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k1200 2002 cruise control troubleshooting help

mslacool

New member
I have read all the troubleshooting videos etc I can find and none of them start with the problem that I am having.. The yellow set light does not come on... as it was failing it was hit or miss for awhile but its been gone for about a year. All the videos I have seen assume the set light comes on and works from that assumption.

is there a troubleshooting lesson that starts with diagnosing the yellow set cruise light ?

Average mechanical guy here, no mechanic but can usually follow instructions.

Paul
 
A few questions.
Does the cruise not work, or is it simply the light that is out?
Does the light not work, ever? Or does it come on briefly but refuse to stay lit?
 
A few questions.
Does the cruise not work, or is it simply the light that is out?
Does the light not work, ever? Or does it come on briefly but refuse to stay lit?


Cruise doesn't work. Last time it worked was when the set light worked.


No flickering or anything of the set light now. It was wanky hit or miss until it never came on for good about a year ago.


Common sense tells me that if I can get the set light to work, the cruise will work.
 
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I'd say your common sense is not wrong, but your phrasing suggests to me a questionable approach.
It sounds as though your goal is to get the light to work. Granted a working light might mean working CC, but the problem is not the light. It's the cruise itself.
The light is just an indicator that the cruise is engaged. The fact that it won't light is not the problem, it's simply indicating you have a problem. I'd suggest you chase the bugs that can prevent the cruise from engaging rather than worrying about the light itself.

I'm no expert on BMW's cruise, but I'll offer up what I found when I had an issue with mine (2003 K12RS). I had adjusted throttle cable to take out what I thought was excessive slack. I thought I had set it to spec, and it felt good to my hand. Post adjustment the bike ran great, until I tried to engage the cruise. The light would come on, the bike would do it's little surge to indicate engagement, but the whole system would almost instantly shut off, with the light going out and the cruise not functioning. Repeated engagement attempts yielded identical results.

Having just done the throttle cable, I knew to look where I had last touched. I added slack to the cable and the problem disappeared. Apparently the bike's vibration, or my unsteady hand on the throttle, was being read by the system as an intentional throttle input, which will override and cancel the cruise setting.

The fact that your light doesn't come on at all suggests your problem is likely something else, so take my post with a grain...
The fact that it previously came on and eventually flickered and failed is telling you something. Figure that out and I'd bet you've found the issue. An electrical connection gradually coming apart and eventually failing? A mechanical gap (wheel speed sensors?) gradually going out of spec?

One more thought.
If either brake lever light switch is defective, the cruise might read that signal as you applying the brakes, which will of course override cruise engagement. Worth checking out.

Keep us posted.
 
You said what I was thinking only better

I'd say your common sense is not wrong, but your phrasing suggests to me a questionable approach.
It sounds as though your goal is to get the light to work. Granted a working light might mean working CC, but the problem is not the light. It's the cruise itself.
The light is just an indicator that the cruise is engaged. The fact that it won't light is not the problem, it's simply indicating you have a problem. I'd suggest you chase the bugs that can prevent the cruise from engaging rather than worrying about the light itself.

I'm no expert on BMW's cruise, but I'll offer up what I found when I had an issue with mine (2003 K12RS). I had adjusted throttle cable to take out what I thought was excessive slack. I thought I had set it to spec, and it felt good to my hand. Post adjustment the bike ran great, until I tried to engage the cruise. The light would come on, the bike would do it's little surge to indicate engagement, but the whole system would almost instantly shut off, with the light going out and the cruise not functioning. Repeated engagement attempts yielded identical results.

Having just done the throttle cable, I knew to look where I had last touched. I added slack to the cable and the problem disappeared. Apparently the bike's vibration, or my unsteady hand on the throttle, was being read by the system as an intentional throttle input, which will override and cancel the cruise setting.

The fact that your light doesn't come on at all suggests your problem is likely something else, so take my post with a grain...
The fact that it previously came on and eventually flickered and failed is telling you something. Figure that out and I'd bet you've found the issue. An electrical connection gradually coming apart and eventually failing? A mechanical gap (wheel speed sensors?) gradually going out of spec?

One more thought.
If either brake lever light switch is defective, the cruise might read that signal as you applying the brakes, which will of course override cruise engagement. Worth checking out.

Keep us posted.

you said it better than I could but I was thinking the same I was simply looking for a 1/2 10 sequence of test one could do to see which part of the system is the cause of the cruise control not working and all of the examples I have seen there is nothing that test the set light itself I would like to know

I've learned for example that there are multi-faceted inputs but I'd like to be able to test them and determine if the circuit was complete etc and learn something in the process by following instructions I just haven't been able to find a set of instructions that gives me a list of things I can test to get the cruise control to work aka the set light to come on
 
There are four switches that will affect the cruise control.

The clutch, the front brake, the rear brake and the throttle cable all have a switche.

Get your ear close to the clutch master cylinder, or use a stethoscope, and listen for a click when you move the lever. No click, possible problem.

Do the same on the brake master cylinder. No click, possible problem.

The rear brake switch can be seen and again you can hear if it clicks or not. It is located by the brake pedal.

The throttle switch is located at the throttle plate next to the throttle bodies. Again you should hear a click when pushing the throttle cable in the off direction.

Those are the main reasons a cruise control on a K1200RS brick stops working. The switches move slightly and need to be aligned back up.

Good luck.
 
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