R1100 GS Clutch Going?

[MusicMan]

R1100 GS 76,000 miles. This past weekend with the SFO on the back and all bags packed plus tank panniers, I noticed a few times when I went to pass my Beemer seemed to rev up up a bit and then take hold si O could complete the pass, it seemed different to me then being in the wrong gear, I'll have to expirement some more.

Any ways to check the life of my clutch wsithout getting in there?

I heard on "car talk" once they said with a car to butt it up (front)against a stationary object, put the car in 5th gear and slowly let out the clutch, when the car stalls that's where you know how much clutch travel is left. If it doesn't stall your clutch is shot. I don't want to try this with the bike.

I've dons the clutch without any hassles on my K 75. How many hours first time around am I looking at with the R1100 GS to replace the clutch?

Thanks, Andy

[Stuff2C]

Try a proper adjustment first. I had 85K on my 1100GS when I sold it and the guy I sold it to has over 120k on the stock clutch.

[BubbaZanetti]

Try a proper adjustment first. I had 85K on my 1100GS when I sold it and the guy I sold it to has over 120k on the stock clutch.

hydraulic clutches can't really be adjusted

i'm thinking mines becoming toast too, but from a leaky seal, not age or abuse

[Stuff2C]

Then check this out.

Defective clutch seal
Some bikes, particularly pre-98, suffer clutch slip. You usually notice it first during high speed roll ons in top (e.g. accelerating hard from 70 to 90mph).
This is a known problem caused by oil on the clutch plates. This is due to a seal being nicked during gearbox/engine assembly and has been reported on 94-97 models. (98 on they fixed it).

(If you are really keen you can inspect for the problem. Remove the starter cover and see if oil has bypassed the seal and coated the inside of the housing).

The bad news is that it requires the whole engine and transmission to be removed to replace the damaged seal.

[Kev95GS]

Try a proper adjustment first. I had 85K on my 1100GS when I sold it and the guy I sold it to has over 120k on the stock clutch.

There was a great article in ON last year that gave details and specs for adjusting your cable. I will find which one and let you know.

My rear main went out last fall and had to replace clutch when they replaced the seal because the oil had contaminated the clutch. Alot of labor. I let the shop do it becuase I knew it would be done right. Hope it's not your clutch.
:thumb

Kevin

[kbasa]

hydraulic clutches can't really be adjusted

i'm thinking mines becoming toast too, but from a leaky seal, not age or abuse

His is an 1100, which has a cable operated clutch.

The clutch cable adjustment is kind of simple, but can be tricky to do.

First up, you verify that the adjuster at the handlebar is set to the right length. The amount of threaded portion of the cable exposed should be about 12 or 13mm if memory serves. You might need to remove the handguards to do this. If that's right, you get to go down to the back of the transmission and adjust the bolt on the back of the clutch arm. You're looking to set it so you have (I think) 7mm of freeplay in the clutch lever. You're going to measure the gap between the lever and the mount to determine how much freeplay you have.

The adjustment down at the bottom can be difficult. It's a locknut arrangement and because of the trans housing, it can be difficult to get a wrench in there. I've used a deep socket to break the lock nut loose and then a regular wrench to perform the actual adjustment. Getting the locknut tight again can be a pain, but here's a little trick to help make that easier without screwing up your adjustment.

Get a helper to apply the clutch, which will put pressure on the adjustment bolt and keep it from turning while you retighten the locknut. You don't need to kill the locknut, you just need to snug it up so it won't readily turn.

Start there.

[kbasa]

Then check this out.

Defective clutch seal
Some bikes, particularly pre-98, suffer clutch slip. You usually notice it first during high speed roll ons in top (e.g. accelerating hard from 70 to 90mph).
This is a known problem caused by oil on the clutch plates. This is due to a seal being nicked during gearbox/engine assembly and has been reported on 94-97 models. (98 on they fixed it).

