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2013 R1200RT Shifting problems...

wyman.winn

i should be out riding!
brand spankin new 2103 R1200RT....shifted perfectly until i took her in for her "running-in" service at 600+miles yesterday (170mile RT to dealer).....tech noticed on final test drive....looked at shifter linkages on high lift...no issues they say....

up-shifts smoothly in all gears...down-shifts from 6-5 no issues, 5-4 ok, 4-3 sometimes like the shifter is locked, others smooth (intermittent), 3-2 same as 4-3, 2-1 same as 4-3 but occasionally harder to engage 1st...

i know, tough to diagnose over a forum thread....just hoping it is something simple that may have happened to another RT...

and as always, thanks in advance for any and all advice...

wyman
 
I'm confused...shifted okay according to you, till in for 600 mile service, then tech notices not shifting smoothly...and you now think the same. However, the tech, who says it is shifting rough, can't find the reason why? I'd suggest a different tech, one who has more than the knowledge to detect, but also correct.
 
I'm confused...shifted okay according to you, till in for 600 mile service, then tech notices not shifting smoothly...and you now think the same. However, the tech, who says it is shifting rough, can't find the reason why? I'd suggest a different tech, one who has more than the knowledge to detect, but also correct.

i am confused too.....and they say they didn't touch the tranny.....when i shift the tranny by hand (engine off, rotatiing wheel by hand) it shift easily and smoothly....i guess i need to set it up on the track stand and try to shift it with the motor running....

wyman
 
??????????

Click on THIS POST and you get this, with pictures:

Does your GS-W Shift Roughly?
For anyone with rough shifting...

With just over 2500 miles on the bike, the only thing that I found troubling was intermittent rough shifting. It did not seem to follow a pattern that I could detect, but it seemed to be worst when going from 2nd to 3rd. I was thinking it was getting slightly better as the miles piled on, but I was still trying to figure out if it was really the bike needing to be shifted a certain way that I was not doing, or if it was me, or both.

Earlier today in the UK forum, Magnon, who I shall now consider to be a prince among men, and whose shifting was similar to mine in its poor "quality" posted that he had discovered that his clutch master cylinder was grossly overfilled. He removed some fluid to bring the level down to where it should be, and now his bike shifts nicely.

So... I had to go check mine. And here is what I found. No sooner did I get the bolts holding the master cylinder lid loose (T-20, BTW) but fluid started flowing out!



Put a towel down, as there is quite a lot extra!



I couldn't find my little squeeze-bulb thingie, so I just used a couple of paper towels to soak up fluid and pull it out of the master cylinder until the level was about half way up the inside.

After buttoning it back up and cleaning off the bike where a few drips managed to go, I took it for a little test ride. I only rode a few miles on small backroads, but there was no traffic, so I was starting and stopping and running up and down through the gears constantly, using different rpm shift points, varying rates of acceleration, varying speed of moving the shift lever, and stayed out long enough so the bike was up to running temp. My opinion is:

SHIFTING PROBLEM SOLVED!

The bike now shifts as I would expect it to.
 
sounds plausible.....will check tomorrow....

btw....the problem seemed to rear its ugly head AFTER a 85m long HOT run to the dealership and on the way home, being even hotter temps....

thanks for the tip...:thumb

wyman
 
Perhaps the "hot" weather and ride made the mineral oil expand more, thus creating the situation as outlined? Hope a slight fluid extraction does the trick.
 
Click on THIS POST and you get this, with pictures:

Does your GS-W Shift Roughly?
For anyone with rough shifting...

A 2013 R1200RT is not the same as a 2013 R1200GS.... different engine, transmission, dry vs wet clutch, etc. OK, both use a hydraulic clutch so that might be something.
 
Every RT I've owned (3 or 4) and my R1200C has shown intermittent "problem" downshifting to 1st. Rarely, also downshifting into 2nd. Never a problem upshifting. Are you certain you're not overthinking it, being overly sensitive since the 600 mile service looking and for a problem ?
 
