BMW R1200RT/R1250RT Forum

Hi, I have just got my R1200RT which I bought privately, as usual the previous owner described the bike as perfect with no issues, however, I have noticed a few, 1. Smell of oil when the engine is hot. There are no obvious signs of a leak but there is a distinct smell of oil, there are no oil stains on the garage floor after being parked for a few days, the level is fine so it may be a weep form a seal anyone else have experience of this? Issue 2, left indicator sometimes won't come on, then works fine for a while, not sure if it's a bad switch possibly dirty contact?
3. The bike appears to have a noisy clutch, a bit of a rattle coming from the clutch area, I know the clutch is a dry one, is there a component in the clutch that is prone to failure?
So I know I should have noticed some of these issues on a test ride but unfortunately I didn't as I was pushed for time as I had to catch a ferry to France the next morning, I rode the bike home which was around a 620 mile journey so this was the real test ride!!


Thanks in advance for your input.
cheers

Edit - sorry, I didn't spot that you have a 2005 bike. Please ignore this post

1.  Smelling hot oil when there's no sign of an external leak or drop in oil level is a strange one.  I would be tempted to wash the bike thoroughly, to remove any residual oil and keep an eye on oil level.


2.  If yours is a 2005 bike the left indicator switch is 14 years old and may need to be replaced, or perhaps a squirt of WD40 would do the trick ?


3.  The dry clutch on the 2005 RT shouldn't be particularly noisy or rattly, has the bike done a lot of miles ?  I can only suggest trying to compare it with other similar bikes, or take it to an "expert" who might be able to advise.


Other than the indicator problem, you don't mention having any other issues on your 620 mile ride home, so hopefully there's nothing seriously wrong with your new purchase !  ;D

The indicator switch will be on its way out, I had the same thing on my '06 RT. I bought the switch itself on eBay - look at item no. 171118893728 on eBay UK, that's the switch behind the indicator paddle. It's a faff getting the switch off the bike as the cable runs all the way from the handlebar and then under the tank to the ECU, so it's plastics and tank off time. Having said that, it only took me around half an hour to get everything off - there's lots of cable ties to remove too! I sent my complete switch off to an electronics repair place - he dismantled the unit (the connections at the switch end are covered in a sort or resin that needs grinding out), fitted the new switch and charged me £30 or so from memory.

Of course, you could buy a used unit, but it might only last a week! And don't put WD40 in it! You could try a squirt of electrical contact cleaner though, it helped mine a bit, but eventually it failed altogether.

Regarding the clutch, they are quite noisy compared to a wet one, and it's made worse when the throttle bodies are a bit out of balance - that sets everything rattling more than usual, soit's worth making sure the engine's ticking over as smooth as possible first.
Pete

gogs01 wrote: 1.  Smelling hot oil when there's no sign of an external leak or drop in oil level is a strange one.  I would be tempted to wash the bike thoroughly, to remove any residual oil and keep an eye on oil level.


2.  If yours is a 2005 bike the left indicator switch is 14 years old and may need to be replaced, or perhaps a squirt of WD40 would do the trick ?


3.  The dry clutch on the 2005 RT shouldn't be particularly noisy or rattly, has the bike done a lot of miles ?  I can only suggest trying to compare it with other similar bikes, or take it to an "expert" who might be able to advise.




Other than the indicator problem, you don't mention having any other issues on your 620 mile ride home, so hopefully there's nothing seriously wrong with your new purchase !  ;D

Thanks for the replies chaps, the oil smell is still there after a thorough wash, I think I need to remove all the bodywork to investigate further, indicator is more annoying as the chap I bought it from described at length how good the indicator system was compared to other bikes, but no mention of the fault until I asked him about the issues when I got home, he said 'oh yea it's an intermittent fault that never really bothered him' he also said there was a very slight weep of oil from a seal, but he's not sure where as his mechanic apparently told him it was not a repairable item. Honesty was not the sellers strong point, I can't really confront him now that I'm back in France, the bike has covered 28000 miles so would have thought that the clutch should last longer unless it's something else

Is it quieter with the clutch lever pulled in?
Pete

I too had an oily smell on my old 2005 RT which I finally traced to a worn/ill fitting O ring on the oil filler cap. New O ring fitted-no more smell!

milleplod wrote: Is it quieter with the clutch lever pulled in?
Pete

thanks, yes I think it's quieter with the lever pulled in, I put the bike on the centre stand and when I put it in gear and rev the engine it's quite noisy from the clutch/gearbox area, but again there is no load on the engine as the wheel is spinning freely so not a true comparison to running on the road.

chappers2a wrote: I too had an oily smell on my old 2005 RT which I finally traced to a worn/ill fitting O ring on the oil filler cap. New O ring fitted-no more smell!

Thanks for the reply Chappers, the oil seal on the filler cap appears fine, it smells like a little burnt oil around the engine, as I said earlier the guy that I bought it from has now said that the bike had an oil weep from somewhere but he conveniently can't remember where it's from, I said to him a weep is an oil leak no matter how you try to dress it up! Anyway too late to take it back, possibly try my best to speak to an independant specialist near Toulouse if I can translate properly.

Chattan wrote: thanks, yes I think it's quieter with the lever pulled in, I put the bike on the centre stand and when I put it in gear and rev the engine it's quite noisy from the clutch/gearbox area, but again there is no load on the engine as the wheel is spinning freely so not a true comparison to running on the road.

You really, really shouldn't do that!! When on the centre stand, the joints at either end of the shaft are at extreme angles, causing stresses they were never meant to be put under. The angles theyre at will make it all sound horrible too!