2010 GSA

[bmwbikeruk]

Sorry, I have not experienced any numbness in my hands on my new 30th year GSA so far. She has done 3,400 miles since 30 July including 2,400 mile two-up riding fully laden to the Dolomites, Italy and back. After dealing with many steep Alp passes, oil consumption is surprisingly minimal and I have added only 300ml of oil to date! The only defect she suffered is a fractured L/H winglet (perhaps due to being overtightened by dealer after a 2nd power socket was fitted to adjacent tank cover panel) which has since been replaced under warranty. I have run her in fully in accordance with service manual's recommendations going through the whole rev range progressively and her 1st service was at 780 miles.

 

[DevonianScotsman]

OIL?!?!

30ml Oil in 600kms? Alright for some... Get an airhead GS - 3 litres in 600kms

 

[Vidar]

Handlebar vibrations

Replaced the orginal handguards with Barkbusters from Nippy Normans.
Then you get rid of the orginal heavy steel handlebar weights.
In my opinion they have nothing to do on an aluminium handlebar.
Much less vibrations. Recommended!

 

[Giles]

The weights are there to add a bit of stability to your steering, almost like a steering damper. Try riding up to about 50, snap the throttle shut as you take both hands off the bars. Does it shake it's head and have a bit of a wobble?? If not, you're fine. But if it does, its because you've removed your bar weights.

 

[Vidar]

No signs of wobbling under normal driving. I will try your trick.
No numb hands after replacement, and that is good enough for me.

 

[Giles]

 

[Deleted account 190920001]

Bar end weights are there to reduce vibration and have nothing to do with steering stability. Thats what a steering damper is for.

 

[Giles]

I am big enough to conceed that I have (now) googled 'what do bar end weights do' and can tell you that Mark is right about vibration!!!

I stand by the concept though that eliminating the bar end weights could have a detrimental effect on the stability of the front end.

Any way, that's a bit by the by, for those interested in numb fingers and why you get them, READ THIS.

 

[Edventure]

THIS was posted this weekend on the BMW Forum in Cape Town: (quoted)

Thirteen of us left Bloemfontein and Kimberley to George and back to Gariep covering 2400km of dirt and tar roads.
I rode 5 x 2010 and 2 x 2008 Gs's back to back.
The vibration is not caused by fuel.
We used 93 and 95 unleaded and all the bikes were run on the same fuel.
Three of the 5 x 2010's had the dreaded hand numbing vibration.It's not the tyres,Tkc,Anakee and Tourances were fitted.All three that had the vibration had diferent tyres.I can see why some new owners say that the 2010 has less vibration than the previous model.After riding the older model I found the vibration in the handlebars to be at a lower frequency.
The 2010 vibration could feel smoother because of the finer or higher frequency,but it is exactly this higher frequency that causes the numbing of the hands.It can only be down to internal balancing of the motor.I've ridden an HP2 4500km's in 10 days and never experienced any numbness in my hands.It does not even have a balance shaft and should theoretically have worse vibration.

Its been a week since riding and my hands still tingle.As I have said before,log an official complaint with a reference number so we can get this sorted.

http://www.bmwmotorcycleclubcape.co.za/2010-r1200gs-vibration


Methinks there's serious problems here - however BMW WILL NOT sort the problem out UNLESS we the consumers stand together and collectively get the media involved globally to get it sorted!!!

I for one have cancelled my 2010 GSA order............... I'm also cancelling my sale of my Nov 2009 model and will try resolve the lean-fuel issue myself.

Seems BMW have lost the plot..............................

Any update on what is causing the vibration issue?

I'm having the same issues on my 2010 GSA. At first I thought it was a wheel bearing but it gets much worse when the engine is hot.

I've had everything checked, changed the tyres but it's still like riding a jackhammer!

It's going to the dealer again tomorrow........

 

[TeaPig]

Vibration is a common complaint on the single cam bikes.

The causes are never really adequately explained as some bikes are worse than others but the three major factors which make a difference are:

throttle body sync'
valve clearance and rocker splindle lash
milage - they often need 20,000 miles before then loosen and smooth up.

I don't see why the 2010 bikes should be any different, though I must admit mine is smoother than any of the 4 GS's I've had before.

Bottom line is that especially with low milage (under 20k) bikes I'd expect some vibration and all the above adjustments need to be absolutely spot-on to minimise the vibes

 

[Giles]

Vibration is a common complaint on the single cam bikes.............

.......................I don't see why the 2010 bikes should be any different, though I must admit mine is smoother than any of the 4 GS's I've had before.

Because the 2010 bike has a twin cam?????!!!

 

[Edventure]

Vibration is a common complaint on the single cam bikes.

