Replaced Batteries In the Oilhead .

[Bob_Roller]

I replaced the two batteries on the oilhead yesterday .

Starter operation was starting to get slower .

Batteries had been installed for 30 months in the bike .

That's about the average service life for batteries in this suburb of hell I call home !!!

I've also had some unusal starting issues the last 6 months, bike would not want to start on the first attempt  and often died after a few seconds .

New batteries solved this issue .

Had the batteries tested yesterday and at best they would keep a 45% charge .

So, any oilhead owners out there, keep this in mind if you get some odd engine issues and your battery is getting old .

These bikes are also prone to have engine running issues with old / faulty ignition leads .

[Justin B.]

Is your's an ex cop-bike?  My RT-P had two but now only one AND it now has a rear seat!  8-)

[Tony Smith]

These bikes are also prone to have engine running issues with old / faulty ignition leads .

Yes I have discovered that. I've also discovered the price of genuine and pattern replacements. Ouch!

On a related note, I hope the BMW engineer who designed/approved the so-called "tool" for removing plug caps has his undies infested with the fleas of 1,000 camels - a more useless thing I have never paid money for!

I consulted the internet and now have a couple of cable ties with the "tang" cut off so that they are removable - slip over plug lead, slide down to plug cap - pull.

[Bob_Roller]

No Justin, I got my R from a dealer new in August, 2002, year end clearance .

It's a non-ABS bike and I put the second battery where the ABS module would be .

Tony, I was a bit surprised about the cost of two ignition leads as well and they were not OEM replacement parts .

I'm going to replace the spark plugs this weekend a local auto parts store has Bosch platinum plugs on sale for less than I paid for the factory Autolite copper plugs .

I checked my maintenance log for the bike and these plugs have been installed for 50,000 miles, 80,000 km .

I really don't remember the sparkplug lead removal tool being a hassle to use, but I will report back in a few days . 8-)

[Tony Smith]

Tony, I was a bit surprised about the cost of two ignition leads as well and they were not OEM replacement parts .

The plug leads, with cap are GBP 48.50 EACH from motobins, or around $100 each in $AUD.

The "correct" sparkplug for my single spark is a weird twin electrode thingy form NGK.  I couldn't find any locally and then bought a box of 24 at a good price from a UK seller. I happened to mention that purchase to someone I know who has an experimental class light aircraft - suddenly I have lots of new friends as these plugs are specified by Rotax.

The other bit of fun I've had recently is to make my own coding plug to tell the GSA that it is drinking 91 Octane (RON) and not the 95 Octane it was coded up for by some idiot. I borrowed a friend's GS-911 and as I suspected the Lambda sensor is throwing faults, I have a Bosch "universal" sensor on order to replace it.
 
My GSA's previous owner has fitted a secondary "chip" that allows for trimming the mixture, I am trying to get rid of it so the new code plug is actually for 91 octane, no cat. i suspect the PO fitted the chip as the mixture would have leaned out considerably when the cat and restrictive muffler were replaced (it now wears a stainless steel cat replacement and a Remus muffler).  I dislike add on chips at the best of times, I believe that BMW put enough flexibility into the system so that I can get it running OK without the piggy back chip.

Any insights you have will be appreciated.

[Justin B.]

If they are just standard plug wires I feel a visit to Aircraft Spruce for some wire and NGK ends is in order.  Be luck you don't have the twin-spark model.  My RT had the misfortune of "iffy" upper coils which caused all sorts of rideability issues.  I finally had to break down and replace them at over $100/ea.  What is it with BMW and coils, anyway?

[Bob_Roller]

The wires on a single plug oilhead, are deep reach leads .

http://www.euromotoelectrics.com/Ignition-Wire-Set-BMW-R-Oilhead-BMW-WSR641OE-p/bmw-wsr641oe.htm

You're kinda stuck with getting premade leads .

I replaced the leads on my oilhead in 2008, cost $55 for a set , now, $75 a set .

The dual output coil is located at the top of the engine under the fuel tank .

I've got the original coil, 15 years and 65,000 miles, no issues so far .

The ' stick ' coils of the later oilhead bikes were well known for causing issues .

[Bob_Roller]

Performed a valve adjustment and spark plug change  today.

Oh, by the way, it was 110 F this afternoon !!

On the use of the ignition lead removal tool that is in the bikes tool kit, the lead came off the first time on the left cylinder, two tries were required on the right cylinder .

The leads had been undisturbed for 12 years .

This bike has 4 valves per cylinder, one exhaust valve and one intake valve had the clearance close up a few thousands of an inch, the last time I checked the valve clearance, was 48,000 miles, 78,000 km ago .

The sparkplugs were installed at the time of the valve adjustment and needed replacement .

[Bob_Roller]

I had an oil leak after doing the valve clearance check, I pinched the cup seal that goes on the valve cover for the spark plug hole, I got covered in oil on the right side by the time I got to work, 11 miles .

When I put the ignition lead on the spark plug, I used some dielectric grease on the lead, the lead came off using the tool in the tool kit with no issues after I did this .