WOW

[Johnnymac]

so, think I am going to love this bike! Put a tank of gas thru it Sunday. Love the way it handles( I had ak12lt), mother isn’t quite as comfortable but have a gel pad coming for her, I love my seat.

 Found a plug tied to the frame for a battery tender👍👍.

 Going to need a front tire soon, has road smart 3’s on it now, seem to handle ok. Is the recommended tire pressure okay? I always used dyna beads to balance tires on the LT. Will they have a adverse effect on the tpms?

and, how hard do you have to pull the front brake to activate the hill hold function?

thats all the questions I have for now....

 thanks, john

[wbw6cos]

Guessing you are talking about a '14 RT?

 

The hill hold function will depend on the grade.  It usually does not take too much lever to activate.  On my 1250 RT, I can feel it activate through the brake pedal, which is the brake utilized in the Hill Start (on my RT.)  You should get used to what works for you for brake hold.  On the 1250 dash, the symbol (circle H) will turn green when it is holding, then back to white when released.

[Bernie]

I have to give the front brake lever a good tug or pull to activate Hill Hold function. And I can also release it by doing the same action. 

My bike is a 2018. The rear brake pedal doesn’t activate Hill Hold function on my bike. 

[Johnnymac]

Guess I should have mentioned it is a 2014 rt

[Bernie]

Good evening Johnnymac, that's ok. 

You may have to check with either the seller or the dealer to see if your bike was equipped with that option.

There is a place on line, where you can enter the VIN and find out about all the factory options. And you can also download a owners guide in pdf form from BMW. I hope someone can add the links to those sites.

 

[wbw6cos]

I frequently use THIS link, but I am sure others have more in-depth type links.

 

Bernie, are both your brakes linked to the front brake lever?  (Mine are.)  That is the reason i cannot do burn outs, as it would likely void my warranty (as I was told by the dealer at purchase.)  GO figure.

[Bernie]

5 minutes ago, wbw6cos said:

I frequently use THIS link, but I am sure others have more in-depth type links.

 

Bernie, are both your brakes linked to the front brake lever?  (Mine are.)  That is the reason i cannot do burn outs, as it would likely void my warranty (as I was told by the dealer at purchase.)  GO figure.

 

William, I think you got that wrong, with the brakes.

The front brake is linked to the rear brake, but the rear brake only operates the rear brake.

At least that is how BMW has been building the RT's and most of their bikes since around 2007.

I can't recall seeing or hearing anything about the 2019/2020 ShiftCam RT's getting a fully linked brake system.

I do know that on the ShiftCam RT and the 2020 R/RS and GS series they introduced the Hill Hold Pro feature, which will activate or could activate the Hill Hold Feature based on the % of incline. SO it may very well be possible that with that setup, you can activate the Hill Hold Feature with either brake lever/pedal.

I don't know. But we could try test in the parking lot at FART.  

[wbw6cos]

26 minutes ago, Bernie said:

 

William, I think you got that wrong, with the brakes.

The front brake is linked to the rear brake, but the rear brake only operates the rear brake.

At least that is how BMW has been building the RT's and most of their bikes since around 2007.

I can't recall seeing or hearing anything about the 2019/2020 ShiftCam RT's getting a fully linked brake system.

I do know that on the ShiftCam RT and the 2020 R/RS and GS series they introduced the Hill Hold Pro feature, which will activate or could activate the Hill Hold Feature based on the % of incline. SO it may very well be possible that with that setup, you can activate the Hill Hold Feature with either brake lever/pedal.

I don't know. But we could try test in the parking lot at FART.  

 

Thanks Bernie.   My '19 R1250RT has both brakes (front/rear) linked to the front brake lever.  Yes, the foot pedal operates the rear only on my RT.    I was not aware of when that became available, as I am still new to the RT bikes.  Either lever will activate/de-activate the Hill Hold with a tap or squeeze (not much effort.)

