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Lesson learned - changing battery - TPS reset - K1200RS, GT & LT 1998-2005

M

Mudbug

Guest
The only thing less complicated than replacing a battery, it putting air in tires. UNTIL YOU TRY TO RESET Throttle Position Sensor.

Sure, if you work on BMW motorcycles for a living or have replaced many batteries in K1200GT's, it is a no brainer. BUT, if you never did it before and you try to follow instructions in the Clymer Manual, you might have problems like I did.

According to Clymer BMW K1200RS, GT & LT 1998-2005, page 267,

"Caution"
"Substep f must be performed to maintain the safe and functional operation of the motorcycle. If any fault codes were set before the battery was disconnected, the will be reset as soon as the motorcycle is ridden as short distance.

"f. Do not start the engine. Turn the ignition switch on and then fully open the throttle once or twice to allow the Motronic control unit to register the throttle-valve positions."

I tried this many, many times and it did not work. The bike would idle ok once it started up. But once the engine rpms were increased and then brought back to what was to be idle the engine would stall and die. Over and over and over again.

Then, I looked up my problem on the internet and found this on k-bikes.com:

"BTW- Since you disconnected the battery, don't forget to re-set your fuel delivery. Kill switch on, key on, (DO NOT START THE BIKE) roll the throttle full open three times then turn the key off. You're now re-set."

Note that there is nothing about the kill switch in the Clymer instructions and nothing about turning the key off. This may be already known by some, or most, but it was not stated in Clymer and since this was my first battery replacement on the K1200GT, it was not at all helpful. Why? I followed the instructions in Clymer to the letter.

Lesson learned, Clymer assumes you know what you are doing, you have experience.

Here is what to do after replacing the battery,

1) Turn the ignition key on
2) Turn the kill switch to the on position
3) DO NOT START THE ENGINE
4) Roll the throttle full open, hold open for 2 or 3 seconds.
5) Roll the throttle off.
6) Repeat steps (4) and (5) three times
5) Turn the key off.

You're now re-set.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Sorry you had to deal with that. Unfortunately, prior to the Clymer manual coming out, the only clue I ever had that you even needed to do this was the note that came with my Rhinewest chip for my K12. Their instructions were very clear and concise (nearly the exact language you found on your internet search).....but prior to that, how many times had I disconnected batteries and never, NEVER reset the throttle? Note that it is not just when you change the battery, but whenever you disconnect it, the TPS reset should be done.
 
same issue resolved

Thanks for the detailed procedure. I followed it exactly and my stalling at stops has disappeared. I have a (until recently) problem free 2002 k1200rs with 48,000 miles.
My stalling issues started after removing the battery and re installing it, but I hadn't
made the connection. Thanks for the help
 
Robert - please read: http://forums.bmwmoa.org/showthread.php?t=46057

That would be very useful info to have in your thread title, as would some reference to resetting the TPS. Since early K bikes used L-Jetronic which do not have that "feature" of learning the TPS (which on the early K is an on-off-switch) this is somewhat important info. I'm going to add the info to your thread title.. so people looking for that info can find it in the future. Please do so yourself in future posts to the tech forums.

Thanks!
 
Any other BMWs?

Good info guys. From the updated title of this thread, this ÔÇ£TPS Sensor ResetÔÇØ procedure doesnÔÇÖt apply to my ÔÇÖ94 K1100LT. Does this apply to any other BMWs? Previous owner had left it sitting for 2 years and after installing a new battery, all I had to reset was the ABS warning and the clock. I love this sneaky stuff. Later, De;)
 
A good lesson on the value of "generic" manuals.

Of course without the kill switch in the on position, turning on the ignition switch does absolutely nothing. MSF strikes again.
 
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