cberry
Chuck Berry
R1200RT: Maybe it's NOT the final drive
Yesterday was meant to be final checks on my 2005 R1200RT with 85K miles before shipping it to Seattle for this spring's ride down the PCH and across the southern US border and Gulf coast. There was a club ride that morning and I was on my way to the rendezvous point. Little did I know...I was on my way to the dealer instead. I had previously detected an unusual noise since getting the bike back from recent service. A noise like a knobby tire rubbing on a fender well. I had done an under the chassis inspection, looking for any anomalies, and found none. The noise was very low level, and did not occur all the time. It could be induced by turning the bike to the right, more than to the left. Any thoughts to this point?
Anyway, as I was proceeding to the freeway I detected a speed sensitive vibration which appeared to be getting worse, and was, in my mind, probably associated with the 'tire rub'. It was an "Ah, Ha" moment. I would now be more likely to diagnose the problem. In the last quarter of a mile to the freeway entrance the vibration got significantly worse, the bike began to slow down despite additional power application, and I began to smell burning rubber as I slowed to turn onto the freeway. Bad decision! The problem was about to be revealed!
If I had stopped to inspect the bike at a gas station shy of the freeway the problem would probably not have been evident to even an alerted observer unless the rubber had overheated to a point where it was smoking, or, I had brought along my remote temperature probe. There were no external indicators.
The saga continues...Midway through my turn toward the freeway ramp the bike stopped moving (while centered in one of the two oncoming lanes of traffic). Not a bad thing, but a good thing! Being on the freeway would not have had a happy ending. The engine quit under load. Downshifting to 1st and restarting, I could not move the bike at near full power.The game was over. Right then, a fellow A&P mechanic friend came off of the freeway in his pickup and saw me in the intersection. He stopped to help. Another biker (Harley owner) in a truck turning onto the freeway also stopped. The three of us were able to lift the rear wheel clear of the road and steer the bike to the shoulder. Inspecting the bike, we were able to see that the rubber boot between the final drive and the swing-arm had melted and burned through ( the source of the smell). The U-joint and drive-shaft were visible and did not look happy.
Obtaining a tow was a process. The BMW MOA contractor could not find an available towing contractor within a reasonable time, so, while I was on hold, my friend used his phone to contact my insurance company (Progressive). Progressive came up first with a responder and the MOA call was cancelled. The bike was towed to Magic City Cycles in Orlando where the initial assessment was that the drive-shaft had broken due to seizure of some part yet to be determined.
Parts availability will determine whether the bike makes the required April 12th shipping date. Timing is everything! If I had been riding to the shipping depot my trip would have been cancelled. If the problem occurred while on the ride...well you can just imagine. My extended insurance policy expires in 2 weeks! I'm still planning on a happy ending.
What do you real motorcycle mechanics think caused the failure, and what secondary damage might have occurred?
Yesterday was meant to be final checks on my 2005 R1200RT with 85K miles before shipping it to Seattle for this spring's ride down the PCH and across the southern US border and Gulf coast. There was a club ride that morning and I was on my way to the rendezvous point. Little did I know...I was on my way to the dealer instead. I had previously detected an unusual noise since getting the bike back from recent service. A noise like a knobby tire rubbing on a fender well. I had done an under the chassis inspection, looking for any anomalies, and found none. The noise was very low level, and did not occur all the time. It could be induced by turning the bike to the right, more than to the left. Any thoughts to this point?
Anyway, as I was proceeding to the freeway I detected a speed sensitive vibration which appeared to be getting worse, and was, in my mind, probably associated with the 'tire rub'. It was an "Ah, Ha" moment. I would now be more likely to diagnose the problem. In the last quarter of a mile to the freeway entrance the vibration got significantly worse, the bike began to slow down despite additional power application, and I began to smell burning rubber as I slowed to turn onto the freeway. Bad decision! The problem was about to be revealed!
If I had stopped to inspect the bike at a gas station shy of the freeway the problem would probably not have been evident to even an alerted observer unless the rubber had overheated to a point where it was smoking, or, I had brought along my remote temperature probe. There were no external indicators.
The saga continues...Midway through my turn toward the freeway ramp the bike stopped moving (while centered in one of the two oncoming lanes of traffic). Not a bad thing, but a good thing! Being on the freeway would not have had a happy ending. The engine quit under load. Downshifting to 1st and restarting, I could not move the bike at near full power.The game was over. Right then, a fellow A&P mechanic friend came off of the freeway in his pickup and saw me in the intersection. He stopped to help. Another biker (Harley owner) in a truck turning onto the freeway also stopped. The three of us were able to lift the rear wheel clear of the road and steer the bike to the shoulder. Inspecting the bike, we were able to see that the rubber boot between the final drive and the swing-arm had melted and burned through ( the source of the smell). The U-joint and drive-shaft were visible and did not look happy.
Obtaining a tow was a process. The BMW MOA contractor could not find an available towing contractor within a reasonable time, so, while I was on hold, my friend used his phone to contact my insurance company (Progressive). Progressive came up first with a responder and the MOA call was cancelled. The bike was towed to Magic City Cycles in Orlando where the initial assessment was that the drive-shaft had broken due to seizure of some part yet to be determined.
Parts availability will determine whether the bike makes the required April 12th shipping date. Timing is everything! If I had been riding to the shipping depot my trip would have been cancelled. If the problem occurred while on the ride...well you can just imagine. My extended insurance policy expires in 2 weeks! I'm still planning on a happy ending.
What do you real motorcycle mechanics think caused the failure, and what secondary damage might have occurred?
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