Jeff Onsted Posted June 13, 2015 Share Posted June 13, 2015 Hello all- Im Jeff. I live in Hastings Florida (About 30 minutes inland from St. Augustine on the northern Atlantic side of Fla.) Just a shortness here on what I'm doing on the forum... I own a 99 1100 RT. Recently it began giving me what I have begun to realize are the 60k blues. I bought the bike off a one owner older gent that did all his own maintenance it's entire life. He was 70, pulled it out one day, slid the back tire on the sandy shoulder of the road, tipped it over (caught it fortunately) lost his riding nerve, and at 6am one morning listed it on CL. I was at his house an hour and 45 minutes after he listed it and for $3100 cash money rode it away. The mileage was 56,700. That was 3 months ago. I had thought I had stolen the bike for the condition it was in (And full luggage set to boot.) At 57,500, the starter went. Found one through Amazon for about 65 bucks, got out the oil smudged Clymer the previous owner gave me, and changed it. No prob. Next...Being Florida, it had the typical bald in the center, beefy on the sides tire wear. Replaced both simultaneously (though the front could have lasted another few grand) with Michelin Road Pilot 3's. Great tires, handle well, changed them in my driveway the old school way. Did an oil/tranny fluid/final drive fluid change (Brad Penn 80/90 on tranny and rear), new plugs, air filter, replaced head light bulb (low beam was about a bright as a night light.) All was well and running great 2 weeks ago.. Rode through a storm I probably should have pulled over for.. The bike kept stalling out, then would restart. Made it home, chalked it up to high moisture, made a note to dig around under the tank to look for shorts, and parked it. Two days later, fired it up, ran fine, promptly forgot about the moisture search. Ran great for the last two weeks, this past Tuesday road through another thunderstorm, bike started stalling, died on the side of the road, this time WOULD NOT restart. One serious bummer about FLA is the lack of overpasses to push your bike to and under in inclement weather) Pushed it 2 miles in driving rain to a gas station, got the owners permission to leave it, and came back in the morning with a truck and trailer to claim it. THAT brought me to your handy dandy (and totally INVALUABLE) forum. My bike is currently dismantled and waiting on a Hall sensor. The forum here is what steered me to look there first. Took the old one off, ran it up to Jax BMW, had it tested, found out it was bad, then upset them by ordering one (brand new) from BeemerBoneYard.com (saved $170) (BTW... If you ever use BEEMERBONEYARD.com.. Enter "BMWMOA" in the source code box at check-out... bada bing.. 10% off!) Will be here looking for advice on installing the Hall sensor when it arrives next week. Also ordered new plug wires (for immediate use) and a clutch plate (for future use though current one is doing fine.) An aside.. I live in Hastings Florida. (32145) I do have a small truck and a drop gate trailer. If anyone is ever in a bind within 50, 75 miles of me.. I can and will help. To give a better idea of where I could be useful.. I am just about directly in the middle between Jacksonville and Daytona Beach Florida on I95, and roughly within an hour and a half of Ocala/Bellview. Thanks to bmwsporttouring.com for being such a wealth of information!! Link to comment
greiffster Posted June 13, 2015 Share Posted June 13, 2015 Jeff, Welcome. It sounds like you got a steal. And you're way ahead of the curve on the DIY maintenance. Good for you. Link to comment
EffBee Posted June 13, 2015 Share Posted June 13, 2015 There's nothing on your bike that sounds like any kind of "blues." A Hall sensor's wires cracking, and then shorting out in the rain, is very typical at around 60K. You've done all of the other simpler routine maintenance. The starter was, well, a starter. Happens. The only other things I'd check, if you still are in contact with the PO, is when were the throttle cables, fuel filter and alternator belt changed. These are trickier than changing the air filter, but shouldn't be a problem for someone who can change a starter, and a set of tires ("the old school way"). EXCEPT . . . the 1100RT did not come with quick disconnects on the fuel lines. so when changing the fuel filter, the tank has to be removed and the fuel lines have to be slid off the fuel injection distribution plumbing. It so happens that after a certain number of years, they tend to bond to the plastic lines, and the lines themselves get brittle, so the whole thing can come apart on you if you are not very careful. Also, you'll need fuel-line clamps at first or the gas will spill everywhere. Get new fuel line from your BMW dealer or Beemer Boneyard. Buy the new all-metal quick releases. Ask your dealer approximately where they go (about 4 inches forward of where the fuel line attaches to the fuel-injection spider (distributor). Replace any original BMW clamps, or worm-drive clamps, with true fuel-injection clamps. Make sure you mark which fuel line attaches to which nipple, as well as the to/from lines to the charcoal canister. And, as long as you've got the fuel-pump/fuel-filter plate removed from the tank, replace the U-shaped line to the filter, and the output line from the pump. They've been know to split after XX,XXX miles, and roadside repair is probably not going to happen. That and some fresh brake lines (Galfer steel braided with a black plastic coating are my faves) are a good choice. Look stock. Work tons better. Oh, yeah. Welcome to the board. Ask. We're all full of opinions and advice. Link to comment
