September 22, 2005
My old friend is back!
Ahhhh... finally!! I've got my motorbike back again.
I was pretty surprised how different it felt. I guess I really got used to riding Sherri's little F650CS. My 'bike felt almost too big for me... I thought for sure the shop had put the seat in the highest position when they put everything back together, but when I checked it was in the right position after all. It's like riding a new bike again... !
As I mentioned previously the cause of the failure was definitely the spline issue I had talked about when the bike first died and is discussed in the BMWSportTouring.com forums here; I was able to confirm the damage visually. Unfortunately, since BMW paid for half the repair cost, they get the parts back and I didn't think to bring along my little camera so I could get some pictures. But the damage is almost identical to the damage in the photos that I linked to above. The shop replaced the entire transmission because they believe that there was an alignment issue that caused the failure.
I'm a little concerned because the new transmission sounds and shifts a bit different now. I'm not sure if that's because of the newness of the transmission or what... I'll have to give it a few miles first, I think.
In any case, it's nice to have her back. Pretty weird being with the 'bike for one month straight while travelling through Europe, and then a month later losing her for a month. I'm so very glad this didn't happen as I was doing my drive through Sweden or Norway... there were a lot of "middle of nowhere" places where I could have been stranded for a while... My cousin who lives at about the 64th parallel in Sweden gave me a cell phone to use "just in case" on my way back south, but though that would have made it a bit easier, my vacation would have been completely over. Phew, phew, phew!
Posted by Michael at 07:06 PM | Comments (0) | Motorcycles
September 20, 2005
Yay...!
Just got a call... My 'bike is finally ready!! Sadly, I won't be able to pick it up until Thursday... 8^(
Posted by Michael at 02:01 PM | Comments (0) | Motorcycles
September 15, 2005
Some consolation
This past Tuesday I gave A&S BMW a call... figures that the Service Manager that was handling my 'bike was out sick, and the guy covering (Travis) could not find my paperwork, so he had to call me back.
Finally I got a call back from the Travis on Tuesday afternoon, at which time he told me everything I already knew. Apparently nothing had happened in the 2 weeks since I last called them!! The parts were in and BMW had rejected the claim, so the 'bike had been sitting there, waiting for... I don't know what. Argh!! I snarled and snapped at the guy and he said he'd resubmit the request for help again and call back with status.
I got a call back again on Wednesday afternoon. Travis said that due to my good service record, BMW agreed to cover half the cost of the repair. So instead of paying ~$3300 to get the 'bike back, it will cost me ~$1650. Not quite as good as $0, but I think reasonably fair considering that is close to what it would have cost to renew the clutch anyway. Still, this type of thing seems to happen fairly often on these 'bikes (see discussion here).
I do have to acknowledge Travis at A&S BMW... even though I wasn't "his" customer, he did do a fine job of getting things going so that I'm satisfied.
The 'bike should be ready Tuesday of next week; I'll be bringing Sherri's bike in for routine service on Saturday, so I'll be able to check up on the progress of my 'bike then. I hope to be riding my 'bike again next Wednesday... I'll let you know what happens!!
Posted by Michael at 11:46 PM | Comments (0) | Motorcycles
September 10, 2005
Still no word from A&S about my RT
Well, it's been over 3 weeks since the catastrophic failure of my BMW 1150RT transmission (See Expensive Sound...!). A&S BMW Motorcycles has not called me once yet. I called August 30, at which time I found out they had already ordered parts for the repair... I did not know that they could order $2700 worth of parts for my motorbike without getting my authorization first. My original quote only shows ~$263 of diagnostic work. So it's been another 2 weeks since I called them last, and still not a peep. That's an odd notion of customer service, if you ask me.
The service department is closed until Tuesday; I guess I'll try calling them then. I'm afraid that if I don't call, it'll be 6 months before I get my 'bike back!
Posted by Michael at 10:53 PM | Comments (0) | Motorcycles
August 30, 2005
AAAAUUUGH!
Well, I called A&S today... initial estimate to get the transmission fixed is ~$2700 in parts and then some labor... erck! ack! ug! Good thing I was sitting down at the time!
... and yes, it was the same spline issue that I talked about in my Expensive Sound...! post ... we'll see if BMW will help me with this...
I think it's a plot to encourage me to buy a new BMW model...
Posted by Michael at 09:26 PM | Comments (0) | Motorcycles
August 29, 2005
<Sigh> Slow response...
