Honeymoon Disaster on a 1200GSA

[biggbishy]

The story goes a little like this...........

GSA owner and new spouse head off from Cardiff to Plymouth to catch the Santander ferry married only 24hrs prior.....
Just prior to journey bike subjected to its 18,000 mile service....

Bike is fully loaded with GSA Alu panniers GS top box and Bagster tank bag, equipped with Garmin Sat Nav and Starcom( Very good indeed, better than my old Autocom). a bit of AC Snitzer full system thrown in for good measure.
Bike has Servo ABS.....

Santander Ferry Pont Aven Several GSer's heading to North Africa on board... Mr and Mrs Biggbishy Upgraded to Captains VIP cabin, very nice indeed. Fine ferry, Missus first time aboard a ship, boat, vessel !!!!!!!

As we land in Santander we venture South destination Madrid, tag on to a group of Gser's...Mostly Fast A roads and motorways.. No drama there then, no switch backs mountain hairpins no increiable descents just plain boring safe straightish asphalt....

As we near Madrid at rush hour the traffic starts to build up and its a bit MAD WORSE THAN PARIS!!!!!! First thing i notice is my RED brake failure warning light comes on, I check for pressure, no probs, so i dis-engage ignition system re boots and all is fine for another ten miles of filtering and near-siding, then just as i approach the exit i'm destined for, the warning light pops on again, apply brakes Nuffin, zilch no pressure.
Not a healthy situation Madrid at Rush hour with no brakes!!!!!!

I managed to steer into a Hotel forecourt and retard the engine to a stop directly outside the Foyer of Confort Hotel PIOXII...
The next thing Mrs Biggbishy jumps off the bike with comms lead still attached to lid screaming "THE BIKES on FIRE" as i dismount the bike is engulfede in Smoke steam and Gods knows what else, a huge pool of fluid on the beautiful marbled foyer floor directly beneath my rear wheel....

Closer inspection reveals ' A completely detatched Rear Brake Braided Hose, the hose had detatched at the point where it mates with the Stainless steel machine crimped sleeve....

First Day of Honeymoon F*#Ked....
Don't spaek Spanish , my iphone spanish download does't cover;
'Excuse me sir my bikes f*#ked can't you direct me to the nearest BMW mottorad dealership'

Luckily for us a kind BMW driving private hire senor, tells us there is a consession dealership not far away... he rings them on our behalf and they say to bring the bike in first thing the following morning....

The following morning BMW 1200GSA fully loaded Madrid Central at Rush hour. 'NO BRAKES'. We manage to get to; 8 Pedro Villa, a real spanish back street, street???
Then like a shining Beacon "MOTO HERNANDES" est 1952 appears, a beautiful Glass and Steel 3 storey building... with some real old BMW eye candy...

The short version is they managed to turn the Bike around in 36 hours, replacing the Hose, Brakes pads, and carried out a full brake service dismantling my whole bike... They indicate there suspicion for the almost CATASTROPHIC BRAKE FAILURE IS TOO MUCH PRESSURE??????? AND HENCE THE HOSE GAVE IN AT TTHE WEAKEST POINT,
A bit like the Titanic and its cheap cast iron hull rivets??????

We completed our Honeymoon without further incident although avoiding the Pyrennes which was the destination...Lost a bit of Confidence in the Brakes...

That said they performed and continue to perform faultlessly...

My Bikes warrenty expired in April 2008 wouldn't you just know it!!!!

Does any one here know where i should start re complaint or any knowledge of a similar X-file?????

Cheers

Bishy

 

[Slowdown]

What's your exact complaint and what do you hope to get out of complaining?

 

[biggbishy]

I suppose my issue is;

My bike is less than 3 years old, fully service by BMW...

A braided hose should not just give up a fail so completely....

Believe that a real RTW bike should be totally reliable....;Thats why i bought it..

Why sell a bike that could have a fatal consequence when a vital part fails..

T'was my honeymoon and as a result of part failure my dream of taking me new indoors was ruined, as a result of part failure?????

