12GS Buyer beware

[TENTOONE]

Otto,

I think Nick Saunders categorically proved the world can be ridden even on a sports bike and I also recall from the Wrong Way Round a very complicated 1150GS blowing up and the camera man tackling the balance of the journey on a local motorcycle purchased from a market stall.

The bike is a pseudo off roader. However, when one wins the Paris Dakar, then I am prepared to buy you a crate of beer as an apology. Until then......enjoy the sand pit!

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

Otto,

I think Nick Saunders categorically proved the world can be ridden even on a sports bike and I also recall from the Wrong Way Round a very complicated 1150GS blowing up and the camera man tackling the balance of the journey on a local motorcycle purchased from a market stall.

The bike is a pseudo off roader. However, when one wins the Paris Dakar, then I am prepared to buy you a crate of beer as an apology. Until then......enjoy the sand pit!

IIRC Nick didn't do a RTW taking in a multitude of terains - he attempted to set a speed record for RTW and stuck exclusively to tarmac. It was an endurance test for himself, not especially the bike so not quite sure what your point is

Claudio's (the camera man) bike was fecked because welding was carried out on it without disconecting the battery which resulted in frying the bikes electronics. Do this on your CB1300, or just about any bike these days and the same would happen, so, your point is

Paris - Dakar, mmmmmm, not quite the same as RTW but if you insist on trying to draw parralells then explain to me why BMW boxers are now banned from the series - wouldn't be anything to do with them being too fast would it

Andres

 

[mort77uk]

From MCN forum re CB1300


"All owners should read this:
Took delivery of CB1300S on 20/05, a few days later paint fell off the sidestand, dealer replaced.
A few days later the front brake lever came farther back to the bar on first application, dealer checked and bled.
It happened again so 2 days later dealer stripped brakes and found no fault.
Everythink OK till yesterday when fault happened again, I returned the bike and they are now replacing it.
In addition the bolts that hold the mirrors went rusty as did the washers underneath and the oil filter housing began to rust"

http://www.motorcyclenews.com/nav?page=motorcyclenews.messageboard.forum.thread&threadID=36002#first

 

[Dahoum]

Im afraid it doesnt change my view mine is a liability and a poorly built motorcycle.

fixed

 

[Aurelius]

considering the level of sales and the treatment a lot of motorcycles get i do not think the problems on here, in the press or amongst GS riders I know are any worse than other makes of bike. As Clive said - they are machines. They are also built by (German) humans. neither are perfect.

It looks to me like GS ownership is something of a crap shoot; some seem to rack up many thousands of miles with only minor problems, while others have suffered serious mechanical failures in just the first year of ownership. I met another 1200GS owner last night who, while remaining very enthusiastic about the bike, admitted that he's had one gearbox replaced, one ignition coil replaced, and now has to send the bike back for repairs due to a leaking final drive seal. Reports like these unfortunately aren't all that rare, and they don't exactly instill confidence in the brand. I've been a member of various owner forums for the past ten years, and from what I've seen posted, the only bikes that appear comparable to the GS in terms of the frequency and severity of problems are Ducatis.

 

[Davel]

It's not just BMW, my previous Multistrada was off the road for a month because of an electrical fault and Ducati seemed incapable of getting the right bits from Italy.

Manchester Ducati were brilliant throughout, but a month 'bikeless' made me decide to trade it in for the GS.

I love the GS but just have no regards for BMW's breakdown/recovery people.

I think the GS is a great bike, I just wish that BMW would care more about their customers generally.

Whatever happened to 'the customer is king' ?

 

[BBB61]

Otto,

I think Nick Saunders categorically proved the world can be ridden even on a sports bike

He didn't ride it on difficult roads though, the vast majority being tarmac.

and I also recall from the Wrong Way Round a very complicated 1150GS blowing up and the camera man tackling the balance of the journey on a local motorcycle purchased from a market stall.

Funny how you don't recall the reason it blew up, but that wouldn't exactly give much credence to your statement.

It seems odd that you find this site at the point where you are getting rid of your GS (assuming you have one of course). I'm inclined to believe you are an old troll who has reinvented yourself just to have another pop at us on this site.

 

[TENTOONE]

Mort.

If they are the sum of complaints against the CB1300 then I have found Heaven. I cannot compare the problems you list to the catalogue of rubbish I experienced listed at the top of this thread. And by the sounds of it the Honda dealer acted very promptly and far more favourably than my experience with BMW. Honda 2-0 by my reckoning.

Hello Bob. Another dissatisfied GS owner encouraged me to list my problems on this site as allegedly, it was a decent place to help out owners. This point remains moot. Im more than relaxed to keep this post so high on your site as it means more unsuspecting people will read about the problems with your motorcycles and realise the GS is built to a price and customer care doesnt come into it.

