'05 R1200ST - broken driveshaft u-joint

[RANBUSH]

I went out to ride my '05 R1200ST last month and heard a lot of clattering when I let the clutch out. The bike has about 90K on it, and I thought it might be time for a new clutch. I started it taking it apart last week and saw that the front u-joint on the driveshaft had broken.

I can't figure out where or when the u-joint broke, I didn't feel or hear anything when riding. At least the bike got me home, thank you Motorcycle Gods.

The Clymer manual says there is a circlip that holds the drive shaft onto the transmission output shaft, and you can pry the driveshaft off with a bar or large screwdriver. Since the front u-joint is broken, I don't have much to pry against.

Do I need to remove the swingarm to get the broken u-joint out?

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[Omega Man]

Never done one on a Hex/cam. Pretty sure that the U-joint has/had been going bad for some time.
From the reading here on the forum, pretty sure it’s whole driveshaft time.
Good luck.
OM

 

[lkraus]

You need to remove the swing arm to remove the shaft, or to install a new one. The ST uses the same swing arm as the RT, and the transmission end of the shaft is too large to pass through the arm (unlike a GS/GSA). I would not bother trying to pop the shaft loose from the transmission until the arm is off.

Be thankful the broken shaft did not destroy the swing arm.

 

[RANBUSH]

> Be thankful the broken shaft did not destroy the swing arm.

Amen, thanks again to the Motorcycle Gods. I was lucky to find the problem in my driveway, as opposed to Bum FXXX nowhere on a hot Sunday afternoon!

Thanks for the replies, everyone.

I answered my own question and pulled the swing arm. Popped the broken u-joint piece off with a long tire iron. Since I'm in this far, at 90K+ on the bike I figger I might as well do the clutch too.

I'm sending the drive shaft to MSI in Green Bay. Based on other messages here, their $260 rebuild could be a better solution than Ted Porter's $760 option, or the BMW OEM $1100 option. I'll let you know how it goes.

Now if I can just remember to whoever I loaned the excellent R1200 repair CDs from Jim ?

Thanks again for the replies.

 

[mikegalbicka]

PM me if you can’t remember and want to borrow mine.

 

[Visian]

Be thankful the broken shaft did not destroy the swing arm.

And be thankful that you didn't get dumped on your butt. I had an acquaintance who was killed due to a failure almost exactly like that.

More knowledgeable people than me can tell you how to monitor the condition of your drive shaft and rear drive unit. This is something you should do regularly after learning how to "feel" the onset of problems.

 

[Omega Man]

That much wear should be easily detected with the rear wheel off the ground and rotating the wheel forward and backwards.
Continuous forward “tension” would help mask the noise until catastrophic failure. There is a chance that rolling down a grade with the engine off, in neutral, would produce a suspicious noise concealed by the running engine.

OM

 

[brownie0486]

> Be thankful the broken shaft did not destroy the swing arm.

Amen, thanks again to the Motorcycle Gods. I was lucky to find the problem in my driveway, as opposed to Bum FXXX nowhere on a hot Sunday afternoon!

Thanks for the replies, everyone.

I answered my own question and pulled the swing arm. Popped the broken u-joint piece off with a long tire iron. Since I'm in this far, at 90K+ on the bike I figger I might as well do the clutch too.

I'm sending the drive shaft to MSI in Green Bay. Based on other messages here, their $260 rebuild could be a better solution than Ted Porter's $760 option, or the BMW OEM $1100 option. I'll let you know how it goes.

Now if I can just remember to whoever I loaned the excellent R1200 repair CDs from Jim ?

Thanks again for the replies.

I didn't take that chance and replaced my 11RT's drive shaft with Porters rebuildable. My mechanic has installed a few dozen on other motors with the Porter shaft and reports excellent quality with some bikes having 50K on them with no issues. Instructed to relube the shaft components every 20K.

GL with the rebuild from MSI

 

[RANBUSH]

> I'm sending the drive shaft to MSI in Green Bay.

Update: I got a call back from MSI, he says they can't rebuild this drive shaft. Not only did the u-joint break, but he says both the yokes are twisted too. He was surprised that I didn't feel any vibration on my last ride.

Apparently this shaft got so hot that the plastic seals melted and whatever grease was left in there went away, the metal got super hot, and broke/twisted. Once again, thanks to the Motorcycle Gods that I got home.

MSI says that BMW uses OEM "forever lube" u-joints but after awhile, the grease dries out. This bike is an '05 w/ 90K miles on it, so now I know how BMW defines "forever".

So it looks like it's Ted Porter time for me.

 

[brownie0486]

> I'm sending the drive shaft to MSI in Green Bay.