Don't really know what to expect, was hoping someone may have experienced something similar????

Or point me in a direction that could be of use, Is this a ticking time bomb, is mine the first to fail, was i lucky not to be coming down a series of mountain bends....
Dunno.

Looking for an answer.

 

[AndyW]

Well I reckon a letter to BMW Customer Services would be worthwhile, I guess some considerable expense was incurred at the BMW dealership in Madrid?....not to mention the inconvenience and as for the possible consequences!!!!! The bike's only just out of warranty, not very high mileage and you DON'T expect a stainless braided hose to fall apart like that.
Polite letter explaining what happened, bit of a yarn about your Honeymoon being spoilt etc, enclosing copy invoice for repairs and (initially) inviting comment - if they don't offer you something (compensation/good will gesture or whatever), go back to them a bit stronger and make it plain you expect something.

Good luck

 

[Deleted account 210609001]

There's never a good time to break down, but it always seems worse on hols.

BMVV do have a track record of agreeing to goodwill claims, at least in part, but I doubt they'll feel paticularly inclined to do so on the basis that the repairs were carried out by another country's dealer (even though they were a BMVV dealer). They certainly wouldn't when my fuel pump controller went in Austria last year.

That said, the warranty is for two years. If something breaks after three years, I don't think there's any way of compelling them to do anything. So askign nicely but firmly might be better than being too demanding.

I doubt they'll do anything about the consequential loss (i.e. buggered up honeymoon).

I haven't heard of this paticular failure before; others may have.

 

[Old Man]

I agree....start gently or they'll slam the door shut.
I think that first red light was trying to tell you something was wrong and needed investigating.....

 

[biggbishy]

Thanks guy's will give it a go....

Old Man, I know it was a sign like red rum in the Shining, but like the scary movies I'm the type to go into a room without turning on the lights on even though i know Micheal Myers or Freddy lurks behind the loouvred wardrobe door....

Youth and commonsense don't go hand in hand... Not that I have known what to look for mind you....I'm a rider not a ?????

Thanks for the replies

Bishy

 

[Montrose Sun]

What's your exact complaint and what do you hope to get out of complaining?

It seems to me 'slowdown' that you are bmw through and through (and then some!) and seem to throw a wobly whenever someone questions the quality of BMW or moans about them.

Ive seen now a few replies such as this from you where, for you, it just doesn't cut the mustard.

Quite simply, i reckon anybody who spends what is not an inconsiderable amount of money on a bike, is aloud to moan when it goes wrong when either nearly new or still quite new.

 

[Slowdown]

Quite simply, i reckon anybody who spends what is not an inconsiderable amount of money on a bike, is aloud to moan when it goes wrong when either nearly new or still quite new.

and I don't. The guy was unlucky. I'm glad he and his new wife are ok, but they were just unlucky. End of.....

 

[t'other dave]

Well I'm with the thought of 3 years old and 18000mls with full BMW service history your having a laugh? Things like this should not be happening at all, especially as BMW market this bike as a round the world adventure machine not around the block and carry a full spares set.
Hope your missus wasn't to miffed by it all but I'd give a tale of woe to BMW and hope they take some pity.

 

[Shurv]

A buddy of mine had a similar issue this year in the Alps where there was too much pressure in the braking system caused by the servos to continuously pushing pressure into the braking system and blowing a hose,even when no braking was asked for. Fixed under warranty ,but another brake failure 2 weeks after getting back. Fixed now, BUT shouldn't happen in the 1st place. So pleased I didn't buy a 1200.

 

[M3GS]

I had a FPC failure in France when my bike was 3 years old with just 8400 miles on the clock. Complained to customer service politely but they brushed me off saying that they could only entertain 'goodwill' claims through a UK dealer.

As mine was fixed in France it was nothing to do with them effectively.

 

[Brian ROSEN]

".......Just prior to journey bike subjected to its 18,000 mile service...." I think this should be the basis for any complaint. IF the particular dealer had serviced the bike from new I would expect them to be very sympathetic. But if they (and perhaps you also) are not too sure of the bike's previous history it is a little bit more complicated.

