G450X starting problems...

OK - so here's the update on my G450X and the starting problems:

  • Bike has been off the road since the Hog Roast, and for longer than I have owned it.
  • Bahnstormer were unable to find the fault with the starting problem and therefore unable to rectify the problem. Trouble is the dealer is limited to what investigative and rectification work they are allowed to do by BMW Warranty dept. Cracked crank has been replaced.
  • BMW Finance have informed me that the bike should now be fine as they have adjusted the idle speed. I p*ssed myself laughing when I read that in their letter to me; just who the f**k are they trying to kid?
  • BMW Finance have done nothing to convince me that I will no longer suffer from hot starting problems.
  • Have had b*gger all use and utility out of the bike over 2 weekends and each use has been fraught with hot starting problems, jump leads and a long walk.
  • I have rejected the bike for a full refund.
  • BMW Finance have made me a derisory and insulting offer to buy the bike back which netts out at a £900 loss to me. What are they smoking in Bracknell?
  • No offer of a loan bike and no offer of any goodwill gesture. So much for the blue and white propeller and what it stands for.
  • Have rejected this offer and am now preparing a small claims court case against BMW Finance for a complete refund and I have been reliably informed that I have a very very strong case. Watch this space!

(For those wondering what BMW Finance have to do with it, as the bike is on finance with them, my legal contract is with them and so my notice of rejection and subsequent correspondence goes to BMW Finance and not the dealer.)

BMW G450X - Unstartable
 
Mine also started like a dream and with a quite impressive number of restarts after spills/stalls/breaks on days out. If it had been my HP2 the battery would have been flat in under 45 minutes.

My dealer was also very good when mine took on a rattle and even gave me a very shiny and very new r1200R to play with whilst mine was being repaired. It sounds to me like the choice of dealer has a huge role in after sales support, mine has never failed to be 100% helpful.


BMW G450X - Rebuilt reliability :thumb2
 
Mine is an 09 G450X. Has 18 hours on it.
It has the random no-start problem. With 2 hrs on it part of 4th gear let go inside the engine.
The master cylinder for the rear brake has worn away part of the gusset welding on the swingarm-seems like the whole swingarm has moved over toward the RHS of the bike. Dealer couldn't fix it. Buggered if I can either. With 18 hrs on it now it is back at the dealer. On my last ride it burnt oil and hardly runs. I am pretty well over this bike.
 
Knobber said:
Mine is an 09 G450X. Has 18 hours on it.
It has the random no-start problem. With 2 hrs on it part of 4th gear let go inside the engine.
The master cylinder for the rear brake has worn away part of the gusset welding on the swingarm-seems like the whole swingarm has moved over toward the RHS of the bike. Dealer couldn't fix it. Buggered if I can either. With 18 hrs on it now it is back at the dealer. On my last ride it burnt oil and hardly runs. I am pretty well over this bike.
Click to expand...

Oh dear. Another one. No idea on consumer law in your part of the world, but I guess you have strong consumer rights and are able to reject the bike for a refund.

Just wait for the fobbing off you get from BMW HQ such as this little gem:

"(xxx from dealer) has confirmed that at this time they have been unable to identify the issue with the starting of the vehicle; however they are aware that another dealership was witness to this. Therefore, after obtaining technical advice they have adjusted the idling speed to the correct speed in order to resolve this for you".

BMW HQ just don't get the problem...
 
Geez the letter from BMW you got sounds a bit vague- " idling speed"

It needs to f@#$ing start before it will idle!
Yep it's a bummer. I already tried for a new bike or for AUD$400 less than what I paid for it. No can do.
That was after the cases were split by the dealer at 2hrs to fix the gearbox problem and they kept the bike for three weeks. When I got it back it was low in coolant by about half. Anyhow, s#$t happens i s'pose.

I actually like the bike but the engine on mine has issues that's for sure.

I'd like to see future versions of G450's with Ohlins or WP forks, a reliable engine, a kickstarter and no issues like the master cylinder/swingarm fouling. Who knows what BMW will do with this bike in 2010 and beyond.

Anyway best of luck in getting sorted mate.
 
Knobber said:
Who knows what BMW will do with this bike in 2010 and beyond.
Click to expand...

Probably delete it from the range........................can't see it making a long production life whatsoever

Knighter's out.....................what does that say?..................volumes to me
 
yep, i reckon your on the money. There might be quite a surplus of new 09 build bikes out there to sell. Who knows. I would happily accept a replacement G450 from my dealer, and based on the problems I have had with mine I don't know how much more trouble would have justified getting a replacement. Same as guys like WC etc. What are these bikes with issues going to be like with 200 hours on them, let alone 20 or 70hrs.

G450XUnrideable
 
Knobber said:
yep, i reckon your on the money. There might be quite a surplus of new 09 build bikes out there to sell. Who knows. I would happily accept a replacement G450 from my dealer, and based on the problems I have had with mine I don't know how much more trouble would have justified getting a replacement. Same as guys like WC etc. What are these bikes with issues going to be like with 200 hours on them, let alone 20 or 70hrs.

G450XUnrideable
Click to expand...

