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17 R1200RT Ilium crash bars contact rear swing arm

AjaxTheDog

New member
I noticed a few months ago a small wear patch on the top side of the rear suspension swing arm. I deduced that it was from the suspension contacting the Ilium crash bar when compressed. I contacted Ilium and they told me to install a washer spacer under the crash bar to move it out. I did that but the problem has gotten worse since and the contact patch has grown larger. The only other thing I can think of is that the rear shock is failing, but when I have the bike running and change the suspension hardness/one up/two up settings I can feel the bike raise and lower accordingly, so it seems to be working properly. No sign of any fluid leaks either. And when I ride two up I diligently adjust the suspension to the two up setting. I haven’t loaded any weight on the bike otherwise and it only has 6500 miles on it. I considered the possibility of my passengers boot being the contact but the space it would have to fit through is too small to make that possible. Anybody else have this problem?
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I believe this is a factory or dealer-added option, as I noticed the same marking after taking delivery but before installation of the Ilium rear bars. I suspect a poorly padded tie-down strap, but who knows.
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If it is the crash bars I believe it would have been more apparent, the paint would be gone on the first or second contact. Also, get a mirror and look where the swing arm would contact the bar. There should be a scuff there too. I doubt you will find one.

Put a few layers of painter's tape over the scuff, load mama on the back, set the suspension for soft and one rider and go for a ride. My bet is when you get back the tape will not be damaged.

Probably a scuff from shipping.
 
If it is the crash bars I believe it would have been more apparent, the paint would be gone on the first or second contact. Also, get a mirror and look where the swing arm would contact the bar. There should be a scuff there too. I doubt you will find one.

Put a few layers of painter's tape over the scuff, load mama on the back, set the suspension for soft and one rider and go for a ride. My bet is when you get back the tape will not be damaged.

Probably a scuff from shipping.

Actually there is a scuff on the inside of the crash bar metal bracket, so that is definitely what is causing the issue. I'd send a photo but it requires a mirror to see it, so too hard to do. I think I am going to take some measurements and then fiddle around with different size shims to see if I can improve the distance of the crash bar to the swing arm. I do like your idea of the tape as a witness material. Perhaps a wedge shaped shim will give the clearance it needs. Barring that I'll just take the crash bars off.
 
I took another look at the drive shaft housing and the bracket on which the rear bar is mounted. Looking straight up, there appears to be considerable clearance between the two...roughly an inch. I marked both the scratched area on the housing and the lower edge of the bracket in a corresponding position with white tape. Not a great photo, and the off-axis alignment may exaggerate the clearance a bit. I'll leave the white tape on the drive shaft housing and see what happens.


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I have had the Ilium Works rear bars on my '16 RT and zero marks on the rear swing arm. The clearance seems so great it seems hard to imagine the bars hitting the swing arm. That being said I rarely have a passenger so bike is at most loaded with my gear and when it is the suspension is set for 2-up.
 
Put the bike on a lift in the wheel vice or in a wheel chock to fully secure the front of the bike. Use one or more ratcheting tie down straps through the wheel and over the seat to fully compress the rear suspension until the swing arm does or does not hit the swing arm.
 
Contact interference point

I removed the Ilium mount and the point of contact is obvious. The spacer (washers) they suggested did nothing but move the contact point further up the swing arm, so that didn't work. I'll be writing Ilium today for a solution. I just want this to work like it is supposed to, not rub a hole in the swing arm case.
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I removed the Ilium mount and the point of contact is obvious. The spacer (washers) they suggested did nothing but move the contact point further up the swing arm, so that didn't work. I'll be writing Ilium today for a solution. I just want this to work like it is supposed to, not rub a hole in the swing arm case.
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Maybe ... just maybe ... the issue is not with the Ilium Bars. Could it be something else amiss with the bike?
 
Have your dealer check the centering on your swingarm, and perform adjustment if needed at the pivot pins. It’s entirely possible the arm is off-center enough to cause interference with what looks like a closely-fitted accessory.

Best,
DeVern
 
I have had my illium works rear bars installed for over 3 years / 25K miles. I don't ride much with a passenger, but have loaded the bike heavily for trips, and do a lot of "spirited" canyon riding. Never a mark on my swing arm or rear bar mounts.

I would have your bike checked out because what you're seeing is definitely the exception.
 
I have had my illium works rear bars installed for over 3 years / 25K miles. I don't ride much with a passenger, but have loaded the bike heavily for trips, and do a lot of "spirited" canyon riding. Never a mark on my swing arm or rear bar mounts.

I would have your bike checked out because what you're seeing is definitely the exception.

Ditto to what he said
 
Although it appears that there is more than enough clearance between the bracket and drive shaft housing when viewed from behind or below, I am more convinced that AjaxTheDog is correct. I dropped plumb lines from the spots potentially in conflict, and the lines converge. I tried, but was unable to take a meaningful photo. I'm now questioning my recollection that the mark was present before the bars were installed. I ride with the suspension in the soft position 90% of the time. I seldom ride two up, but on the few rides I have done with my wife, the load approaches 380 lbs. Perhaps that explains why the mark is not present on bikes carrying less load.

Moving the bracket outboard a bit should resolve the problem, but I'm reluctant to do that. I'm already dragging the bar in the stock position. I may remove the bracket and relieve the lower edge a bit with a dremel tool. It would not be necessaary to remove a great deal of material to eliminate the conflict without weakening the bracket. I'm curious to learn how Ilium responds.

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It ain't the bike. It's the Ilium bracket.

Maybe ... just maybe ... the issue is not with the Ilium Bars. Could it be something else amiss with the bike?

Two techs at BMW of Denver inspected the bike last Friday and could not find anything wrong with it that could have caused this other than the Ilium bracket. They had some suggestions about washers or bending the bracket (1/4 steel plate) but frankly I am not keen to remanufacture something that wasn't made or designed properly in the first place. That's on Ilium to remedy, they are in the business of making and selling these. And the fact that some folks with these bars don't have this problem means that maybe I got a badly made bracket or something like that, so I am hoping they will just send me a good one to replace what I have so that my swing arm isn't further damaged.
 
I have the same issue on my R1250RT

I saw it yesterday when removing the rear wheel.

I'm very disappointed to say the least. I bought these to avoid scratches on my new bike and they are the ones scratching it :mad

The problem seems to be that it will not clear the full travel of the suspension.

I've installed a piece of felt hoping not to make further damage.

Sorry for the weird angle of the picture.

The site rotates them when they get uploaded
 

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I read this thread, and thought "that's odd -- I have Ilium bars, but my bike doesn't have a rub mark." And so eventually, I remembered to take a closer look. After I cleaned the road grime off the swingarm, look what I found: just the slightest of rubs. Thanks for the heads-up. I will keep an eye on it. But I don't think it's a big deal.

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I read this thread, and thought "that's odd -- I have Ilium bars, but my bike doesn't have a rub mark." And so eventually, I remembered to take a closer look. After I cleaned the road grime off the swingarm, look what I found: just the slightest of rubs. Thanks for the heads-up. I will keep an eye on it. But I don't think it's a big deal.

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It will not affect the performance of the bike but I find it annoying (to say the least) to spend that kind of money to install something to protect my bike from damage and they're the ones doing it. :scratch
 
Same Thing Happened To Me

Howdy,

I noticed the exact same scratch as the original poster on my swingarm about a month ago and wondered where it came from. It makes sense to me that the mark is coming from the mounting bracket. I'll be giving them a call as well to see what can be done. Never ride two-up. Suspension settings: Normal with single rider with luggage.

David
2018 R1200RT
 
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