analog speedometer troubleshooting 2002 R1150 RTP

[LuckyGrownup]

Although I have an extended warranty on my used bike and my broken speedometer is covered, I am curious how one goes about troubleshooting a speedometer issue ?


I was traveling home in a downpour and my speedometer locked up. On inspection of the cable, I noticed a crack near the bottom that was letting moisture in for a while. My guess is my speedometer cable broke. When I spin the wheel I feel a thumping in the cable assembly.

Is it common for speedometer cables to fail ?

According to the schematics for the BMW 2002 RT there are about 3 main places the speedometer can go bad.

On the wheel there is the:
1) SPEEDOMETER DRIVE. I=2,875
For vehicles with Cross-spoke wheels = Yes (X771A = Yes) List $67

In between the wheel and the speedometer, there is the:
2) 62122306296 SPEEDO CABLE. L=1040MM List $29.99

The display:
3) 62122306648 Speedometer, authorities. MP/H
For vehicles with Cross-spoke wheels = Yes (X771A = Yes)or NATIONAL VERSION GREAT BRITAIN = Yes (Y736A = Yes) List $185

source: http://www.bmwmcchattanooga.com/showAssembly.aspx?ukey_assembly=194656&ukey_product=1054012

 

[NavyDad]

Cable breaking at that moment may have been a coincidence, but moisture may have helped the issue along. Speedo cables like any other moving parts need lubrication from time to time. Different folks do it different ways, but the main thing is that they do it. When I change my front tire I pull the metal cable from the outer sheath, wipe it down with a cloth and WD-40. I then put a light coating of white Lubri-plate grease on the cable and re-install it. Been doing this on all of my cable operated speedos for years and never replaced a cable yet. Some of them with over 100,000 on them. Don't get to generous with the grease because you don't want to force it into the speedo itself. I have replaced the drive gear at the wheel hub on a couple of Goldwings, plastic (not tougher nylon) junk. Never have had to replace the speedo itself yet.

 

[DARKCLOUD]

speedo

Just went thru this on my 2002RT, not RTP. The speedometer broke/locked up which in turn caused the plastic gear on the wheel to get eaten up. So if you pull the cable off the wheel and can't turn the gear or it is chewed up, you've got it figured out. Jon

 

[LuckyGrownup]

It was just the speedo cable. I thought my extended warranty would cover this in full. However, I paid $50 and insurance paid $30. I would have been $20 ahead if I just purchased a new cable and did the work myself.