Jeff Onsted Posted June 14, 2015 Author Share Posted June 14, 2015 OK! Will hit the Boneyard ,order the fuel line items you recommended while I'm on my maintenance high horse here. Called the previous owner on the throttle cable question... He has never changed it.. so.. CHECK... Will get one pronto. The alternator belt is newer (PO changed it at 52k as preventative maintenance) and just for good measure since I was already digging around under the "hood" I pulled the alternator, took it to a buddy with a shop, and had it tested. Works fine so far. Contemplating buying and storing one for the day the original finally does take a dump on me. Anyone here have any experience with the new lithium ion batteries for bikes on the market yet? Pros/cons? Link to comment
Bernie Posted June 14, 2015 Share Posted June 14, 2015 Welcome to the board. I am in S-Jax, rode a R11RT for 106,000 miles and currently torture a R1200RT with over 150,000 miles. Don't worry to much about getting BMW-Jax mad, they will get over it. If you join the BMW-NEF club, you can get a 10% discount on factory parts. But I buy a lot of stuff from BeemerBoneYard.com, good folks. Keep an eye out for local tech-days, always fun and sometimes educational. A great way to learn how to take care of things on the bike. Link to comment
Glenn Reed Posted June 14, 2015 Share Posted June 14, 2015 Now he just needs to meet you Bernie, and then he'll start reading your posts in a German accent! Link to comment
Bill_Walker Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 Called the previous owner on the throttle cable question... He has never changed it.. so.. CHECK... Will get one pronto. There are actually four cables. One from the twistgrip to the distribution box, one from the fast idle control to the distribution box, and two from the distribution box to the two throttle bodies (one for each throttle body). At least, that's the setup on an 1150. I assume the 1100 is about the same. Getting that all arranged in the right position in the distribution box can be a bit of a challenge. Link to comment
EffBee Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 Called the previous owner on the throttle cable question... He has never changed it.. so.. CHECK... Will get one pronto. There are actually four cables. One from the twistgrip to the distribution box, one from the fast idle control to the distribution box, and two from the distribution box to the two throttle bodies (one for each throttle body). At least, that's the setup on an 1150. I assume the 1100 is about the same. Getting that all arranged in the right position in the distribution box can be a bit of a challenge. Just changed the cables on my 1100RT. "PITA" is being kind. But it can be done. Then you have to synchronize the throttle bodies. I actually got it pretty close doing it manually, but with my manometer I got it spot on. Link to comment
roadscholar Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 An aside.. I live in Hastings Florida. (32145) I do have a small truck and a drop gate trailer. If anyone is ever in a bind within 50, 75 miles of me.. I can and will help. To give a better idea of where I could be useful.. I am just about directly in the middle between Jacksonville and Daytona Beach Florida on I95, and roughly within an hour and a half of Ocala/Bellview. Thanks to bmwsporttouring.com for being such a wealth of information!! Hi Jeff, that's a nice offer. Likewise if you need a tow within 50-80 miles of Jax LMK, have a trailer. Also, we have a group (CADS) that meets Wed. at 7 at the Saucy Taco in Fruit Cove, you're welcome anytime (nice ride up the river). Link to comment
Matts_12GS Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 Welcome to the board. I am in S-Jax, rode a R11RT for 106,000 miles and currently torture a R1200RT with over 150,000 miles. Don't worry to much about getting BMW-Jax mad, they will get over it. If you join the BMW-NEF club, you can get a 10% discount on factory parts. But I buy a lot of stuff from BeemerBoneYard.com, good folks. Keep an eye out for local tech-days, always fun and sometimes educational. A great way to learn how to take care of things on the bike. I'll add to Bernie's notes. If you find you need service and want help with it, many of us are a short ride from Hastings and will work for food. You can order a pizza or donuts and coffee and BMWs will appear in your garage ready to help fix stuff. All it takes is a little posting to say you want help and whatever the job is. I'm in Switzerland/Fruit Cove area feel free reach out to go ride! Link to comment
tallman Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 Welcome. Good group of folks have responded so take advantage of their offer, host a tech day. Link to comment
Jeff Onsted Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 Yes.. I discovered that after a very helpful convo with the guy at BeemerBoneyard (They getting used to my calling already.) Think gona have to get a few more paychecks under the belt before I endeavor to replace all of them, but would like to do all of them at once if possible. Certainly grateful for all the offers for help. When it gets down to those cables, I will fire up the grill, check the chemistry in the pool, and send up smoke signals. Link to comment
Jeff Onsted Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 That's a good idea! Will discuss with the gf.. See what can be arranged. Link to comment
Jeff Onsted Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 In my "preparedness buying mode" (I like to have spare parts on back-up) I ordered a clutch plate from BB. It came with a notice about BMW using two different spline sizes. I called to inquire, the guy there told me that they have no way of knowing WHICH size mine would be, but if its not the size for the plate they sent me, I can exchange it in the future as I'm already a customer in their system. This uncertainty pretty much negates my buying the spare for future use to begin with. Can anyone offer me any advice on this, particular how to know (short of ripping the bike in half) that I have the correct one already or not? Link to comment
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