Poor Quality Paint Finish

[JJ Jeremy]

My GS 1200 is 16 months old with 20k. Ridden year round but jet washed down regularly, especially after salty outings, and Scott spray used through winter. Paint work on the cylinders is blistering, and an area just in from the break pedal on the main engine casing looks like a layer of lamination is lifting.
My previous Bike a GSA 1200 after one year and 18k had its main frame replaced under warranty due to rusting on one side,plus the main stand being replaced also due to rust. Once again the bike was washed down regularly, and well looked after. Honest Guv! I have to say, that whilst I love these bikes I do think their finishing in my experience anyway really let them down. Am I over expecting and would any bike riden year round through British winters suffer to some degree. I had a Triumph Tiger for 2 years before the GSA and never had a any Paint work issues? I would like to hear from anyone that has had similar experiences. I am getting the issues looked at by the dealership and am confident parts will be replaced under warranty but thats not really the point in my view. maybe I'll just have to buy a Kwaka or Yamaha in the future. I gather they are bullet proof.

 

[bmmonty]

Paint issues

Dont count on it being done under warranty.

My was in at NOG today and all the issues were turned down by BMW cos they think its not been washed and looked after properly.

Valve cover both flaking
Rear wheel peeling of at centre
Rear diff and centre tube finish gone.
Engine cover black paint coming off
Its an absolute joke.

Bike is a 58 plater RT

It seems that some poeple get it done and some dont and also they are clamping down on this stuff.

I have mates of mine who have got it done and some who havnt it seems hit and miss and thats what really stinks.

Howard Gadolfin is the man who says yes or no.

£13000 bikle one year old and Im told I dont wash it enogh and therefore its not a valid warranty claim.

Apart from the few bits that are going the rest of the bike is tidy and I do look after the bike but I like to ride it too.

 

[Canuck]

97' 1100 GS (silver engine) ... no rust anywhere except three spokes on the front rim

04' 1150 GSA (black engine) .... one fleck (1/4 of a pea size) of rust on rear subframe where it must have been scraped (now cleaned and removed) and about a 1/8 of a 5 pence piece of furring on back side of final drive unit. Right side engine bar has a spot (2pound coin size) of rust... I left the paint on the road somewhere along with a few mm of my rocker cover!

Ridden all year around, ACF50 coated (literally, about 3/4 of a can per bike) in late october! I know what I'd be buying if I were you come Halloween this year

 

[Paul Wakefield]

and also they are clamping down on this stuff.

I suspect this is a consequence of holding prices down despite the exchange rate decline.

I think you are right that they are clamping down as those are things which would have been covered in the past.

04' 1150 GSA (black engine) .... one fleck (1/4 of a pea size) of rust on rear subframe

You're lucky. My 2000 1150 turned into a very nasty mess despite tlc.

 

[snerkler]

I have an opinion on this matter. I think it disgraceful that Bike manufacturers are allowed to get away with this. We wouldn't accept it on a car so why should we expect it on a bike. You can run a car all year round and never wash it (if you so choose) and it won't corrode, or sholdn't, and if it did you have anti corrosion warranty.
I think regardless of whether you wash your bike regularly or not, and whether you use Scottoiler (or similar) or not, bike manufacturers should provide an anti corrosive warranty. £10800 base price for a bike that if not treated with kid gloves will corrode is a bloody disgrace

He slowly steps down from his soap box

 

[red1]

Started this thread earlier this week about my 08 RT

http://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php?t=222002

Any more out there that have similar issues with bikes still under warranty?

If so PM me.

 

[GSband]

...
I have an opinion on this matter. I think it disgraceful that Bike manufacturers are allowed to get away with this. We wouldn't accept it on a car so why should we expect it on a bike.
...

You're not alone on this one.

