Final drive rebuild by Mikeyboy

[paganman]

Just had my 2007 GS Adventure fd rebuilt by Mikeyboy of this forum.
Absolutely fantastic to deal with, quick turnaround and great price.
It's transformed the ride, I didn't realise how bad it was. Gearbox feels much smoother, the clunk on taking up drive has disappeared, it rolls with much less resistance, but best of all it actually handles well again.
Very pleased

 

[Bendy toy]

Mine has no signs of wheel bearing failure but its got the other issues you described.

What prompted the rebuild?

 

[paganman]

There was some play in the wheel, about 1-2 mm of play when I rocked it. Plus it was difficult to turn by hand. Main dealer had a look & quoted me around £500-750 for replacement bearings/new fd, plus couldn't do it until mid July, not happy at 25000 & fd knackered so posted on here & Mikeyboy was recommended.
Drop him a line, he knows his stuff sure he'll be able to help.

 

[Bendy toy]

Mine has no wheel wobble and no roughness or stiffness turning by hand. I also checked it without the brake caliper when cleaning the pads so it's looking ok for now

 

[mikeyboy]

Just had my 2007 GS Adventure fd rebuilt by Mikeyboy of this forum.
Absolutely fantastic to deal with, quick turnaround and great price.
It's transformed the ride, I didn't realise how bad it was. Gearbox feels much smoother, the clunk on taking up drive has disappeared, it rolls with much less resistance, but best of all it actually handles well again.
Very pleased

glad to be of service
mike

 

[Ali-bear]

I don't mean to spread panic or fear or anything but ... you really do need to carry out basic checks on your bike at regular intervals.

A friend of a friend was almost killed last week when the back wheel came off his twin cam GSA on the motorway near Bordaux.

 

[Alan R]

I don't mean to spread panic or fear or anything but ... you really do need to carry out basic checks on your bike at regular intervals.

A friend of a friend was almost killed last week when the back wheel came off his twin cam GSA on the motorway near Bordeaux.

Agreed about the basic checks, but have you any more details about the cause of your friend's failure? Was this final drive collapse/bearing failure/puncture/loose wheel bolts? What?
Alan R

 

[Ali-bear]

He woke up in hospital.

He warned me about checking my final drive, said it was a known issue and to check the forums etc. but this was all second-hand from my friend. Yes I surmise it was the rear wheel bearing that failed, apparently the loose wheel got jammed in by the alu pannier and off down the road he went.

I had my rear wheel bearing replaced this spring, I was told that it was already dangerously worn. My position on BMW ownership is already known but I'll say it again, I'll never buy another.

 

[robvanelst]

It seems a little strong that bearings reach such a level of wear that the wheel drops off? I had my rear wheel lock up at 100 mph on my (then nearly new) 1993 R1100RS after a box/drive failure - "luckily" something else then broke as well, releasing the wheel in time before crashing. I don't think this type of failure is typical though, the early oil-heads simply were brought to market too soon and dangerously underdeveloped. There is no point in scaring people off with disaster failures that are untypical or no longer relevant.

BMW ownership - I was put off after 18 years and swore I'd never buy another Beemer in 2001 after numerous engine and drive issues on my RS and RT. But ... I still bought another one 3 weeks ago (1200RT) .... and suffered my first breakdown on Sunday (fuel pump). Still love it though, compared to anything else in the tourer segment there simply isn't anything that is such raw fun as the 1200RT. If you want trouble free transport, get a bus-pass.

BMW - once your sold, you are sold forever. You can run away but never escape

 

[Ali-bear]

I am fully booked and prepped for a tour of Sweden and Norway setting off two weeks from now. I may even keep the bike for some more years after I get back. Until I actually work out what to get next.

But the reason I won't buy another BMW is the ongoing cost of ownership. As well as the rear wheel bearing I've just had a new ABS unit and fuel level sensor. On a five and half-year old bike. In my experience this bike has been unreliable and it is very expensive to fix when it goes wrong.

 

[Mr Bean]

I am fully booked and prepped for a tour of Sweden and Norway setting off two weeks from now. I may even keep the bike for some more years after I get back. Until I actually work out what to get next.

But the reason I won't buy another BMW is the ongoing cost of ownership. As well as the rear wheel bearing I've just had a new ABS unit and fuel level sensor. On a five and half-year old bike. In my experience this bike has been unreliable and it is very expensive to fix when it goes wrong.

Mine's an RT, but if there was a Honda that would do the same job and fit in to my front garden (I live in a terrace) I would change in a blink - the BMW back up is poor. They had the audacity to state that a problem reported during the warranty period was my issue because the dealer wasn't able to correctly diagnose the issue...

 

[Bendy toy]

Why do some folks suggest that Hondas are somehow cheaper to run?

