Brake failure

Norfolkngood

Norfolkngood

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Ok, so I got the dreaded bake failure warning lamp permanently on about three weeks ago next day it was off for about 5 miles then on again,this went on for a couple more days so I thought it could be something more serious than just pads which incidentally are all ok .took it to main dealer and they did a plug in diagnostic (£20) and said it was low voltage from the battery my bike is 07 1200gs probably still on the same original battery!They offered to fit one for about 100 quid so I said no and I would buy an Odyssey . Anyway bought the battery and all the snow came so didn't fit it for about a week ,all fitted ok but the brake failure lamp still comes on and stays on after about 1 mile ,my question is does the fault code that is stored in the ecu have to be erased?
Thanks for reading
Gav.:thumb2
 
To my knowledge any fault code collected along the way and not cleared is going to stay there until it IS cleared.

It seems odd that it was plugged in but the fault code was left uncleared, especially as you said you would be replacing the battery, if indeed this is the case.
 
The dealer said they cleared the code but as the battery was going to be replaced by me it would return as a rode off which was correct !
 
The fault will still show on the diagnostics history but should say "fault not currently present" or similar lingo if it been fixed but the faults not been cleared.
 
Surely the answer is to pop it back into the dealer, explain the course of events and ask them to clear the code down FOC.
I'm probably in fantasy land but it's worth a try?
 
They would/should have cleared fault code, but even if the fault code is still registered it shouldn't have any effect on the brakes or flash up on your instruments.
The new warning would be a new fault, or a repeat of the old fault because the battery wasn't the cause in the first place...

The low battery fault code is very common and is easily to get - i.e. Just leave your ignition on for a minute without starting will get it stored.
 
Miff said:
Norfolkngood.

Did you charge the new battery before installing it?




Yes. But the problem remains. Maybe the original diagnosis was wrong, or the low battery was a coincidence?
Click to expand...


agree ......... i could well be something else, because the red triangle ( or is it just the brake failure flashing ?) would disappear after a while ........
I had trouble too with mine for some time and sometimes i managed to get rid of the error , but particular in wet conditions it came back and the 911 detected all sort of brake related faults and only one of them was the real reason for the triangle falshing red and abs beeing not working....It was a faulty wire on the frontwheel sensor (small damage where it goes round the calliper most likely from branches on green lanes )

so its worthwhile thinking a bit outside the box and we all know how fragile the beasts are :rob or don't we ?
 
If I hold the brakes on while starting the engine (2005 1200GS) then I get the brake failure triangle. It means that while I have full braking power, I don't have the ABS.

If I start the engine WITHOUT holding the brakes on, I have no problems.

Was it Lind BMW on Ber street that you went to?

I can recommend KRF motorcycles on Bessemer Rd. He's an independent BMW specialist and was recommended to me by several people on here.
 
Yes it was Lind Motorrad on ber street, went to Kevin at KRF first but he said he didn't have the diagnostic tool to help . It is not the red triangle ( that goes off after start up) its the brake failure red flashing icon that should go off after a couple of yards, it stops flashing but then stays on permanently this disables the abs !!
Gav.
 
Steptoe said:
They would/should have cleared fault code, but even if the fault code is still registered it shouldn't have any effect on the brakes or flash up on your instruments.
The new warning would be a new fault, or a repeat of the old fault because the battery wasn't the cause in the first place...

The low battery fault code is very common and is easily to get - i.e. Just leave your ignition on for a minute without starting will get it stored.
Click to expand...

Tried leaving the ignition on for a minute ,no joy!do you then start the bike or turn off then on again then start the engine ? Little confused as you seem very sure !:confused:
 
ok, an update, took the bike back to lind and they plugged her in ab the report back was low and intermittant voltage from the abs unit !!!! aaarrrrgggghhhhh:mad:so they said it could possibly be a break in the wiring somewhere(yeah right)or £1200 for a new unit, is the price really that high or can this unit be bought cheaper:eek:
Gav.
 
£1200

Just remove the servo unit many have and live very happily ever after,
and saved £1200!.
 
Norfolkngood said:
ok, an update, took the bike back to lind and they plugged her in ab the report back was low and intermittant voltage from the abs unit !!!! aaarrrrgggghhhhh:mad:so they said it could possibly be a break in the wiring somewhere(yeah right)or £1200 for a new unit, is the price really that high or can this unit be bought cheaper:eek:
Gav.
Click to expand...
i should take it to someone who can do some proper fault finding/diagnosis,sounds to me like they are just plugging it in ,reading the codes and taking a worst case guess:blast.the main wiring harness can chaff under the tank,i would be looking for something there before condeming the servo unit ,it doesnt sound like a fault code that would relate to a faulty control unit.the fact that it seems to be intermittant rings alarm bells to me.:confused:
 
Norfolkngood said:
ok, an update, took the bike back to lind and they plugged her in ab the report back was low and intermittant voltage from the abs unit !!!! aaarrrrgggghhhhh:mad:so they said it could possibly be a break in the wiring somewhere(yeah right)or £1200 for a new unit, is the price really that high or can this unit be bought cheaper:eek:
Gav.
Click to expand...

Get a second opinion ,the ABS should not give up so quickly , if there is anything wrong then should be easily fixt by some guru !
 
Yes absolutely thats why I thought the main dealer were the guru's!!!!, but give them a chance to sort it out I suppose , they want to do a bit more investigation before condeming the main abs unit!
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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