 

[Engineer]

I have an opinion on this matter. I think it disgraceful that Bike manufacturers are allowed to get away with this. We wouldn't accept it on a car so why should we expect it on a bike. You can run a car all year round and never wash it (if you so choose) and it won't corrode, or sholdn't, and if it did you have anti corrosion warranty.
I think regardless of whether you wash your bike regularly or not, and whether you use Scottoiler (or similar) or not, bike manufacturers should provide an anti corrosive warranty. £10800 base price for a bike that if not treated with kid gloves will corrode is a bloody disgrace

He slowly steps down from his soap box

Look under the bonnet of a car after a couple of Winters and see how much cosmetic corrosion there is - if bikes had bonnets then they would look just as shiny after a couple of Winters - it is just a fact of life that if you want to keep your bike looking good then you have to wash the salt off.

 

[thornley]

Not new subject. I bought a R1100rt in 1998. Front fork slider and bridge replaced under warranty at 9,000 miles and 16 months. All my bikes are kept in very clean condition and hosed off asap in winter months. I'm told modern environmentally friendly paints and coatings simply can't stand up to northern european winters (salty roads) if not treated with extreme care

Funny though my Audi A6 almost 3 years old (38k) has no problems with it's paint finish and it's used as a family bus and probably cleaned every couple of months. If it's possible to get paint to stick to the bonnet of a German car and not bubble and peel why can't it work on German bikes?

 

[original_concept]

As thornely says. Nothing new here, the link below shows my old 1998 R1100S. Now you'll understand one of the reasons why BMW use a plastic alternator belt cover these days.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/48279185@N04/

 

[Stonker]

I don't know why but still people will keep buying them

 

[red1]

I don't know why but still people will keep buying them

I think I've now learned my lesson

I'll probably go back to the Pan 1300 or maybe try an FJR.

 

[JJ Jeremy]

97' 1100 GS (silver engine) ... no rust anywhere except three spokes on the front rim

04' 1150 GSA (black engine) .... one fleck (1/4 of a pea size) of rust on rear subframe where it must have been scraped (now cleaned and removed) and about a 1/8 of a 5 pence piece of furring on back side of final drive unit. Right side engine bar has a spot (2pound coin size) of rust... I left the paint on the road somewhere along with a few mm of my rocker cover!

Ridden all year around, ACF50 coated (literally, about 3/4 of a can per bike) in late october! I know what I'd be buying if I were you come Halloween this year

Thanks for this. I believe the reputation for Build quality was consdierably higehr for your year of Bikes than the more recent ones? With ACF 50 once covered di you just leave it unwashed all season , or clean regualaryly and if so did you replace the layer of spray. I have often thought about covereing my Bike with Scotoil and then letting the dirt and grim build up, on the protective layer, but always fealt it was a gamble.

 

[zoltan]

Dont count on it being done under warranty.

My was in at NOG today and all the issues were turned down by BMW cos they think its not been washed and looked after properly.

Valve cover both flaking
Rear wheel peeling of at centre
Rear diff and centre tube finish gone.
Engine cover black paint coming off
Its an absolute joke.

Bike is a 58 plater RT

It seems that some poeple get it done and some dont and also they are clamping down on this stuff.

I have mates of mine who have got it done and some who havnt it seems hit and miss and thats what really stinks.

Howard Gadolfin is the man who says yes or no.

£13000 bikle one year old and Im told I dont wash it enogh and therefore its not a valid warranty claim.

Apart from the few bits that are going the rest of the bike is tidy and I do look after the bike but I like to ride it too.

Strange, apart from the wheel I had the same problem on my RT( paint bubbled) with the components you mentioned. Vines replaced the lot ,work was done during service so the cost was minimal . My bike was on extended warranty from BM , it states that corrosion is excluded . Yet Vines got approval from BMW . On a year old GSA that I had , corrosion on the wheels was deemed as owners fault , replacement wheels was refused. I am on my 3rd 1200 RT and only one had corrosion issues.

 

[JJ Jeremy]

Look under the bonnet of a car after a couple of Winters and see how much cosmetic corrosion there is - if bikes had bonnets then they would look just as shiny after a couple of Winters - it is just a fact of life that if you want to keep your bike looking good then you have to wash the salt off.

I did and do wash my bike down after riding in salt and clean the bike regularly, coating it in Scotoiler. I have also had the winter cleaning package provided by my dealer at the start of the season and add to that with my own elbow grease. I have all the latest lotions and potions for cleaning, and am pretty fastidious about cleaning, Bikes, cars you name it. In fact my wife thinks I should be admitted!

