I was out on my 1100GS yesterday . When in 4th and 5th accelerating the engine felt as if there was no power , as if the engine was just spinning. I stopped the bike and pulled away in second and third and it was pulling ok . If i tried to pull away in fourth engine was slipping. Is my clutch on its way out ? Had a new one fitted at 30,000 miles ago . Plate fitted only , false economy as ive read on here. My bikes a 1997 with 96,000 miles on it .Any help would be appreciated.would a dodgy pivot pin bearing cause this ??
1100 gs maybe clutch
- Thread starter ynotbiker
- Start date
how hard is it to pull the clutch lever ?
If you only replaced the plate last time around it may well be the clutch again. Before starting down that route check the cable is adjusted properly and the lever is not fouling against any handguards etc. Also the bonding between the 2 sections of the driveshaft can fail giving similar symptoms. It doesn't always do it but if you peel the rubber boot back on the final drive and look up the tunnel where the driveshaft goes it can sometimes have little bits of black rubber spattered around the inner housing.
I'm not trying to be condescending here but, you might want to get someone with a better mechanical appreciation/understanding to have a look at what is going on with your bike.
Thanks for the replies, cable is fine the way it has always been, nice and stiff. I have looked at driveshaft and it is clean as a whistle. i Have just been out again and done a few overtakes in fourth and its just not pulling the way it used to. First and second all seem fine. When on throttle overtaking,its as if the power just disappears a bit, lots of noise from the engine but no real power but just enough to get me out of trouble. Thanks for the help
am not mechanical minded mate thats why am asking on the site for ideas before i start paying out.
I realised that, hence my comment.
If the clutch is slipping then pulling away in 2nd, 3rd, 4th is a sure fire way to fek it up altogether.
The cable shouldn't be stiff, maybe that's why your new clutch is fubbared after a mere 30k miles.
I wasn't suggesting paying out anywhere, I meant get a mate who is more mechanically minded to have a look at it
ThreeDawg
Registered user
Yeah, clutch pull is pretty easy on these bikes. If it's the clutch you are much more likely to notice it at full throttle in 4th gear. If you wind it on and it feels like you're not going as fast as the revs would suggest, rolling it off a bit and seeing if the clutch catches up might confirm it.
yes thank you think you are spot on there.
If you have no free play on the clutch arm on the back of the gearbox your clutch will slip. The crucial adjuster (13mm locknut, 10mm adjuster bolt) is on the clutch arm at the back of the gearbox
clutch has been fine for 30,000 miles. Only started to slip last week and must have been all parts weren’t fitted to the clutch. Been to bmw today, wish i was mechanically minded, a hole in my pocket for £1200.got to be done love the bike 
Surely you will have an independent BMW spannerist up there local to you? Get him to check it first and do the job if needed.
If it does need doing and the cable is the original one, I would get that changed too while the job is being done
ThreeDawg
Registered user
Yow! No chance of putting it in a van to an independent?
Don’t want to put names out there but it was an independent i used for the clutch last time. So really what would the saving be . It would be handy if Steptoe was round the corner but it’s a long way to go to the smoke from here. I’m going on a long trip to Greece on it for my sons wedding. I do get a 2 year warranty off BMW . I’m beyond caring about money, this bike is part of me . Would there be a big saving anyway . Thank you all for your help. I’m 62 now and I’ve looked at other bikes . Just sold a 1200gs twincam, mint but it just didn’t do it for me. Hopefully the money i’m spending on this bike it’ll last till i’m in my box . Don’t think an £18,000 bike could do it for me . This one just does it all.
Not if they hear about you pulling away in 2nd, 3rd and 4th
I still regret selling my 1999 1100, had it from new. Replaced it with a new 2014 LC ADV and regretted it soon after.
lol that was just a test paul see if i could lift the front wheel
ThreeDawg
Registered user
1100s are worth it. I spent 600 odd doing the clutch on mine last year and double that on servicing and upgrades this year. I fully expect it to keep going until the world runs out of petrol.
There’s a good independent guy at York. Paul @ The Workshop.
thanks for that steve been intouch nice fellow £800 carnt fit me in until 5 weeks time might just have to bite the bullet with bmw
I have been back in touch with Paul from York, he will be doing other work on my bike also and will be lending me a bike to get home as it is 85 miles away. So i will be going down this road, thanks again Steve for the heads up.
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