Throttle Body "MORE" cracked cable cams/pulleys

[Ponch]

On 6/5/2021 at 4:23 PM, The Rocketman said:

We should have saved all our broken plastic cams and mailed them back to BMW corporate one after another until somebody there figured out (or at least admitted) there's a problem. I suppose if one of the BMW execs broke down far from home with a cracked cam, they might actually understand how a cheap, cheesy piece of plastic could cause a major problem. I'm sure its all about cost and profit, but really if they made these out of a more durable material right from the beginning, and raised the price of the bike a few bucks to cover it, nobody would even know or care. I guess if a rear wheel can fly off, they issue a wheel flange recall. But if the bike just dies due to lack of throttle and nobody crashes because its just an "inconvenience" rather than a "life safety issue" it doesn't get the same treatment.

And you know if we know about it, and the folks on ADVRider know about it, and the folks on the BMWMOA forum know about it, you can bet that BMW dealers and corporate know about it, and are ignoring it, as there's more money in trying to sell and install complete throttle bodies, than fixing a sub-assemby. Maybe they think ignoring it will make it go away, and as these affected bikes age out, the problem will some day just vanish.

 

I was so mad when it happened, I thought of sending it back with a note to GFY. They don't care, that's apparent, so why waste the postage. I still own the bike, FWIW, but I probably won't buy another. That's the best I can do. 

[The Rocketman]

You would hope big companies like BMW would learn from past mistakes and improve current and future models. Problem is, you won't know if things were upgraded until they break. Its really difficult to look at every component of a bike and tell if the parts were designed to last a while. Like who would have bought an R1200RT or GS (new or used for that matter) over the last 10-15 years and even thought to look at the throttle body cams?

[lkraus]

3 hours ago, The Rocketman said:

You would hope big companies like BMW would learn from past mistakes and improve current and future models. Problem is, you won't know if things were upgraded until they break. Its really difficult to look at every component of a bike and tell if the parts were designed to last a while. Like who would have bought an R1200RT or GS (new or used for that matter) over the last 10-15 years and even thought to look at the throttle body cams?

You could make a case that BMW has learned, since recent R1200/R1250 engines do not have throttle cables or cams.   Though I don't think cam cracking really had anything to do with that change. Seems like the Wetheads were released before reports of throttle cam cracks became common.

[KDeline]

Their cost saving manufacturing technique is costing the customers in the long run...Especially people like me that keep them on average 150,000 plus miles....

[Ponch]

On 6/8/2021 at 4:42 PM, KDeline said:

Their cost saving manufacturing technique is costing the customers in the long run...Especially people like me that keep them on average 150,000 plus miles....

 

That corporate philosophy has had its effect on me as well. I don't ride as much, but I tend to keep things a while. Bottom line is, they don't care, so neither should I, in terms of brand loyalty. Whatever little brand tribalism I had left was killed off on the side of RT 87 in 2015. 

[ghofvt]

Just had to take my R1200RT 08 in when the Throttle crapped out.    Sounds like this is a thing.

[The Rocketman]

Oh, it definitely is "a thing". Might not be your thing, but it is a thing.

If it is your thing, I hope the dealer doesn't try to sell you new throttle bodies (at over $600 each, plus a few hours labor), as there are less expensive good alternatives.

[KDeline]

18 minutes ago, The Rocketman said:

Oh, it definitely is "a thing". Might not be your thing, but it is a thing.

If it is your thing, I hope the dealer doesn't try to sell you new throttle bodies (at over $600 each, plus a few hours labor), as there are less expensive good alternatives.

I’ve done three of my motorcycle so far, and all three were cracked. I have two more to do, will keep you posted.

[LBump]

More BMW Beta Testing...🤯🤯

[The Rocketman]

NHTSA just called me to discuss my complaint. I’ll share his contact information later in case anyone else wants to jump on board.

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

On 4/10/2021 at 11:41 AM, Joe Frickin' Friday said:

 

Seems like every one of us who has replaced cracked throttle cams (whether we got stranded or not) ought to be reporting this.