 

[Canuck]

Thanks for this. I believe the reputation for Build quality was consdierably higehr for your year of Bikes than the more recent ones? With ACF 50 once covered di you just leave it unwashed all season , or clean regualaryly and if so did you replace the layer of spray. I have often thought about covereing my Bike with Scotoil and then letting the dirt and grim build up, on the protective layer, but always fealt it was a gamble.

I gave it a good coating with ACF 50 (I literally sprayed everywhere I could (except brakes and discs and seat and handlebars; paintbrush for the spokes and bits I couldn't really get adequate coverage when spraying), then that was about it. I gave it a squirt with water last week as I was going to give it a service... and I had about a 1/4 inch worth of mud covering most bits. All of the silver bits look brown but probably at the end of next month I'll get some muck-off and give it a proper wash before applying the last of the can of acf with a cloth. I wash it more in the summer... maybe once a month. A can only costs what, a tenner or something so I don't use it sparingly.

With that said your 1200 is very different so maybe you can't just spray absolutely everything with all that plastic everywhere... mind you I'd probably just spray it anyway except where I came into contact when riding (i.e. tank, seat etc). Hell even my boots got coating from the gear changer!

 

[Nice 'n' Fat]

I have an opinion on this matter. I think it disgraceful that Bike manufacturers are allowed to get away with this. We wouldn't accept it on a car so why should we expect it on a bike. You can run a car all year round and never wash it (if you so choose) and it won't corrode, or sholdn't, and if it did you have anti corrosion warranty.
I think regardless of whether you wash your bike regularly or not, and whether you use Scottoiler (or similar) or not, bike manufacturers should provide an anti corrosive warranty. £10800 base price for a bike that if not treated with kid gloves will corrode is a bloody disgrace

He slowly steps down from his soap box

I think you are confusing anti-corriosion warranty (which I don't believe exists) with anti-perforation warranty which all car manufacturers offer.

Anti-perforation means a hole or corrosion has to appear from the inside out so a stone chip that causes corrosion under the paint is still not covered.

I have a 1200 GSA with 21000 on the clock and nothing that BMW supplied has corroded. I fitted a crud catcher after 6 months and the front cover behind it is still like new. The bike gets ridden all year round and gets washed off regularly then sprayed with FS365. I'm very happy with it

 

[David Nimrod]

I have a 1200 GSA with 21000 on the clock and nothing that BMW supplied has corroded. I fitted a crud catcher after 6 months and the front cover behind it is still like new. The bike gets ridden all year round and gets washed off regularly then sprayed with FS365. I'm very happy with it

Seems like there's Good un's and Bad un's

Not much comfort if you get the crummy one

But of course the UK is a market for BMW, and the bikes should be durable enough to do well here...

Any bike will look great after five years in a salt free and dry environment, but that's not the reality of the situation here, if you ride all year round.

There's no mystery, a durable bike could be made if a). it cost more or b). they made less profit - somebody'll no doubt tell me I'm being naive, but that's the way I see it.

And in the light of many riders experiences noted here, I think that BMW are taking the p*ss somewhat.

 

[bod]

Look under the bonnet of a car after a couple of Winters and see how much cosmetic corrosion there is - if bikes had bonnets then they would look just as shiny after a couple of Winters - it is just a fact of life that if you want to keep your bike looking good then you have to wash the salt off.

Spot on! Take a look at your car's brake caliper's or discs, or any part underneath - salt will kill anything!
My Last bike was a Honda, and it suffered just the same as the GS, if not looked after!

Scottoiler FS365 or ACF50 is the only way any bike will survive a British winter with it's looks intact!

 

[zoltan]

11.03.2010 13:07 Top-Topic
BMW Group posts positive earnings for 2009 Profit before tax up by 17.7% to euro 413 million +++ Unchanged dividend of euro 0.30 per share proposed +++ Reithofer: Profitable volume growth targeted for 2010 +++

Now that the accountants are happy , maybe the paint quality will improve