R80G/S Mufflers

[180pilot]

Can anyone with an early G/S tell me what the heat off the muffler is like for passenger. I'm re-building one and see the ST and later models of 100 G/S appear to have a heat shield over the muffler which the early ones don't have???

[srb]

The early ones should have a shield. The white cover on either side, the left protecting one from the heat of the pipe. Mine has it.

[180pilot]

From your description, I picture the white plastic covers below the seat, but the parts fiches for early G/S shows nothing over pipe?? Which is how mine is on this part drawing:

http://www.maxbmwmotorcycles.com/fiche/DiagramsMid/B0000458.png


Are you describing the battery covers, part 15 on this drawing:

http://www.maxbmwmotorcycles.com/fiche/DiagramsMid/B0000863.png


I only see the cover on 1982 and later R80ST diagram:

http://www.maxbmwmotorcycles.com/fiche/DiagramsMid/B0000467.png

[Na Cl K9]

...http://www.pbase.com/r80ks/gs (photo gallery by Hugo Vanneck)
The pictured GS is almost identical to the one I owned except for the white headlight and instrument covers. Otherwise, you can see the plastic cover on the muffler side. I "Googled" 1981 R80GS to find it. I purchased one of the first ones sold in the US in January of 1981 and it had a full set of plastic including the muffler shield.

From personal experience, my wife sat behind me on the GS on many rides both on highway and off. She never mentioned or complained about heat from the muffler being noticeable or objectionable. The factory plastic was always in place so I have no ideas as to how it might have felt to ride sans shroud. I purchased the luggage for the GS too and that evidently made no difference as far as heat is concerned.

[180pilot]

Thank you for picture. Every picture I have of these bikes from left side show something different. Here is a supposed 1984 PD with a chrome muffler and metal shield, which could mean it was converted from a ST model.

http://home.earthlink.net/~pilot180/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/bmw1984parisdakarr80gs.jpg

Finally seeing your photo, with clearly visable white "battery cover" as parts book calls it, I can see it is much larger then I pictured it and does cover lower muffler.
With it being plastic, there could not be much heat there. However those covers today are about $300 and the metal shield only $ 159. And my dealer tells me the plastic ones had habit of falling off. So, I'm going to try and adapt the metal one to my muffler by welding studs on muff to hold it's mounting brackets.

[lkchris]

The shield in your picture is from a R100GS. The muffler can be either ST or R100GS, probably the latter since the shield fits.

There was never an '84 PD with chrome muffler and metal shield.

Never an '85 or '86 either.

[180pilot]

Main question, why later bikes had metal shield, and early a half plastic one?

As I don't want any heat related problems in that area myself, for rear passenger or panniers.

[37071]

It looks to me as if my 87 has both metal and plastic shields YMMV

[180pilot]

I think that's what mine is going to look like, when I get done. I was wondering if the plastic cover could go over the metal one, appears it does. However, I can't find that combination in any the fiche drawings on net. Instead of the plastic battery covers, I will bend and hammer shape out aluminum ones.

[lkchris]

I can't find that combination in any the fiche drawings on net.

It's not in ETK either.

Pictured is an R80G/S with an R100GS muffler.

BMW NEVER combined chrome muffler with black headers.

[beemerguru]

My turn..since I've rebuilt 22 of these things..

The G/S only had the plastics left side battery cover. Black muffler, no metal cover.

the '83'84 ST was interchangable..had the chrome muffler, the metal cover and the modified left side plastic battery cover.

Some people modified the '87 on R100GS muffler to fit..chrome, and modified the collector box for some reason to fit...also the headers now had a cross over at the front. The G/S and ST were straight pipes.

Black header pipes could be from ceramic coating.

G/S and ST collectors will and do rust out over time..the GS was more substantial but not interchangeable.

I just put a full StainTune on them now..with an occasional SuperTrapp depending on the owner.