Why I chose not to replace my 2021 R1250 GSAdventure after 65,700 miles and over 140,000 BMW miles

[bigjohnsd]

EMail I sent to BMW Motorrad Customer Service today:

Subject: Why I chose not to replace my 2021 R1250 GSAdventure after 65,700 miles and over 140,000 BMW miles

I crashed my '21 GSA A week ago and the insurance company totaled the bike yesterday.
I have loved the bike and between the '14 GSA I first purchased, and the '21 GSA purchased in January 2022 I have seen a lot of the country.

I've been thinking about getting a little smaller bike and this was as good a time as any to make the switch. I purchased a '23 Suzuki DL800DE ADV holdover today. This bike replaces my '21 GSA after 65700 miles and over 140,000 BMW GSA miles.

There was a pre-owned '22 GSA Rally with 10K miles for $17500 that tugged on my heartstrings for a few moments but the inability to gain access to the technical manual to perform maintenance, diagnosis, and repair was the deciding factor.

Had tech manual access been available as it was for my "14 (DVD) and my '21 (Bootleg copy of a manual from somewhere on the internet) I would have likely purchased a brand new 2025 R1300GS.

Part of the pleasure I derive from owning a motorcycle is performing the maintenance. Without the technical manual, this is impossible to do properly, hence my decision to go in another direction.

Should you change your minds and allow your customers access to the technical information again i might be persuaded to return

John Langdell

There is only one way to change the corporate mind - via the Quarterly Financial Report!

 

[collingsbob]

Congratulations on your purchase..It is my considered opinion that BMW Corporate are making a huge mistake in not releasing a service manual for the end user - and completely failing to understand the significant difference between the owners of motorcycles and cars.

 

[spx]

Your point is well received, but …

I suspect you’ll be back on a BMW within six to twelve months, regardless. A Suzuki just ain’t the same. Speaking from experience..

I suspect that BMW knows this as well. BMWs are like a bad habit; you can’t just walk away from it.

 

[PGlaves]

Your point is well received, but …

I suspect you’ll be back on a BMW within six to twelve months, regardless. A Suzuki just ain’t the same. Speaking from experience..

I suspect that BMW knows this as well. BMWs are like a bad habit; you can’t just walk away from it.

Interesting. I had two BMW F650 bikes - one a Funduro and the other a Dakar. I also had a Suzuki 650 V Strom. Of the three I liked the Suzuki the best.

 

[oldcamper]

Interesting. I had two BMW F650 bikes - one a Funduro and the other a Dakar. I also had a Suzuki 650 V Strom. Of the three I liked the Suzuki the best.

Whether we care to admit it or not, most of us prefer to be seen on a unique or even exclusive bike. Pull up at a gas station or Starbucks on a Honda or Suzuki and no one notices, but pull up on a $30k BMW and someone will usually ask about it. BMW marketing has been very effective, most non-owners believe BMWs are super refined and uber-reliable compared to other “lesser” brands. I find their naïveté amusing but usually just roll with it.

 

[spx]

Interesting. I had two BMW F650 bikes - one a Funduro and the other a Dakar. I also had a Suzuki 650 V Strom. Of the three I liked the Suzuki the best.

That's the beauty of life .. different strokes for different folks. Bike A being better than Bike B is just an opinion, and there seems to be a bike for everyone. The only important thing is to ride what makes you happy..

 

[bigjohnsd]

Whether we care to admit it or not, most of us prefer to be seen on a unique or even exclusive bike. Pull up at a gas station or Starbucks on a Honda or Suzuki and no one notices, but pull up on a $30k BMW and someone will usually ask about it. BMW marketing has been very effective, most non-owners believe BMWs are super refined and uber-reliable compared to other “lesser” brands. I find their naïveté amusing but usually just roll with it.

Thankfully I don't have that need. I bought the GSA because I thought it was the best fit for the riding I planned to do. I have re-evaluated.

At 73 I have no desire to enter a dick-measuring competition.

 

[oldcamper]

Thankfully I don't have that need. I bought the GSA because I thought it was the best fit for the riding I planned to do. I have re-evaluated.

At 73 I have no desire to enter a dick-measuring competition.

Well, we are social creatures after all, and I think BMW marketing decided long ago that image and ego will sell a lot more motorcycles than a well-designed driveshaft. BMW is far from alone in that regard, though. You see it in a lot of other product advertising because It’s usually very effective.

 

[k12lts]

I’ve been riding BMW bikes since 1984 and have done all routine service myself. In those years I’ve never had a need for a factory service manual. The torque specs and detailed instructions with pictures are available on the internet from a couple trusted sites. Fortunately I’ve not had a need for anything other than scheduled service.

 

[omega man]

I’ve been riding BMW bikes since 1984 and have done all routine service myself. In those years I’ve never had a need for a factory service manual. The torque specs and detailed instructions with pictures are available on the internet from a couple trusted sites. Fortunately I’ve not had a need for anything other than scheduled service.

Care to share those sites?
OM

 

[collingsbob]

Care to share those sites?
OM

By pm if necessary..please?

 

[k12lts]

Care to share those sites?
OM

Boxflyer's YouTube chanel has all the information on the R1200/1250 you need to know as well as jimvonbaden.com. I'd sure there are others but these two have covered all I've ever needed.

I'm not arguing the OPs choice, ride what makes you happy. That's what it's all about. I just think the lack of a factory service manual that is mainly for major component repair is not the hill I'm going to die on.

 

[Scott9999]

Thankfully I don't have that need. I bought the GSA because I thought it was the best fit for the riding I planned to do. I have re-evaluated.

