2015 RT - Starting or Battery Issue?

One other thing

Perhaps not your problem but when I used 20W-50 in my 2012 RT it was much harder to start in the winter or when temperatures went lower than 50 degrees. Took at least 15-20 seconds of starter to get it going and it usually died on the first fireup, then kept running on the second. When I changed to 10W-40 the problem went away and has never returned. When it was 60 or above it started fine. I even had the dealer involved in this and he couldn't figure it out.

Thanks Lee,
Would an issue with the cam sensor throw a code? I've never seen any codes or warning messages when the starting issue has occurred....
I believe that the dealership also scanned the bike and found nothing.

LFarling said:

No code.

I can say if it is off it really makes the bike second start. the guy I ride with his old 16 GS was way off when we checked and set it to spec, and never a second start needed again. Has this come on over time or did it always seem like the bikes started hard?

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That's the weird thing - I've had the bike (2014 R1200RTW) for just over 2 years. The bike had 4k (km's) on it when i bought it - Back then, the bike would often only crank on the 1st push then immediately fire the instant the starter was pressed for the 2nd time. This occurred probably 2 out of 3 start cycles. Fast forward 2 years, 40k km (and an incredible trip all across Canada) and the issue appears to have gone away.
I recently checked valve clearances and looking at the "decompression doohickey" on the camshaft made me wonder if that could have been initially a bit sticky and then freed up over time? I believe that this device basically keeps the exhaust valve open until a sufficient RPM is attained during starting. It might be a stretch but it seems feasible. At least more feasible than the "it's your battery" explanation that seems more prevalent here than it should given the symptoms....

You can buy a motorcycle battery tester on Amazon for $20 to $50. You still have to get to the battery, but you don't have to go anywhere. I have an car model too. After 3 years, I check batteries every 6 months. Avoids being stranded (most of the time ).

I have a 2015 R1200RT . Got the BMW charger for my last RT (2010) after frightened by the CAN BUS threat of damage. Yesterday, I successfully installed hyperlites and now the charger reads an "error". This, I have never seen before. Also, with the charger attached, the Hyperlites remain on with ignition off.
Suggestions?

bigco said:

I have a 2015 R1200RT . Got the BMW charger for my last RT (2010) after frightened by the CAN BUS threat of damage. Yesterday, I successfully installed hyperlites and now the charger reads an "error". This, I have never seen before. Also, with the charger attached, the Hyperlites remain on with ignition off.
Suggestions?

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Where did you tap power for running light function?

I followed the Hyperlite instructions. Tapped into wire(s) leading to rear lite.

bigco, If you could tell specifically which wires you tapped into, that would help with a remote diagnosis. Off the top, I would say the Hyperlites are not connected "correctly" (I assume they do work) and they are on a 12v circuit that has power fed via the same CANBUS circuit to the Powerlet outlet your fancy battery charger hooks to.

I followed the Hyperlite owner's (Ron) instructions:
" Wire colors to the bike are HL Black to RT Brown. HL Gray to RT Red with Green stripe (accessory plug circuit) and HL Red to RT Gray with Black stripe and Yellow markers (brake)."

And yes, the lights work. Curious to know if you can safely "untap" a Positap?

bigco said:

I

And yes, the lights work. Curious to know if you can safely "untap" a Positap?

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Yes. I have done it more than once. I cover the breech in the insulation with either Seal All or fingernail polish to seal it.

PGlaves said:

Yes. I have done it more than once. I cover the breech in the insulation with either Seal All or fingernail polish to seal it.

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Thank you.

bigco said:

I followed the Hyperlite owner's (Ron) instructions:
" Wire colors to the bike are HL Black to RT Brown. HL Gray to RT Red with Green stripe (accessory plug circuit) and HL Red to RT Gray with Black stripe and Yellow markers (brake)."

And yes, the lights work. Curious to know if you can safely "untap" a Positap?

