1995 R100rt

Ok, so I bought a beautiful 1995 R100RT. This is mt first Airhead and it is taking some getting used to. Whn I had my R1150RT, I ha plenty of info on how to improve it. This one I am not sure about. If any of you have the time, I have some questions.

Are there any recurrent issues to look for?

Will the alternator handle adding additional lighting? If so, what does evryone recommend?

It has a Koni shock. Is that a good option or are there substantially better choices?

Any recommendations fo a good upgrade to the fork to match.

What the heck is a diode board and should mine be upgraded?

Thanks everybody... Steve

Steve, welcome.

You will find a wealth of information here and elsewhere.

To start, try the famous Snowbum's site (this place is like sipping from a fire hydrant, more information than you could possibly read, much less need!)

http://bmwmotorcycletech.info/techindex.htm

The last of the airheads...should be a good one...

Recurrent issues...not really, just ride it and get to know what it wants. Like other bikes, you should do the back maintenance (fluids, valves, check timing) and go from there.

One thing I might wonder about but you're probably OK is did the circlip in the tranny get put back in. BMW stopped installing it in ~'84-ish and began in the '94/'95 model year run. Snowbum has some info on tranny numbers that you can check to confirm.

I think you'll be limited on additional lighting. But you can add some farkles up to a point. Some run electric heating items, but might have to work with the on/off settings to avoid draining the battery. Others will probably jump in on that...

Are you sure it's a Koni? I'm not up on the later bikes, but Koni went out of business sometime back. Maybe it's an Ikon? What did BMW use stock on these bikes???

Pass on the forks...not my area...

Diode board converts AC generated power into DC that the bike needs to run. It's under the front engine cover. Don't remove that cover without first disconnecting all grounds from the battery!!

If you plan on using the bike as is without much electrical additions, you're good to go. If you really want a bank of lights, a blender, 5 ipods, and a toaster oven, then you're going to need more power. For that, you'll need to ditch the stock diode board/alternator for something like an Enduralast or an Omega. These put out somewhere near 400 watts. There are advantages and disadvantages...you'll have to do some research or hear from people who have done one or the other.

Ride it for now and see what she tells you it needs...

Hi and thanks to both. The Tranny is 6000 units past when they started putting the circlip back in so I think thats ok. The prev. owner said Koni and I have all the lit for the shock so I'll check that.

Wouldn't mind upping the alt output a bit. Thanks for the recommendations.

I'm looking forward to getting out and putting some miles on her.

Don't forget the famous spline lube.

Jeff488 said:

Don't forget the famous spline lube.

Click to expand...

I was told by one person that the last couple of years of the R100 were like oilheads and did not need a spline lube.

Any thoughts on that one?

if you're looking for a shock upgrade, the seriously swank upgrade is an Ohlins.
i have them on two different bikes and love them...

Since this just happened on my 92RT I'll pass it along. Keep an eye on the carb floats. Gasoline will eventually disolve the varnish coating on the floats and they will become saturated with fuel, then sink and the carb will puke gas. I read recently that the fuel being produced now has additives and in particular ethanol that will make quick work of things. There is really no way that I know of to monitor this, so you either wait till it happens, like me , or perform a preemptive maintanance procedure.and go to Bings web site and order the float kit. TIP , WHEN REMOVING OLD FLOAT HINGE PIN BE VERY CAREFUL. I broke one of the little ears through which one end of the pin goes. I paniced when I priced out a new carb. Thank goodness for JB Weld

It sounds like a charging system upgrade is something you will want. Omega and Endualast are both good options. There have been many discussions about which is best and Snowbum has some conclusions on his site.

When I have options for airhead electrical stuff and one of the options is Rick at Motorrad Elektrik, that is the one I choose. His website is currently under construction but his phone number still works. 866-668-6353.

The spline lube is qustion is an ongoing debate. There where changes to the shaft material to address spline issues. Many feel that lubing those splines still improves shifting characteristics and provides additional protection. I have never used the chromed shaft, so I have no personal data. The shaft needs to be reasonably clean and the clutch components neeed to able to move easily along the splines for shifting to be good. In the best of worlds, airhead shifting is somewhat clunky, so I do what I can to optimize it.

Forks can be tuned to fit your preferences and riding style. It is an art that involves springs, spacers, oil of various weights. If the internals of the forks have not been inspected, that would be a good start. Careful alignment is critical. There are a number of aftermarket braces available and much discussion about all of them.

The diode board will be upgraded or eliminated if you upgrade the charging system. If you decide to keep the stock system, check to see what brand of diode board is installed. It is a good idea to have a spare diode board and a spare rotor. They are the components most likely to fail.

Rear shock: Wilbers. See Ted Porter at the Beemer Shop for best price.
Front forks: Wilbers springs. Ditto.

That would be the extent of my mods unless I wanted to run a lot of electric gear like heated vests, GPS, etc. Then I would consider an alternator upgrade as outlined above, but I would be in no rush to do it.

The splines are hard chromed and have a service interval of 40,000 miles. (This ain't your daddy's airhead from the Seventies.)

(P.S. my father had a '95 R100RT until a kind lady decided to bunt him into a retaining wall. He made it, the RT did not.)

b52g said:

Since this just happened on my 92RT I'll pass it along. Keep an eye on the carb floats. Gasoline will eventually disolve the varnish coating on the floats and they will become saturated with fuel, then sink and the carb will puke gas. I read recently that the fuel being produced now has additives and in particular ethanol that will make quick work of things. There is really no way that I know of to monitor this, so you either wait till it happens, like me , or perform a preemptive maintanance procedure.and go to Bings web site and order the float kit. TIP , WHEN REMOVING OLD FLOAT HINGE PIN BE VERY CAREFUL. I broke one of the little ears through which one end of the pin goes. I paniced when I priced out a new carb. Thank goodness for JB Weld

Click to expand...

Because of this, I shut off the fuel a distance from my house, and sputter into my driveway. It is an easy habit to develop - just figure out what your shutoff landmark should be.

Oldhway said:

I was told by one person that the last couple of years of the R100 were like oilheads and did not need a spline lube.

Any thoughts on that one?

Click to expand...

Yes, it's not correct.

Carb Floats . . . .

I bought a very nice '93 R100RT last August and I have been slowly attending to services that I thought might be a problem later. Paul Glaves mentioned carb floats that had been affected by ethanol. I have one brand new Bing 40MM CV carb and an original. I was worried about the original float being saturated. I ordered a new one and replaced it. I could percieve no difference between the new float and old one except the old one was stained brown.
Anyway, that is my $.02.
Campbell Tellman II
'93 R100RT

Progresive fork springs, clearview windshield, up graded alternator now ride it any where. love it