Nervous/twicthy front end - 1250GSA

[Boxerlust]

Arsey there is nothing twitchy on the Telelever ! What I will say though that the 1290 Super Duke R had the twitchiest front-end I ever had the privilege to experience,At speeds below 60.Above 60 the bike turned like a canoe going down a river...Not stable but slow...Ready to Race,,,Not
And yes @ speeds above 125 with bags and topcase the GS can get twitchy.But that has nothing to do with the T-L but the geometry of the chassis that makes the GS just a formidable weapon on back-roads
Like everything in life...Nothing is perfect but a compromise.
Peejay either got a bad tire or the guys did not balance the wheel right ! It can happen...If this does not cure the problem the ball joint on the T-L arm might be bad.Both easy to fix !Much easier than steering head bearings that have to be adjusted and replaced...

 

[Boxerlust]

Stick , maybe Arsey got cat scratch fever from a bad batch of puusie...

 

[andylel]

Haven’t read the whole thread but I’d get the front shock checked if it were mine. I speak from experience of similar symptoms leading to replacement of shock and it’s been fine ever since.

 

[Winjar]

Hi all, in the first 14 months of so on the 1250GSA I covered about 5000 miles on the original Bridgestone A41's, loved them in the dry, thought they were lethal in the wet. Had them changed in February for Metzeler Roadtec 01's when it went in for it's service.

Since then I've only ridden it a handful of times due to work etc but everytime I have the front felt vague, unsteady and at motorway speed quite unsettled and vibey. I put it down to the fact that straight after the service I fitted bar risers so I removed them but it's no different.

I've just come back from doing 675 miles in Scotland and I'm convinced something doesn't feel "right". Anything above *cough* 70mph and I get alot of vibes and the front is really twitchy, the slightest weight from me on the bars and it's trying to wobble quite noticeably. If I brake from high speed I even feel the vibes through the brake lever at first then as the speed drops it calms down.

It's difficult to describe it but the thing is tramlining all over the place and mid corner even in the dry it feels like someone is lifting the front wheel slightly like it wants to "let go". It almost feels like all the suspension/steering components are loose even though that sounds ridiculous.

I got a friend to ride it (who also has the same bike and same tyres) and didn't tell him what my issue was and he got back and said "that feels f*cking awful to ride mid corner, the front just wants to wander and let go".

Given that these tyres don't seem to be known for this issue can anyone think of anything else I can check or have looked at? I've tried the pressures at the BMW recommended 36/42. I even tried going down slightly on the front and also up but it doesn't seem to make the slightest difference. I was considering taking the wheel out and having my local place check the balancing on it just in case.

Thanks in advance.

Symptom of bad tyre, it happen often, change both for to be sure, and with other brand, and confidence will come back, Metzeler good tyre, but once not happy normally try other just for the head.

 

[darthwhite]

Firstly check the wheel balance front and rear. Then all the many bearings and the function of the steering damper. Check the shocks are good and not leaking.

Also - off the wall but it worked for me after months of troubleshooting - take the centre stand off. My centre stand had weak springs and was banging on the frame, upsetting the sensors that control the suspension. As soon as I took it off the bike turned back into a magic carpet.

 

[Popell]

Firstly check the wheel balance front and rear. Then all the many bearings and the function of the steering damper. Check the shocks are good and not leaking.

Also - off the wall but it worked for me after months of troubleshooting - take the centre stand off. My centre stand had weak springs and was banging on the frame, upsetting the sensors that control the suspension. As soon as I took it off the bike turned back into a magic carpet.

Possibly less hassle and more beneficial to replace the spring, agree with the rest.

 

[Winjar]

Have you check they fit exhaust correctly after stone problem, if not fit good will give vibrations also.

 

[TheStammeringBiker]

Thanks again all. Just back from having the front wheel balance checked (ran out of lunch break to do the rear too). Front was out of balance but the guy then said "How much did you kick off at BMW for scratching your wheel?". My reaction "What scratch?".

 

[Slipperyeel]

That is really bad. Brand new bike...
So what else have they screwed up then?! If they're trying to get away with that...what else. At least, this is where it sends your thinking!

Sent from my SM-G975F using Tapatalk

 

[TheStammeringBiker]

That is really bad. Brand new bike...
So what else have they screwed up then?! If they're trying to get away with that...what else. At least, this is where it sends your thinking!