Check out the service intervals, labour costs and acres of bodywork to get messed up every time. Don't forget the regular cam clearance checks at small mortgage prices. They (almost certainly) wont need any new shims but "forget" to have it done and the warranty dies.

On top of that you wont get a bike that handles like the larger BMWs. Tele forks just don't cut it against Hossacks or Telelevers.

As for "dodgy" BMW service. If one dealer can't find a fault, find one that can. The chances are they are all no better (or worse) than Honda dealers.

 

[babble]

..... not happy at 25000 & fd knackered so posted on here & Mikeyboy was recommended.

25k! I wish mine lasted that long... Are you sure it's the first one in the bike? Mines currently hungry for it's 6th bearing at 38k! (PM you soon Mike)

The new KTM just keeps getting more attractive all the time.

 

[Mr Bean]

Why do some folks suggest that Hondas are somehow cheaper to run?

Check out the service intervals, labour costs and acres of bodywork to get messed up every time. Don't forget the regular cam clearance checks at small mortgage prices. They (almost certainly) wont need any new shims but "forget" to have it done and the warranty dies.

On top of that you wont get a bike that handles like the larger BMWs. Tele forks just don't cut it against Hossacks or Telelevers.

As for "dodgy" BMW service. If one dealer can't find a fault, find one that can. The chances are they are all no better (or worse) than Honda dealers.

Because they are?

My personal past experience tells me Honda's cost less to maintain - and in my experience the finish is much better too.

I had three Honda's (a Firestorm and 2 Blackbirds) over a period of 6 years and there were only two failures - a CCT and a reg/rec. About £80. My RT has cost me £1,600

No other expense other than service items.

8,000 mile service intervals as opposed to 6,000.

Valve clearances checked (16,000 miles) and no shims needed.

As for the comment about finding another dealer - try it with BMW's extended warranty. I did and gave up - for now. It has been back to the dealer on four occasions to diagnose an issue and failed.

Some inexperienced numpty in customer services at BMW UK claimed that because a problem wasn't solved during the extended warranty it was not their issue - even though it was reported during the warranty.

The 1200RT does everything I need, most of it very well. However (from my personal experience), the durability and finish are not comparable to my previous Honda's.

I wonder what % of Honda owners take out extended warranties compared with R1200 owners - I would suspect a much lower number.

 

[dippy]

all this moaning! if you dont like the bikes then bugger off and get something else!

 

[Bendy toy]

My 1200 hasnt got extended warranty so Im not in that particular camp. I also wonder what Honda charge for their cam clearance service. They never need any shims so (IMHO) it's a money making scam.

About 10 years ago Honda told me that a VFR750 needs its cams done every 16,000 at a cost of £500 plus parts but dont worry they never need any parts. Who knows what they charge today.

Let me get this right - Every 8000 I pay about £500 for a normal service then every other time the cost doubles to look at something that never (hardly ever) wears out. I walked away.

My Yamaha went for 70,000 on its original valve shims (all eight of them). One was on the bottom limit all others were within limits and technically needed no work done. Its reasonable to expect a top quality Honda machine to last better than a "budget" Yamaha. Of course! In that case, checking valve shims every 16000 is a make work job for the dealers or a handy way of voiding the warranty.

Over 64,000 miles the cams will have cost £2000 to change just one shim. It would be cheaper to ignore them all and change the cylinder head / engine when the valves burn out.

 

[Sgt Bilco]

He woke up in hospital.

He warned me about checking my final drive, said it was a known issue and to check the forums etc. but this was all second-hand from my friend. Yes I surmise it was the rear wheel bearing that failed, apparently the loose wheel got jammed in by the alu pannier and off down the road he went.

.

Surmising can be a dangerous pastime How can a wheel bearing failing cause the rear wheel to fall off

FWIW, in my GSA has been easily the cheapest bike I've ever owned despite a replacement gearbox and 2 FD rebuilds in it's current 92,000 miles. Only ever had routine maintainence and is going better than ever.

 

[Mr Bean]

Let me get this right - Every 8000 I pay about £500 for a normal service.

From memory an 8,000 mile service on my Honda's was an oil and filter change and in effect, a walk around 'inspecting'

Mine costs about £45.00 in parts and the labour time was mine.

 

[Welshman]

Surmising can be a dangerous pastime How can a wheel bearing failing cause the rear wheel to fall off

FWIW, in my GSA has been easily the cheapest bike I've ever owned despite a replacement gearbox and 2 FD rebuilds in it's current 92,000 miles. Only ever had routine maintainence and is going better than ever.

For a wheel to fall off its more than FD Bearing failure, whenever I hear of this I wonder if some clever clogs has used copperslip on the wheel bolts?

 

[(RIP) Arkwright]

For a wheel to fall off its more than FD Bearing failure, whenever I hear of this I wonder if some clever clogs has used copperslip on the wheel bolts?

And the problem there is?