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Ok, that is what I suspected. The BMW charger communicates via the CANBUS to "wake up" the auxiliary power circuit and allow current to flow from the charger to the battery. You either have to disconnect the Hyperlights from the auxiliary power circuit, or you have to connect the charger directly to the battery in order to solve your issue. My dealer always installs a fused SAE plug wired directly to the battery for use with a charger to eliminate this issue. In that scenario, the CANBUS and its control modules are completely bypassed.

PGlaves said:

Yes. I have done it more than once. I cover the breech in the insulation with either Seal All or fingernail polish to seal it.

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azgman said:

Ok, that is what I suspected. The BMW charger communicates via the CANBUS to "wake up" the auxiliary power circuit and allow current to flow from the charger to the battery. You either have to disconnect the Hyperlights from the auxiliary power circuit, or you have to connect the charger directly to the battery in order to solve your issue. My dealer always installs a fused SAE plug wired directly to the battery for use with a charger to eliminate this issue. In that scenario, the CANBUS and its control modules are completely bypassed.

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OK, I appreciate your help. I have the "fancy" BMW charger with a BMW plug at the end. Can you give me a simple way to figure out which wire is which if I cut the plug off and use a different connector to my hard wired pig tail? I am afraid I may solder to the wrong terminals. I have a proper Battery Tender, but hate to cast off that expensive charger which I had to buy when CANBUS was introduced to BMW bikes.

bigco said:

Can you give me a simple way to figure out which wire is which if I cut the plug off and use a different connector to my hard wired pig tail? I am afraid I may solder to the wrong terminals.

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That depends on the exterior appearance of the lead from the charger to the plug. Usually you will see two side-by-side conductors connected in the middle like a typical lamp cord. If so, then it is easy. Take something that won't wipe off (I use red touch up paint) and mark one edge of the cord at two spots: one right near the plug and another a few inches closer to the charger. Let the paint dry.

Then cut the wire a few inches from the plug. I leave enough wire on the plug so I can re-use it if I find a use for it. Separate the two conductors and strip off about 1/4 inch of insulation. Then use a continuity tester or a multimeter set on continuity to identify which wire connects to the center tip on your plug. Write it down as either the wire with the paint or the one without the paint. As a double check I always then verify that the other wire connects to the outer ring on the BMW plug. On the BMW plug the center is nominal +12v and the outer ring is ground. So when you attach the new SAE two pole connector to the charger you connect the wires so the bare metal tip on the SAE connector connects to the same wire as that center connector on the DIN plug did. The shielded side of the connector on the bike to the battery will be +12v and the bare tip of the connector on the charger will go into it.

If perchance your cord has lettering on one side and not the other you can use the lettering instead of the paint provided you can identify the lettering near the plug and also a few inches from the plug.

If your charger has a round wire then it almost certainly has two smaller wires inside the outer insulation. In this case you do the same test but use the colors of the two individual wires inside the outer sheath instead of paint marks or lettering.

You also have another option which might be more simple. That is to get a Powerlet (or BMW) outlet socket and wire it with a fuse directly to the battery. Then the plug on your charger does not need to be changed and can connect right into the new outlet. (See: http://www.powerlet.com/product/powerlet-socket-only/280

Thanks so much for the prompt and, very helpful, advice. I love this forum! Been an MOA member for 24 years and I am very familiar with your writings, Paul.

What Paul said!

But... The BMW charger was not really designed to work without the CANBUS connection, so it may, or may not, work. If you have a "regular" battery tender, I would use that and sell the BMW model, which will most likely pay for the "regular" charger. Best of luck with it!

azgman said:

What Paul said!

But... The BMW charger was not really designed to work without the CANBUS connection, so it may, or may not, work. If you have a "regular" battery tender, I would use that and sell the BMW model, which will most likely pay for the "regular" charger. Best of luck with it!

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You guys are great! The charger will be offered for sale, and I already have 3 Battery Tenders from when I was maintaining 3 bikes (when I was younger). Thank you, again.