Well, I've had my motorcycle at the A&S BMW Motorcycles shop since August 19, and I have yet to hear a peep. I knew the day I dropped it off (without appointment or warning or anything) that it would be a few days before they could get to it, but I can't help but be a little annoyed that it's been 10 days (7 working days) since I dropped it off and they haven't yet called... They told me they would be looking at it some time over the past week. I tried to call today but forgot that they are closed Sunday and Monday. I'll try again tomorrow.
Unfortunately, this is a little bit of a pattern; the last time I brought the 'bike in for service, I never got a call from them saying it was done. I finally called them a week after they said it should be done then called them; the service manager apologized all over himself for not calling earlier.
Unfortunately, even though it's a 45 minute drive one-way to get there from my home, it's still the nearest BMW service place. And for something that sounded as serious as the last break down, I didn't want to take it anywhere else...
Posted by Michael at 07:23 PM | Comments (0) | Motorcycles
August 22, 2005
Expensive Sound...!
Something bad and expensive happened to my R1150RT on Friday... Didn't hurt me at all, but the 'bike, she's not in such good shape...
I was on my way to work, and I had just entered the freeway from our on-ramp. I was in the slow lane and was getting ready to go into the fast lane to pass a car. As soon as I accelerated, I felt and heard an "expensive" sound come from below me, and it seemed like there was no power anymore. I could feel the engine running and it still revved smoothly, but there was no connection between the engine and the rear wheel. I thought maybe the transmission had slipped out of gear (from 6th gear to between 5th and 6th, perhaps), so I tried shifting down and then up. No luck; I could still hear that nasty sound, like a clothes dryer running with a load of bolts in it, and there was still no power to the rear wheel. I realized then that something very bad had happened within the guts of my transmission.
I was extremely fortunate that I was heading down hill, and that the next exit was at the bottom of the hill. I turned on the hazards and coasted down the hill to the exit, took the exit, and then coasted to a stop near a furniture store. I tried shifting through all the gears but not one could move the 'bike forward, and all resulted in that horrible noise.
I rolled the 'bike into the furniture store parking lot and started to make some phone calls... first to Sherri to have her come pick me up, then to my boss at work, then to one of my team members at work to let them know I wasn't going to make it in.
Sherri came to pick me up, then we went home for the trailer, went back and loaded up the 'bike (with the gracious help of a couple of the loading dock guys), and then I went to drop off the 'bike at the dealership.
They haven't called me yet to tell me what the problem actually is, but after doing some research on the web, I strongly suspect it is a spline failure (See one discussion thread here). Unfortunately, my 'bike is out of warranty by 6 months and 6000 miles, so if this actually is the failure, I don't know if any of the repair cost will be covered by BMW. I will keep you updated...
Posted by Michael at 12:40 PM | Comments (0) | Motorcycles
February 12, 2005
Getting there and back
Checking into the pricing of getting me and my 'bike to Europe and back. Interesting dynamics with the pricing. Flying out of San Francisco, it will cost about $4000 round trip for the 'bike, while it will cost about $1100 for me. But if I decided to fly from Vancouver, British Columbia, I can save $1000 on the round trip costs for the 'bike, while it costs an additional $300 for me. I haven't decided yet if the $700 in savings is worth it to take a 2 day drive up the continent... I'll have to think about it some more, and do a little more research...
Posted by Michael at 11:10 PM | Comments (0) | EuroTrip2005 | Motorcycles
February 04, 2005
Meeting the "god-mother" of my 'bike
Several years ago, when I first moved to the foothills, I would commute by car, taking Highway 50 from the hills down to the valley. There were several mornings where I would see a beautiful BMW R1100RT making its way through the traffic. It was a breathtaking Mist Green color; both its color and its shape convinced me that this was the motorcycle I wanted to have when I could afford it. Well, it turned out I got a very pretty burgundy R1150RT instead, which was nearly identical in shape to the older model with just a hair more displacement.
Today, as I was riding in to work, I happened to catch up to what I believe to be the very motorcycle that caught my fancy so many years ago. At first, I did not realize it was that motorcycle, but thinking about it now, I'm certain that it was. We were both stuck in a little traffic jam trying to get to the freeway entrance, so I was able to exchange a few words with the rider, but not much more than greetings and compliments. Quite exciting, though, to meet the rider and 'bike that helped get my 'bike and I together!
Posted by Michael at 07:58 PM | Comments (0) | Motorcycles
January 24, 2005
New category for my Europe Trip 2005
Well, I admit that no plans are firm yet. This year is the year; that is my hope. I was due for my 8 week sabbatical last year. I have until the end of next year (2006) to take it. And I am hoping it will be this year.