Update: I got a call back from MSI, he says they can't rebuild this drive shaft. Not only did the u-joint break, but he says both the yokes are twisted too. He was surprised that I didn't feel any vibration on my last ride.

Apparently this shaft got so hot that the plastic seals melted and whatever grease was left in there went away, the metal got super hot, and broke/twisted. Once again, thanks to the Motorcycle Gods that I got home.

MSI says that BMW uses OEM "forever lube" u-joints but after awhile, the grease dries out. This bike is an '05 w/ 90K miles on it, so now I know how BMW defines "forever".

So it looks like it's Ted Porter time for me.

Bad news is it's destroyed beyond repair, good ness is Porter rebuildable is an option besides an new OEM from BMW

 

[Omega Man]

Update: I got a call back from MSI, he says they can't rebuild this drive shaft. Not only did the u-joint break, but he says both the yokes are twisted too. He was surprised that I didn't feel any vibration on my last ride.

Apparently this shaft got so hot that the plastic seals melted and whatever grease was left in there went away, the metal got super hot, and broke/twisted. Once again, thanks to the Motorcycle Gods that I got home.

MSI says that BMW uses OEM "forever lube" u-joints but after awhile, the grease dries out. This bike is an '05 w/ 90K miles on it, so now I know how BMW defines "forever".

As expected. It's not a BMW thing on "forever lube" turning or rotating parts. Very few vehicles have provisions to grease a driveshaft, ball joints, steering linkage or ball joints as they did back say 20-25 years ago. Anyone remember bringing in their car for oil, filter and LUBE?
To see a fairly expanding ability to lube front end parts it starts with class 5 through 8 trucks- or heavy equipment. Done properly, greasing where there is fittings can substantially increase the life of the moving, rotating parts along with the knowledge on how to successfully complete the greasing.
I greased one of my machines Monday- 25 grease fittings. My ATV has 16 grease fittings where most ATV's have none. I really depend on my Lincoln Power grease gun.
From what pictures I have seen of the Ted Porter driveshaft, I think you will be good to go. I wonder if the supplied shaft has a grease fitting. Perhaps a concave fitting in the center of the "cross" greased with a pointed tip grease fitting adapter?
Good luck.
OM

 

[oldcamper]

In all seriousness, I wonder how a Honda Goldwing driveshaft differs from the BMW design. I put nearly 200k on one, and the driveshaft was never a concern.
Could the older, non-paralever BMW driveshafts make it to 200k?

 

[RANBUSH]

Yep, it's Ted Porter Time.

The pics on Ted's website show zirc fittings on their driveshafts, and circlips to pop the u-joints out if you need to. Price is +/- $900 including the two rubber boots plus shipping. Still cheaper than BMW OEM, and a LOT cheaper than getting tossed from the bike and a hospital stay.

 

[pauls1150]

OldCamper - not necessarily... my '91 K100LT ate two driveshafts by 50,000 miles. Grrrr!

 

[oldcamper]

OldCamper - not necessarily... my '91 K100LT ate two driveshafts by 50,000 miles. Grrrr!

I really don’t understand it.

Motorcycle enclosed driveshafts and u-joints are well protected from the elements. They are not exposed to rain and dirt, road salt or -20 temperatures like car driveshafts, so one might expect them to last even longer than a typical car application.

FWIW, used Goldwing driveshafts on eBay look very similar to the one in my old /5, with a spring loaded shock ramp and a single u-joint. But Goldwing shafts and u-joints never seem to fail. There’s over 400 listings for “Goldwing driveshaft” today on eBay, but they don’t appear to be much in demand, with several available for around $30 or so. I wish I could have purchased a good used driveshaft for my airhead for $30 back when I needed one!

 

[pglaves]

I really don’t understand it.

Motorcycle enclosed driveshafts and u-joints are well protected from the elements. They are not exposed to rain and dirt, road salt or -20 temperatures like car driveshafts, so one might expect them to last even longer than a typical car application.

There at least two key variables, and maybe more than those. First, the angular deflection of the universal joints is usually much greater than on car/truck driveshafts. Where 4 wheel vehicles have greater angular deflection they use CV (constant velocity) joints. The angles on BMW GS driveshafts are particularly troublesome.

Second, the power pulses from a twin (two cylinder) engine are much more pronounced than from a 4, 6, or 8 cylinder motorcycle. This pulsing puts greater stress on both spline connections and universal joints.

 

[brownie0486]

In all seriousness, I wonder how a Honda Goldwing driveshaft differs from the BMW design. I put nearly 200k on one, and the driveshaft was never a concern.
Could the older, non-paralever BMW driveshafts make it to 200k?

Not being a gear head, I couldn't begin to guess. But I don't see it makes much difference, I ride two BMW's. I knew many of the quirks those various motors have and bought them anyway.