• 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

R1200RT engine noise

2

2000expilot

Guest
I am new to BMW motorcycles having just purchased a new 2009 R1200RT. I traded in my Harley Dyna Wide Glide. I just love the R1200RT. I have put 1,000 miles on it and I haven't even received my license plate yet from the DMV. I took my bike in at 600 miles for it's first service and when I asked about noise from the engine they chalked it up to me being new to the boxer engines. However I don't recall the demonstrator that I rode having made the same noise as mine. My bike is clearly making a noticable and bothersome pinging/knocking type of sound/noise that seems especially noticable near the end of a ride, after riding at highway speeds, while in 3rd or 4th gear,
between 3000 and 4000 rpm. Is this sound normal for the boxer engine or something I need to have looked at right away? I didn't find anything like this in a search of the forum.
 
Hi 2000expilot! Welcome to the forum.

I will be moving your post to the Hexhead forum for better visibility as this is the forum specifically for mechanical discussions for your bike.
 
The RT has it's own unique sound but your explantion "at the end of the ride" is interesting.

How long of a ride?

Is it coming from both sides?

Does it do it hot or cold?
 
I'm noticing it after rides of 20 - 30 minutes or more, so I'd have to say it's after the engine is warmed up. The temp Gage remains steady at just below the 1/2 line. The noise isn't left nor right but appears to be eminating from the core of the engine. I noticed it tonight after riding about 120 miles then going stop light to stop light at the end of the ride. Then later this evening I took it out on a short 10 minute ride, no highways, and it didn't appear to make the same noise.
 
After a long ride and you stop the bike (engine off) and then restart soon (less than) 10 minutes does the noise reappear right away? this does seem strange - I did have an RT and didn't hear anything out of the ordinary,
 
So many little noises

Having switched to my RT from a Harley, one of the first things I started to notice was the noises from the engine, mostly due to the lack of loud exhaust. Although I will admit it is nice to go for a quiet ride now.

If it gets to bothering you so much that you simply cannot enjoy the ride, get it good and warm and go back to the shop for another opinion. At the risk of feeling like a bother, the other option is to ride and worry.

Trying to describe what you are hearing is a tough job. Maybe someone in the forum that is near to you can chime in and offer to take a listen. Hopefully it is just a matter of the bike being new, and you are now beginning to hear things you did not when you were excited with the newness of the bike. Although engine is a bit quirky, and has different noises, you soon get used to them.

Also, don't forget, if the shop says it is OK, that is what a warranty is for.:deal

Hope this at least helps to ease your worries.
 
Xpilot, I have recently purchased a "experienced" 08 RT and can tell you I experience the same type of noises. I am coming out or a V4 Honda and I think we are experiencing "New Owners" ears. Our ears don't hear the noises on the test drive because we WANT the bike and after purchase we hear everything cause we OWN it. :dunno I am in Escondido so if you want to compare sounds I would be happy to meet up some time as I would like to know if what I hear it normal or just the voices in my head!!!
Jim
 
Thanks for the feedback. I'll post what I find after hopefully comparing engine noises this week.
 
Of course it is hard to say without hearing it, but yes, the boxer with quiet exhaust makes noise, mostly with the valve train. Buy an old Airhead and you'll never sleep!

You could post a video on Youtube and link us to it. Or yes, find another experienced RT rider.

I have an 05 RT, and it runs fantastically. I guess it makes noise, but as an old R75/5 guy, I call it quiet!

If you do your own Service, you can buy a GS-911 which will allow you to read the sensors. It'll tell you if the O2 sensors, knock sensor, etc. are working, and also allow you to read fault codes. Again, if you plan to do your own service, it's a good way to go.

Given your description, I'd say either nothing is wrong or it is temp related and due to a sensor like the temp sensor or knock sensor, but this is a bit of a stretch.

Another thing is that you are coming over from The Motor Company V-twin. I let my HD buddy ride my bike and he hated it at first. Said it pinged and lugged. I questioned him more and found out he ran it below 3500 RPM most of his ride, even shifting at 3500 and thus dropping to about 2500 RPM (the RT drops about 800 to 1000 RPM per shift). Seems he was used to very low RPMs with a V Twin.

If this is you, run the engine up to about 6000 RPM before shifting. If you are really nailing it, shift at about 7500 RPM. People cruise on the freeway at 4-5000 RPM. I ride twisties in 2d gear, going from around 2500 to 8000 RPM all day long without shifting.

For a new engine with 1000 miles, it is also important to jump on the RPM once in a while. The boxer can handle RPM and it works fine at the higher numbers. It doesn't run well below 3000 RPM. HD riders have a hard time with this. Guys like me with a CBR600, that routinely runs 9000-14000 RPM on the track, don't.

