2009 F 650 GS Cranks Over but won't fire

[KingBiscuit]

I thought I posted this, but don't see it...I must be getting old!

 

On the first ride of the season, we stopped to have a break and some water about 50 miles into the ride. After the 10 or 15 minute break, my wife's 2009 F650GS (Twin) wouldn't start. The engine cranked over very quickly but wont fire. We called the dealer and went through everything they asked us to do. Ended up calling BMW Roadside Assistance and having the bike hauled back to the dealer.

 

Anyone else have similar problems? I read the thread about the recall on the charcoal filter/water problem. I don't think this is it, we were riding in sunny, dry weather. I'm taking the recall info to the dealer tomorrow to make sure that gets fixed while the bike is there.

 

 

One last thing, I remember when she shut the bike down for our break, it "kicked back" slightly. I don't know if this is part of the problem, but I'll mention it to the dealer.

 

I'll check to see if the gas tank shows signs of cracking also.

 

Man, with only 2K miles, the wife is a bit disappointed to say the least!

 

I'll post any info that I get on this problem.

 

Thanks in advance for any info,

 

Dan

[Firefight911]

Nope, sorry, can't help ya on this one. Haven't seen or heard of any of these issues to date.

 

I am going to surmise from other stuff I have seen that the will determine bad gas that has clogged your injectors.

 

Before storage, did you add Sta-Bil or the like? Full tank of fuel? Any rough idle or prior indication of rough running, missing, etc. prior to episode?

 

Keep us posted on this one.

[Herkypilot]

I just had a problem with my 07 R1200RT. Cranks but doesn't start...I pulled the spark plugs - no gas on the plugs so it wasn't flooded. Turned out to be the fuel control unit. I'm not familiar with the GS, but the fuel control module on the RT is on the left top side of the gas tank underneath the tupperware. I used a bypass cable I purchased as an emergency backup for on the road. The bypass makes the pump run all the time instead of having the control regulate pump operation. I hooked it up and the pump whirled to life and the bike started right up. I ordered a new controller, installed it today and the bike runs normally now. I threw the emergency bypass cable in the glove box.

 

HP

[KingBiscuit]

Thanks for the responses.

 

Prior to storage, we ran the fuel low. Took it to the gas station, put StaBil in the tank, topped the tank off and then ran the bike about 50 or 60 miles. On the way, home, we added a bit more StaBil and topped off with fuel. (92 Octane both times)

 

While on the phone, dealer told us that sometimes the fuel gages may not read correctly so we pushed it over to the pump and topped off the tank. It only took 1.3 gallons so it was not out of fuel. Adding fuel did not help the situation.

 

3 or 4 days before the failure, we had taken the bikes out of mothballs. We washed the winter dust off, Started the bikes, checked tires, etc. The 650 started instantly and ran fine.

 

The day of the failure, the bike started instantly, ran fine. We stopped for lunch, afterwards, the bike again started instantly and ran smooth as silk.

 

We continued on the ride for another 40 miles or so then stopped for a bit of water. We were stopped for about 10 or 15 minutes. After this stop, the bike would turn over, but would not fire. Simple as that. No warning signs, nothing...just wouldn't start.

 

I'm going to go over to the dealer and take a copy of the recall to have that fixed while the bike is in the shop. I don't think this is related to the current problem, but you never know.

 

Thanks again for the posts. I'll update this post once we hear back from the dealer.

 

Dan

[outpost22]

You might try reading THIS thread. I know it pertains to the F800, but the 650 shares the same motor except for cams and ecu .

[KingBiscuit]

Sorry to take so long updating this post.

 

After 4 weeks, we finally got the bike back. They waited 3 weeks to look at the bike and then realised they didn't have parts to do the charcoal filter recall. Needless to say, the wife was not a happy camper.

 

According the the mechanic that worked on the bike, the recall on the charcoal filter fixed the problem. He also says that BMW tells him that the cracking gas tanks is a result of the same issue. My wife's tank is starting to show faint signs of splitting on the right side. The mechanic tells me it won't get any worse because of the fix. We'll see....I'm pretty sceptical.

 

The weekend after we picked the bike up (Memorial Weekend), we took a nice ride to Marietta Ohio where we had dinner and stayed the night. The hotel where we stayed allows motorcycles to park under the covered driveway outside the front door. The weather was very hot and humid, but no rain overnight. The next morning, the bike didn't want to start. It would fire, but wouldn't start. She had to give it about 50% throttle to start. Once she did that and it started, it ran fine and has continued to run and start fine since. Since we can't re-create the problem, I'm thinking it's pretty much useless to take it back to the dealer.

 

I've always been impressed with BMWs and the dealer where we purchased this bike. Needless to say, I'm not that impressed with either right now.

 

If anything further develops, I'll update this thread.

 

 

Dan

 

 

 

 

[KingBiscuit]

Sorry to re-open this post, but has anyone heard of a solution to this problem? My wife's bike is still having problems starting. Last fall, we took it to the dealer (MotOhio in Columbus Ohio). They were able to re-create the problem but say that nothing is being recorded in the monitoring system, therefore there must be nothing wrong. I reamed the owner big time and got BMW NA on the phone. They basically said the same thing...no error code, no problem. EVEN THOUGH THE BIKE WOULDN'T START!!!! They finally agreed to do a "fuel system flush". They insist it's a fuel issue, but she uses the same fuel I use and I never have problems.

[doc47]

This sounds like a corporate nightmare. If the tank shows signs of cracking and it's still under warranty it should be replaced.

 

To say nothing's wrong when the bike won't start? What is that? Fantasy?

 

Tell 'em to fix it or you're getting an attorney....

[outpost22]

It seems like it's time to be drastic.

1). become the squeaky wheel. B*tch to high heaven until they fix it or replace it.

2) If it was mine I would change the spark plugs, drain the fuel system, replace the fuel filter, remove the o2 sensors and inspect, inspect the air intake to make sure it's not plugged with assembly debris or a mouse nest. You shouldn't have to do this, but I'm impatient about people not fixing things. It seems like you've been too patient.

My single F650 did what you describe just once for 3 hours, then it "fixed" itself. I attribute it to adding Techron to the fuel and suspect a small piece of carbon broke loose and became lodged on the O2 sensor and eventually dislodged.

3) Make them buy the bike back (see attorney as mentioned above), especially if you have a lemon law provision in your state.