[Bernie]

Just now, wbw6cos said:

 

Thanks Bernie.   My '19 R1250RT has both brakes (front/rear) linked to the front brake lever.  Yes, the foot pedal operates the rear only on my RT.    I was not aware of when that became available, as I am still new to the RT bikes.  Either lever will activate/de-activate the Hill Hold with a tap or squeeze (not much effort.)

Yes, I thought so, that's what BMW calls Hill Hold Pro and I think it is available on most of their 2019/2020 models either stock or as a option in some package deal.

The nice thing about either system is that it will illuminate the brake light while stopped and activated.

[PadG]

That is very interesting!  Hill-hold is the one feature that I never used on my bike, after trying it out.  It's too much trouble to have to remember to squeeze the front brake lever again to disengage or give it tons of throttle at start to over-ride it . . . or stall!  Being able to use the foot pedal to disengage is a game changer!

[hopz]

I had a '14 also... used the Hill Hold frequently- living here in Colorado. The pull force is nothing excessive... just firm.... it works

 

Ready for tires? I also had the Michelins but went to the Pirelli Angel GT's would never go back... love them.

[MichiganBob]

Interesting sting folks. Hate to admit it but my dealer was so hot to sell my left over 2018 RT that he gave me  close to the fair trade in value for my 02 ans 12 RT's. I knew that it was considered the premium package but never looked at what all that entails until I downloaded the link above with my vin. Damn, I even have an alarm, some fancy lights around my headlight, and this hill start gizmo. 3,000 miles on the bike and never engaged it, never had to. One of the joys of living in Michigan I guess. On my ride this morning, I tried to engage it at a light by pulling the level hard --- nothing happened. Are you saying that there has to be a grade for it to work? That's cool if that's the case. Wonder how the device senses a grade.

[Skywagon]

It doesn't detect hills....all you do is pull the front brake in all the way while stopped.  Mine works best if you do that quickly.  To release just pull the brake again or you can feather the engine with clutch while taking off.  I release pulling the brake as seems too hard on the clutch.  I use it all the time at stop lights or anywhere I am going to be stopped for a while in traffic.

[92Merc]

I thought the new 1250's are supposed to detect the grade somehow and engage it.

[wbw6cos]

Trust me about the grade, the bike hold the brake on a hill (up or down) by itself.  On level area, you have to activate it.  Sometimes a, ever-so-slighlty, grade will cause it to hold.  It is just enough to roll without using the brake, but with your feet to stop..  If you let it roll a little, the brake grabs.  Not sure if it detects the grade with  a measurement device or just detects the rolling motion.  Perhaps a forum member with higher knowledge can explain the mechanics behind the Hill Hold function.  I do know a stop (or near stop) with a slight change of direction will also cause it to hold.

 

Also, @Johnnymac on to the rest of your post.  There are quite a few threads on TPMS and air pressures for the tires.  Suffiice it to say, run the recommended tire pressures according to info on the plate with the VIN.  I cannot answer about the dyna beads affecting the TPMS, but I would guess they would eventually be affected by the beads.  You may want to see how old the tire is and check for cracking and dry-rot symtoms/

 

Sorry to ramble on about the Hill Hold.  If this keeps up, the HH thread might make it in the realm of oil and tire threads  IF you know what I mean.   

 

ADDING:  after I decided to re-read my owner's manual, I have found that Hill Start Control works according to the gradient, slight grade-light brake, larger grade-more brake needed.  It also calls it Hill Start Control Pro, which I think has to do with the function activated and the wheel slips.  it will release and grab again.  Interesting read, so far.

[Skywagon]

Hmm interesting.  On my 14 it does not detect hills  I have to engage it.  I wonder if there is an issue with mine or if that is a later model upgrade.  Since my driveway is uphill I just tested it and no Bueno on its own.

[alegerlotz]

2 minutes ago, Skywagon said:

Hmm interesting.  On my 14 it does not detect hills  I have to engage it.  I wonder if there is an issue with mine or if that is a later model upgrade.  Since my driveway is uphill I just tested it and no Bueno on its own.

 

The R1200RT doesn't do this.  Above they said the R1250RT does (2019+), along with being easier to engage, disengage, etc...