R1100rs 1994

Hello guys, girls.

I am about to make a move on a 1994 R1100RSL in white color. The bike has 86K on it, apparently its had its clutch and tranny replaced about 15K miles ago. Im a high mileage rider, so id be putting on about 2000 miles a month or so. He says it has typical wear, some knicks and scratches, lost paint in spots, rusty bolts. Seems to be typical BMW style, as my F800ST with 83K was chipping paint on the engine, had rusty bolts, all of that.
Ive heard the bike is pretty sweet. Then others say its bad due to the gear box going.
The previous owner had it since 96 i think he said. Hes a mechanic so he did all the work himself, except for the clutch and gearbox replacement. He said the splines looked good and were lubed to spec 15k ago when all that was replaced.
Im hoping the bike will take me another 80K or better, without any serious issues.

Anyone have anything to say about this bike, or any pointers when i go and look at it?
I spoke to some previous owners of the same type of bike who really liked it. They told me to rag the engine in every gear, really get on the gas to see if it slips from gear.
The owner said it has come out of gear from time to time, but blames it on weak gear shifts.

Thanks in advance guys.

ask Voni, as she's put "a few" miles on her RS of same/similar vintage (except she & Paul are on the road right now)
actually, the fact that the trans has been replaced is a VERY good thing, as the first year trans had some "issues", fully resolved with a later year upgrade/replacement.
AndyVH??

I have a spare R 1100RS

I just recenctly picked up a (very very very cheap) 94 with around 50,000 on the clock. Its complete and runs like it should, typical chips and the ABS will be removed due to poor maintenance and existing problems. Oh and the steering stops are knocked clean off, and possible frame tweak. I may strip the bike down for a parts machine or grab the parts for a salvage bike. I am looking at prices for a RTP solo set up prior to offering the drivetrain and surprisingly slightly scraped body-work.

cool, thanks guys!

I love my 95 RS. I'm 6'3" and didn't like the way I had to lean forward and put so much weight on my shoulders. I got some bar-backs to move the handlebars back towards me about 1 1/2" and found a Bill Mayer saddle on this flea market. The factory seat is the most uncomfortable seat I've ever used. The only worry I have now on long rides is keeping it close to the speed limit.

Certainly, the 94 RS is a great bike, especially if the tranny has been replaced already. It'll still shift like a John Deere tractor. But once you learn the bike you'll do fine with it.

The 94 RS shifts best if the clutch is kept adjusted exactly to factory specs, it helps to have the clutch splines properly cleaned and coated with the right grease. In my bike I only use synthetic 75W90 GL5 gear oil, to which I add a pint of NAPA Differential Friction Modifier. Seems to help the shifting action a bit.

I "only" have 147,000 miles on my RS now, with 87,000 miles on the 96 spec tranny thats in it, and it works great! I just rebuilt the throttle bodies using the Bing TB kit, and its running smooth again. Yeah, these past few years I have replaced things like wheel bearings, driveshaft, upper/lower ball joints on the Telelever front end. But its been paid for, for well over 12 years now. So it is a very inexpensive bike to keep up. I probably will have to plan another clutch job at about 200,000 miles, so I have a long ways to go yet.

axlray13 said:

I love my 95 RS. I'm 6'3" and didn't like the way I had to lean forward and put so much weight on my shoulders. I got some bar-backs to move the handlebars back towards me about 1 1/2" and found a Bill Mayer saddle on this flea market. The factory seat is the most uncomfortable seat I've ever used. The only worry I have now on long rides is keeping it close to the speed limit.

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I am 5'10" and likewise did not like the forward position, but was advised to try it for a month before buying barbacks. I did and never bought the barbacks. That was 30,000 miles ago. I love it.

Superduper:

You would want to very carefully check out the work that was done on the transmission, and who did it, before pulling the trigger. What you're looking for is that has been brought up to 1997 spec by someone that knows what they're doing.

Knowing that this bike's transmission comes out of gear from time to time, I'd give it a miss and save myself a whole lot of time.

The whole transmission saga is written up on Anton Largiader's site.

thanks.

the owner does not have records of the service done. He said he purchased the bike in 1997, and he was the one who had the tranny and clutch replaced, by a defunct shop in south florida he said. I talked to the folks at the lauderdale dealer, and they didnt know which shop, possibly one that was in w.palm. Ill have to find out more on what year he had that done, i could only imagine it was post 1997.

so i purchased the bike.