It has been a dream of mine, for some time now, to travel to Europe with my motorcycle in order to visit family and tour the countryside. While there, I would share experiences and pictures via this blog, provided that works out. In order to keep track of the planning prior to, and the experience during, I've created a new category on my blog called EuroTrip2005. If things work out, it'll have a lot of entries; if they don't, well... I don't want to go there yet...
Posted by Michael at 12:07 AM | Comments (0) | EuroTrip2005 | Motorcycles | Travel
January 13, 2005
Clearing the fog
The past few days, we've had pouring down rain one day and we've had icy slick roads another, and I've ridden through both on my motorcycle without any trouble. Yesterday, however, I rode in the worst type of weather I can think of. You might ask, "What type of weather can possibly be worse for riding on a motorcycle than pouring rain or icy slick roads??" Well, I have to preface that with a quick admission that I don't find riding in the rain all that bad (provided I'm wearing the right gear, which I do), and I didn't find riding on the icy roads all that bad either (provided I'm fully aware of the situation, which I was). Yeah, I know, I've got a few marbles loose. But hey, if it was a beautiful sunny spring day, I wouldn't say, "Dang, I sure wish it was pouring down rain instead of being so purty and sunny." Gotta give me credit for that. But if I have to get from some-here to some-there and it happens to be raining, I'll just gear up and make the best of it; no biggie. My 'bike just seems perfectly suited to rainy weather, with the fairing keeping my legs quite dry, and the wind screen, raised just a bit, doing a fine job of blowing the rain droplets off my visor. So what in the heck do I consider the worst type of weather to ride in, for goodness sake??
FOG! Yes, that's right, riding a motorcycle in thick, wet, clammy fog is just downright miserable! Especially if it's during the day. Those of you that drive cars probably wonder about this; "Yes, fog is a drag," you might think, "but it's not all that bad, is it?" Well, on a motorcycle, yes it is.
First of all, of course, there is the reduced visibility because of the fog hanging around. Then, if it's during the day time, everything's just bright enough that my eyes hurt without sun glasses. If I decide to put them on, well, that's another level of reduced visibility. On top of that, the mist that makes up the fog sticks tenaciously to my visor... the droplets aren't large enough to join together and roll off the visor, so they simply creat a fine layer that is very effective at obscuring my vision. If it's day time it's much worse since the light gets scattered all over. Finally, the temperature associated with fog is typically frrr... frrrr... frrrrr... it's really cold, so not only are my fingers, toes and nose froze, the inside of my visor also tends to fog up. So as I'm riding, I'm constantly having to wipe the outside to clear the mist, and having to open the visor to clear the fog. It makes for a miserable and annoying ride, and I hate it; I really, really hate it [waaah!].
Another aspect which makes fog unpleasant is that we rarely get it where I live, but it's often present (during the fog season) where I work. For example, just today, I woke up to a beautiful crisp sunny morning. I could see the Sierra Nevadas clearly. Looking toward the valley, however, all I could see was an ominous grayness. I got on the 'bike, feeling good, sun glasses on, ready to greet the day head on. About 15 minutes later, I got close enough to the fog to see it start swallowing the cars in front of me and my spirits dropped like a rock and I started to dread the rest of the day. I very nearly turned around to play hooky from work but my conscience got the better of me.
So there you have it; weather which I consider to be worse for riding motorcycles in than either pouring rain or icy roads. Once we start getting into spring time, I'm sure I'll be talking more about the best weather for riding... 8^)
Posted by Michael at 07:14 PM | Comments (0) | Motorcycles
January 11, 2005
Heart in throat experience
Just yesterday morning I was heading off to work when I had a rather frightening experience. I decided to ride the motorcycle despite the pouring down rain - I realize that's already quite frightening for some folks - anyway, I was following a Honda when suddenly a deer darted out from the right side of the road and ran head on into the right rear quarter panel of the car. The blow stunned the poor creature such that it collapsed though its momentum caused it to keep sliding across the road directly into my path. The best I could do was give a cry of "Oh sh**!" but luck was with me that day... since the roads were slick, the deer slid all the way to the center turn lane before coming to a stop and I just missed its rear legs. In the rear view mirror I saw the deer get up and shake off the daze before it continued across without further incident. It took a good half hour for my adrenaline to wear off; I kept envisioning the unfortunate outcome for both the deer and I had it stopped directly in my path rather than sliding to the center turn lane. Potentially, the rain-slick roads saved me that morning!
Posted by Michael at 10:00 PM | Comments (0) | Motorcycles
