Final Drive Inner seal

paulR

Registered user
Joined
Mar 11, 2010
Messages
204
Reaction score
11
Location
Hampshire
Has anyone had any experience of replacing the inner oil seal on the final drive of a twincam 1200GS? (as opposed to the outer one which I believe is fairly easy). The bike was in at Bahnstormer today for them to investigate but they said they would be able to give me an exact price unless they stripped it down. They did say that I could be looking at over £400 just in parts plus about 3 hours labour :eek:

That price sounds like a complete overhaul, can I get away with just replacing the oil seal?

Thanks,
Paul
 
If Bahnstormer are saying over £400 in parts they're thinking bearings have gone - are you sure its just an oil seal that needs changing?
 
Beemerman59 said:
If Bahnstormer are saying over £400 in parts they're thinking bearings have gone - are you sure its just an oil seal that needs changing?
Click to expand...
There's next to no play in the wheel so I think the bearings are ok. The technician did say it would worth replacing them at the same time whilst it's apart, but he seemed to think that would necessitate a complete strip down.
 
I am new to the GS, having had my first for only 2 months.

One thing I have learned from reading on here is that usually the main dealer is going to charge a bomb to do a job that might not be completely needed. I have read examples of a fella called step toe who resides in London area who is both trustworthy and extremely competent at diagnosing and fixing problems.

I'm just hoping there is a similar guy up North should I ever need one.
 
Take it off yourself and send it up to Mikeyboy. He does an excellent job, is far cheaper than a dealer and will do the lot. Its best to rep[lace all the seals and bearings if you have the unit in bits
 
Just had mine done at Alan Jefferies. I think it was in the region of £130 ish they said the bearing was good so did not need doing but if it had needed doing would been about another £60.00. So £400 does sound rather a lot. Get a second opinion.
 
Over the years Iv saved a fortune in mechanic bills always self serviced bikes & I used to get lots of one off bits done for my bikes too then brought my own lathe milling machine welders etc some jobs Iv had jobs done on my van in winter only cos it don't fit it my garage a mechanic friend of mine is good doing stuff like cam belts in an hour or so I'd prob be there all day lol like the boot I fitted on steering rack pain to get it on but persevered then it passed MOT :rolleyes:

Always get 2nd opinion if my drive went I'd get it done buy the guy on here not a stealer there are a few other jobs I'd let someone else do if they needed specialised tools.
 
While it's apart, it's a good idea to get new bearings. The BMW ones are like cheese so I use FAG bearings which are a much higher quality.

You can get a proper rebuild by some good guys on here for around £350 and try Mikeyboy in Leicester or Steptoe in West London first off who do loads of them and do a great job. I'm not saying the dealer won't do it well but I think people like Mikeyboy take a lot more care when rebuilding because they aren't tied to a set time.
 
I wouldn't mind having a go myself if it's just the seal, but if it's more involved I'll try Steptoe :thumb2

I'm sure I heard the technician say he hadn't replaced the bearing on one the same as mine before which doesn't exactly fill me with confidence. The problem I find with main dealers is they throw parts at a job regardless of cost, which is fine if it's a warranty job but not so good if it's your own cash! Maybe an independent would be more inclined to re-use old parts which are still serviceable.
 
paulR said:
I wouldn't mind having a go myself if it's just the seal, but if it's more involved I'll try Steptoe :thumb2

I'm sure I heard the technician say he hadn't replaced the bearing on one the same as mine before which doesn't exactly fill me with confidence. The problem I find with main dealers is they throw parts at a job regardless of cost, which is fine if it's a warranty job but not so good if it's your own cash! Maybe an independent would be more inclined to re-use old parts which are still serviceable.
Click to expand...

Stripping the drive is a real faff on a 1200 and you need specialist tools so changing the bearing whilst you are there would seem a sensible thing. They are known weak spot so a good rebuild will give you peace of mind and you don't need to worry about that again.

I've had 2 rebuilds on my 105,000 mile 1200ADV and I've budgeted for it again next winter as preventative maintainence.
 
One thing I forgot to mention, I had the bearings and seals replaced 9k miles ago and the bike has still only done just over 11k now.
 
That doesn't stop you requesting that the dealership concerned asks the manufacturer for a Goodwill Claim. If you are successful then by making a contribution towards the repair (even if it's only £1) then the warranty will remain with you.

It's quite common in such instances that there is a three way split on the repair between the manufacturer, the repairing dealer and the customer

It's definitely worth asking the dealership as they've already carried out a warranty repair in this area once before

If you don't as you don't get :thumb2
 
Search threads by Patzx (sorry can't find his exact handle on phone). He shows a full rebuild with special tools and the issues with pinion nose bearings.


Sent from a widget that can't spell.
 
I did ask for a goodwill claim to be made but they said in order to do that they would need to strip it down first to see exactly what was needed. The problem then would be if BMW say no I won't have any alternative but to let the dealer finish the job.

Thanks Bendy, I'll do a search for that.
 
paulR said:
I did ask for a goodwill claim to be made but they said in order to do that they would need to strip it down first to see exactly what was needed. The problem then would be if BMW say no I won't have any alternative but to let the dealer finish the job.
Click to expand...

Of course they would ........ so why don't you just instruct them to go ahead? :nenau
 
there is no reason why you couldnt do a partial rebuild on the unit if it has only done 2k miles,
i would replace the main wheel bearing as well though as you will need to heat the partially stripped assy to press it apart,
which will bugger the bearing seals and melt the grease,as the unit is stripped the pinion bearings can be checked to confirm they are servicable.
feel free to call me if you need more info
mike 07786 340692
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Drive shaft/final drive noise
2
Replies
21
Views
637
Joepi5
Gerbs
Final Drive Oil Check
Replies
13
Views
443
X21ekx
X21ekx
Raising final drive without fully seating drive shaft
Replies
2
Views
176
Joepi5
mpgscott
Quick question torque value final drive pivot nut and bolt
Replies
5
Views
215
Slipperyeel
Slipperyeel
Small oil leak on my R1150GS final drive, crown wheel seal or input seal?
Replies
6
Views
408
Steptoe
Steptoe


Back
Top Bottom