 

[mort77uk]

Re the MCN forum link above - the guy who posted the message eventually rejected the CB and got a Fazer 1000 instead - he does a follow-up comparing the 2 bikes. I had a Fazer 1000 prior to my GS and absolutely loved it - worth considering if you haven't gone for the CB yet?

 

[redcastle]

Hello Bob. Another dissatisfied GS owner encouraged me to list my problems on this site as allegedly, it was a decent place to help out owners. This point remains moot.

Thats a bit unfair I think. Most of the replies you have had have been balanced and helpful. The difficulty seems to be that you dont actually want help, your getting rid of the bike and replacing it so how can this forum help with that.

One member even offered to find a forum for your proposed purchase to help you do a little research before you bought it. I'd have thought that was quite helpful.

I think that after your frustrations and poor service from BMW youve finally found somewhere to vent and thats whats going on. Vent on my friend but dont expect existing owners to just allow you to poor scorn on their bikes without them having a little bite back.

good luck with your new bike ................

 

[TENTOONE]

''the guy who posted the message eventually rejected the CB''

Try rejecting a BMW....no hope on earth. More praise to Honda. 3-0.

 

[Deleted account W]

Found Tentoone a forum, here

Hope you enjoy the new bike.

Bye

 

[yet-to-buy]

As someone who is considering purchasing a GS (1150/1200) I find all of this very interesting.

it's a sad fact of life that the consumer is often left to do the testing on a new product so maybe BMW aren't that different.

As a current Triumph owner I can tell you that they suffer from "Friday afternoon" bikes - the build quality is variable, there are problems the factory won't acknowledge (numerous exploding gearboxes and clutch baskets), they nearly all suffer from dodgy electrics and the mythical Triumph sevice is just that....a myth. The thing is, that doesn't make ALL the bikes bad - it's just that there are a few "lemons" out there.

It's also amusing to see that the same fierce defense of the brand exists - almost to the point of perhaps losing objectivity.Everyone is surely entitled to a point of view without being shouted down but as a newcomer I don't want to get embroiled in that debate!!!

The reality is that if you make decisions based on what the most vocal tell you, you'll never buy anything.

 

[DavidHale]

The reality is that if you make decisions based on what the most vocal tell you, you'll never buy anything.

Well said that man!

I wish I could comment on the dealer back-up for BMW, but unfortunatly the bike hasn't gone wrong yet (after 28K). For balance, I can say the same for Triumph - 26k on a '94 Speed Triple and nothing went wrong. When I fell off on a track day on it though, Boyers at Plumstead provided an excellent service.

 

[MikeP]

As a current Triumph owner I can tell you that they suffer from "Friday afternoon" bikes - the build quality is variable, there are problems the factory won't acknowledge (numerous exploding gearboxes and clutch baskets), they nearly all suffer from dodgy electrics and the mythical Triumph sevice is just that....a myth. The thing is, that doesn't make ALL the bikes bad - it's just that there are a few "lemons" out there.

It's also amusing to see that the same fierce defense of the brand exists - almost to the point of perhaps losing objectivity.Everyone is surely entitled to a point of view without being shouted down but as a newcomer I don't want to get embroiled in that debate!!!

Someone called Howard will be along shortly to put you right on the Triumph comments! (He will no doubt demonstrate his objectivity too!)

 

[yet-to-buy]

The problem on the particular site that I contribute to is that the brand loyalty is totally blind and the dogma out of control - the abuse you get for saying "we'll .....they're good bikes but not GREAT bikes"

The guys have really convinced themselves that the 955i can tackle an R1, Blade etc!!!! Not with 30+ bhp less and 30+ kilos more weight they can't

Anyway...this is about the GS so I'll shut up.

 

[nadeem]

I think you'll find that anyone reading this will see that most of us have had excellent sevice from our dealers and are happy with our bikes...not the other way round...

 

[Paul Wakefield]

Well, I'd pit my local BMW dealer against anybody in the Customer Care stakes. I doubt they can be beaten.

BTW, there is at least one member of this site who has rejected a BM.

Paul

 

[Dahoum]

I've been a member of various owner forums for the past ten years, and from what I've seen posted, the only bikes that appear comparable to the GS in terms of the frequency and severity of problems are Ducatis.

check out a few Fazer 600 forums then my last bike and a lot worse than here

 

[Wanderer]

''the guy who posted the message eventually rejected the CB''

Try rejecting a BMW....no hope on earth. More praise to Honda. 3-0.

Time to move on Tentoone. There's nothing to be gained here, and you'll probably just wind yourself up more. It's good to vent frustration, we've all done it. But recognise that the end has now come for this thread. There's nothing more to be gained. Best of luck for the future.