Additional Maintenance – Services for BMW GS Bikes Explained
Over and above the general routine service, annual or as required, there are a number of additional work offerings to keep your bike in tip-top condition and to keep the service history up to date. These services are to be done as required or as suggested – time or mileage intervals as detailed by the BMW Motor Corporation and or Raging Bull Cruiser & Adventure.
Alternator Micro V-Belt
This is only applicable to the air-cooled range of bikes and needs to be inspected for damage either by age or dust and sand/water that enters the belt-covered area. In order to inspect the belt properly, all the surrounding engine guards, crash bars and lights, etc. need to be removed first, as the belt cover sits behind all of them. Due to the difficulty in checking this, it is usually something that gets left for later and eventually, it may be too late.
Valve Clearances
Very important and also often overlooked. If these are not set right, you will either have a noisy engine or one that doesn’t run smoothly, especially when cold.
Air-cooled bikes have normal adjustable tappets, while all the LC bikes have shims that need to be checked and or redone. Both tight or loose tappets have their own long-term consequences.
Swingarm
This is an item that needs regular attention and servicing when the bike is used in off-road, river crossing etc., conditions on a regular basis. The swingarm needs to be removed and the bearings should be checked and or replaced. Often these bearings are broken in pieces when removed. They are very exposed to water and dust, and rust.
Drive Shaft
This is a very spoken-about issue amongst BMW owners and or riders. On these bikes, just like a chain or a belt on other bikes, would need regular attention. The BMW shaft also needs to be removed, inspected, cleaned, lubricated, and replaced at regular intervals – roughly every 20 000km – depending on your riding style and whether or not you go on off-road excursions on a regular basis. If the shaft is not maintained properly or if it is not this regularly, you will end up replacing the shaft long before it’s really due. If the splines rust and become sticky, the shaft joints take strain and cause unwanted vibrations.
Battery & Charging System
Once again, if this is overlooked and you end up riding with a battery that is past its replacement date, you will end up with a damaged alternator and or regulator. The bike needs to ride and run on its battery (12.5 volt or more) and the charging system should only keep the battery well charged. If the battery is bad, you will end up with an alternator that overworks all the time, and it will fail prematurely.
Brake & Clutch Fluids
Over time, and usually as a result of washing with high-pressure cleaners, the brake and clutch fluids get contaminated with moisture. If this moisture mixes with the brake or clutch fluid, it becomes a thick, messy paste and can’t do its job right. At our workshop, we test for moisture with a proper tool, which indicates green for fine, orange for it’s time to look at this, or red if the brake fluid is really bad.
Usually, and especially on the air-cooled range of GSs with servo-assisted brakes, the ABS braking system will get damaged, and it’s almost an unaffordable situation to repair. You will need to replace the ABS brake pump of the bike and then redo the entire system. We highly recommend that the brake fluid be kept up to date with good fluids, and the clutch hydraulic fluid be replaced regularly.
If your GS is a 2004, 2005, or 2006 model and it has servo-assisted brakes, the brake fluid flush and bleed with all relevant electronic and diagnostic updates should only be done at an authorised BMW dealership. All other models are done here in-house.
Brake Pads
This is something normally properly checked during routine servicing and will be reported on if required. A worn set of pads can result in having to replace a disc prematurely, which is expensive and unnecessary, not to mention very dangerous.
LC Bikes – Anti-Freeze
In summary, if you own an LC bike, you will need to have the radiator flushed and cleaned every so often, as the anti-freeze also gets old and can’t do its job properly. Much like fork seals and shock absorbers leaking, this needs to be done or checked if there is a leak present or at your discretion over time.
Ball Joint
During the routine servicing, the ball-joint and or rubber seal is inspected.
Tyre Pressure Monitors
the tyre pressure monitors are checked for proper functionality. We will report and check the condition of the internal non-replaceable batteries and report as required. When the batteries start to deteriorate, the monitors have a delayed action before they start to display on the dash; the longer the delay, the worse the batteries are. In good condition, these monitors should display the pressures within 100m.
Tyres
Your tyres are also something that you, as a rider, should inspect regularly for wear and tear and please remember that tyres have an expiry date. This is usually 5 years or close to that.
Fork Seals & Oils
The forks on these bikes are really only dampers as the shock that does all the work, sits in the centre. The dampers have a small amount of oil in them which needs to be replaced every 20 000km or if and when the dampers start to leak oil. Generally as soon as they start leaking, the oil escapes fast. The fork seals are also protected by dust seals which often perish and crack. Once this happens, water gets to the seals and retaining clips after which they start to leak.
Let us help you keep your bike reliable and safe at all times.
EXHAUST MODIFICATIONS – LEAVE IT TO THE EXPERTS
Best performance exhaust for BMW GS Adventure Bike Range.
ATTENTION BMW GS RIDERS IN THE VAAL
Maintenance is now on your doorstep. Good news if you live in or around the Vaal Triangle and you ride a GS, you can now have it attended to, serviced, repaired, tuned, etc. right here in Vanderbijlpark.
SAC Raging Bull is now also specializing in all things BMW GS Adventure – Your One Stop GS Workshop.
MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE
Email us for advice on this one, rather be safe than sorry.
