" Subject: BMW: Oil consumption Ben wrote: >My R1100RT (2500 miles on the odometer) is using oil at about a rate >of 1 qt. per 1500 miles. I understand that it should use oil for the >first 5-6000 miles, but is this normal? Yes. Jon Diaz Date: Wed, 26 Nov 1997 07:32:49 -0700 From: Steve Aikens Subject: Re: BMW: Re: R1100 oil comsumption BMWgsRiderNoSpam@NoSpamaol.com wrote: > > In a message dated 11/26/97 10:47:28 AM, you wrote: > > <<------------------------------ > > Date: Tue, 25 Nov 1997 17:54:04 -0500 (EST) > From: Ben1364NoSpam@NoSpamaol.com > Subject: BMW: Oilhead Oil consumption? > > My R1100RT (2500 miles on the odometer) is using oil at about a rate of 1 qt. > per 1500 miles. I understand that it should use oil for the first 5-6000 > miles, but is this normal? I don't rag it but I do ride fairly fast on the > big roads. > > My only other experience with air cooled engines is limited to 2 stroke cycle > engines and lawn mowers (which do use oil). Never had this problem with 4 > stroke cycle liquid cooled engines. My last Bimmer had 155K mi when I sold > it and I never added oil between changes at 3000 mile intervals. Does it > have to do with clearances/tolerances in the air cooled ( OK air/oil cooled) > engine? > > Thanks in advance for your learned comments. > > Ben White/Biloxi >> > > Ben, My R1100gs used about 2 qts. of oil in the first 1,500 miles and then > consumption decreased rapidly. After 3,000 consumption was down to about .5 > qt. in 1,000 miles. After 6,000 miles it is even less though difficult to > measure accurately due to the sight-glasss oil level viewing problem which > has been previously discussed. > > Ira Haskell > R1100gs > Lake Forest, Cal. Ben, Ira's experience is fairly typical. The mateing surfaces in the Type 259 engine are extremely hard and will take some time to wear close enough to stop using some oil. It's interesting to note that Paul Glaves could easily see the original hatch patterns on the cylinder walls of Voni's engine at 150 something thousand miles, while he had the cylinders off. Don't be concerned about oil use as long as it remains reletively low (yours is). If you note a significant increase in use, have it checked out. Both my RS's used some oil for the first 12,000 miles on the first and almost 15,000 miles on the one I ride now, depending on how I ride/rode the bikes. Running at very high rpms and hotrodding through the mountains used quite a bit - just cruising the highway and after about 5,000 miles on either bike, no oil was used. At just under 60,000 miles, my current RS uses no oil between changes - no matter how I ride it. Also, be careful when you add oil. You may think it's low when oil is trapped in the oil cooler. When I park my bike for the night, I park it on the sidestand for a couple minutes to allow the oil to drain from the cooler, then pop it up on the centerstand in the location I'm going to check the oil in the morning. When you add: only add when there is no oil in the sight glass, only fill to the dot in the center. - -- I don't suffer from insanity.....I enjoy every minute of it! Steve Aikens, Clovis, New Mexico steve.aikensNoSpam@NoSpam3lefties.com My BMW URL is http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/4323/ Don't drop by very often, it never changes. ------------------------------