Pannier Corrosion

[Gazzabart]

not

BMW plastic system panniers were always ok, whatever the weather

Ahhhhhh............the price of LWR fashionistas

i have two mates both with gs's both with VARIO plastic cups and on two seperate occasions they have simply dropped the bikes doing slow manovers
and both times those poxy plastic locating tabs simply cracked and fell off

they are IMHO absolutly crap

both are made by MBW
both in there own lovely way are one grands worth of rubbish

 

[Gazzabart]

sorry

thought first one never went through

 

[cookie]

same here
last year i was warned by a member that this would happen to mine
i laughed
i spent a while riding through the alps - snow ice the lot
came home cleaned the bike for four hours and it came up a treat
carried on riding for next few months
then one trip 0ut recently and panniers covered in black corrosion
i cant work out why i had managed to avoid it for so long then all of a sudden after one particular ride out its all over
no matter what i do to these panniers now i can never get them back to how they used to be

similar story here. went right through last winter with just a bit of spotty greyness. same regime this year, but have black corrosion that won't polish out.

 

[STUBBS]

a few coats of clear laquer (?) when new works wonders

 

[cookie]

i'm told lacquer won't key to ali

 

[Gazzabart]

pity

Pity its not on any paperwork in the panniers
Pity Bahnstormers never advised me when i collected the bike

 

[Gazzabart]

pity reply

a few coats of clear laquer (?) when new works wonders

my reply above regards this comment

 

[JimboGSA]

yep they are the most expensive ones and yep they corrode and look shite! And the more you try to polish ou the corrosion the worse they look! The 1150 ones were painted and still look top notch on bikes I've seen, so why the hell they couldnt do that again only a BMW accountant knows.

The grey Metal Mules (if they finally do an exhaust side pannier fitted around it or TT panniers on my next bike!

 

[STORM1]

Good Will!

I went for a warranty claim on mt ones. It was turned down. I thereafter took proceedings to sue the dealer under the sale of goods act, stating that the panniers were unfit for purpose, demanding a full refund / replacement. I also sent about 10 emails to BMW customer service. After about 2 months I got an email from BM telling me that they would replace them as a 'goodwill' gesture, following talks with the dealer. Make yourself as much of a pain in the arse as you can and they may show you some similar goodwill, just to shut you up.

I wonder how many other gestures of "good will" there have been. Gesture of good will conveniently avoids accepting responsibility for that which might otherwise cost millions in repairs and replacements!

 

[STORM1]

Good Will!

yep they are the most expensive ones and yep they corrode and look shite! And the more you try to polish ou the corrosion the worse they look! The 1150 ones were painted and still look top notch on bikes I've seen, so why the hell they couldnt do that again only a BMW accountant knows.

BMW accountants would find out the real cost of cutting corners if more people complained. Can you seriously believe that this isn't being resolved under warranty? Talk about loss of good will! This thread will run and run and I wonder how many people will decide against BMW accessories after reading it. A problem shaired ... and all that .

 

[araspitfire]

Easy to say "should have taken precautions".

But, as the OP and one or two others have said, BMW have managed to appeal to the unwashed as a company that deals in quality (service and product). How they manage this considering what I've seen in the past two years (since I got my BMW cherry broke) is a mystery to me...

But (for those who are experienced and know better), when first coming in, you assume that stupid stuff like using an uncoated, bare, easily corroded grade of aluminum on the exterior of a motor vehicle just wouldn't happen...

We learn.

I wonder if things like this were happening to BMW owners a few years ago?... If so how is that BMW seem to be able to keep their reputation?

Yes it's a nice bike (2004 1200GS), yes I love it to death... No I don't expect it to out last Honda... And I definitely don't expect it to stay looking new....

But I sure did when I laid out my money two years ago... And I will sure pay attention to 'other' bikes when it comes time to buy another... (not what BMW should be aiming for IMHO)

Al...

 

[MikeP]

But, as the OP and one or two others have said, BMW have managed to appeal to the unwashed as a company that deals in quality (service and product).

Does anyone know of a company that trades on a policy of "Our Products are Shite?" (Gerald Ratner tried it and see where that got him!).

How they manage this considering what I've seen in the past two years (since I got my BMW cherry broke) is a mystery to me...

I've asked this before and never got an answer; Where do BMW claim that their bikes are superior in build quality?

