09 GS1200 Adventure Topbox locks

[FatBob]

If there is nothing wrong with the loacks and the problem is how they are built by the dealer, why would BMW produce a new shorter bung to cover the lock instead of giving the dealer a kick up the arse and telling them to do their job properly?

 

[WindyChuffer]

smokescreen?

 

[Richard M]

smokescreen?

The more I think about it, the more your earlier comment about coding the locks being time consuming and fiddly makes a lot of sense.
I certainly don't intend being fobbed off by any feeble excuses or smokescreen.
It's interesting that Customer Services claim that they had never heard of this issue, but a new part has been made

 

[ANTS]

Sometimes...

....the lock on my topbox will open with the bung, sometimes not. I never think of my topbox as being secure anyway - if some scrote with a screwdriver wants to get into it they will anyway!

Sometimes the EWS works, sometimes it doesn't.

Sometimes the fuel pump controller works, sometimes it doesn't.

Sensing a theme here!

Still love the bike

 

[dialdn]

I have the same problem with all 8 of my locks, they will all happily lock and unlock with the plastic bung.

I reported this to my dealer back in January and it they got on to BMW. It took until the end of April for BMW to come up wit the "solution". Except that their idea of a solution was not to fix the locks but to replace the bung with a slightly shorter one! So now you can only steal all my panniers if you bring your own bit of plactic instead of using the one that is already on the bike. I was not impressed!

After some experiments with another new lock, the dealer claimed to have fixed the problem and said it was down to too much greaase in the locks stopping the plates moving freely inside. Sure, and I'm Abraham Lincoln! They were supposed to have fixed my locks but when I got the panniers back sure enough they weren't fixed.

The problem is obviosuly widespread enough for BMW to make a new bung for the lock. Presumably this also means that the locks are not "faulty", just badly designed. I think it depends on your ignition key and how similar it is to the shape of the bung.

There is an address for Customer Services in the back of the warranty book. I wrote them a snotty letter this week, still waiting for a reply.

I sugget everyone else with the locks problem writes them a snotty letter too and maybe we will get some action!

My "bungs" are less than half the length of my keys so may be new ones (09 GSA). I am going in Friday AM to get the locks fixed. I expect they weren't keyed properly.

D

 

[njbhorn]

My dealer suggested the lock was not moving freely inside etc. and WD40 might solve it. I have yet to try this but will report back.

All I would say is that it seems odd that 2 out of 8 fail and the 2 that fail are the ones I have used the most?

However when someone says 8 out of 8 it suggests the person who keyed them may be at fault?

 

[SteveR]

Top Box

Hi,

Now that's a worry, as I've got both, the older side boxes and just recently I've invested in the top box with the hard plastic inserts. I will go away and test this out before my pending European trip. Thanks for advice! SR

 

[dialdn]

UPDATE:

Was at the dealership this morning to have the problem resolved.

Unfortunately, little luck. The tech could verify the problem and he did try his best. He did verify the plastic cap thingy unlocked them but could not understand why. He pulled 2 locks out in front of me and showed be the tumblers and how they were set. We then put in the bike key then the plastic key. Both moved the tumblers down flat. We tried changing a couple of tumblers but the difference between 1,2 and 3 are quite large. He also tried adding the final tumbler which you are not supposed to add and no luck either. The solution for now was to trim the ends off the plastic protectors to "neuter" their ability to unlock the panniers. He also called BMW Canada and they had not heard of it and had no solution on hand.

Anyone have any suggestions?

D

 

[Richard M]

This does not sound good.
I am booked in next Thursday to have the locks looked at and will report back then.
It’s interesting that not everyone with these panniers and inserts suffers the problem. Some of my locks open easily with a screwdriver, so trimming the inserts is not much help.
It sounds like we are all going to have to cause a huge fuss.

 

[Pukmeister]

I hear people harp on all the time about 'sale of goods act' and 'fit for purpose' when they are unhappy with a faulty bike (usually wrongly.)

In this case, they would be right to complain to their dealers about such a clause, locks should lock and stay locked until opened using the correct key. End of story.

I'm not talking about forcing locks here, just staying locked until the key is used. Oxford products had to recall one of their disk lock products due to being opened with a biro top. Whats the difference?

 

[njbhorn]

I tried the WD40 on my 2 rogue locks and they both seem to work now as expected. i.e. the bungs do not open them anymore.

Not sure if this is the cure to everyone's problem with the locks but maybe worth a try...

 

[Richard M]

I hear people harp on all the time about 'sale of goods act' and 'fit for purpose' when they are unhappy with a faulty bike (usually wrongly.)

In this case, they would be right to complain to their dealers about such a clause, locks should lock and stay locked until opened using the correct key. End of story.