It seemed like a pretty good deal and the bike rode well on my test ride. I rode around for about 40 minutes. The suspension needs redone, for sure. Ive been researching and it seems that the actual forks shouldnt need anything done to them as long as they are not leaking, am i correct?
Front and rear springs seem to be pretty much shot, looking into replacing them.
I put on the gas through all gears as much as i could on the roads. Never slipped out of gear, and still has not. I do notice that with the clunky gear box, its pretty harsh shifting down to 2nd.
Im wondering, should i watch how/when i downshift to 2nd? and is it alright to use engine braking a lot? Im used to using it all of the time from my F800, but with just a single plate dry clutch, is that not good?
Im still getting used to using the clutch as it is a bit different from the wet multiplate ones.
The engine has great power. He said he had the cylinders honed and piston rings replaced and valves redone at some bmw san jose shop.
I do notice that the right cylinder movement seems to be pronounced compared to the left. you can hear the piston "thud" i guess you could say. Didnt seem like too big a deal, as im used to the "piston slap" that my F800 had.

He has a techlusion box in there, however it seems to be an older one, as it does not look like the ones on the site. It has just a white sticker on the front. Who knows how to make adjustments to that, and im tempted to hook up the stock brain. As i do feel the surging here and there. I need to take it to get the TBs synced and maybe a valve job. I hear the valve jobs are pretty simple, but im not sure about the TBS.

The brakes work fine, however the front rotors are pretty beat, they are moving all over making noise and what not, i dont like it, but they work well. I was wondering if the 94 RSL had linked brakes? Id rather it not, but it looks like it might with all the different wires going around. ABS works fine.

I need to go through and check all the fluids. id like to flush all of them and refill.

I picked it up for 1700, so im alright with that, even though its not perfect. It rides well for the work it needs.

I was also wondering how bit the fuel tank was on the 94RS. It says that this one was popped out of the factory 10/93.

I dont even want to get into the cosmetics. The plastics are MOSTLY okay, but the screws holding everything together need work, and some of the holes on the panels are gone, so i gotta do something about that. Gotta scrub off some rust here and there, on a bunch of screws. Well see how it goes.

Good for you, enjoy the bike and glad that you got it cheap. But this comment:

"The engine has great power. He said he had the cylinders honed and piston rings replaced and valves redone at some bmw san jose shop."

Interesting. My 94 RS has 148,000 miles on it now, and I have never been in the engine other than valve adjustments, and recently installed the cam chain tensioner update (you may want to do that to). The "slap" noise you hear is likely related to the can chain tension. My bike has great smooth power, no smoke, decent fuel mileage, steady idle, NO surging (ever). I have heard of Oilheads easily going over 200k with little or no internal engine work.

Other noises common to higher mile RS oilheads is the "thuk, thuk, thuk" from the RH side at idle. With the engine warm and running at idle, reach around the RH throttle body and press the throttle cable cam plate up or down. If the "thuk" sounds stops or diminishes, you have a worn throttle body shaft. Bing makes a repair kit for that. I just did it on my RS and now the idle is smooth and quiet again. With 86k on your RS, and depending on how good the previous owner kept up on the TB adjustments, that RH TB shaft could be very worn.

Shocks? Certainly shot on your bike about 50k miles ago. Now everyone is different, and I used to think expensive replacement shocks were a bunch of wasted money. That is until I put some custom built Wilbers on my RS. WOW!! Do a search on shocks on this forum and you find many responses. Now considering what you paid for the bike, $1400 in custom shocks is almost the value of the bike. If you plan to ride and really enjoy it though, it may be worth it. At least a decent set of rebuildable Hagon shocks would be a good purchase.

You gotta get a workshop manual. Haynes has one. Some comments:

Superduper said:

Front and rear springs seem to be pretty much shot, looking into replacing them.

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The springs might be OK, but the shocks within them are certainly toast.

I put on the gas through all gears as much as i could on the roads. Never slipped out of gear, and still has not.

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Good - sounds like the gearbox is in good shape.

I do notice that with the clunky gear box, its pretty harsh shifting down to 2nd.
Im wondering, should i watch how/when i downshift to 2nd? and is it alright to use engine braking a lot?

