R1200RT Newbee

Just got me a new ride, unfortunately it's first 40 miles were on a trailer in several inches of snow, but I should still be happy, once the snow melts, oh say in several months I can ride...

So I got this new ride, I'm not new to riding or new BMW's, but new to this ride and finished reading the owners manual from cover to cover and still left with a few questions.

I got the BMW battery charger (humm I thinks it's a Deltran repackaged for BMW) and already noticed the RT manages the battery charging when charger is connected through the accessory socket. The BMW charger came with instructions stating don't charge through the accessory socket, yet the RT says charge through the socket, this is confusing...

I got a BMW oil flter wrench from my K bike, will it work on the RT.

Any suggestions where to run power from up to dashboard area so I can get my Radar and GPS mounted.

Dave

I moved this over to oilheads.

I'd run the charger right to the battery, under the seat.

You'll need a new filter wrench. I bought one from Ilium, the floorboards guys, for $30.

If you want to run power, pull it off of the accessory cable that feeds the power outlet on the left side there.



Congratulations!

Thanks for moving me into the correct forum. See I'm thinking ok the bike is air cooled, yes with the help of oil, but air instead of a waterjacket. I'm now an "oil head" but previously was a brick.

Dave

k1200ltdbl said:

Thanks for moving me into the correct forum. See I'm thinking ok the bike is air cooled, yes with the help of oil, but air instead of a waterjacket. I'm now an "oil head" but previously was a brick.

Dave

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If this is the Deltran charger (looks like a Battery Tender and costs $79, the one you can use thru the accessory socket is $115 and a grey cube with a fixed BMW plug on it) then it'll have to be connected to the battery directly.

You need a new oil filter wrench. There are some subs for the wrench ($69), but choose carefully because some of them look like they came from Walmart and are worth $4 but cost $25. Not that BMW's is worth $69, but it does everything very well as far as working in the space allowed, etc. Some don't.

There is a GPS connector just under the front of the tank for the BMW Garmin GPS. It has power and ground and a third wire which is rear wheel pulses for traveling in tunnels, etc. The power wire red/wht (brown is ground) may be on all the time, I don't know. Since it is red/wht, I think it is on all the time. If it isn't you might want to go to the battery instead of this or the accessory jack so that you can run the gps when the key is off.
I generally run battery power with a connector (like a two pin SAE) just loose and tie wrapped to something handy to save drilling holes in stuff. If I drill a hole, I pick a panel that is small, easy to replace and not factory paint.

If you really want to start to add accessories, Jim Von Baden put up a really sweet diagram of how he set his GS up. He used relays to allow some nice use of a fuse panel. It's in the Oilheads forum here somewhere, I think.

Jack thanks for the wire location, will be most helpful with radar and GPS.

Yes I have the Deltran repackaged for BMW, this charger came with 3 wiring options, the BMW (brick style) charger had no additional wiring and cost $125.00. It's no problem to hardware the battery and charge directly. Long winters make a charger mission critical and I can use this charger on my other ride.

I have not even got any miles on the bike and found one warranty claim, paint flaw on one of the side bag covers. Given the dark color of the bike, flaw is difficult to see. Some time making these claims is asking for trouble, for the replacement part might not match... Tough call, flaw might not even be from factory, could be bump from moving around dealer and show room... Got the winter ahead of me to work on this stuff.

Dave

k1200ltdbl said:

Jack thanks for the wire location, will be most helpful with radar and GPS.

Yes I have the Deltran repackaged for BMW, this charger came with 3 wiring options, the BMW (brick style) charger had no additional wiring and cost $125.00. It's no problem to hardware the battery and charge directly. Long winters make a charger mission critical and I can use this charger on my other ride.

I have not even got any miles on the bike and found one warranty claim, paint flaw on one of the side bag covers. Given the dark color of the bike, flaw is difficult to see. Some time making these claims is asking for trouble, for the replacement part might not match... Tough call, flaw might not even be from factory, could be bump from moving around dealer and show room... Got the winter ahead of me to work on this stuff.

Dave

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Paint and finish is covered for one year and only days if it is a shipping damage. I have not seen any factory paint matching issues...especially if the color is not faded. The covers come in factory paint and you have to order a colored lid and a bag bottom if for some reason you want to replace the whole bag. The bike comes in a cardboard box, with the covers wrapped separately, so the chance of shipping damage (or factory damage) is pretty slim. I probably would leave it be if it isn't noticeable. I certainly wouldn't accept any fix outside of a factory painted lid.

The Battery Tender for gel batteries is $44 here:
http://www.batterymart.com/battery.mv?p=DEL-021-0156

You can see how I handled the charging issue with R1200RTs here:
http://bmwdean.home.att.net/r1200rt.htm

And, has been noted already, the K-bike oil filter wrench does not work on the R1200RT or the R1200GS.

115 said:

The Battery Tender for gel batteries is $44 here:
http://www.batterymart.com/battery.mv?p=DEL-021-0156

You can see how I handled the charging issue with R1200RTs here:
http://bmwdean.home.att.net/r1200rt.htm

And, has been noted already, the K-bike oil filter wrench does not work on the R1200RT or the R1200GS.