I'm not talking about forcing locks here, just staying locked until the key is used. Oxford products had to recall one of their disk lock products due to being opened with a biro top. Whats the difference?

I agree.
Here is how BMW describe their panniers

"These robust, all-new panniers with plain aluminium surfaces have
a capacity of 44 litres on the right-hand side and 38 litres on the left.
Waterproof and securely lockable, they can carry up to 10 kilograms of
luggage, and feature stainless steel lashing eyelets, so that extra items
can easily be attached to the outside. The top box offers an additional
32 litres (5 kilograms) of carrying capacity."

 

[pedro]

well

don't know about the locks but mines certainly aint waterproof

 

[Richard M]

I have just returned from a visit to my local dealer to try and get this issue resolved. No luck really.
I was told that the plastic inserts have been modified twice this year and that they would order new ones for me. As mentioned earlier, the inserts are now shorter, but this does not resolve the issue fully. It appears that it will still be possible for all GSA panniers to be opened by the old insert!
Decided to call Customer Services again. No new locks on the horizon and fobbed-off with the ‘we will pass on your concerns’ line. Waste of time.
Anyone got any ideas of another solution?

 

[FatBob]

I wrote to BMW customer services a week or so ago, still waiting for a reply. If I don't get a satisfactory response from BMW which results in my locks being secure like they should have been in the first place, I will contact anyone I can think of to get some action - BBC Watchdog, trading standards, citizens advice bureau, newspapers etc.

I am also waiting for a response from BMW about all the corrosion on my 6 month old bike. Maybe I will eventually have to resort to camping outside a BMW dealership and telling their customers what kind of service they can expact after they shell out large amounts of cash to BMW. Perhaps we could get everyone affected by the locks issue to all turn up together, that might make the news!

 

[Richard M]

Interesting that they claimed my call was the first they had heard about it. I pointed out that I knew someone from the forum had been in touch at the beginning of the year!
I would urge anyone with GSA panniers to contact BMW – we are all at risk due to the poor locks.
The more hassle we give them, the more likely they will do better than alter the plastic inserts.

 

[FatBob]

BMW customer services called me back yesterday and basically said that their technical department thinks they have done enough by changing the lock covers, no lock is 100% secure and they are not going to issue any more fixes for this problem. ie up yours to the customers, we have your money already and we don't give a f*** about you!

I did point out that we are not talking about sophisticated thieves you know how to pick a lock, we are talking about opening the locks with a bit of plastic (or a screwdriver in some cases i believe, haven't tried that on mine yet). I pointed out that this is not the high standard of customer care and service that they claim to give in their literature. I did ask the guy if i was able to open the front door to his house with a bit of plastic, if he would think that was OK and the lock was secure enough. The answer in all cases was to repeat the script, no further fixes will be issued blah blah.

So I said they could expect to be reading about this in a newspaper soon. I have not finished with them yet, not by a long way.

Time to light a fire under the arse of BMW. Sadly its the only way to get anything fixed. I am about to google the number for Trading Standards

By the way, I don't think this affects all locks. While my dealer was "fixing" my locks they brought a loan topbox, which didn't seem to open with the lock cover. I suspect it depends how straight the base of your ignition key is; if it doesn't have many indents then the lock cover is a similar shape. But if the locks "read" the entire length of the key as you might expect, the lock cover couldn't work because its not even the same length.

 

[Richard M]

I was shown locks on a new bike yesterday which did not open with the inserts, but they were the new shorter ones. I did have a play with one of their display boxes which did open. It had the old style insert!
How about we all visit some dealers and remove their panniers with our plastic inserts?!

I admire FatBob’s determination to resolve this issue.
The more we all attack BMW in different ways, the more likely we will get a result we are all happy with.

 

[FatBob]

Trading Standard Consumer Direct 08454 04 05 06

I called them and explained the problem, they didn't really say whether i had a case or not but they are sending me the paperwork. The next step is to write to the dealer where you bought the cases using the template letter to get the good repaired, replaced or refunded.

In the meantime i called my dealer back, told them I had contacted customer services and that BMW Tech are not releasing another fix. The dealer said the only thing they can do is to take the cases back and refund the money - the cases themslves are OK but obviously no use without the locks!

As a final attempt before returning the cases the dealer will order some new locks with a different key and see if they work ie don't open with the lock cover. They won't match my ignition key but I might at least get some secure locks. I doubt there is any chance of getting BMW to replace the ignition, petrol cap and seats locks to match the new key though.

 

[Richard M]

Have spoken to my dealer again.
Apparently this forum really gets BMW’s back up, as it has cost them a lot of money in repairs etc.
Excellent. Let’s keep sharing information.