Bike woes in the Sierra Nevada Spain

-XP-

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It's things like this that make the trip worthy of story in the future. :)
 

austin

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I tell you what, these GSAs are amazing. I reckon I could have ridden with the full load and it would have been fine. Sure the suspension has bottomed out a few times, and a bump in a corner with just a modest lean on results in the stand touching the tarmac, most of the time you really wouldn't know it was being ridden in solo mode. The bike is well down at the back and quite light at the front yet I have taken it up to 85mph and taken long sweepers at 70+ and all was good, it's been up and down uber-twisty mountain roads and as long as I am smoooooth all is good. I even went up a short 1:3 hill today and apart from feeling like a wheelie was imminent the whole time all was good. I can't see other bikes being overloaded in this way and still handling as well. I know my Varadero was a pig to ride when it was this loaded and that with the pre-load wound right up.

We made it to Santander today but are in a hotel about 20 miles west at St Vincente la Barquella. Nice place.
 

Lutin

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Welcome home. Just a wee bit more of an adventure that you originally planned for, eh?

Hope the repairs are not too ruinously wallet mangling.
 

austin

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I have hooked up the GS911 diagnostic tool and it gives a fault code for the front shock saying it can't connect to the sensor. You can do a test a get realtime values however these come out at "0" and "0" whereas they should be something like 30 and 1100 respectively. So, I was hoping it was simple writing fault - ya know a loom worn through or some shite in a connector but I had the tank off today and everything looks to be just fine. Nevertheless after thorough clean and wiggle of all wires and connectors it still dent work. I also spoke to the guys at Revs racing who fitted the Wilbers shocks and they are 99% certain it will be the "BMW electronics" claiming that they have never had preload failure on the Wilber's ESA shocks on BMWs, although with hindsight I am not sure if they meant the preload on the shocks, the preload motor, or perhaps both. I suspect the former.

So, if I decide to fix it then its off to Bowkers BMW in Preston for a wallet lightening experience. It probably going be something like £100 for a diagnostic to tell me what I already know, then a few hours labour to dismantle and test the Motor and the ECUs. before telling me which outrageously expensive part I need. Or, if I am lucky a software reset might cure it. Whatever I reckon on several hundred quid. Riding it solo on solo only has been discussed is looking more appealing although Anne is not so happy.

There' also the option of non-ESA shocks and remove and sell my ESA one's to offset the cost. That may prove to be the cheapest.
 

hotbulb

Active Member
Sorry to hear of the electronic woes - I hope the cure is one of the lower-cost options!
Were you on last Wednesday/Thursday's Santander - Plymouth ferry? ... if so, I probably saw you on the boat or waiting (seemingly forever) for passport control at Plymouth. (I was, however, travelling by car, not bike ... but did, at least, manage to visit the Picos earlier :clapping:)
 

austin

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Yes on last Wednesdays boat. We were fairly quick off the boat and clear of customs within 10 minutes and heading up the A38 by 5pm :) even after a quick look at old haunts from my university days - it was a polytechnic in them days though.

You won't have seen me on the boat as I spent most of the trip lying down in our cabin. Boaty motion like we had overnight does not mix with my brain one bit. I think I surfaced at about 1pm when it had all calmed down.
 

Lowflyer

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I don't like boats either --- I mean, you can't get off can you ???

Hope you get your issues sorted without spending too much wonga Austin :thumbsup:
 

austin

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A cheeky offer of £50 for a used ESA motor on eBay was accepted today and is winging its way to me. Hopefully it will hook up to the bike's electronics OK and I can can attach it to the loom to test it through its range and all will be good. If so I just need to remove the full front shock and motor assembly then get some help to demount the old motor from the shock (spring compressor needed and maybe more) and remount the new. Fingers crossed.

If it still doesn't work, then, as long as the new/used motor is OK it points the way to the fault be software or ECU related. Hopefully Bowker BMW can fix that without too much cost. Even if it is the software or ECU I think the £50 is well spent as part of the diagnosis and I might even recoup some of the expense if I can sell it again.
 

Lutin

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Seems a reasonable thing to do, even if just for testing purposes.
 
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