The causes are never really adequately explained as some bikes are worse than others but the three major factors which make a difference are:

throttle body sync'
valve clearance and rocker splindle lash
milage - they often need 20,000 miles before then loosen and smooth up.

I don't see why the 2010 bikes should be any different, though I must admit mine is smoother than any of the 4 GS's I've had before.

Bottom line is that especially with low milage (under 20k) bikes I'd expect some vibration and all the above adjustments need to be absolutely spot-on to minimise the vibes

This isn't just "some vibration", it's pretty major. My last GSA which I did 24K miles on was nothing like this at any stage. I rode round Spain in Sept and did 2K miles on the 2010 bike and at the end of it my hands were in agony. Interestingly my bro bought a 2010 GS and his is as smooth as silk, same mileage so go figure.

 

[TeaPig]

Because the 2010 bike has a twin cam?????!!!

And in what technical way will that actually make a difference?

My point is that complaints are commonly made about vibration on all GS's right back to the 1100, but the fundamental cause seems poorly understood other than it's bloody big twin and the fact that ensuring everything that is adjustable is spot on does make a significant difference, and in general, higher milage bikes are smoother. There are many, many posts that repeat this observation and as I said, I don't see why a twin cam should be any different, though I'd be very pleased for someone to explain why it may be so.

 

[TeaPig]

This isn't just "some vibration", it's pretty major. My last GSA which I did 24K miles on was nothing like this at any stage. I rode round Spain in Sept and did 2K miles on the 2010 bike and at the end of it my hands were in agony. Interestingly my bro bought a 2010 GS and his is as smooth as silk, same mileage so go figure.

So I figure you have a duff one.

Swap plates with your bro' when he's not looking?

 

[Giles]

And in what technical way will that actually make a difference?

My point is that complaints are commonly made about vibration on all GS's right back to the 1100, but the fundamental cause seems poorly understood other than it's bloody big twin and the fact that ensuring everything that is adjustable is spot on does make a significant difference, and in general, higher milage bikes are smoother. There are many, many posts that repeat this observation and as I said, I don't see why a twin cam should be any different, though I'd be very pleased for someone to explain why it may be so.

I am no engineer, and can't tell you why the twin cam is smoother. Better fuelling? Radial valve malarky? But it clearly is. We have a new RT on the work fleet. Jump on that from straight from a 2008 single over head job and you instantly notice the difference in smoothness. Roll into a junction at a fast walking pace in third and it just purrs as you pull away. Definitely smoother

 

[TeaPig]

I am no engineer, and can't tell you why the twin cam is smoother. Better fuelling? Radial valve malarky? But it clearly is. We have a new RT on the work fleet. Jump on that from straight from a 2008 single over head job and you instantly notice the difference in smoothness. Roll into a junction at a fast walking pace in third and it just purrs as you pull away. Definitely smoother

I agree completely about the twin cam bike being smoother. Though I think we may be talking about two different kinds of smoothness here. The first is the easy, snatch free torque which makes slow riding so easy. That is probably attributable to all of the points you suggest.

The other 'smoothness' is lack of vibration, or at least minimal vibration at the typical GS rough spot, normally between 4 and 5 thou rpm. This is the one that many people have complained about but there seems little technical explaination of why it's there and how extra milage seems to reduce it.

 

[PhilS]

When I collected mine in July the vibration was quite noticeable at around 4200rpm. A trip to Europe and some 5,000 miles later it is no longer noticeable. Engine is just getting better with miles.

Regards,
Phil.

 

[Flipper_Man]

I've had the gearbox and clutch replaced on my '09 GSA due to vibration.........and still think its there.........its back with the dealer tomorrow for its 24k service and to check the vibration again. If anything the vibration has increased with mileage on mine...

 

[Goose]

With all the vibrations and engine pinging problems............. interesting to see these two blokes have now had enough...........

Wonder if BMW will respond?

http://www.mybmwstory.co.za

 

[oldenoughtoknowbetter]

2010 vibration

Mines a 2007 GSA with 50,000 miles on the clock. I had a try of the dealer's 2010 bike but found that:
a) It vibrated through the bars whereas mine doesn't.
b) It was certainly no quicker than mine though probably a few miles on the clock would help.
c) But it was much smoother than my '07 in traffic.
d) I couldn't get the ESA anywhere near as confidence inspiring as my Ohlins.
Possibly I've been lucky with my '07. Except for an EWS failure at around 4K and a recent wheel bearing the bike's been trouble free. I have an extended warranty so no worries there anyway. The '07 has no corrosion anywhere; not even on the screw heads. So I've decided not to trade it and with the money saved from upgrading to a 2010 I've bought a mint R100GS PD Classic with just 7K on the clock! And of course I get to keep the '07! So can anyone convince my that I should have gone for the '2010?