Break failure!!!

[Madsplash]

Hi Guys,

I wonder if any of you has had this issue or has a clue on what's going on...

Last summer I took a trip down to Spain and the bike was running fine all the way from UK, France and Northern Spain until I hit the centre of Spain. There the temperatures started to soar to the 40's Celcius and suddenly out of the no where came a message on the cockpit displaying what you see in the photo. No ABS light but the traction control sign + the warning triangle and the break failure message!

All still worked ok apart from the fact that I noticed the rear break ABS wasn't working. I stopped the bike on the next garage and after re-fueling I started the bike and the panel display was gone! The ABS was back in action so... I carried on. Only to see the same display again within half hour of re-starting the ride. I strted to think whether the high temperature was causing this issue.

I arrived at my destination and contacted the nearest BMW dealership. They were fully booked for the following 15 days but assured me that only with a diagnostic would they figure the problem, it was safe to ride as the normal breaking system would still be working.

Upon my return to UK I was hoping the issue would vanish but to no... it carried on just like in Spain. So the bike is not alergic to the hot Spanish climate!
I visit my dealership, they did all tests and reset all the errors with famous tool and said that apart from a few errors and the need for rear break pads they could not see anyhing wrong. They took the bike for a test ride and all seemed fine.
So off I went home convinced the problem has gone. T o be sure of that I tried to replicate the kinda riding I was doing when the issue started (80 mph on motorway) and sure as shit... the display appeared again!!! So the issue was still there!

Dealer was informed and different opinions ahve been suggested:
-The HID's might be draining too much off the battery, even though the diagnostic tool doesn't indicate anything wrong with the battery.
- Battery may not be to full charge.
- BMW battery parameters are quite precise and if the battery charge falls below those the ECU may display the message.

Cut long story short... Has anyone have a clue what may be going on here? Any similar experiences?

I am to take the bike again to the dealership but would like to have some further info on my back pocket rather than be given all sort of explanations that I may not understand.

Looking forward to hear from you guys.

Regards

 

[Deleted account 190920001]

Is the FD getting hot? I am wondering if you have a slightly iffy rear sensor and the heat from the FD is pushing it over the edge.
It's not you HID lights, they probably drain less power. Apart from that these bikes have a lot of alternator on them.
Duff battery possibly, but you would probably be noticing bad starting or something.

 

[younger06]

Seems similar to what happened me. My fault only occured 75% through a 600km high(ish) speed motorway slog in France (with pillion and luggage) After cycling the ignition, the fault was only reappearing at high(ish) sustained motorway speeds. Using the brakes during normal riding wasn't triggering the fault light.

I will be following this thread with interest!!!

 

[Pukmeister]

Try replacing the worn rear pads as a starting point.

 

[AustinW]

It happens to my 2011 GSA too: every now and then the brake failure light comes on but on a restart it all goes out, it has happened at motorway speeds, but not only then so I don't think its related to overheating in the FD. When the light is on the speedo keeps working, nevertheless the GS911 said there was a fault (cant recall number) but its said something like "implausible signal from rear speedo sensor" so I am pretty sure its that as I have already replaced it once with a 2nd hand one from motoworks. (when the rear speedo sensor failed last time the warning was continuously on and the speedo wouldn't work for the first few miles after which time I think it starts using input from the front sensor). When it happens more times than not I will replace the sensor.

What faults did the BMW dealer say was showing?

 

[Pukmeister]

Another cheap bit of maintenance is to remove the rear ABS/Speedo sensor from the final drive and wipe it clean of any iron filings that may be stuck to it due to slight wear of the final drive gears. If a paste-like coating of metal particles sticks to it, it can prevent the inductive speed sensor from being able to read the rear wheel speed and hence you typically have issues with the ABS and/or speedo readout.

 

[Madsplash]

I never had any battery issues before and till today the bike starts 1st time! Very odd indeed. I don't know exactly the errors that were found with the GS911 but I was told that there wan't an issue with the ABS sensors and the break pads have already been replaced. But the problem still happened on the trip back from the dealership.

 

[JJH]

I wonder if the rear pads are just barely touching the disc? Just enough to cause a heat build up at sustained highish speeds? Try cleaning the calliper. Or try to replicate the problem and then stop without the back brake then see if the disc is hot. I know it's a long shot but I think it might be worth a try. JJH

 

[younger06]

The brakes are linked....how can you stop without the brake brake?

 

[Madsplash]

The message displays within 20 to 30 min of starting the ride and usually when one reaches the motorway speed. As I stop the bike, switch engine off and let it for a few minutes, when I start again the message is not displayed. Then around 20 to 30 min at that speed it appears again!
Not sure if it is anything break related or battery related like some suggested but... if it is battery shouldn't the voltage show up as damaged or low voltage?

 

[younger06]

Keep us updated on the diagnosis.

 

[Smug]

Could be the rear wheel speed sensor or the wiring and connections to the wheel speed sensor.

 

[Bungy]

Have a quick look to see if you have uneven wear on the brake pads indicating a seized rear caliper. An easy check that might be the source of heat as described earlier in the thread.

 

[Edward]

The brakes are linked....how can you stop without the brake brake?

Coast to a halt?

 

[younger06]

Coast to a halt?

Or, give my buddy Magneto a buzz and ask him to help out.

Sent from a OnePlusX

 

[ianf]

Is your speedo playing up?

probably the rear transducer. Five minutes on a GS911 will tell you for sure what the issue is.

 

[duckspeed]

I would replace the ABS sensor, they are not mad expensive, and the fault might just go away

 

[Bendy toy]

Is your speedo playing up?

probably the rear transducer. Five minutes on a GS911 will tell you for sure what the issue is.

The GS911 will give the information you need but you can deduce what's going on without it.

Mine recently had the same symptoms - intermittent loss of ABS etc, later I noticed the speedo was not working. Stop the bike restart and it might reset and work or it might not. Removed the speedo sensor. It was clean but cleaned it anyway. Also opened the cable connector (near the rear shock top mount) sprayed with contact cleaner and put back. It's all been fine since. As the sensor was clean I suspect the connector was not contacting as it should.

The rear brake is always fairly warm and the disc wears at a rate to match. The rear brake was fully overhauled with new seals, new disc and new pads - no change. I rode the bike for a few miles on a dual carriageway and coasted to a stop - the rear brake had not heated up and the FD was normal temperature. I think that proves the linked braking system really favours the rear brake for all but panic stops.

 

[AustinW]

The message displays within 20 to 30 min of starting the ride and usually when one reaches the motorway speed. As I stop the bike, switch engine off and let it for a few minutes, when I start again the message is not displayed. Then around 20 to 30 min at that speed it appears again!
Not sure if it is anything break related or battery related like some suggested but... if it is battery shouldn't the voltage show up as damaged or low voltage?

I don't think I am all that far from you in Garstang. I have a GS911 and I think it can read fault codes without using one of the few remaining registrations I have on it (I think clearing the codes does use a registration though). If you want to try it then pm me and come round.

 

[Myke Rocks]

Yes, it happens to us all at some time or or other.
My uncle died on a Christmas morning, as did another friend's mother in law. But you get over it, and hope for better luck on the next one.