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The gearboxes are clunky. As you learn to move the throttle more slowly and precisely, you'll be able to match engine speed to your intended gear and shift smoothly...or at least some of us can. The 3 -> 2 shift is the toughest to finesse.

Im used to using it all of the time from my F800, but with just a single plate dry clutch, is that not good?
Im still getting used to using the clutch as it is a bit different from the wet multiplate ones.

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A single plate dry clutch engages more quickly than a wet, multiplate one - the engagement point is smaller. Because it isn't bathed in oil, dry clutches are way more intolerant of slipping. Learn to release the clutch within a bike length as you accelerate away from a stop.

I do notice that the right cylinder movement seems to be pronounced compared to the left. you can hear the piston "thud" i guess you could say.

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Perhaps the throttle bodies are not in sync. You can find instructions on the ibmwr.org site; there's a good one on the advrider site too.

The brakes work fine, however the front rotors are pretty beat, they are moving all over making noise and what not, i dont like it, but they work well.

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I don't know what you mean here. Are the disks' thickness within tolerance? They wear with use. The aluminum bobbins which mount the disks to the carriers wear too, and are usually all done in about 50K miles. If the bobbins are worn, the brakes rattle when the bike goes over bumps. I find that annoying.

I was wondering if the 94 RSL had linked brakes? Id rather it not, but it looks like it might with all the different wires going around. ABS works fine.

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No, the brakes are not linked.

Have fun!

$1700?! Nice!

Some good added points above. I totally forgot to mention the brake bobbins, or buttons, and I'm the guy that wrote the article in the April 07 ON about doing the change.

Yes, if the rotors are moving around a lot, which at 80k they likely are, then the bobbins need replacing. Easy to do yourself, about $100 in parts. You don't need to replace the rotors unless they are really warpped.

If the tranny was done within the 80K, hopefully the clutch hub splines were properly lubed, so that should no be an issue for maybe another 20k. The clutch itself, if kept properly adjusted, should go for another 80k.

ANDYVH said:

You don't need to replace the rotors unless they are really warped.

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Even if unwarped, I'd check to make sure that the rotors are still thick enough to be within the service limits.

thanks guys.
thats the word i was looking for, the bobbins being shot, as the rotors move all around on them. I was looking up the parts today, pretty pricey i must say. But the rotors do not seem to be warped, and seem to be quite thick still, ill have to measure.

I just won some used suspension off a 94RS from ebay, with like 30K on it. Not new or close to it, but i think it should def be an upgrade to whats on there now. just over 100 bucks for a front and rear.

Im gonna look into getting the TB sync done, possibly at the dealer, if not too time consuming.

The bobbins are a "must do" item. When I did the article on the bobbin replacement my bike had 100k on it, which is 50k over the recommended miles for the replacement. I measured some of the worn bobbins versus the new ones, and I did find measurable wear. Almost to the point, I felt, that under heavy braking some of the bobbins could collapse or shear. Now given that the 94 RS had 12 bobbins per disc its unlikely that all 12 would fail. But once one fails the load is left to 11, then 10, and the load per bobbin goes up quickly.

At a good shop the TB balance should take maybe 30 minutes, including time to remove and clean the air balance screws and ports. I do mine at home with my old mercury sticks.

Those shocks hopefully are better than yours at 80k, but most stock BMW shocks are worn out by 20k, damping wise. If they are rebuildable shocks then they are worth the bucks. Otherwise, well.

fair enough, thanks andy.

I just really am not liking all of the rust on the springs everywhere, and on the case of the shocks, so these will at least make me feel a little better for the time being.

Ill def. have to look into getting the bobbins done. Are there any after market sources for bobbins? or they all pretty much the same price range?

I was thinking about taking it to bmw to do the TBs, maybe trying to take the body work off before going in as i used to do. ill have to research the forum and read over the haynes to doing a valve job. seems to be easy to do, never got the chance on my 800.

I have noticed my last few rides that there seems to be more vibration than i think their should be. It feels like something isnt in balance. I was wondering about checking and adjusting timing. The manual says if you dont have the equipment take it to BMW, which i will probably do. Would that be a lengthy job by the dealer to perform and adjust?

how about flushing and changing gearbox, and final drive oils? thats one thing i would really like to do asap.

thanks guys