Things to look for on '98 RT

[Robt_J_Webster]

After having sold my 2000 RT on finishing my job in Spain, I have been looking at replacing it with a clean, low mileage (about 18,000 miles) 1998 RT that seems to have been well maintained. Can anyone tell me what are the problem areas to look for on the vintage RT, and what can be done to diagnose potential problems?

[outpost22]

Maybe the biggest issues for a garage queen like that would be the rubber parts (vent hoses, intake, etc) that may have dried up/rotted over time. If the bike was stored in a humid climate, internal parts and seals could possibly suffer from lack of use and condensation. Stale fuel would also be a concern.

 

Did the majority of the miles occur when the bike was new? Was it properly stored?

 

Was it only run on short 5 mile jaunts all the time? Maintenance records?

 

Let us know.

 

 

[Robt_J_Webster]

The bike was mainly a week-end toy that saw regular, if somewhat short rides on a regular basis. It was ridden fairly often up until recently, when it was replaced with a newer bike. No signs of any fluids leaking anywhere, and starts right up and settles into a nice smooth idle.

 

With this early model, where there any design flaws that led to failures that BMW may have corrected on the newer models?

[smiller]

With this early model, where there any design flaws that led to failures that BMW may have corrected on the newer models?

If you mean compared to other 1100's, no, 1998 is past any of the teething issues. In fact 1997-1998 is kind of a sweet spot, seems to be underrepresented in the lists of bikes with problems.

[Robt_J_Webster]

I understand that there was a transmission upgrade that year (M97, bearing and shaft upgrade?). If this is true, how does one go about identifying whether or not this bike has the upgrade, and is it something worth worrying about?

[smiller]

The transmission change was made in 1997 so a 1998 bike will have the latest model tranny, no need to check.

[Robt_J_Webster]

Thanks for all of the helpful information. I didn't completely answer your previous question: the bike has been serviced regularly by the local BMW dealer, and this is the original owner.