Not running as smooth

[jgrant]

OK, I feel really stupid asking this but I will anyway. I recently moved to San Diego from Reno. Since I moved here I have noticed a noticeable change in the idle and low rpm performance of my 2004 RT. What I mean by noticeable is that it does not seem to idle as nicely as it once did and it seems to take longer to warm up (I have to leave the cold start lever on longer). I notice this as I am leaving my parking garage in the morning. I am on the bottom level of the garage and have to go up 4 levels. I should be able to pretty much idle up these but my baby does not like those ramps and will bog down. When I give it a little throttle it is slow to respond.

I recently had the 6k service done (am now at 7k) but it was running a little rough before that.

My riding style has changed since moving here. I used to have a 40 minute, all freeway commute. When I first moved here I was pretty close to work and my commute was only 10 minutes and most of that was surface streets. I now have a 20 -25 minute commute and it is mostly freeway. I was not doing as much long distance weekend riding as I once was (although I am changing that).

My question is if (1) other owners have noticed this sort of change? (2) could it be the change in riding style or altitude? (3) am I just getting worried about nothing at all?

It runs great other than that though.

Thanks!

james

[SDMike]

OK, I feel really stupid asking this but I will anyway. I recently moved to San Diego from Reno. Since I moved here I have noticed a noticeable change in the idle and low rpm performance of my 2004 RT. What I mean by noticeable is that it does not seem to idle as nicely as it once did and it seems to take longer to warm up (I have to leave the cold start lever on longer). I notice this as I am leaving my parking garage in the morning. I am on the bottom level of the garage and have to go up 4 levels. I should be able to pretty much idle up these but my baby does not like those ramps and will bog down. When I give it a little throttle it is slow to respond.

I recently had the 6k service done (am now at 7k) but it was running a little rough before that.

My riding style has changed since moving here. I used to have a 40 minute, all freeway commute. When I first moved here I was pretty close to work and my commute was only 10 minutes and most of that was surface streets. I now have a 20 -25 minute commute and it is mostly freeway. I was not doing as much long distance weekend riding as I once was (although I am changing that).

My question is if (1) other owners have noticed this sort of change? (2) could it be the change in riding style or altitude? (3) am I just getting worried about nothing at all?

It runs great other than that though.

Thanks!

james

Could be the change in formulation of the gas between here and there. I don't know if that would have anything to do with it...

 

Could be that the TBs are off sync already, but I doubt it.

 

Could be that you need to do an Italian Tuneup on the bike and really wail on it for a few days to clear out some junk.

 

C'mon down to the Tech Daze and learn all you can about these bikes so you KNOW that its done right.

 

M

[Thumper]

Same here, but no move, change of habits, no new gear, or change of gas and/or altitude! 2004 R 1150 RT - - - good, smooth, low idle speed/power up until about 6,000 miles. Then, rough and occasional dying, unfortunately at critical moments of maneuvering. My BMW mechanic tried all he knew and suggested a bad ECU. Had seen more than one with the same problem. Said he was going to call BMW to see if they had any solutions, like a new ECU. Called him last week and he had not done the call. Hope someone else has the answer.

[4wheeldog]

I would look at the bottom plugs. No real rational reason, other than others with dual sparks have mentioned the lower plugs fouling. Good Luck!

[jgrant]

If you find out more about this could you let us know? I have done a little more high speed riding and it seems to be a little better.

Does it happen to you all of the time or just during the first part of your ride? My problem is the worst when I first start it but it does not seem as smooth even once it has warmed up.

I think that I will check my plugs. Unfortunately I am an urban dweller and don't have a garage so I can't do my own work. Well, it is much harder for me to do my own work than it was when I had a garage.

[Blue Beemer Dude]

If you are still under warranty then I would suggest a trip to the dealer, and leave it overnight so that they can ride it cold.

 

HOWEVER ... don't they have some kind of tree-hugger special formulation low-polluting ethanol steroid gas in California? If this truly did just start to happen after your move, then I would look at that. Maybe ride over to AZ or NV and get a tank of gas, see what happens.

 

Michael