In my experience, this "superior build quality" notion has always come from owners who faced with the deficit in performance compared to Japanese bikes (more apparent in the 80's and 90's than perhaps is the case these days), BMW owners talked up the supposed "superior build quality as a justification for their ownership.

I've owned and ridden BMW's for twenty-odd years, they have all corroded or broken at times.

Caveat emptor!

 

[araspitfire]

I've asked this before and never got an answer; Where do BMW claim that their bikes are superior in build quality?

I guess they don't... and if you told one of the new guys in the 'Go on You know you Want one' forum that they corrode and break down like any other bike... they'd not remember a word of it when standing in front of the demo in the shop the next day...

If BMW don't manage keeping this reputation somehow... they sure do benefit from it...

And... you are right... it could be as simple as setting a much higher than reasonable price point... many people who pay out that kind of money need to justify doing so... and "because I like them" often isn't enough reason...

Al...

 

[Deleted account 211025001]

i have been with two mates both have gs's
both have PLASTIC varios
both times after a simple dropping of the bike those poxy plastic locating tabs just snapped off
they are shi@ and god only knows what they would look like after a proper accident
of course both are BMW
both in there own way are simply about a grands worth of crap
just my HO

Sorry to go off topic, but, in defense of the Vario's I threw my 650GS down the road, on its side, at 80mph and the l/h pannier took the full force of the slide.

Damage was as follows: ground down base of l/h fork leg and, ground away hand guard and l/h end of handlebar and the metal skin on the pannier was ground down and ripped to feck with a small (1cm) hole through the plastic. One new skin later and the panniers are still in everyday use by the guy that bought them.

One of several reasons why I got them for my 1200 and reckon they are the best panniers I have used to date, by a long chalk

Andres

Edit: I've also dropped the 1200 several times at walking pace and the panniers have gone down hard, saving my pillions legs and the bike, with hardly a mark left on them.

 

[STORM1]

Replacement Panniers

According to Bahnstormer BMW have never replaced panniers under warranty due to excessive corrosion. This contradicts threads that I have read on here. Do you know anyone else who has recieved replacement luggage under warranty for this reason or as a gesture of good will?

 

[Timolgra]

Sorry to go off topic, but, in defense of the Vario's I threw my 650GS down the road, on its side, at 80mph and the l/h pannier took the full force of the slide.

Damage was as follows: ground down base of l/h fork leg and, ground away hand guard and l/h end of handlebar and the metal skin on the pannier was ground down and ripped to feck with a small (1cm) hole through the plastic. One new skin later and the panniers are still in everyday use by the guy that bought them.

One of several reasons why I got them for my 1200 and reckon they are the best panniers I have used to date, by a long chalk

Andres

Edit: I've also dropped the 1200 several times at walking pace and the panniers have gone down hard, saving my pillions legs and the bike, with hardly a mark left on them.

On the other hand, one small off and this 1200 pannier and mounting was wrecked he bought TT panniers on his return to UK
One reason why I strongly recommend those coming on my Morocco trips to fit decent panniers.

 

[Gipsy]

Please excuse my ignorance of aluminium panniers, but could some of you knowledgeable peeps on here help out. My wife is thinking of ali panniers for her soon to be delivered 2008 F650 Gs. Are the BMW ali panniers the same as the touratech version. As yet not able to get the specs of the BMW ones, but have got info on the touratech panniers off their web site. If not the same, then do they corrode as per the posts on this thread. Many thanks for your help.

 

[illustratedman]

Ali panniers

I still cant believe it when people take an untreated ali box out into a wet salt ridden enviroment and are then suprised when it corrodes, no matter what they've sprayed on it beforehand. As for fit for purpose i thought the purpose of ali panniers was to carry stuff in not to look shiny.

 

[Peak]

I've spoken to our bodyshop manager and he says he can use an etch primer on them and then paint them the same colour as the bike no problem I have to agree that you can't expect an untreated allu surface not to corrode in sat water

 

[camel_landy]

I still cant believe it when people take an untreated ali box out into a wet salt ridden enviroment and are then suprised when it corrodes, no matter what they've sprayed on it beforehand. As for fit for purpose i thought the purpose of ali panniers was to carry stuff in not to look shiny.

+1

Hey... Maybe it was the washing solution that caused it? In fact, maybe it's the obsessive washing & polishing that causes all of the GS1200 problems in the first place.

M