Post here if you've had prematurely worn cam lobe(s) in your wethead

[cap]

As far as not noticing a loss in power I can see if your not on it, and as long as one lobe is good. However I ride my bike pretty hard and into the high rpms a lot. I would hope I would notice but who knows?

Lee, I think the other thing that might be noticeable, especially at high load, is an imbalance between cylinders. That is, if only one cam lobe is bad, then one cylinder will be making full power, and the other will be reduced. So, I can imagine that this would induce some extra vibration.

Of course, we boxers owners are accustomed to high vibrations, so again it might be difficult to notice.

[ncpbmw1953]

However if it happens to me it will be the last BMW for me and it would be gone once repaired.

I'm with you on this. In this era it is preposterous that their QC was insufficient to identify sourced parts with this level of criticality, and at the cost of these motorcycles. Beside flashy technology which we enjoy they need to get ALL of the basics right first, and need to be leaders in this area. There's just no excuse for this nowadays.

[azgman]

No "high volume" manufacturer does 100% inspection and even if they did you could only do a non-destructive inspection. In addition, BMW contracts out most of its parts manufacture which means catching bad parts is often pushed down to the supplier, so there is always a chance that a bad batch of parts slips through.

[ncpbmw1953]

No "high volume" manufacturer does 100% inspection and even if they did you could only do a non-destructive inspection. In addition, BMW contracts out most of its parts manufacture which means catching bad parts is often pushed down to the supplier, so there is always a chance that a bad batch of parts slips through.

I wouldn't expect doing 100% inspection for camshafts but I would expect a program of randomized destructive inspections or whatever is required tied to source batches etc according to some smart algorithm. What's weird about this issue w/ cam lobes is that it very apparently spans the full lifespan of wetheads and I guess more. It's not like it was one bad batch presumably, or maybe it was I don't know. We also have to factor in the true cost of their Good Will repairs against what a better QC program might cost. Compared to their competitors, how does BMW stack up against other brands of high end motorcycles?

[Lee]

What's weird about this issue w/ cam lobes is that it very apparently spans the full lifespan of wetheads

I also find it puzzling to still hear about bad cams in the Wetheads.
When we purchased our 2016 R1200RS bikes the Tech told me to keep an eye on the cam lobs when doing valve checks.
He mentioned the shop had replaced cams on a few Wethead bikes.
If I remember correctly the cams were replaced on early Wetheads.

[azgman]

My post was just to say that expecting zero defects is not possible (what I thought a prior post was eluding to). I am with you with regards to expecting a premium product for the premium price we have paid for a BMW. I'm just not going to stress about it. I am going to enjoy the ride as long as it lasts!

[PGlaves]

If every time a defect showed up I swore off that manufacturer and chose to flee to another I would soon be a pedestrian. The test is not what got screwed up. The test is how did the manufacturer dealwith the issue and was it fair to the consumer. So far I have been treated fairly every time there was a defect in parts or workmanship. Did I like it. NO. Wast it fair. YES.

[ncpbmw1953]

My post was just to say that expecting zero defects is not possible (what I thought a prior post was eluding to). I am with you with regards to expecting a premium product for the premium price we have paid for a BMW. I'm just not going to stress about it. I am going to enjoy the ride as long as it lasts!

I'm not stressing either I'm just enjoying the hell out of it while lasts, kind of like the rest of life if you're lucky!

[ncpbmw1953]

If every time a defect showed up I swore off that manufacturer and chose to flee to another I would soon be a pedestrian. The test is not what got screwed up. The test is how did the manufacturer dealwith the issue and was it fair to the consumer. So far I have been treated fairly every time there was a defect in parts or workmanship. Did I like it. NO. Wast it fair. YES.

Those are fine points but all else being equal having less defects in the first place is far more desirable. I know Consumer Reports gives BMW the worst possible rating under the heading of Cost of Maintenance and Repairs against the other major brands. If that's valid then indeed they need to up their game in the reliability department.

