A Hello and Im looking to buy my First R1200RT

[odiethedog]

Evening all..... I've been wanting a R1200RT for quite some time now but only recently really started looking as I'm due some £££ soon.
Anyhow I've visited 2 garages so far and loved both bikes on offer but speaking to the sales man got some good advice and worked out what was missing from both deals so on the hunt.
Basically I've read some posts about the common corrosion issues and the maybe the faulty switches but apart from that is it pretty much as straight forward as the norm, Good history and paper work, Good condition, bla bla bla??
I was also told by one of the garages (A BMW dealer) that before they take them in they hook them up to the computer and check how the bike has previously been rode? and the Mileage checks out and any warranty works been done..... All this being great and I know as long as the work was done at BMW the system would pull the service and warranty up form the rag not the bike but I thought surely These bikes don't record how a bike was rode or the millage anywhere else other than the dash?
I kind of thought that might be a ploy to make me buy from BMW so that all the above checks could be done.
Also just thought id say Hello, and cant wait to start riding again.

[guest2360]

Everytime the bike is plugged in its info is transferred to BMW in Germany. This included any faults the bike has registered and all work the dealer carries out including any warrant work and parts fitted.  This info is available to the dealer through their system. As for how its been ridden.  Not a chance

[odiethedog]

Everytime the bike is plugged in its info is transferred to BMW in Germany. This included any faults the bike has registered and all work the dealer carries out including any warrant work and parts fitted. This info is available to the dealer through their system. As for how its been ridden. Not a chance

Well I am impressed. Correct me if I'm wrong though, I get the faults could show up but surely the BMW mechanic has to manually input what work was done and parts were fitted? I thought that how its been ridden was a step to far. The ones I've been looking at for example ate sub 20k miles and for my own piece of mind I will be getting BMW to service it as soon as I collect it no matter where I buy it. So is the mileage something recorded on the bike and sent the Germany once its plugged in? I'm just wondering if its recorded on more than one place that the dash shows one thing and when I get top BMW they say actually this has done 40k. I know its a gamble with anything you buy but I suppose its a good thing if its recorded on the bike somewhere but if its just the clocks well that's just the risk you take buying used!

[guest2360]

The mileage is recorded from the dash each time its plugged in.  So I can see no way a bike could be (clocked) without it showing up.  In the past I have had an instrument cluster replaced and the mileage is transferred over from the old one. If you buy from a BMW dealer you don't need to worry as it takes them 5 minutes to trace any history back to its first registration.

[Steve F]

Hello odiethedog and welcome to the forum! Ditto on what RTman10 has said re the mileage on used Beemers bought through a dealer network. Good luck with the quest!!

[Yakkerboy]

Odie,


I have a '11 and I love it. There have been some minor issues that were either handled under warranty or recall but nothing major. I do find that the cruise control cuts out when it is above 85 degrees F. The service shop (a good one) says they will figure it out next summer. The bike handles great. I wanted a sport tourer and spent a year researching before I settle on the RT. Haven't regretted it yet

[Our Gee]

Everytime the bike is plugged in its info is transferred to BMW in Germany. This included any faults the bike has registered and all work the dealer carries out including any warrant work and parts fitted.  This info is available to the dealer through their system. As for how its been ridden.  Not a chance

We had horredous idle (tickover) problems with our previous RT, a 2008 Hexhead. This problem dragged on for nearly two years. My dealer was great as where BMW, even arranging to have the bike road tested by their own Technician from BMW UK. Everything was changed (and I mean everything including the ECU) at BMW's expense.
After what turned out to be the most frustrating period I have ever experienced with any vehicle I "paid" for another dealer to carry out checks which involved checking BMW's system to see just what had been done before. Very little of the previous work or parts replacement where recorded on the system. That's not to say that parts had not been changed as I had been told, as I'm 100% sure they had been. In the end I gave up and part exchanged that bike for our Twincam which ticks over beautifully !!. My point is that in my experience the system is fallible.

[guest2360]

With warranty, what's not recorded in the bikes history is not paid for by BMW, parts or labour, so I wonder.