Is the gearbox a weak thing then

[Phil W]

Ive had my new to me GS 1150 for a few weeks now and seriously enjoying it. Its done 35k miles and Ive done a very pleasurable 1k miles on it. But I seem to be reading about gearbox being something that goes, in the Ride mag article and an old TBM. Now due to the fact Im a mechanically a numpty and wouldnt know how to do stuff that would seem major, if it ever arose, it would therefore mean large cash outlay.
Now I know the GS is supposed to be capable of large mileage without hitch and I intend on doing an Alps trip next year on it and also a Spain trip, couple that up with the mileage I will be doing between now and then theres every possibility it could be close to 50+ k Miles so I would guess it would be getting into the areas where problems seem to start occuring. Although I see many more have far larger mileages than mine I wonder whats been done to get them there. I also see that the RT models of 1150 have far greater mileages than GSs second hand and I never read about gearbox weakness with them but its the same negine and box isnt it??? Is it therefore that GSs get ridden in a harder environment, by less mechanically sympathetic people???

 

[Vern]

Just ride it and don't worry. Everything mechanical has the potential to go tits up, but it's not a major worry as far as I know.

Feckin journo's finding something to write in their rags is the biggest problem

 

[Uncle Crumpet]

Just ride it and don't worry. Everything mechanical has the potential to go tits up, but it's not a major worry as far as I know.

Feckin journo's finding something to write in their rags is the biggest problem

spend some time on ADV rider, you wont sleep for a year, worrying about everything thats going to shit itself, I just rode mine and stopped worrying, I think thats the secret to big mileage-no problems.

 

[Myke Rocks]

This is as site for paranoids.

If you read all the shite on this site, you will believe that everyone with servo ABS suffers continuous failures, fuel pump controllers fail every time you go out, ignition key antannae fail continuously, and it is best to carry a spare rear drive with you in your pannier. Oh! And BMWs corrode like no other motorcycle.

Don't worry about the gearbox: It will never fail, because your bike will have no brakes and you cannot ride it anyway, that is, if you can get it started because of all the other problems.

No, in reality, failures as listed above do, occasionally happen, but they are magnified here.
All manufacturers have occasional cockups, but if they were as bad as you have been led to believe, the manufacturer would be out of business.

Forget it & enjoy.

Myke

 

[tomodan]

I would second everything that has been said above and add my 2p worth.

I have had my 1150 GSA for about 2 months and have done about 3K on it, I should also say that it had been stood for several years before I got it. I bought it with a known gearbox whine (and paid accordingly) and initially thought I would just ride it as is. The noise never got any worse however it was playing on my mind and the gearbox oil was minging so after only 500 miles I got in touch with Steptoe from this parish.

After a couple of phone calls I decided to get it over to him for diagnosis.

All 4 bearings on the imput shaft were either goosed or on their way out and he did a complete rebuild for me at a VERY reasonable price (I am happy to reveal cost via PM but do not think it would be fair to post it here) Suffice to say the total cost was less than half the LABOUR would have been at a BMW dealer.

End result: I am sure the gearbox would have soldiered on as was for many miles but it was playing on my mind so the relatively low cost of having it sorted was well worth the peace of mind.

I guess what I am saying is if it bothers you have it done because it will play on your mind, that said I would never have anything done without symptoms. From what I can see they always get noisy before anything goes south (although there is some debate as to how long you should ride a noisy one)

Im glad I had mine done as I intend to keep it for a while and now I can thrash it without the "is it going to go bang" thoughts in the back of my mind!

 

[robbie c]

apart from the 4rth gear resonance (which is common ) mine did 50k miles trouble free (02 1150 adv)

enjoy

 

[Canuck]

I think if older 1100 gearbox had known issues but my m97 and the gearbox on your old bike have been spot on! Perhaps you were reading about the m94 gearbox?

 

[robc]

The splines on my gearbox input shaft wore and finally failed at 60k. A quick repair job by Steptoe and a new clutch and it is as good as it ever was.

I bought the bike in March 09 with 24k. It's now only done 69k and it's feels as solid as ever.

Phil, my advice as always is to ride it and maintain is as best you can. As and when a fault develops get it fixed then ride it some more.

If you use a machine bits will wear and break. If you never use it it will sit there idle and is utterly useless. Which would you prefer?

Regards

Rob C

 

[david vaughan-birch]

I've had a couple of gearbox problems-including a shaft breaking-but what do you expect for a 175,000 miles? Everything breaks eventually!

 

[Phil W]

Ha cheers Guys, lovin it so ride it it is then