Rebuilding a 2007 R1200GS Adv

[jimmystewpot]

Hi All,

I am currently looking at doing a full rebuild of my 2007 R1200GS Adv... After 150,000miles.. While the engine is still running well I want to tidy it up so that it's good for another 150k as I plan to continue my travels next year.

So with that in mind I am looking for some advice on what to look out for, what I should focus on if there are any area's that need extra attention etc. Basically any all round advice would be really appreciated.

Regards,

Jimmy.

 

[Farmer Palmer]

150'000 miles on a GSA......!

Hi Jimmy,

Wow.....It's great to see a 1200GSA with that sort of mileage and still going well, what an example.......!

With 150'000 miles on the bike I think you should be the one giving us the 'advice' on here........

Can you give some details of any of the problems you've had with your bike and what parts you've had to replace over the years and what it's like cosmetically although that's less important if you've not been riding on salty winter roads.

FP.

 

[GS TRV]

lets see a pic

 

[TeaPig]

Obvious thing is the FD, if that's original you are either very lucky or ride very gently.

We're almost in unknown territory here, the Yanks on Avdrider put in your sort of milages and are more likely to offer relevant info.

However, if you are determined to carry on then it's all the basic stuff any high milage engine should be checked for in a rebuild: cam timing to check cam chain stretch, piston ring gaps, piston to bore clearance, valve in valve guide wobble to estimate wear, valve seats and valves for pitting and then, if you are keen, plastiguage to check main bearing and big end clearances.

Then gearbox, bearings and selector fork wear.

Throttle body wear, are the butterfly pivots worn?

if it rotates, slides or jiggles about it can wear, measure and check against specs

I think you'll find it'll probably be good for many more miles but if you do find a bunch of problems itll be cheaper to buy another bike than rebuild, but of course that's not the point cos you love it.

 

[patzx12]

take care of the cosmetics and a full service. leave whats working correctly alone.
if it aint broke dont fix it.

 

[Rob Farmer]

What a fantastic opportunity to get some much needed high mileage knowledge into the 1200 section.

The first thing is to at do a compression test on the cylinders. Cheap, easy and non intrusive. This will give you a health check on the state of your valves and piston rings. I suspect that at 150k the rings are going to be pretty worn. Does your bike use oil?

If you re ring and have new valves and guides theres no reason why the engine wouldn't do another 150k it's usually the gearboxes and final drives that let rip at some point. You could carry out preventative maintainance and have the gearbox overhauled. Cheaper and easier to do it at your leisure than have it fail while your riding the bike.

 

[MikeO]

take care of the cosmetics and a full service. leave whats working correctly alone.
if it aint broke dont fix it.

Exactly

 

[Red Rock]

You may find this useful!

 

[trainman]

Hi All,

I am currently looking at doing a full rebuild of my 2007 R1200GS Adv... After 150,000miles.. While the engine is still running well I want to tidy it up so that it's good for another 150k as I plan to continue my travels next year.

So with that in mind I am looking for some advice on what to look out for, what I should focus on if there are any area's that need extra attention etc. Basically any all round advice would be really appreciated.

Regards,

Jimmy.

the new RIDE mag, just out, has a strip down of their R1100, 100k miler, maybe of interest and after a quick scan seems to be in good nick bar the clutch and a cam lobe, even if you dont strip the engine some checks in these areas are possible and could be done

 

[Pukmeister]

If you have run the engine on good quality lubricants, changed (with new filters) at the correct intervals, and the bike has been ridden with a little mechanical sympathy, I would expect it to be in pretty good shape internally save for a little camchain stretch and piston slap. I would also expect cold-start wear to be less on a bike ridden in Aus compared to a northern european model.

I would be looking to get the shock absorbers refilled with oil and gas and the internal seals replaced, or maybe just fit replacements such as Wilbers or Ohlins. Then check all suspension linkages for wear and replace as necessary if any play is found, especially the rear swing arm bearings which can need tightening or replacing if internally worn/corroded. Also consider fitting new disks and pads if there is any wear close to or outside of tolerances. That should sharpen up the handling, which is probably less than its best after high mileage, although you tend to adapt your riding to the bike so don't notice the slow deterioration.

Cosmetics include a good scrub and clean up, repaint or touch up as required to maintain corrosion protection and keep it looking nice. Polish the exhaust headers if you feel inclined. Check all electrics work, tyres are good, luggage mountings tight etc. Jobs a good 'un.

 

[jimmystewpot]

Hi Jimmy,

Wow.....It's great to see a 1200GSA with that sort of mileage and still going well, what an example.......!

With 150'000 miles on the bike I think you should be the one giving us the 'advice' on here........

Can you give some details of any of the problems you've had with your bike and what parts you've had to replace over the years and what it's like cosmetically although that's less important if you've not been riding on salty winter roads.

FP.

The first two years the bike was in the U.K. I then rode it home to Sydney.. before the warantee expired I got all the corosion fixed so that's not a problem.

Prompting the rebuild....
1. The bike's starting to burn a little more oil than normal.. 500ml per 500km or there abouts. Not ideal when I do a fair bit of long distance riding around the Australian country side.. sourcing bmw oil is a pain so I have to bring it with me. Extra weight on the dirt tracks out in the sticks makes riding less fun..
2. When the engine is cold it sometimes sounds like it's got loose bolts around inside the heads when I start it.. I've checked the clerances etc and everything seems good.. random noise scares me. Possibly related to point 1.
3. I've been plagued by random cut outs.. (see previous posts). the bike starts again perfectly fine and I can continue riding.. If the tank is lower than half way on the gauge then it's a problem above half way no cut outs... I've had several experts look at it with no success and replaced the pump.

Apart from that I've followed the service interval exactly as stated.. Some of the things I've had..

Prior to leaving the UK.
1. Heated grip failed
2. Corrosion on the front of the engine, tank, rear hub/axle.
3. All the recall/Safety notice bits.

Post UK and Various trips.
1. Random Cut outs.
2. Increased oil burning.
3. Battery Failure (at 3 years on the original)
4. Broken spokes.
5. rear shock/suspension assembly was proactively replaced as it was starting to feel scary.
6. Front end paralever bearings replaced.
7. all the regular service interval stuff.
8. the fuel pump controller things three times on the recall and to do with the cutting out which only stared once it was replaced the first time.

I've done the 20,000 km service every 15,000km's i.e. replace all the spark plugs, alternator belt, gear oil, engine oil. I did the clutch at 57,000km and again at 120,000km.

Riding Style
All my international travels have kept the speeds fairly low (generally cruising at around the 80-90km/hour range).. gives me time to react to any crazy drivers, cows, pot holes and enjoy the scenery. I wouldn't say I ride like a grandma.. but i wouldn't say I thrash the bike either. I prefer a relaxed pace. The plan is to do Africa in 2014-2015 (fingers crossed).


After being in the UK I am used to saying Miles, it's actually 150,000km as I had the speedo set to km when I left the UK.

 

[Pukmeister]

I have to ask, why are you sourcing BMW oil? (Here we go again.....)

When I lived in WA in 2007/2008 I did regular oil changes with the very easily available 20W50 oil from Caltex servos etc and supermarkets, I just wish a decent grade of 20W50 was as easy to find in the UK, we seem to live on 10W40 here due to the climate.

 

[Andy B]

RiDE magazine has an article in this month's edition on stripping its 1100 boxer engine down at 100k which might be worth checking out!