• Welcome, Guest! We hope you enjoy the excellent technical knowledge, event information and discussions that the BMW MOA forum provides. Some forum content will be hidden from you if you remain logged out. If you want to view all content, please click the 'Log in' button above and enter your BMW MOA username and password.

    If you are not an MOA member, why not take the time to join the club, so you can enjoy posting on the forum, the BMW Owners News magazine, and all of the discounts and benefits the BMW MOA offers?

  • Beginning April 1st, and running through April 30th, there is a new 2024 BMW MOA Election discussion area within The Club section of the forum. Within this forum area is also a sticky post that provides the ground rules for participating in the Election forum area. Also, the candidates statements are provided. Please read before joining the conversation, because the rules are very specific to maintain civility.

    The Election forum is here: Election Forum

Gearbox Imput Shaft Recall

Looks like the news was posted on the MOA forum before ADV-

Mike Botan / @Ride2ADV
1/26/2023

OM

Great that the owners get the word out but that leads to many questions. My link to the article (even has a link to events leading up to recall) is what MOA should be doing as soon as possible (Liason between us and BMW) that would benefit both parties. Does BMW have the fix yet? Is there a timeline for the dealers to start the fix? Not just sit back and let the forum spread rumors. That way you can make an informed decision as to riding the bike until recall is done. Maybe I am expecting too much from an organization I pay a membership fee to.
 
Great that the owners get the word out but that leads to many questions. My link to the article (even has a link to events leading up to recall) is what MOA should be doing as soon as possible (Liason between us and BMW) that would benefit both parties. Does BMW have the fix yet? Is there a timeline for the dealers to start the fix? Not just sit back and let the forum spread rumors. That way you can make an informed decision as to riding the bike until recall is done. Maybe I am expecting too much from an organization I pay a membership fee to.

Organizations like the MOA are not repair facilitators. Organizations usually try to help when nothing seems to be doing about a concern. BMW is on the problem and it looks like it has a plan. What is there to liaise about?
Nobody likes being involved with a recall. It takes patience to get through a recall.

OM
 
Great that the owners get the word out but that leads to many questions. My link to the article (even has a link to events leading up to recall) is what MOA should be doing as soon as possible (Liason between us and BMW) that would benefit both parties. Does BMW have the fix yet? Is there a timeline for the dealers to start the fix? Not just sit back and let the forum spread rumors. That way you can make an informed decision as to riding the bike until recall is done. Maybe I am expecting too much from an organization I pay a membership fee to.

IMO, that responsibility lies mostly with BMW and whether or not they want to use the MOA in that fashion, since the information would need to come directly from BWM. While I think it would add a benefit to provide recall and service bulletin information, this should only be done if BMW provides MOA with the information. IMO, providing incomplete or inaccurate information would be a disservice.

According to the ADV rider page, notification to the owners is on 3/10/2023, which i assume means they will mail out notifications on that date. Consequently, it appears that BMW is not ready with all the information to notify owners, but this is just a guess and I could be wrong.
 
For those who want to check if their bike is affected, you can go to the NHTSA recall website (URL: https://www.nhtsa.gov/recalls) and enter the entire 17-digit VIN at that location.

Here is what the NHTSA says about the recall:

"BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2019-2023 R1250GS, R1250GS Adventure, and R1250RTP motorcycles. In certain engine operating and riding conditions, the gearbox input shaft may become damaged or break, possibly resulting in a blocked rear wheel."

The interesting part of the website is the "associated documents" section which which provides many details regarding how BMW plans to fix the problems in the bikes.

Here are the URLs from that list:

6 Associated Documents
Remedy Instructions and TSB RCRIT-23V011-2024.pdf 127.828KB
Manufacturer Notices(to Dealers,etc) - Delivery Stop RCMN-23V011-4991.pdf 89.487KB
Miscellaneous Document - Chronology RMISC-23V011-6214.pdf 29.869KB
Defect Notice 573 Report RCLRPT-23V011-3383.PDF 215.236KB
Recall Acknowledgement RCAK-23V011-6351.pdf 645.221KB
Manufacturer Notices(to Dealers,etc) - Update to Stop Sale STOP230005 Recall: Reprogram R 1250 GS (K50), R 1250 GS Adventure (K51) and R 1250 RTP (K52) models has been published and replaces Delivery Stop STOP230005 RCMN-23V011-5187.pdf 28.036KB


Looks like the better URLs for "associated documents" are found in Post #4 of this thread...thanks to AKBeemer!
 
Last edited:
My bike was affected prior to delivery. The dealers have the software update available and the fix was apparently to flash the system with the new software.

Great that the owners get the word out but that leads to many questions. My link to the article (even has a link to events leading up to recall) is what MOA should be doing as soon as possible (Liason between us and BMW) that would benefit both parties. Does BMW have the fix yet? Is there a timeline for the dealers to start the fix? Not just sit back and let the forum spread rumors. That way you can make an informed decision as to riding the bike until recall is done. Maybe I am expecting too much from an organization I pay a membership fee to.
 
Looking at the NHTSA website, I found the Chronology of the issues which led to the recall. For those who haven't read it, here's the chronology as presented by BMW AG to the NHTSA:

"BMW R1250GS / GS Adventure / RTP Gearbox Input Shaft
Part 573 Chronology January 18, 2023

In October 2020, BMW became aware of a 2019 BMW R1250 GS in Italy in which a customer complained about a broken gearbox input shaft and a blocked rear wheel. Two additional similar complaints, in Italy and the Netherlands, in October and November 2020, involving 2019 BMW R1250GS models, were received. An engineering investigation was initiated.

