BMW R1100S frame failure and repairs

but they're all in the hands of Mongolians by the look of those guys helping
with the russian bike.

Plus they probably have their names embossed on them Shit hot series
though, I'll be watching it again.

JasonBW

 

No, the insurer repaired the bike. It's as good as new.

 

By watching the events unfold, perhaps....

Torsional stress occurs when something is subjected to a twisting
action. The sub-frame wasn't subjected to that kind of stress or force.
Rather, the actions of the rider bouncing up and down as the bike ran
over the bumpy bits of the ditch, which wasn't THAT bumpy.

Oh, it was "welds", not the singular, "weld". The only thing holding all
together was the seat and the exhaust pipe.

If that is what caused the subframe to break, then how would it stand up
to the weight of rider and pillion on rough roads? If it breaks then, is
that still exceeding the specs of the bike?

Like I said in the original story, the bike didn't flip. It didn't slam
into anything. The only impact forces, if anything, was the left
cylinder dragging or furrowing in the dirt of the bank as he ran along
the ditch. There was not one scratch on the bike to suggest or indicate
that it was subjected to any other impact. No bent footpegs or
brake/gear levers. No scratched fairings, sumps or anything like that.

 

Flawed as that may be , all the manufactures take the "exceeded specs"
stance when in fact it is a mechanical fault , I wonder how long before
it occurs again and if the rider will suffer because of the resulting
drop ?>

 

Have a look at this registry of 503 BMW R1100S's if you can find a number of
similar complaints perhaps you have a case.

http://www.micapeak.com/reg/view/R11S

Boxer

 

80 km/h? Must be stuck in second!

 

JODIE!... watch out

Johno

Beer mate?

 

So far he hasn't got an garage, so she's safe

Boags?

 

Dunno.

I would hope that they beefed up the points where the subframe is bolted
on. I'll be seeing him next weekend up at Bright. If there's anything
more to add to this story I'll pass it on if anyone's still interested.

 

I haven't "ignored" anything at all. I'm just not sure what the
relevance is to this particular incident.

Not "a cracked subframe weld". Rather, ALL subframe welds had sheared
off. The only thing holding it on was the exhaust pipe. And as I said,
it's unclear whether the "prang" caused it, or it broke and caused him
to run off the road as things happened so quick.

Oh. Just found a note from the fellow who owns the bike. He dropped it
off at the dealer. They talked to BMW who said that the sub-frame is
designed to hold 200 kg. The owner is about 95 kg. His gearsack/ventura
bag (not sure what he has) probably weighs about 6-10kg. And initial
comments from BMW was "it should not have broken".

 

Come on Martin, Smee is just spreading disinformation.

I bet he hasn't even read the whole thread!

Hammo

 

Something very similar occurred with the K100RT I used to have. One
low-speed (~15kph) lowside, and two stationery drops, plus 12 months of
carrying full loads and towing trailer - ended up with subframe snapped.
Only thing holding ducktail and topbox (and .. errr.. pillion) on was
the monoshock (tube 3/4 cracked just in front of it) and pannier mounts.
Left tube on frame was snapped right through.

---
Cheers

PeterC [aka MildThing]
'81 Suzuki GS450-s (gone on to better and brighter things - I hope)
'87 BMW K100RT (write-off)
'81 Yamaha Virago (XV) 750H (work in progress)
'01 Yamaha FJR1300

www.dmcsc.org.au
http://eladesom.com.au/ulysses/
# 37181

 

Because it has nothing to do with the issue at hand. I was simply
replying to your particular comments about cracked welds, etc.

Fair enough. Do you know any decent teachers who can help me, then?

 

I've found that some [1] Beemer owners can be somewhat protective of the
marque. Sort of like that twat who thinks Ducati is the mechanised
world's version of Christ.

And don't get me wrong - BMW motorcycles are excellent machines. I'd
love to own a K1200S myself. Smee, I think, doth protest too much, in
this case. That his beloved model may have a design flaw is probably too
much for him to handle.

Anyway, folks, have a great Easter. I'll be thinking of you when I'm
stuck at work tonight and the rest of the weekend...












[1] justin case Moike gets upset with me....

 

Actually, I think iit's one of the better comebacks of the year. Can I use
it sometime?

 

<applause!>

GB

 

I also posted that I was aware of 2 other R1100S's that had experienced the
problem, but both of these were involved in crashes. If a part of you bike
breaks in a crash, (even a minor one) and you insurance company fixes the
damage I really don't see that you have anything to whine about. Unless of
course you get your rocks off by whining then go ahead. Another post
complained of subframe failure after carrying heavy loads and towing a
trailer. Towing a trailer on any motorcycle will void the warranty, again
feel free to whine somewhere else.

I had some minor subframe cracking starting on a 1991 R100RS a few years
ago, I welded in some gussets had the item powder coated and never had
another problem. I tend to overload the back seat taking comfort items to
rallies so I take responsibility and fix the problem myself. I have a number
of frame issues on my K100RT but as it has a sidecar attached I figure it is
a part of the constant evolution that is a sidecar.

You are a motorcyclist, to me that means you have a intimate mechanical
knowledge of the machine you are riding, a little frame cracking is a part
of the ongoing relationship, fix it and put another 100,000 kilometres on
the old girl.

Boxer

 

Hi
I just picked up on this. I have a '98 R1100S, about 60k on the clock,
which I bought near new.

A few months into my ownership I travelled the dirt road between
Crookwell & Boorowa, to get to get to Mudgee.

Long story short, when I got back to Nowra after the obligatory pub stay
at Mudgee for a day or two, I noticed the seat seemed 'wonky' and the
panniers were moving about.

I took it over to Dave Byrnes, who had the BMW dealership back then.
Several welds on the frame under the seat etc had broken. Dave had a
very strong opinion about the quality of welds when he saw them. He also
arranged repair. I wasn't charged anything so suspect BMW came to the
party.

PS: I get the frame checked at every service now. Good as gold so far,
as is the bike.


--



Frederick Zenozzograte
++++++++++++++++++++++
Every election is a sort of advance auction sale of stolen goods.
(H.L. Mencken)

 

Steak?

Johno

Beer mate?

 

Back in the 1980's Kawasaki released a bike called the GT750, it even
won the Two Wheels bike of the year (1984 I think). The first couple of
years of production they had problems with the front down tubes cracking
around the welds on a number of bikes.

The problem got into the magazines and Kawasaki agreed to fix (and
strengthen) any bikes that had problems, and they altered the design
slightly for the following update model.

That's just good customer service and Kawasaki despite the problems
ended up with basically good press and an improved reputation from the
whole thing.

People don't expect miracles, they don't expect companies to be perfect,
but when things go wrong with a design it's reasonable to expect the
maker to make real attempts to fix the problem.

The difference with the Beemer subframe issue is that it seems that
there aren't _significant_ numbers of bikes being effected, and those
that are seem to have been involved in accidents.

That clouds the whole situation badly. If you seriously expect BMW to
do something about it then you'll need to do some research and establish
a statistically valid pattern.

Otherwise just live with it... your choice.


G-S