Every RT I've owned (3 or 4) and my R1200C has shown intermittent "problem" downshifting to 1st. Rarely, also downshifting into 2nd. Never a problem upshifting. Are you certain you're not overthinking it, being overly sensitive since the 600 mile service looking and for a problem ?

thanks for the reply.....no, not "overly sensitive"....the bike shifted perfectly up and down before the service....intermittently hard down shifts after from the higher gears....so much so that on one of the down shifts if felt like it would NOT downshift at all....

no, i am NOT looking for a problem, only trying to solve one....

wyman
 
Not saying you are, but you can't baby it with these transmissions, they are inherently clunky.
I don't think there's enough miles on the bike to say the problem is there to stay. These bikes aren't broken in until 15K or so.
 
Not saying you are, but you can't baby it with these transmissions, they are inherently clunky.
I don't think there's enough miles on the bike to say the problem is there to stay. These bikes aren't broken in until 15K or so.

ok...i understand "clunky"....guess it is me....

will let this gearbox "break-in"......:thumb

puzzled as to why it takes 15k miles to "break-in" a gearbox or motor.......for the $$$ the drivetrain should be flawless out of the shipping box.....:banghead

wyman
 
Great advice

Click on THIS POST and you get this, with pictures:

Does your GS-W Shift Roughly?
For anyone with rough shifting...

With just over 2500 miles on the bike, the only thing that I found troubling was intermittent rough shifting. It did not seem to follow a pattern that I could detect, but it seemed to be worst when going from 2nd to 3rd. I was thinking it was getting slightly better as the miles piled on, but I was still trying to figure out if it was really the bike needing to be shifted a certain way that I was not doing, or if it was me, or both.

Earlier today in the UK forum, Magnon, who I shall now consider to be a prince among men, and whose shifting was similar to mine in its poor "quality" posted that he had discovered that his clutch master cylinder was grossly overfilled. He removed some fluid to bring the level down to where it should be, and now his bike shifts nicely.

So... I had to go check mine. And here is what I found. No sooner did I get the bolts holding the master cylinder lid loose (T-20, BTW) but fluid started flowing out!

Great advice Motodan. I opened my clutch lid and took out enough oil to get it to the MAX level, which it was above. Seems to shift better now, which may be my imagination but hey I am good with that. I would not have thought of that, so THANKS!
 
guess it is me...

met a new BMW RT owner friend yesterday to have him give his opinion on my "shifting problems"....

Will rode my RT, i rode his, over Harris Grade Road near Lompoc, CA (lots of opportunity to shift both up and down)....his opinion...."shifts smoother than mine"....and i thought his RT shifted as smooth as butter....

oh well.....thanks for humoring and old guy...

and thanks to Will for showing me i am prolly just a putz....LOL

wyman
 
Yeah, BMW's shift "clunky." Mine has almost 80k and it still makes a big clunk dropping into first. Sometimes it won't go into first right off the bat from neutral, so you have to let the clutch out ever so slightly until you feel it drop in. Once into second it becomes a lot more smooth if you preload the shifter and then upshift without using the clutch.
 
I am sure that I have read that as the clutch wears, the fluid level will rise in the reservoir.

If the initial clutch fluid level is incorrect, the fluid will rise too much, to the point that the clutch will not be able to operate fully, causing shifting problems.

The solution is to remove some fluid and ensure that the fluid level is proper.
 
I am sure that I have read that as the clutch wears, the fluid level will rise in the reservoir.

If the initial clutch fluid level is incorrect, the fluid will rise too much, to the point that the clutch will not be able to operate fully, causing shifting problems.

The solution is to remove some fluid and ensure that the fluid level is proper.

yup, my clutch reservoir was quite full...actually very close to the top with the cover/expansive gasket removed....i removed just enough "blue blood" to get the level to the "max" line....

actually no help on the "problem"....the problem is the nut between the handle bars....LOL

wyman
 
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