For those who have only had BMWs for the last few years and now have a toilet...

[RATCATCHER]

switches

how long will they last! the quality of bmw switchgear has gone downhill over the last few years!!!

 

[PaulW]

My old 1100GS had that!

They all have since the 1100GS but you can do so much more with the canbus and just two switches. If only they would wise up to it . . .

 

[turnipbmw]

With thick gloves on I rarely bother to indicate on my deauville but with the big paddle sticking down on the K, its easy.

Off button not needed with self cancellation 99% of the time.

Agree that the return to one switch is a sop to journalists

 

[MikeP]

Agree that the return to one switch is a sop to journalists

It's got sod-all to do with the dopey-twat journalists. BMW have been ignoring them for the best part of thirty years, why would they begin listening just when BMW have increased their market share year-on-year?

The real reason is that there's no longer enough room for three buttons to work the indicators what with all the must-have toys.

Once their voice activation system has been perfected for the toys, perhaps they'll return to the three-button set up?

 

[Engineer]

Because we've all fitted 120Db horns to our bikes, and I'd really really miss giving an idiot car driver a really furious blast of my left indicator when they pull out in front of me

I understand that - had to go out and test the new horn, it is definitely louder the old one, which was a bit embarrassing!

 

[ebbo]

Caused uproar when BMW introduced the 3 button indicators, now causing uproar when they phase them out. I suppose they lasted longer than the servo brakes which we also didn't need

 

[Steptoe]

There are 3 buttons on the previous bikes, left right and cancel. With the new scheme we have 2 because we need one for hazard lights

Why couldn't BMW have two buttons which via the canbus could be programmed as follows
Left for left, right for right, press the opposite one to cancel, press the same one again to extend
. . . and finally, press both for hazards

Not much different than the original BMW paddles, 2 buttons big and easy to operate ??

Some smart arses need the indicator cancel switch. It has a further use as an on/off switch for lights etc, without any extra wiring or tacky add on switches .

 

[Little-Brit]

The only thing on my bike that reliably sounds the horn is the fecking tank bag...

How absolutely true is that!

Out riding my Ducati Monster last summer I gave myself heart failure when I gave the horn a good blast when turning left at a junction. No one noticed

Not convinced about the quality of the new GS switchgear yet but the layout is far more sensible.

 

[darkhorse]

Left for left, right for right for me, idiot proof particularly for us 1200 riders.

My other bikes have the one button system and even though my biking life started with this system I much prefer the logical way.

 

[Hammam]

Switch on the right to go right, switch on the left to go left....Yes, logical

Do you have a signal lever on each side of the wheel in your car? And where did they put the «Cancel» button?

Logical?

 

[darkhorse]

Do you have a signal lever on each side of the wheel in your car? And where did they put the «Cancel» button?

Logical?

Maybe car indicators should be an option extra, as most don't use them.

 

[Hammam]

Anyway...yadda yadda yadda

I can get on fine with either arrangement, but I far prefer the BMW version to the Jap one

Was just wondering how people have found the switchover (did you see what i did there? ) to the new stylee

In what is the one button indicator a «Jap» thing? They didn't exist on older Triumphs, Nortons, BSAs, Matchless, Royal Enfields, Motobécanes...?

 

[Hammam]

Maybe car indicators should be an option extra, as most don't use them.

You tell me. In Montreal, it's a joke. I'd say 75% of drivers don't use them, and of the 25% who do use them, 15% use them to show they ARE turning, not that they ARE GOING to turn. They start turning the wheel and at the same time they grab the lever. Maybe it's because it's part of the wheel and they believe it must be used simultaneously. Drives me crazy.

 

[Bendy toy]

Maybe car indicators should be an option extra, as most don't use them.

I miss the car indicator switch on the right. Left hand gears, right hand indicators and headlight dip/main. Seemples. But we got standardised.

I like the 1200 hex indicator paddles but hate the dip/flash switch. It looks easy to find but its near impossible to find at night with thick gloves and awkward to use. The Japanese style rocker on the top is far easier to find and use so I gues I could put up with their indicators as well..

 

[dave hendy]

The old BMW way was just so easy

 

[The Grey One]

Do you have a signal lever on each side of the wheel in your car? And where did they put the «Cancel» button?

Logical?

Actually some cars did have two switches and the system worked well.

And self cancelling indicators are the work of the devil! Every car comes with and indicator cancelling device-it's called a driver. Said driver (or rider) should have total control of when and for how long indicators operate. First thing I did when getting a new car was to pull the steering wheel off and take out the nasty bit of plastic that operates the cancelling mechanism.

John

 

[REGS12]

At last

Old people such as I don't learn quickly, so much so, that after 46,000 kms on '04 GS I still had to look at switches to work them. Changing back to "normal" will be a pleasure on my new toilet. Can't wait.

 

[llotse]

With canbus (which I like actually, it has never, to my knowledge, caused a breakdown on a GS since they brought it in and it's a great innovation in some ways) you can't even wire up 'conventional' BMW left and right indimacators either, short of going off an ignition switched relay and going potty with re-wiring the whole indicator system separately from the Canbus.

It's a shame they don't offer it as an option to have 'old stylee' flaps.

Ah well, that's progress I guess.

Canbus hasn't but the new switches have, just ask K1300GT owners and new RT owners. I hope the switches asre sorted on the WC.

 

[tw99]

The old 3-switch system was really easy to use when doing tight manouevres, where you might need to indicate when you're also feathering the clutch ("magic roundabouts" like the one in Hemel Hempstead are a good example).

I don't find the BMW implementation of the single switch easy to use when I'm also trying to use the clutch.

 

[alp]

Here's my tuppence worth.....I had a K1200R with the usual BMW left and right paddles which I operated ok. HOWEVER, the problem I had with it was that with a bike like that with masses of instant power for micro movements of the throttle, it was downright dangerous at times in town traffic conditions where you needed to cancel the indicator before it timed out, since operating the cancel paddle with your right thumb without tweaking the throttle even a small amount causing a lurch forward was not easy.
I eventually swopped over the cancel wiring with the horn wiring so the I could cancel with my left thumb. I was happy and safer with that.
Riders of bikes with less instant power than the K1200R e.g. GSs probably wouldn't have experienced this.
As for the latest GS indicator, it's brilliant! What they have done is design the button so that just a minimal nudge does the trick. I've had bikes where you needed to push the button much further than this one to latch the mechanism inside it whereas this one seems more like an electronic operation set up rather than a mechanism.
Good work BMW and thanks!