Background.
My 05 1200GS is closing in on 130.000 Kilometers & nothing serious has needed replacing - some minor & niggling stuff but nothing that tainted the relationship. I have a nagging fear that the electronic brake servo may pack up - they do & are not cheap. I decided last Sunday to head for Co Meath to see the parents; my Da is 90 & is not as strong as he would like so he generally has a few jobs lined up.
Approaching my Sunday destination the blown bulb symbol comes on on the dash - I have HID's fitted & that wee symbol occasionally lights up so I've learned to ignore it. Generally it is the wee parking light under the headlight that needs replacing. The yellow warning triangle also illuminated constantly so I did pull in & checked most of the lights & all was in order so completed the journey with the yellow triangle but everything else operational.
The Da had a full agenda for me, so I got stuck in & occasionally thought of the bike but did not take time out from digging, hauling, chopping & stuff like that. I carry a GS911 diagnostic thingy but recently changed my phone & did not download the app - clever boy me. After a days hard labour under the Da's supervision he produces a bottle of Jameson last night & we put a hole in it so no poking around with the bike happened at all & anyhow its a non flashing yellow triangle & sure everything was working - yeah I'll have another drop.
A good night's sleep saw me on the road @ 8.30 - no hangover but my yellow non flashing triangle is replaced by a flashing red triangle. This has happened occasionally - pulling in & switching off the ignition & restarting has always scared the red triangle away but not this time. I had a fully functioning front brake but only residual (no) braking on the rear.
I had a full day's exploration of back roads in south Leinster mapped out & this was worrying. My nagging fear nagged very loudly so I pull in & check that the hand guards are not fouling the levers & that there are no bits of road furniture lodged somewhere crucial. Nothing noted except that the servo was constantly on even when no levers were pulled or pressed. Front brakes still OK but the thought of the servo running all day & all the other nasty imaginings were putting as cloud over a remarkably cloudless day in a meteorological context.
By now I was half way to Dublin & not far from the BMW bike dealer at the Finglas exit of the M 50 so I head there - I bought the bike new there some time ago but would not be a regular customer.
The sales guy tells me the work shop guy would be up in 5 minutes & he was - I put it to him that a quick scan might be a good move but he says he might be able to squeeze me in late in the evening. The welcome felt like that a fart would receive in a space suit so I decides to press on for a friend's house near Sallins but as I circulated the M50 the word Platinum entered my consciousness. Had never been there but the guy posts here & people have said kind things about him so I give him a buzz. An enthusiastic voice assures me he could give me a few minutes & when I arrive the owner of the voice does his stuff - during which he mentions it might be the servo but he had not seen my exact symptoms before.
When I said I checked most of the lights I did not check the tail light - very clever boy me. Unbelievably it turned out to be the source of the problem. Mark fitted a new one cleared the fault code & a lap of the car park showed all in order. A modest fee changed hands & I ventured for the back roads of Wicklow, then Carlow & Kilkenny & Laois & more with no triangles - except for the fuel one that I know how to fix by inserting some fuel.
Day saved - thank you Mark - top flight Platinum customer service - greatly appreciated - a resounding victory over the main dealer.
My 05 1200GS is closing in on 130.000 Kilometers & nothing serious has needed replacing - some minor & niggling stuff but nothing that tainted the relationship. I have a nagging fear that the electronic brake servo may pack up - they do & are not cheap. I decided last Sunday to head for Co Meath to see the parents; my Da is 90 & is not as strong as he would like so he generally has a few jobs lined up.
Approaching my Sunday destination the blown bulb symbol comes on on the dash - I have HID's fitted & that wee symbol occasionally lights up so I've learned to ignore it. Generally it is the wee parking light under the headlight that needs replacing. The yellow warning triangle also illuminated constantly so I did pull in & checked most of the lights & all was in order so completed the journey with the yellow triangle but everything else operational.
The Da had a full agenda for me, so I got stuck in & occasionally thought of the bike but did not take time out from digging, hauling, chopping & stuff like that. I carry a GS911 diagnostic thingy but recently changed my phone & did not download the app - clever boy me. After a days hard labour under the Da's supervision he produces a bottle of Jameson last night & we put a hole in it so no poking around with the bike happened at all & anyhow its a non flashing yellow triangle & sure everything was working - yeah I'll have another drop.
A good night's sleep saw me on the road @ 8.30 - no hangover but my yellow non flashing triangle is replaced by a flashing red triangle. This has happened occasionally - pulling in & switching off the ignition & restarting has always scared the red triangle away but not this time. I had a fully functioning front brake but only residual (no) braking on the rear.
I had a full day's exploration of back roads in south Leinster mapped out & this was worrying. My nagging fear nagged very loudly so I pull in & check that the hand guards are not fouling the levers & that there are no bits of road furniture lodged somewhere crucial. Nothing noted except that the servo was constantly on even when no levers were pulled or pressed. Front brakes still OK but the thought of the servo running all day & all the other nasty imaginings were putting as cloud over a remarkably cloudless day in a meteorological context.
By now I was half way to Dublin & not far from the BMW bike dealer at the Finglas exit of the M 50 so I head there - I bought the bike new there some time ago but would not be a regular customer.
The sales guy tells me the work shop guy would be up in 5 minutes & he was - I put it to him that a quick scan might be a good move but he says he might be able to squeeze me in late in the evening. The welcome felt like that a fart would receive in a space suit so I decides to press on for a friend's house near Sallins but as I circulated the M50 the word Platinum entered my consciousness. Had never been there but the guy posts here & people have said kind things about him so I give him a buzz. An enthusiastic voice assures me he could give me a few minutes & when I arrive the owner of the voice does his stuff - during which he mentions it might be the servo but he had not seen my exact symptoms before.
When I said I checked most of the lights I did not check the tail light - very clever boy me. Unbelievably it turned out to be the source of the problem. Mark fitted a new one cleared the fault code & a lap of the car park showed all in order. A modest fee changed hands & I ventured for the back roads of Wicklow, then Carlow & Kilkenny & Laois & more with no triangles - except for the fuel one that I know how to fix by inserting some fuel.
Day saved - thank you Mark - top flight Platinum customer service - greatly appreciated - a resounding victory over the main dealer.
that called him as I was on my way over with my leaky gear box seal. Top marks to Platinum 
. Arse!