The majority of bikes out there are fine, you are obviously going to get the odd bike that has problems. Stop trying to paint a bleak picture about this model of bike, you two are obviously pissed off with yours bikes (i think it's more the service/dealer side which is the problem) there iare plenty of customers out there whom are more than happy with thier bikes, including me :-)
 
Sammo said:
The majority of bikes out there are fine, you are obviously going to get the odd bike that has problems. Stop trying to paint a bleak picture about this model of bike, you two are obviously pissed off with yours bikes (i think it's more the service/dealer side which is the problem) there iare plenty of customers out there whom are more than happy with thier bikes, including me :-)
Click to expand...

And me!
 
Can we stay on topic pls. Its not meant to be a bash the 450 in general thread, nor theorise on its demise.

I have no issue with Bahnstormer at all, they have been great and done all they can with the constraints around them. What warranty work can be done is set by BWM HQ warranty dept, not the dealer. BWM don't appear to be taking root cause location / analysis seriously with my bike by attempting to fob me off that adjusting the idle speed will fix the starting problem.
 
Does the bike start when you are at the Dealers then fail after a while when you are out? ?I would assume that they give it a good test before letting you have it back, also are the dealers happy for you to take it away, confident that they have cured the problem? has it not been to the dealers a few times with the same problem? Ifso i would have thought that they were keen to get it sorted as it doesn't look very good on thier part.
 
WindyChuffer said:
Can we stay on topic pls. Its not meant to be a bash the 450 in general thread, nor theorise on its demise.
Click to expand...

You are the one that keeps mentioning BMW Finance what does that have to do with the mechanics of your bike not starting?? Also saying BMW G450X Unrideable To me it refers to the Model of bike in general and not just yours!
 
Sammo said:
You are the one that keeps mentioning BMW Finance what does that have to do with the mechanics of your bike not starting?? Also saying BMW G450X Unrideable To me it refers to the Model of bike in general and not just yours!
Click to expand...

To be fair, I've always understood that WC was referring to the unfolding of issues with his specific bike - and hence his rejection of it to BMW Finance - rather than G450Xs in general.

Greg
 
Sammo said:
You are the one that keeps mentioning BMW Finance what does that have to do with the mechanics of your bike not starting?? Also saying BMW G450X Unrideable To me it refers to the Model of bike in general and not just yours!
Click to expand...

Sammo - if you read the thread you will see that the reference to BMW Finance is relevant and valid. My sales contract is with them, not the dealer, therefore I have to put the pressure on BMW Finance. And I never said "G450X Unrideable". Read the thread...keep up at the back...

Greg has it spot on.
 
My mistake, sorry you quoted BMW G450X - Unstartable

The Thread's topic is Starting Problems, which is what i'm interested in. I asked a few questions earlier regarding the dealer giving the bike back to you and them being confident that they have done something positive to rectify the problem. Can you not re-create the fault while at the dealers?
 
Sammo said:
My mistake, sorry you quoted BMW G450X - Unstartable

The Thread's topic is Starting Problems, which is what i'm interested in. I asked a few questions earlier regarding the dealer giving the bike back to you and them being confident that they have done something positive to rectify the problem. Can you not re-create the fault while at the dealers?
Click to expand...


Sammo - i didnt answer your q's directly as they are already answered in the thread. I have no idea if the dealer managed to recreate the hot starting problem - I haven't asked and I haven't heard otherwise. But no-one is doubting that the problems exist. Its not my problem as I am dealing with BMW Finance and they have informed me that the fault could not be found. But they also patronised me by telling me that it should all be OK now as the idle speed has been adjusted.

The reason why the fault could not be found is because the dealer is very restricted as to what they do and how much time they spend in dealing with warranty issues as is tightly controlled by BMW warranty department.

Reading between the lines, I don't think that the Bahnstormer is happy with this arrangement. I mean, how can you be happy signing off on a job that is handing something back that blatantly is not fixed? But their hands are tied by zee germans vith zee blue and vite oval...
 
Happy Ending....

Well after BMW Finance's initial insulting and derisory offer last week, I have managed to reach a settlement. But not without another email making my case, and the (very real) threat of dragging them through the small claims court.

Their offer is leaves me £186 out of pocket on the cost of the bike. No offer of a complete refund, and no offer of any goodwill payments to take account of the wasted day in picking it up - a 200 mile round trip, a long walk home pushing the bike after a starting problem, and interrupted 3 days of use. Whilst I could have dragged 'em through the courts for this, and won, to be honest, couldn't be arsed.

A lot of brand damage.

It also seems that BMW Finance & BMW HQ are stitching the supplying dealer up (Balderstons) by making them buy it back. Not very fair IMHO as in my view BMW HQ should be swallowing this; but not my problem.

Big up to Bahnstormer for their thoroughness - am sure they have done all they can (whilst having their hands tied by zee tight fisted germans).

So back to where I was after the DRZ got nicked - what to buy next ??? Actually, I'm rather enjoying the challenge of the 1200GSA off road.
 
Not sorted yet I'm afraid.

After agreeing a settlement with BMW Finance 8-9 days ago, I still haven't seen any money.

How long does it take to get a frikkin cheque out?

Seems that BMW Finance approach is to not send out any cheques, and instead rely on a dealer to write one. Which means no £££ until they sort out which dealer, who is buying the bike etc.

Basically, fobbing me off with detail thats not my fekkin problem or concern.

I'll be charging interest after Friday of these week.

Fckng cnuts.
 
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