 

[Shep]

Just a few immediate thoughts,

1. Excess pressure in the brakes should have shown as brake binding
Brake pipes are usually very understressed components and would normally have a huge safety margin pressure wise.

2. Rear brake lines IME are amongst the easiest to stress/damage when removing calipers & rear wheel etc. And if they are going to fail through abuse it will be at any point of contact with a fitting or even a rub point.

3. Warning lights are just that, a warning of a problem

Shep

 

[Brian ROSEN]

Goodwill

".....I had a FPC failure in France when my bike was 3 years old with just 8400 miles on the clock. Complained to customer service politely but they brushed me off saying that they could only entertain 'goodwill' claims through a UK dealer." Well I can see the logic of that, can't you? I cannot imagine a dealer in the UK taking on a 'goodwill' clam from some French itinerant. 'My' dealer in Lyon is first class and the goodwill exists between him and me - if HE can get anything back from BMW that is his problem.

 

[Sgt Bilco]

Hmmm, not heard of this on a 1200 but it would seem a little unlucky. I had an aftermarket braided hose go on my 1100 in Glacier National Park and had to descend 5000ft with only the front which was interesting 2 up Didn`t go at the connection but just split.

Just because it`s sold as a round the world bike doesn`t mean it will never go wrong. Things happen to a mass produced vehicle but it`s how it`s dealt with which is more important. Too many people expect 100% reliablity of all GS`s which is impossible given the amount that get built and sold. I`ve done over 36k on mine and have had a few issues but all sorted out no problem and my GS is certainley on par with a lot of vehicle`s I`ve owned.

Best bet would be to approach customer service with all the facts and they will probaly do something. Can`t see them paying for much though because warranty has a time limit.

 

[Ali-bear]

Is this what they mean when they say "UNSTOPPABLE" ??

 

[[email protected]]

things happen

nearly every bike I have owned has at some point developed a fault Suzuki TS 125 head gasket, TDR 250 choke lever snapped,Suzuki gsx 600f, trapped wiring loom caused bike to cut out,FJR 1200 rear wheel bearings,KLR 650 engine oil leak, FZR 100 EXUP (alright I crashed that one),second exup, exup valve went,aprilia futura 1000 locked rear brake , burst pipe,didnt like the wet would break down and stop for no reason, Triumph Daytona 955i thermostat went in Italy 2 weeks out of warranty, BMW 1200GS flat battery ( knackered) went within 3 weeks. What I am saying is s..t happens, it shouldnt but it does, some vehicles you get are ace and never let you down ( my Audi A6 has 197500 and has never let me down in 4 years, my wife freelander is being rejected after going to the garage for the 6th time in under 6 months).
If like me you love bikes and you always wanted one, you will ride around the problems and whilst you are rightly pi..ed and angry over time the pain will get less, just my 2 pence worth.

 

[HondaMan]

Ihave seen this happen before.

I reckon something was causing the brake to stick on, either your foot dragging it? Possibly the handguard being in the wrong position if you have linked brakes? warped rear disk or whatever. I am guessing the brake stuck on was the first warning light which will come on if the brakes have been on for a long time.

Once the disk gets hot which doesnt take very long at all, the caliper gets hot everything expands and the brake sticks a bit harder, getting hotter and hotter.

When the fluid reaches boiling point it basically doesnt work - the small bubbles from boiling behave like a gas so compress easily - this is why you had no brake pressure when you tried to pull over.

The boiling in the pipe increases the pressure massively so the pipe pops off and the boiling fluid erupts in a cloud of steam (what your wife thought was smoke form a fire) and then the rest dribbles out on the floor.


Seen it before on my mates bike, a twig had got stuck and caused the caliper to move and the brake to rub slightly. Then everything happened as you describe. Only, after the pipe popped off he grabbed the disk to see if it was hot

 

[colinw]

faulty pipe in my opinion, one of those things, happened to me with a goodrich hose once, they are built to cope with very high psi, much higher than the servo will create.