Suspension Warranty

[pjstingray]

Bit of a shocker really - excuse the pun.

As my warranty on a 2011 GS has just run out, I was sent an option to renew the warranty for a further 12 months. When reading the small print, I discovered that BMW will not cover the suspension past 30K. This does not give you much confidence in this area, especially as a friend just had his fail at less than 15K, totally messing up a Pyrenean holiday.

How many cars would manufacturers sell at £15K+ if people knew that major components would fail at around 30K, and they weren't prepared to warranty them? It's not like it is a cheap fix - easily over £3K if front and back fail.

I thought the fact that having to have a new gearbox on my X5 at 50K was bad enough (no warranty). Can anyone make anything bullet proof nowadays?

Cynic and grumpy old man. PJ

 

[Nice 'n' Fat]

How many miles has your bike done?

 

[Blobby]

The shockers is mainly why I extended my 2011 GSA warranty and I'm glad I did as I've had two rears and one front ESA shocks replaced under warranty in under 30k miles. When I renewed my extended warranty for a second time and the bike was over 30k miles I asked if the warranty would cover the shocks and they said yes, because they'd already been replaced by BMW under warranty so the warranty would restart from the day the shocks were replaced. I hope it is that simple if my shocks fail again, but I'm not convinced albeit I assume the insurers record their telephone conversations so all the info is there. If they fail and the insurers refuse to pay, I'll change to Wilbers.

 

[birdseye]

shock absorbers in cars are consumeable items. they wear out which is why they are checked at the MOT. And those on a bike lead a much harder life.

no, nothing is bullet proof. wheres the profit in that?

 

[Bendy toy]

Wheels and suspension are a much bigger percentage of the vehicle weight on a bike than on a car. Also most cars are workaday tools that just need to smooth out the road bumps.

Car makers therefore use lower precision parts that will run adequately for more mikes than they ever can on a bike.

Anyone expecting bike shocks to run untouched for 30K and behave as new is heading for a disappointment. Wilbers require their units to be serviced every 12K miles.

BMW missed a trick by not servicing their bike shocks - more £££s for them.

BMW shocks can be serviced/rebuilt and really should be done at least every 15K. There are many specialists who will do the work. Leave them to fail and they will probably be beyond repair.

 

[TLSgazza]

My rear leaked at 29,600 miles, another 400 miles and it would have cost me a fortune, I haven't renewed the extended warranty this year for the first time since I bought it in 2008. Mostly because of the stuff that's not covered anymore and because I've had the rearshock, final drive and shaft drive replaced already in the last 2 years.

 

[pjstingray]

My bike has just done 10K - I guess I am just a little overwhelmed by this news about rear and front shocks. The truth is, after 40 years of riding, I have generally only done about 3K-4K a year, spread over several bikes and changed bikes when the mileage got close to 20K. I just enjoy riding the GS so much, having had all types of sports and naked biked bikes in the past, that I have now done 8K in the first year. Guess the maintenance cost will reflect this passion. On the up side the car has now only done 3K between MOTs.

Also my Harley has just covered 21K in 9 years and have been told I have to have the cam chain tensioner replaced, so I guess there will start to be bills there as well now. No bills at all in 21K apart from servicing and tyres.

 

[Bendy toy]

Assuming nothing fails due to external damage (e.g. pitted piston stem or blown seal) shocks generally fail because the damping oil loses its formulation and eventually clogs everything up. Leave it too long and the shock is scrap value. The oil content is low yet its doing a very tough job, so servicing the shock every 12K makes a lot of sense.

Send the shocks to one of the suspension specialists (plenty discussed on GSer). They will degas, strip the shock change the fluid and replace anything that's wearing abnormally. They fit a gas filling valve so that next time the job is a bit easier.

Alternatively, replace with Wilbers (if its ESA) or any other brand if not. The ££s cost is higher than simply servicing the OEM units, but the bike will be much nicer to use and the shocks are designed to be serviced every 12K.

 

[Pukmeister]

The oil content is low yet its doing a very tough job, so servicing the shock every 12K makes a lot of sense.

Send the shocks to one of the suspension specialists (plenty discussed on GSer). They will degas, strip the shock change the fluid and replace anything that's wearing abnormally.

I recently spoke to MCT who say the stock oil used isn't all that, and just a change for the improved quality fluid they use will transform the damping let alone the strip/clean/rebuild involved. Gonna get my ESA units done later in the year.

 

[Dazlove]

The shockers is mainly why I extended my 2011 GSA warranty and I'm glad I did as I've had two rears and one front ESA shocks replaced under warranty in under 30k miles. When I renewed my extended warranty for a second time and the bike was over 30k miles I asked if the warranty would cover the shocks and they said yes, because they'd already been replaced by BMW under warranty so the warranty would restart from the day the shocks were replaced. I hope it is that simple if my shocks fail again, but I'm not convinced albeit I assume the insurers record their telephone conversations so all the info is there. If they fail and the insurers refuse to pay, I'll change to Wilbers.

I don't believe this is the case. The BMW warranty only cover the shocks to 30k. Any work or part fixed by BMW is usually covered by a 2 year warranty. On my old 1150 I was having the rear bearing replaced approx every year. This made me think ' I'll never have to pay again!' But the small print is, they only cover items you have paid for. ie in terms of your shocks, they will replace up to 30k, but since you have not paid for that, they are still only covered to 30k. Therefore if you have multiple failures up to 30k then they will replace them, as many times as required until the bike passes that mileage.

FYI, I have a 2010 TC with 74k. The original rear shock was replaced at 30k under warranty. The replacement then started to play up around 60, but even though I have extended the warranty, the shock is not covered. Since this now appears to be an annual 30k item I started to look at other alternatives which culminated in me having a set of Wilbers WESA fitted yesterday.

Regards

Dazlove

 

[Bendy toy]

I've put off getting my ESA units overhauled because I was going to have WESA fitted. But that's a lot of cash, so I will be getting them rebuilt before they fail. £200-300 is a lot better than £1300 though Id prefer the ride quality of the WESAs. Who wouldn't.