Sent from my SM-G975F using Tapatalk

Bikes approaching 2 years old. But sadly they did the tyres back in March and I've only ridden it twice since then so didn't spot it. In the dark depths of my shed it's not very obvious especially stood side on to it, but now it's been pointed out it's like it's light up with neons.

I suspect they'll deny any responsibility on the grounds it was almost 4 months ago that they did the work.

When the bike had a brand new engine just over a year ago they also damaged the paint on the frame so my confidence in them has been dented to say the least which is a shame as they are brilliant to deal with.

 

[leadfarmer]

Have you checked the spokes? Make sure they all ping the same and check the rim for runout

 

[Matty589]

Name and shame the dealer… once you’re sorted, of course

 

[Winjar]

When I see damage to wheel, make me think tyre not seated good, so problem.

 

[tanneman]

When I see damage to wheel, make me think tyre not seated good, so problem.

Not really, the bead seats inside the rim lip. It is also the reason why the tyre stays on when inflated.

Have the OP checked what I suggested?

 

[TheStammeringBiker]

Not really, the bead seats inside the rim lip. It is also the reason why the tyre stays on when inflated.

Have the OP checked what I suggested?

Tyre pressures checked - Yep (all good)
Tyre mounted the right way around, ie directional? - Yep (all good)
Wheel balance? - Yep (all good - front checked and was not balanced correctly, didn't have time to get the rear out yesterday)
Wheel axle clamps -19Nm? - Yep (all good)
Wheel axle - 30Nm? - Yep (all good)
Play in the wheel bearings? - Can't feel any
Play in Telelever ball joint? - Can't feel any but I may not be checking it properly
Lower fork clamps? - Yep (all good)
Upper fork clamps? - Yep (all good)
Steering head bearings? - Can't feel any play
Handlebar clamps? - Yep (all good)

 

[leadfarmer]

Tyre pressures checked - Yep (all good)
Tyre mounted the right way around, ie directional? - Yep (all good)
Wheel balance? - Yep (all good - front checked and was not balanced correctly, didn't have time to get the rear out yesterday)
Wheel axle clamps -19Nm? - Yep (all good)
Wheel axle - 30Nm? - Yep (all good)
Play in the wheel bearings? - Can't feel any
Play in Telelever ball joint? - Can't feel any but I may not be checking it properly
Lower fork clamps? - Yep (all good)
Upper fork clamps? - Yep (all good)
Steering head bearings? - Can't feel any play
Handlebar clamps? - Yep (all good)

Have you checked the spokes? Make sure they all ping the same and check the rim for runout

Spokes ? Ting ting ting

 

[TheStammeringBiker]

Spokes ? Ting ting ting

Ooh good shout! No I haven't, taking my missus out for dinner tonight so I'll try and get to that asap!

Front wheel doesn't seem warped either.

 

[tanneman]

Then move on to the rest of the bike.

Seat secured?
Foot pegs tight?
Rear suspension play?
Drives haft arm play?
Final drive play?
Is the rear wheel nuts torqued - 60Nm.
As mentioned above and before, have you checked the spokes.

To be honest. You changed tyres, when you ride it the front end feels off. Nervous you say and twitchy and vibrations. Front wheel vibrations can be from an unbalanced rear. When you ride it, is the seat vibrating or the handlebar in a frequency that can be attributed to the wheel rotation at that end. Wheel run out can be checked with a DTI if you have one or just a simple stick secured in such a way that when you spin the wheel you will be able to notice the gap to the stick opening and closing. Take note, spoke wheels do have a little bit of warp in them but nothing excessive.

 

[stick]

Have a check on this , may not be the issue but if it,s not connected it will have an effect on the front . It is the connection for the front shock to the wishbone , this is to the right of the wishbone to the rear . It is a vertical rod , with a swivel joint on the end , I have taken a photo but can load it as on my phone .

 

[meintjiesj]

Bought a !200GS 2013 recently with A40 on, The road noice is so bad I can't ride without earplugs and then my visor also need to be down....hope it is the tyre and have a set of Metzeler Tourance Next I will try in a few more miles. What I did notice was at factory pressure the front was all over the place, small ruts in the road would cause the front to change direction. Never happened on my 1150GS on the same roads. I lowered front pressure by 2psi and that solved the problem, much more stable now. The road noice is still there, fingers crossed it is the tyres and not design of the bike...heard the early LC were noisy. It seems some bikes just have very strange quirks.