BMW R1200RT/R1250RT Forum

Some funny idea,s on this thread , anyway i have had no problem with my shift -pro on my 2019 RTLE up or down i just close the throttle slightly and it seems to operate very well and i do not operate the clutch .

Spoke to BMW today. My bike won't start in first gear with the clutch in and side stand up. I was aware of the micro switch in the side stand but that there is also one in the shifter (I guess this is how the bike knows that you are intending to switch gear if the clutch is left in). Perhaps these two problems are related? In anycase I am hope to go out tomorrow for a ride and will try the preloading technique.

NLC wrote:Perhaps these two problems are related?

Probably not, the gear indicator potentiometer is the gadget on the gearbox which then displays the gear position on the dash.

For my education, does the shift assistant pro unit replace linkage #1.



Looks like is does in this photo.

NLC wrote:My bike won't start in first gear with the clutch in and side stand up. I was aware of the micro switch in the side stand.

The switches do look rather cheap & nasty. If that little peg breaks, the switch doesn't know what position the stand is in.

David. wrote: For my education, does the shift assistant pro unit replace linkage #1.

Yes it does.

I have tried to solve this mystery for four years on my 2016 RT LC! Like most, I have the same issues. Shift assist up works great 3-6 and down 6-2. 1-2-3, not so much. Actually, I have found a few things that do make it better. First, it works great when the engine is cool. So the first few shifts at the beginning of your ride or if the bike is running in cooler weather. Once the bike warms up, the low gear upshifting gets clunkier. I used to always use the pre-load technique until I read here on a post long ago that some said they never used that so I tried not using it and found that it's pretty much the same either way. Recently I have found two things that seem to help at least a little: Shifting at lower RPM's on 1-2 and 2-3 and also with less load (pull) on the engine. The final thing I've noticed is that I get my best shift assist when I strictly by 'feel'. If I don't look at any gauges and just shift when the bike 'feels' like it should be shifted, I seem to have the best luck in those low gears. The second I try to quantify it by looking at my speed or RPM's it gets clunky again! Go figure.

Had my 2016 LC from new and its got about 22000 miles on it now.  My experience is similar to above: It is pot luck on the upshift, especially on lower gears (although if you are using upshift on WOT in the lower gears then maybe you've bought the wrong bike...).  As mentioned above it's all about feel and I find the best upshifts are from 3rd upwards when the bike is pulling significantly, 4-6k rpm, and not necessarily on WOT.  Downshifts are pretty flawless, just keep the throttle shut.