R1100RS restoration

I had to move to DC and put the bike in storage while I took care of my moms terminal illness. But now back to MC's as a way to digest, have fun etc..

The bike sat for two years on the east coast un-garaged unfortunately but covered.

I'll do the 20,000 mile service, replace the brake lines (mentioned in another post), fluids, drain fuel, lube, etc..

A couple cosmetic questions. The ignition key area has gotten scuffed up. Polish it up with a dremel and clear coat?

The handlebar turn signals etc.. have faded to a dull black, just repaint?

Several times I went to dealers to get touch up paint and they just scratched their head and said no idea. The BMW vin history site states

Body Color:
Sonderlackierung (999)

What the hell is this? Can I get this?

The Ohlin shocks get great reviews but is a bunch of $$.

Years ago I have the stock exhaust ceramically recoated to look like titanium and they still look fantastic.

And off the subject a tad, I was/am thinking about getting a newer bike (NEVER replace the RS, it will goto the grave with me that loyal stead) The CANBUS seems like a pain (but I fully understand the transition) but bummer that I can't use my heated vest in the acc socket. Is the newer (2014) ABS markedly superior? The RS ABS has saved my bacon several times in the rain.

Thanks again for everyones feedback. It's nice to be part of this community again.

Cheers
JP

joseph.pearce said:

The ignition key area has gotten scuffed up. Polish it up with a dremel and clear coat?

The handlebar turn signals etc.. have faded to a dull black, just repaint?

The Ohlin shocks get great reviews but is a bunch of $$.

Click to expand...

1. Either remove and refinish or buy a specific cover for it. Try Wunderlich for the cover.

2. Try Mother's Back-To-Black. Might take a couple of applications but this stuff works for me.

3. You could try Hagon as a budget, but effective, replacement.

Welcome back.

Sonderlackierung -> Special paint, non-stock. What does it look like?

You can buy replacement turn signal buttons but not the others.

On the new bikes you just add a pigtail to get power directly from the battery. Not a big deal. The newer ABS is light years better than the ABS2 that your RS has.

The color is a light yellow, never seen one like it. Any idea on an approximate price for a complete repaint with a another yellow with the parts given directly to a shop? I know this can vary wildly, $500, $1000, 2k?

Now that i am looking at getting this bike in order I hate to hear 'no longer available'. How hard is it to maintain/get parts these days?

Anton when you say much better, performance, reliability, rain?

I love(d) the RS, I still think it's a beautiful bike, but after 20 yrs maybe it's time to let go. I am getting an R nine T in July & thought I'd restore the RS in the mean time but I don't think I can afford both at the same time.

The RS cylinder 'plating' is starting to flake off. What can be done about this? Replating? I don't know what the covering is, I had always assumed it was solid metal.

joseph.pearce said:

Anton when you say much better, performance, reliability, rain? .

Click to expand...

Didn't say anything about that in this thread. ??

I rode an R1100RSL for thirteen years, and am now on year four with an R1200R.

The R11 was much more handsome.

In every other aspect, the R12R is a far better motorcycle.

AntonLargiader said:

The newer ABS is light years better than the ABS2 that your RS has.

Click to expand...

Anton, I think he was referring to this ^^^

Hmm missed that! Yes, the ABS is just way better. Cycles faster, is smaller and lighter, has lighter lever feel, and can be integrated without the complexity of the original Integral ABS. ABS2 is relatively slow, cam be pretty bad on loose surfaces, is sensitive to voltage fluctuations, and can get persistent faults for bizarre reasons. It's better than ABS1, and better than no ABS by a long shot, but things have just come a long way in the ~15 years between ABS2 and iABS2.

Thanks Anton, that's a concise summary.

Dbrick, how did/do you find the R1200R superior in many regards?

I can rebuild your worn down shocks, resprung for your weight at fraction of Ohlins.
It will do same thing.
Here is a picture of GS shock rebuild for riders weight.



And here set of ESA shocks from 09 K1300GT everyone said non rebuidable.

joseph.pearce said:

Dbrick, how did/do you find the R1200R superior in many regards?

Click to expand...

Hi Joseph,

Everything functions better on the R12R. The motor is smoother, quicker, and quieter, the bike has much better brakes (even with my having replaced the R11's stock rubber with stainless), a lighter clutch pull, lighter and less clunky shifting. The handling's about the same; the R11 had Ohlins shocks and I have Wilbers on the R12.

The R12R isn't perfect. I can't say I'm enamored with how the R12's saddlebags look, it was a PITA to fabricate a carryable 22mm hex tool so I could remove the front wheel, and the R12R's underseat storage was a challenge to use - there's much less room than with the R11, and I had to be creative to get all the stuff in there I wanted to carry even when the bags are in the garage. The headlight is low and the lens is vulnerable to damage; it now wears a CeeBailey protector.

I am 110% sure dbrick you are right in all regards, but somehow the aesthetics don't do it for me. I like the R nine T aesthetically but it does not seem so practical and could be tough on my back. I'd like a wethead RSL but the BMW design team has oddly not taken my so valuable opinion.

This is rather a general & broad question but how hard is it to get some parts for the 95 RS? If the ABS controller goes bad, instrument cluster etc..

If I go down the full restoration path I'd like to know how steep the climb is.

Cheers JP

I have now removed all the body work and sent it out for a new paint job ($$), orders Ohlins ($$$), the stainless brake lines are on order. For fuel lines I am going to go with stock, thanks from feedback from Anton in a different thread.

Before I took the whole thing apart I wanted to get a baseline. The bike has 36k, but the last three years sat mostly idle in CA as I had to move to DC to help family. It started up fine after a new battery, but the ABS had the alternating lights, in my past experience from low voltage, but the battery was fully charged. The boot on the rear master cylinder is broken, so I ordered a new one. The neutral light was difficult to come on, this was something that was happening before I moved to DC. Besides changing all the fluids, all the lines doing the 12k service. A couple questions.

Is it worthwhile sending out the injectors to be cleaned? As I said it ran 'fine' but a little bit rough at idle.

From what I gather gleeming the forum, inspecting the Hall sensor sounds prudent. If the wires look fine, just let it be?

My old Haynes manual is still out in CA, I have the BMW service manual, but I don't see how to remove the ABS, flasher and heated grips switches from the left dashboard panel. How is this done?

Thanks for everyones feedback, this forum is invaluable for monkeying with these wonderful machines.
JP