A parts return program was implemented, and the gearbox input shaft supplier was contacted. Although it was noticed that the three customer complaint motorcycles were all produced in June 2019, a review of the supplier production process did not result in any finding. Lab analyses involving material property evaluations, x-ray, scanning electron microscope, and surface treatment examinations did not result in any findings. Initial analyses could not determine a root cause or systematic production anomaly.
In July 2021, a complaint involving a 2019 BMW R1250 GS Adventure in France, about a broken gearbox input shaft (but without a blocked rear wheel), was received. Further analyses were conducted, including a continuation of the parts return program, and additional supplier production reviews and audits. Various FMEAs were performed. Additionally, bench and road tests were conducted, including potential customer misuse riding scenarios. Further lab tests were performed involving force/torque applications, load change pulsations, x-ray, and dynamometer runs. The root cause could still not be identified, and the market continued to be monitored.

In June 2022, BMW became aware of an incident involving a 2019 BMW R1250 GS in the United Kingdom that resulted in a crash with injury. BMW intensified its investigation and analysis process, and in August 2022, BMW became aware of an incident involving a 2019 R1250 GS in the Czech Republic of a crash without injury. The analysis activities continued, including a review and comparison of engine, gearbox, and drivetrain design and operating parameters between the R1250 models and the prior generation R1200 models.

The engineering investigation concluded that in certain engine operating and riding conditions, an overload of the gearbox input shaft could occur, and result in damage to, or breakage of, the gearbox input shaft, and possibly result in a blocked rear wheel.
On January 10, 2023, BMW decided to conduct a voluntary safety recall."



Reduced to its essence, it seems that 6 incidents, which included one injury, led BMW AG to take this recall action involving 18,489 motorcycles.
 
Looking at the NHTSA website, I found the Chronology of the issues which led to the recall. For those who haven't read it, here's the chronology as presented by BMW AG to the NHTSA:

"BMW R1250GS / GS Adventure / RTP Gearbox Input Shaft
Part 573 Chronology January 18, 2023

In October 2020, BMW became aware of a 2019 BMW R1250 GS in Italy in which a customer complained about a broken gearbox input shaft and a blocked rear wheel. Two additional similar complaints, in Italy and the Netherlands, in October and November 2020, involving 2019 BMW R1250GS models, were received. An engineering investigation was initiated.

A parts return program was implemented, and the gearbox input shaft supplier was contacted. Although it was noticed that the three customer complaint motorcycles were all produced in June 2019, a review of the supplier production process did not result in any finding. Lab analyses involving material property evaluations, x-ray, scanning electron microscope, and surface treatment examinations did not result in any findings. Initial analyses could not determine a root cause or systematic production anomaly.
In July 2021, a complaint involving a 2019 BMW R1250 GS Adventure in France, about a broken gearbox input shaft (but without a blocked rear wheel), was received. Further analyses were conducted, including a continuation of the parts return program, and additional supplier production reviews and audits. Various FMEAs were performed. Additionally, bench and road tests were conducted, including potential customer misuse riding scenarios. Further lab tests were performed involving force/torque applications, load change pulsations, x-ray, and dynamometer runs. The root cause could still not be identified, and the market continued to be monitored.

In June 2022, BMW became aware of an incident involving a 2019 BMW R1250 GS in the United Kingdom that resulted in a crash with injury. BMW intensified its investigation and analysis process, and in August 2022, BMW became aware of an incident involving a 2019 R1250 GS in the Czech Republic of a crash without injury. The analysis activities continued, including a review and comparison of engine, gearbox, and drivetrain design and operating parameters between the R1250 models and the prior generation R1200 models.

The engineering investigation concluded that in certain engine operating and riding conditions, an overload of the gearbox input shaft could occur, and result in damage to, or breakage of, the gearbox input shaft, and possibly result in a blocked rear wheel.
On January 10, 2023, BMW decided to conduct a voluntary safety recall."



Reduced to its essence, it seems that 6 incidents, which included one injury, led BMW AG to take this recall action involving 18,489 motorcycles.

Thanks for the good information.

E.
 
I received this email from NHTSA about a recall for some of our bikes. Here's the link to put in you VIN # to check, my bike wasn't affected.

https://www.nhtsa.gov/recalls


The Message they sent me :

Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)
Every vehicle has a unique VIN. Enter a VIN to learn if a specific vehicle needs to be repaired a
U.S. Department of Transportation National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Your vehicle MAY be involved in a safety recall and MAY create a safety risk for you or your passengers. If left unrepaired, a potential safety defect could lead to injury or even death. Safety defects must be repaired by a dealer at no cost to you.

You are receiving this message because you requested to be notified by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) if there is a safety recall that may affect your vehicle.

NHTSA Recall ID Number : 23V011
Manufacturer : BMW of North America, LLC
Subject : Gearbox Input Shaft May Break
Make Model Model Years
BMW R 1250 GS 2019-2023
BMW R 1250 GS ADVENTURE 2019-2023
BMW R 1250 RT 2019-2023

Steve
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eanz2IZHYyU&t=336s THIS EXPLAINS IT.
 
Thanks for the good information.

E.

To put this in perspective, if it was 100 bikes, it would be 1/2 of 1%. The information that we have indicates four bikes and they were in Europe. So I'm not doing anything until I find out about this update. I had an update on my Triumph Tiger Explorer and the bike was never right again. So much so that I traded it to BMW at a substantial loss. I advise everyone to proceed with caution.
 
I had my software updated on January 26th as part of installing the drain in the FD. Haven't noticed anything different about the bike, but I didn't exactly flog it on the way home.
 
Back
Top