 

https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/VehicleComplaint/

 

You can upload pictures directly with your report, or you can put them into a PowerPoint file, where you can add notes and arrows.  You can't upload a PowerPoint file, but you can convert it to a PDF file for free here, and then you can upload the PDF.

 

 

Today a guy from NHTSA called me to ask for more details about my case.  He said that they're just starting to investigate this, and they're gathering information.   

 

On 6/5/2021 at 7:23 PM, The Rocketman said:

We should have saved all our broken plastic cams and mailed them back to BMW corporate one after another until somebody there figured out (or at least admitted) there's a problem.

 

SAVE YOUR PARTS!  This includes those of you who had your bikes repaired at a dealership; make sure you get your broken parts back from them.  Nothing will happen if you mail them to BMW corporate.  The gentleman at NHTSA expressed interest in collecting my cracked throttle cams.  If you file a complaint with NHTSA, they may be interested in collecting your parts too.

 

I'll let you know what else I hear from them, and I will be sending them a link to this thread.

[KDeline]

Yep, I just got a call also. I truly hope they do something about this, I have five motorcycles that I’m having the dealers repair, it gets pricey.

[The Rocketman]

The guy in charge of this investigation rides a Hayabusa. So he is pretty sympathetic. I tossed my old parts out, but kept the receipt for the replacement parts.

[bbrodie]

I had the same issue this week.  I patched it by harvesting a quarter sized piece of metal mesh of an oil splatter screen and heating it into place with a soldering iron.  I also have a replacement from Bing on order.

 

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

2 hours ago, bbrodie said:

I had the same issue this week.  I patched it by harvesting a quarter sized piece of metal mesh of an oil splatter screen and heating it into place with a soldering iron.  I also have a replacement from Bing on order.

 

 

Please file a report with the NHTSA.  The more individual cases they hear of,  the more likely there will be some action for all of us.  Send them the pics of your broken parts, and tell them what happened, especially if it caused loss of throttle control while riding.

 

 

[Ponch]

On 7/1/2021 at 10:43 AM, The Rocketman said:

NHTSA just called me to discuss my complaint. I’ll share his contact information later in case anyone else wants to jump on board.

 

That's a first. I put in a complaint  years ago and never heard. I was probably #3 or 4.  I have my old ones. 

[KDeline]

10 hours ago, Ponch said:

 

That's a first. I put in a complaint  years ago and never heard. I was probably #3 or 4.  I have my old ones. 

Maybe because many more failures are being reported? They are starting to see a pattern.

[Ponch]

12 hours ago, KDeline said:

Maybe because many more failures are being reported? They are starting to see a pattern.

 

You'd think they'd contact everyone, not just the most recent. 

[KDeline]

5 hours ago, Ponch said:

 

You'd think they'd contact everyone, not just the most recent. 

Agreed. Hopefully optimistic that there’s so many reported that it’s taking time to get everyone.

[Still CAL]

Hey all, just replaced the TB butterflies with new Bing units on the GS. I followed dirtrider's procedure and everything went off without a hitch. Here's the thread, very little activity on the GS forum: 

https://www.bmwsporttouring.com/topic/100501-sticking-throttle-on-running-gs/?tab=comments#comment-1086013

 

[KDeline]

Well, four bikes out of four, a few more to go.

[Ponch]

Anymore contacts from the NHTSA?

[KDeline]

7 hours ago, Ponch said:

Anymore contacts from the NHTSA?

No, and he said he would. After 4 cracked sets from one customer you would think they'd be contacting me. I have two left to repair. 

[The Rocketman]

The guy I spoke to never called me the second time. He said he'd give me direct phone numbers and e-mail address to contact him for future issues. I guess he forgot.

[Ponch]

Maybe BMW gave a vig.  :) 

[KDeline]

Well, five of five. Actually ten of ten. These are actually better than any of the ones that have come off of any other vehicles I’ve done. One more to go, and another notice to the highway foundation.

[Ponch]

this is ridiculous. It's like a bad penny as the saying goes. 

[Ponch]

Anymore news about this? 