At 73 I have no desire to enter a dick-measuring competition.

Yeah... uhh.... at age 69, I think I'm gonna stay away from those dick-measuring discussion thingys, too, wherever they might be.

It's kinda like that lawyer rule-of-thumb, i.e. "... don't ask questions if you don't already know the answer, or .. ahh ... don't wanna HEAR the answer!".

 

[kickstandsup]

Congrats on the new ride...vote with your pocketbook...if this is "the issue" or even "an issue" for you, so be it. And, FWIW, I agree totally with the light is right philosophy, especially as we get older.

For me, my allegiance is more to my local dealer than to BMW. The same guy has owned my local dealer for 20+ years...the same tech has been working on my bikes for 18+ years. That relationship is valuable to me...more than any brand or model.

The same is NOT close to true for other brands I've owned and still own.

 

[riderr1150gsadv]

I'm in the camp of ride what your like and enjoy. I'm looking for a smaller bike as well along with my 2018 1200 GSA which will be my last big bike until the wheels fall off.

As an aside: I don't think that BMW Borg collective cares what the consumers think about not having repair manuals until someone files a class action lawsuit forcing the Germans into providing them.. YMMV

 

[toter]

I think they recognize and understand the demographics of their customers. They realize that most of the people ponying up more than $30k for a new BMW motorcycle don't perform their own maintenance, and don't care to. Yes, there are many of us that do, but, I'm afraid we are not an overwhelming number in BMW's assessment. I believe they are trying to drive more service into the dealerships, which is where they make the most money. If the dealership makes money, they remain in business, and that is good for all. I do all my own service, and I will have to do research on other than routine maintenance items. I guess time will tell whether this marketing decision was a good decision, or not. Until then, I agree with k12lts, not the hill I'm gonna die on.

 

[r0ckrat]

Interesting. I had two BMW F650 bikes - one a Funduro and the other a Dakar. I also had a Suzuki 650 V Strom. Of the three I liked the Suzuki the best.

Yeah, Suzuki's V-Twin is a bit addictive, and why when I upgraded from an SV650 it was to something with a similar feel to it.

@bigjohnsd - I think that might be the first year of Suzuki's 800 engine, but not certain. Enjoy it, I have lots of internet friends riding Suzuki dual-sports (stroms and DL's) and all of them really pack on the miles with ease.

 

[hijincs65]

I think they recognize and understand the demographics of their customers. They realize that most of the people ponying up more than $30k for a new BMW motorcycle don't perform their own maintenance, and don't care to. Yes, there are many of us that do, but, I'm afraid we are not an overwhelming number in BMW's assessment. I believe they are trying to drive more service into the dealerships, which is where they make the most money. If the dealership makes money, they remain in business, and that is good for all. I do all my own service, and I will have to do research on other than routine maintenance items. I guess time will tell whether this marketing decision was a good decision, or not. Until then, I agree with k12lts, not the hill I'm gonna die on.

I think toter's hit the nail smack on its head with this post. The majority of the riders who buy new bikes will use the dealer for all service needs. Those of us who fear the dealer service department, or just enjoy turning a Torx bolt or two, are surely a minority of BMW bike owners.

I, like many of you do my own service and have been comfortable looking up what I need to learn, to do whatever task I have planned, on the innerwebz as someone else said earlier.

YMMV

 

[ramble]

With you bigjohn my 5th bmw and it’s flawless but a Honda touring bike,With PRINTED SERVICE MANUALis replacing that Beemer phase, and without local dealers,we are hurtling. I get tons of unwanted guests asking questions while enjoying a roadside lunch.

My BMWgear will confuse n. Many but so what , perhaps the dealer Wii. Throw I n a hat, eve going to comme uph with a new non bmw address,. I can even teach the othersddd

 

[Scott9999]

I think toter's hit the nail smack on its head with this post. The majority of the riders who buy new bikes will use the dealer for all service needs. Those of us who fear the dealer service department, or just enjoy turning a Torx bolt or two, are surely a minority of BMW bike owners.

I, like many of you do my own service and have been comfortable looking up what I need to learn, to do whatever task I have planned, on the innerwebz as someone else said earlier.

YMMV

I've been riding on and off since I was about 14 years old. I think I took my little 100cc two-stroke dirt bike in when I overheated it in the desert, and burned a hole through the piston. When I found out piston replacements were fairly common on 2 strokes, I started buying tools to do my own service work, and have never stopped. The last time I paid for service on my motorcycle was when I farmed out a transmission rebuild to Tom Cutter (i.e. terrific tech, now retired, who saved me loads of money by pulling used gears from his box of scrap toys; that R1100RT-P boxer transmission shifted as smooth as a Honda when he was done with it). A transmission was a mountain too far for me, so I broke down the bike, sent the transmission to Tom for rebuild, and then did the clutch work, rear engine seal, and a bunch of other R&R stuff myself.

I've never purchased a motorcycle that I did not intend to personally maintain. It's like, what's the point of riding one if the machine between your legs is a black box. This is probably from my Navy background, where I was trained (and I trained my department/division) to know my job and everyone else's well enough to step in for them. If there was ANY mystery about a machine, I wanted to know more. My experience (albeit limited) with Beemer owners is that while they may not service the bike every time it needs work, they want to know how it's done, and they want to be ABLE to do it themselves if they want or need to.

BMW's policy on manual distribution is profit motivated, period, at the deliberate expense of their customers. You can look at it differently, but it's the only logical conclusion in my mind. YMMV