(If you are really keen you can inspect for the problem. Remove the starter cover and see if oil has bypassed the seal and coated the inside of the housing).

The bad news is that it requires the whole engine and transmission to be removed to replace the damaged seal.

It actually only requires the transmission to be removed. This is a time consuming process, but not especially difficult. It's much easier if you have some kind of guide pins to get the trans out. If you're willing to splice a connector into the neutral switch wiring, you can perform this without having to disassemble the final drive.

[Kev95GS]

There was a great article in ON last year that gave details and specs for adjusting your cable. I will find which one and let you know.
Kevin

It was in the March 05 issue.

Kbasa is right on the gaps. 12 mm at the thumb adjustment nuts and 7 mm of freeplay at the lever.

Kevin

[MusicMan]

I remember that article in ON. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. Hmm on the seal, I'll take a closer look...... Any good web pages out there on how to replace the clutch on a R1100 GS? At least I can study up, the guide pins were a huge help on my K75!

I'm waiting for a adjuster bolt to come in( don't ask me why), then I'll adjust the clutch again and see. It was slipping in that range between 70 and 90.

Andy

[kbasa]

The basic gist of replacement goes like this:

Remove seat.
Remove exhaust system.
Remove rear wheel.
Disconnect caliper from final drive.
Disconnect wiring from neutral switch at RID (If you're lazy like me, just splice a new four pin connecter in at a convenient spot on the left side of the bike.
Remove airbox
Remove tank and bodywork associated with tank.
Remove starter cover and starter.
Remove the footpeg mounts.

OK, now that you've got all the ancilliary stuff out of the way, it's time to get the trans out of there. I may have missed something, so keep reading. If something is in the way of performing any of the steps below, take it off.

Where the rear subframe attaches to the top part of the motor, loosen the securing bolts.
Remove the bolts securing the subframe at the bottom.
Lift the rear subframe up, pivoting it around the upper bolts. You need to get it pretty high, which may require you to remove a bunch of the zipties securing the cables to the subframe. Use a tiedown to keep the subframe up and out of the way. I just attached mine in a loop around the front subframe.

Get a transmission jack and slide it up under the trans. Use one with wheels.
Remove the bolts securing the transmission and insert the guide pins. I used the BMW tools, but if you want, you can use some long bolts. I like the BMW tools because they're smooth and you can lube them. This is helpful during assembly.

Slide the entire trans/final drive unit out of the way. Secure it safely somewhere. It's not all that heavy, so you should be able to manage it. Be careful not to screw up the rear disc. Also, watch for the pushrod that operated the clutch. It pokes out of the front of the trans and is easy to bend if you're acting like a gorilla.

You'll need to lock the flywheel in place. BMW sells a tool to do it, but I just used a wooden block, wedged in place.

From there, you can remove the clutch pack. I bought the BMW centering tool when I did mine, which made it easy.

There are more specific instruction for dealing with the clutch in the factory repair manual or the Hayes manual.

Assembly is the reverse of disassembly. :ha

[BubbaZanetti]

His is an 1100, which has a cable operated clutch.

The clutch cable adjustment is kind of simple, but can be tricky to do.




yep, just noticed that now, were all the 1100s up till the 1150 cable operated?

[kbasa]

yep, just noticed that now, were all the 1100s up till the 1150 cable operated?

Yep.

[BubbaZanetti]

i just realized i have the worst possible oilhead in terms of transmission removal, i have to reomve completely sub frame, exhaust AND main frame (an S specific piece)to get the transmission out, luckilly the main frame and rear drive come off as one piece

now i debate, wait till after the minuteman 1000 or do it in the next few weeks.............

[kbasa]

Do you really need to remove the final drive from the trans?

[BubbaZanetti]

makes it easier from what i can tell:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=199637&perpage=20&pagenumber=1

i like this guy's writeup of it a lot, and will probably follow it whenever i get around to doing the rear main seal