[KDeline]

Well, I will be doing one more motorcycle sometime in the fall, I have no doubt they will be cracked also. Will post my findings.

[Bigfish]

I upgraded to the Beemer Bit Machined aluminum cams today. Went pretty smooth.

Now that both sides are put back in... what next?

Do I disconnect the battery and twist throttle Wide open 3 times then start bike and it will remap?

 

I took great video of doing the replacement part and will post a link to a youtube video to hopefully help someone else or encourage them to do this upgrade.

 

My Left side original plastic piece just crumbled. So I got luck and did it before failure.

 

Thanks.

[KDeline]

The last bike I did was also broken and cracked. So five bikes, 10 (All) cracked or broken parts. Around $2000.00 plus in labor and parts. Thanks BMW.

[dirtrider]

11 hours ago, Bigfish said:

I upgraded to the Beemer Bit Machined aluminum cams today. Went pretty smooth.

Now that both sides are put back in... what next?

Do I disconnect the battery and twist throttle Wide open 3 times then start bike and it will remap?

 

Morning Bigfish 

 

Yes, never a bad idea to do a new TPS re-learn after working on the Throttle Body cams. You only need one full twist grip turn on the BMW 1200 hexhead bikes but 3 won't hurt anything as it should be re-set after the 1st one.

[aggieengineer]

Keep sending in reports to the NHTSA. Maybe we can recover some of the expense of keeping a working throttle on our expensive motorcycles.

[lkraus]

12 hours ago, Bigfish said:

I upgraded to the Beemer Bit Machined aluminum cams today. Went pretty smooth.

Now that both sides are put back in... what next?

Do I disconnect the battery and twist throttle Wide open 3 times then start bike and it will remap?

 

I took great video of doing the replacement part and will post a link to a youtube video to hopefully help someone else or encourage them to do this upgrade.

 

My Left side original plastic piece just crumbled. So I got luck and did it before failure.

 

Thanks.

I installed the Beemer Bit cams last week The original cams were cracked, but still took a bit of effort to remove completely. 

 

The instructions don't mention the "open 3x" hocus-pocus, but it's quick, cheap and can't hurt. The instructions DO call for a throttle body sync check to ensure that the cables open the throttles equally.  My off-idle pressure differential after the installation was still well within the 15 mbar limit but I was able to reduce it to about a tenth of that using a water manometer.

[dirtrider]

38 minutes ago, lkraus said:

I installed the Beemer Bit cams last week The original cams were cracked, but still took a bit of effort to remove completely. 

 

The instructions don't mention the "open 3x" hocus-pocus, but it's quick, cheap and can't hurt. The instructions DO call for a throttle body sync check to ensure that the cables open the throttles equally.  My off-idle pressure differential after the installation was still well within the 15 mbar limit but I was able to reduce it to about a tenth of that using a water manometer.

Morning Larry

 

Did you lock the steppers during your above idle check? If not they should have been as they can skew the above idle cross side balance. If you can't lock them then you should at least disconnect the battery for about  10-15 minutes prior to checking to remove the learned stepper offsets due to only purging into one side throttle body. (then do a new TPS re-learn)

 

Usually doesn't make a lot of difference but can have an effect on the just-above-idle  balance. 

[Rogerl]

Well it looks like the problem is on the CamHead bikes as well. I have a 2013 R1200R that has a cracked cam on the right side of the bike. At first I thought it was a mold line but the closer I looked I can see the shiny metal thru the opening. Now i am looking to see what i want to do. Either the metal cams or the plastic cams.

 

Roger L

[9Mary7]

Yup.......

[KDeline]

All five of my bikes had cracked cams. Anyone that has not looked into this is chancing being stranded as I was. The two dealers I had change mine were at first skeptical, to the point of doubt, then very surprised when they found mine. They've had no one else bring a bike in for this problem to date. Yet. Even Bing was not getting many calls for repair kits. Going to be lots of failures in the coming years I think. 

[Rogerl]

I looked at the plastic cams and shafts from Bing and also I looked at the aluminum cams  from Beemer Bits. The aluminum ones are rather expensive BUT you do not need to disassemble the throttle body. I am leaning towards the aluminum cams at this point. It looks to be a simpler project less chance for errors.