[GTRider]

Those are fine points but all else being equal having less defects in the first place is far more desirable. I know Consumer Reports gives BMW the worst possible rating under the heading of Cost of Maintenance and Repairs against the other major brands. If that's valid then indeed they need to up their game in the reliability department.

Possibly. But the flip side of the argument is covered in the two articles I’ve linked below—just substitute “BMW Motorrad” for “Range Rover” and it falls right into place. An awful lot of the people bitchin’, moanin’, and whinin’ about BMW are repeat buyers, often multiple time repeat buyers...

https://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/20...-and-jd-power/

https://dougdemuro.kinja.com/here-s-...tin-1575245254



Drawing my chair closer to the campfire,
DeVern

[jandhumphreyme]

I'll be interested to see how this camshaft thing plays out, not very inspiring, however if I'm not wrong there are still a lot of very high mileage wetheads out there with no issues, yes?

I purchased a 2011 R1200r new in January of 2013 and put it into service that summer. That spring I took a week long trip to Duluth and fell in love. In 2016, six months after the warranty ran out and only 26k miles I developed a leak in the transmission input shaft seal and counterbalancer shaft seal ruined a planned vacation. I was disappointed to say the least. I bought a repair manual, opened her up, put in new seals and clutch, buttoned her back up and 27k miles later she runs better than new. Four weeks ago now I purchased a 2018 R1200RT 458 miles lightly used for a good price, foolishly I did not check out the this forum to see what the reported problems have been, but I can tell you the 650 mile trip from the dealership where I purchased the bike to home were great, I fell in love again. So, given that, if a (camshaft, alternator, water pump) wears out, I guess I'll suck it up, buy a manual, and change it myself, and get back out on the road. Will I be pissed off, yes. Will I be disappointed, yes. The things we do for love.

[littlebriar]

My post was just to say that expecting zero defects is not possible (what I thought a prior post was eluding to). I am with you with regards to expecting a premium product for the premium price we have paid for a BMW. I'm just not going to stress about it. I am going to enjoy the ride as long as it lasts!

Most automotive manufacturers have been practicing some form of "six sigma" made popular by Motorola for decades. The goal is that each step of the manufacturing process should produce a process that will achieve a quality of only 3.4 defects per million opportunities. This may sound like an impossible quality level but it's achieved on a regular basis by the major companies and their suppliers. They achieve this level of reliability by focusing on controlling process, not inspection. Although there are plenty of high level recalls in the automotive world, overall, I assume the quality and reliability of their products are more reliable than Motorrad. I have no data to back that up though. Anyway, nobody makes a bike that goes down the road better than BMW and thank goodness they generally step up and fix problems like these for their customers.

[ncpbmw1953]

An awful lot of the people bitchin’, moanin’, and whinin’ about BMW are repeat buyers, often multiple time repeat buyers...
DeVern

Well they're wonderful to ride sure, but that has exactly zero to do with having QC processes that really minimize repeat offenses. That they have produced R models w/ bum cam lobe hardening now for 6 years is just a sorry state of affairs, as was their legendary bum FD that took years to resolve.

[dixierider]

2015 GSA, BMW of Atlanta had to replace my #1 (right side) cylinder's exhaust cam shaft due to excessive wear on front lobe of the cam shaft. Bike had 46,839 miles on odometer and valves had been checked at 38,000 miles and all valve clearances were in spec. I was hearing a metallic tick noise (tick noise was random not in-sync with engine rpm) coming from the #1 cylinder.

Technician whom performed the work showed me at least a half dozen or more that he kept in a drawer at his work station that he'd previously replaced due to excessive wear on a cam lobe or both lobes.

[ramble]

I posted this issue last year as I bought a 2015 RT and had all dealer service, right side cams replaced at 22,000 mi check up. An expensive service stop. Now at 32, 000 mi, so well see what surprises this fall.