Click to expand...

Yes. I think that is the same charger electronics that BMW has packaged for them. The BMW price ($79) does include the BMW plug adapter for the accessory jack. That's worth about $12.
Also, in looking at your web site, I want to mention that BMW is working on the oil level inaccuracy. I haven't heard anything lately, except that if replacing the sensor doesn't fix it, stop there until they figure it out.

It's been very cold snow/rain/salt here, but yesterday the rain cleaned the road, so I got out for a ride last night in wonderful 38 degrees temps and was greeted with no surprises for my initial ride. Given the cold, the heated grips and seat, not to mention faring coverage did the job.

I direct wired the charger to the battery and let it run over night, it cycled normally, from charge > 80% charged > Full/Storage. Upon closer reading of the owners manual it stated, when bike is off and handlebars in non lock position, charge the battery every 4 weeks, if in locked position, charge every two months.

Folks have mentioned issues with the oil level sensor, I did note that for the first several miles there was no reading on level, then once under way the check mark symbol appeared not the check level as in high/low, a bit confusing to say the least. I'd tend to agree, the oil level indicator is not necessary, just a source of confusion...we all check our oil on a regular basis.

At this point about the only thing I've noticed is a lack of published accessories for the bike, what is up with the no tool kit, BMW is not making any friends with this new move, oh I know...the bike is so reliable we don't need a tool kit...

Dave

k1200ltdbl said:

At this point about the only thing I've noticed is a lack of published accessories for the bike, what is up with the no tool kit, BMW is not making any friends with this new move, oh I know...the bike is so reliable we don't need a tool kit...

Dave

Click to expand...

The R12GS SUPPLIMENTARY tool kit is the best tools/buck one to get. It even has a T25 torx to put in the handle you have for the phillips screwdriver you have. Part number 71 60 7 691 294, about $80. Also the BMW tire kit is probably a good thing. About $17.

cjack said:

The R12GS SUPPLIMENTARY tool kit is the best tools/buck one to get. It even has a T25 torx to put in the handle you have for the phillips screwdriver you have. Part number 71 60 7 691 294, about $80. Also the BMW tire kit is probably a good thing. About $17.

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*gets out his Christmas list and starts scribbling*

I have solved my worries with the oil level warning by ignoring the advice of the dealer. I was told never to add oil until the oil level is below the sight glass indicator. However, if I keep the sight glass filled just to the top, the oil level warning never comes on. When it starts to appear, I add an ounce or two to fill it again, and it goes away for many miles. Mine is only using a few ounces of oil every three thousand miles or so....has used less than a quart in almost 8000 miles. Once I started using this system, I have become pleased with the oil warning device, where I was very annoyed by it before. I talked to the folks at RhineWest, here in San Antonio about this, and they agreed that, as long as I was not overfilling, this would be no problem. It requires suprisingly little oil to change the level, so you must be precise, but it seems to be working fine for me now.

Ok, back to an older question, it was commented that power for a GPS is located under the front of the fuel tank, I can't find it, but I do find what is either a socket with cap tied to frame in same area or it's a sensor. I have a GPS with Saeng/TA mount I'm going to fit, not the BMW branded.

Dave

k1200ltdbl said:

Ok, back to an older question, it was commented that power for a GPS is located under the front of the fuel tank, I can't find it, but I do find what is either a socket with cap tied to frame in same area or it's a sensor. I have a GPS with Saeng/TA mount I'm going to fit, not the BMW branded.

Dave

Click to expand...

I have only seen the one on the K1200S and it is a socket with three connections tied to the frame up by the front of the fuel tank. That is where the factory GPS goes...so it must be there nearby somewhere. The wires should be red/wht and brown, plus some other combo for the third wire which is wheel pulses proportional to speed and distance. I don't remember if a cap is on it, but that would be sensible.
Note that if you don't have an alarm on a K1200S, the socket for that which is in the rear of the bike has a cap on it and this is more than a cap. It is a terminating reslstor for the Can Bus. It gets replaced when the alarm is installed since the alarm has the terminating resistor in it.

Ok, another new question, what is the deal with mineral oil for the clutch, I thought bike always used DOT 3/4 or 5 in the systems. Is there history to mineral oil?

k1200ltdbl said:

Ok, another new question, what is the deal with mineral oil for the clutch, I thought bike always used DOT 3/4 or 5 in the systems. Is there history to mineral oil?

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It doesn't absorb water vapor like DOT brake fluid, so it shouldn't require changing.

KBasa said:

It doesn't absorb water vapor like DOT brake fluid, so it shouldn't require changing.

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On the other hand, if moisture should find it's way into the master cyl, etc. then the fluid won't pick it up. And, the moisture will pocket somewhere and cause corrosion. I like the mineral oil in the simple clutch circuit since mineral oil won't (?) destroy oil seals like brake fluid does in the event of a leak, but I like the hygroscopic brake fluid in the complex ABS brake circuits for keeping the water out (if you change it periodically). A good argument against DOT 5 brake fluid (not 5.1).
By the way, BMW has the clutch mineral oil in stock. I think it comes in pint bottles.