 

Roger L 

[KDeline]

11 hours ago, Rogerl said:

I looked at the plastic cams and shafts from Bing and also I looked at the aluminum cams  from Beemer Bits. The aluminum ones are rather expensive BUT you do not need to disassemble the throttle body. I am leaning towards the aluminum cams at this point. It looks to be a simpler project less chance for errors.

 

Roger L 

I did not go the aluminum cam route (but paid dealer fee for work) as mine lasted 11 years and I probably won't have the bikes for another 11 years. Probably......... This little flaw cost me about $2800 in parts and labor. Thanks Bing and BMW.

[The Rocketman]

I installed the Beemer Bits set with the help of Boxflyer (actually he installed them and I mostly watched). Not tremendously difficult with the right tools and some knowledge, and gives me much needed insurance on the road, plus same to whoever gets my bike someday.

[KDeline]

3 hours ago, The Rocketman said:

Not tremendously difficult with the right tools and some knowledge.

AND watching the guy with the right tools and knowledge...... Exactly why I did not attempt the job myself, I'm not that guy.

[Rogerl]

I just ordered the aluminum cams from Beemer Bits. I felt more confident installing the aluminum cams than dis-assembling the throttle body.  I should have the parts by the end of the week. Should be a good next weekend project.

 

Roger L

[longjohn]

Ozrider64 on adv had a cracked cam so he found an appropriately sized washer and jb welded it to the cam as reinforcement. 2yrs and 1000s of kms later it’s still going strong. Pics:

 

[dirtrider]

32 minutes ago, longjohn said:

Ozrider64 on adv had a cracked cam so he found an appropriately sized washer and jb welded it to the cam as reinforcement. 2yrs and 1000s of kms later it’s still going strong. Pics:

 

 

 

Afternoon longjohn

 

That repair has some limitations, first it doesn't help the cracking on the other side of the lever (the side you can't see), plus adding something like a washer to the outside causes the return spring to rub on the added washer (some rub way more then others). 

 

That (glued on washer) usually works right up until it doesn't then you are faced with a unrideable motorcycle possibly in the middle  of nowhere.  

[longjohn]

4 hours ago, dirtrider said:

Afternoon longjohn

 

That repair has some limitations, first it doesn't help the cracking on the other side of the lever (the side you can't see), plus adding something like a washer to the outside causes the return spring to rub on the added washer (some rub way more then others). 

 

That (glued on washer) usually works right up until it doesn't then you are faced with a unrideable motorcycle possibly in the middle  of nowhere.  

No doubt. Every repair works right up until it doesn’t. I paid to have new throttle bodies installed, and I posted the pics to inform others of alternatives. It’s all up to the individual. Some people ride on plugged tires and others would shudder at the thought.   Remember the old saying:  the cheapest thing on a bmw…..

[Ponch]

I read that the NHTSA was calling some folks about this, then nothing. We already know BMW doesn't care, now the government, which isn't surprising I guess. 

[Rogerl]

I received the new aluminum cams today. I will install them over the weekend. I was reading the Haynes manual tonight for how to remove the throttle body from the bike. The manual says that when you remove the fuel injectors you should replace the O rings on the fuel injector housing. Do I need to replace the O rings?  

 

Thanks

Roger L

[KDeline]

On 4/4/2022 at 10:41 PM, Ponch said:

I read that the NHTSA was calling some folks about this, then nothing. We already know BMW doesn't care, now the government, which isn't surprising I guess. 

I got one call, could not talk at the time, he promised to call back.......I calledhis number and never got a response.

[lkraus]

9 minutes ago, Rogerl said:

I received the new aluminum cams today. I will install them over the weekend. I was reading the Haynes manual tonight for how to remove the throttle body from the bike. The manual says that when you remove the fuel injectors you should replace the O rings on the fuel injector housing. Do I need to replace the O rings?  

 

Thanks

Roger L

Can't hurt.

I didn't.

A few weeks and 400 miles later, no issues.