Another FPC failure
I am now a fully fledged member of the Knackered FPC Society! I've had my 1200GS for 3 years and covered 21500 miles (the first 1500 were done by the previous owner). In that time I have enjoyed fault free riding across Europe and Morocco. But last weekend my FPC gave up. Fortunately I had only gone 2 miles from home when it went pop. Unfortunately, the pub it happened outside was closed and I had to push the damned thing home.
The failure was caused by something burning out in the unit - I removed the rubber sealant and found a big black burnt out patch (I took a photo, but at the moment can't be bothered to download it!).
I was going to take the bike to Chester Motorrad, but the symptoms seemed to fit with other descriptions on here - riding along as normal when the engine just cut out and wouldn't restart. So I ordered a replacement FPC and fitted it within 5 minutes and hey presto! The old unit wasn't sitting in water although there was some dirt in the recess suggesting that water had got in previously.
I'm now going to buy a spare FPC to stick in the top box just in case the replacement gives up the ghost. I've also got a spare ring antenna just in case. My faith in the BMW brand has taken a serious denting, but hopefully that'll be the end of this little episode.
So here's the details:
When: Saturday 2nd May 2009
Where: Outside the Bull at Shocklach, Malpas, Cheshire
Name: Paul Jennings
Bike: R1200GS (2004) - 22500 miles on the clock
Remedy: new FPC fitted by yours truly
Days lost: 9 days
Incidentals: New FPC cost £67.54 plus £8 P&P from Chester Motorrad (unit was on the shelf).
Tim - thanks for taking the time to collate this data. I hope it is all worth it in the end. And thanks for your Morocco threads - they certainly made my trip last October easier.
Cheers,
Jenkins.