Try that, see what you find.
--Robo

--Robo
 
My'08 RT has made a rapping noise from the day I bought it new , down to the national rally and back, in '09. Also 32mpg ! Predetonation was suspected by the type of sound. I took it to a dealer and they cleared and reprogrammed the computer and it was better , up till a month later when the fuel pump control module left me stranded, they fixed that but it sounds like the "sound" is back again. I am going to take it back in the spring to make sure the reprogramming held. Another guy on the forum here ,SVSutton, sounded like was having the same problems, also reprogrammed computer. His dealer was saying that the original programming - the part that monitors the anti-knock sensors had been turned off or at least, not working. But he was also saying that since then, he has tried 89 octane and the predetonating sound was greatly reduced! He , like I , had only been using 93 octane . We know that is the opposite effect on predetonation that it should have but we suspect it is how the computer is handling the information from the knock sensors some how. Can anybody else input on this problem ?
 
Interesting. So I guess this is an issue (perhaps) with later model RTs? My 05 has 42k miles on it. I just did a major service (brakes, valves, TB balance, tires, fluids, etc.) and it runs perfectly. It's a joy to ride.
 
If you are coming from a HD with a loud exhaust and no fairing, there will be a hugh difference. The quiet mufflers allows you to hear the engine noises and the fairing amplifies it. The old KZ900s and CB750s sounded like they were coming apart when you put a Windjammer on them.

Ken
 
I just rode the bike another 160 miles today. It certainly is a matter of the RT being a lot quieter than my old Harley and therefore all of the engine noises seem amplified. I think I'll take the bike in to the dealer on Tuesday and maybe ask to take the demo bike out again or have one if the techs ride it and check it out. The noise is happening with and without a load on the engine so that leads me to believe it's not a pinging. It certainly does sound like something is knocking but not the more chatter type sound of valves. Could easily just be the sound or noise that the boxer engines make and that's fine I just want to be sure there's nothing wrong with it.
 
Being a former HD rider, can I assume you do not ride with earplugs? That might explain a lot too. The one comment I zeroed in on was the suggestion not to lug the engine -- good advice. I generally ride mine at 4,000 rpm and above.
 
Sounds like the rocker-arm endplay hasn't been set correctly. See the DIY for what I'm talking about. The engine will sound a world quieter once the endplay is set toward the minimum end of the scale. Most dealership mechanics just don't bother doing it, and it really should be done at the 600 mile service since the head gets retorqued so there isn't a better time to do it.
 
Don,
I am glad you mentioned rocker arm end play. I followed the DIY and found the end play very tight at 12K. The dealer adjusted it at the 600 mile service. I adjusted when I did the valves and found I could not get a .004 thous. feeler guage in there (yes I tapped the rocker to open it up). The thing that really bothers me is loosening a head bolt and retourquing. That procedure rubs my mechanical sense the wrong way. The bike runs great and smooth as silk after I did a proper valve train adjustment. The Twin Max was spot on.
Getting back to the subject, after riding Japanese bikes the BMW Boxer is a noisy engine. You Harley fellows haven't heard anything but exhaust in my opinion. I asked the Master Tech to take the bike for a spin and all is well. These bikes make a lot of ticking noises, I agree with the community advice. Hop on another and see if the sounds are similar and let your mind rest and enjoy the ride.
Jeff
 
I rode it some more and took some video to record the engine sound. I'll try to get the video up on you tube soon and get a link to it posted here. I noticed that the engine sounds fine when parked and the engine reved as high as 5000 rpm. I also had my son take it for a spin and he said he thought it sounded like the noise was maybe coming from the drive shaft right at the center of the bike. I'm anxious to see what the group thinks after hearing the video.

Jerry
 
2000expilot said:
Ok, I took video while riding my R1200RT so those of you that may be ineterested in listening to it and giving me your feedback may do so. Maybe it sounds just like the rest...let me know. The video is on Youtube and can be found at the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLC65h25LAc&feature=youtube_gdata
Click to expand...
Other than the wind noise, I heard nothing unusual -- exhaust note and normal "sewing machine" valve noise was all I heard above the wind.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

W
2020 R1250RT Makes Ringing Vibration Noise Under Acceleration
2
Replies
23
Views
3K
brorke
brorke
J
occasional valve noise
Replies
2
Views
656
lkraus
lkraus
rocinante
Look What Followed Me Home - 2012 R1200GSA
Replies
5
Views
1K
Moto316
Moto316
B
2021 R1250GS - engine thrumming sound in 3500-4000 RPM range
Replies
9
Views
1K
motormike
M
X
2006 f650gs date of mfg 11/05
Replies
8
Views
3K
Omega Man
Omega Man
Back
Top