ABS Fault, dead speedo and auto cancel failure...

Post by **vielzebub** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 12:28 pm

...so trouble on my ride today.
Nothing major, but I hope one of you can help...

I was tooling along, took a nice right hand sweeper, came out of the turn glanced at my gauges and noticed my speedo had stopped working. According to the speedometer I was going zero miles an hour. I then noticed my brake failure light on, but not flashing. According to the manual that means no ABS and does not indicate catastrophic brake failure.

I pulled over, restarted the bike to reboot the computer and checked the brake fluid. I looked for some indication of damage on the front brake system or ABS sensor. Every thing seemed okay so I pressed on even though the speedo stayed dead and the brake failure light remained on.

The rest of the ride was uneventful, but I did note that the self-canceling turn signals would no longer self-cancel.

Another inspection at home and visually I see nothing wrong. The speedo and lights work fine during the self diagnostic at startup so I'm a little stumped. I mean, the speedo and ABS I get. Maybe a bad sensor or something, but the self-cancel? Why would that fail too?

I'll call the dealer tomorrow, but hopefully you folks have a suggestion or two of what I might look for.
Thanks in advance.

Eric

Post by **celticus** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 1:06 pm

You might try disconnecting the battery for a minute then reconnecting.
Mark.

Post by **deilenberger** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 1:37 pm

Check the wiring to your rear ABS sensor - the one that goes into the rear drive.

If you loose that sensor - you loose all speed/distance related things, such as speedo, turn-signal-cancel, odometer, fuel-mileage-countdown, trip meters and of course ABS functionality. ALL of these depend on a signal from the rear drive sensor.

A friend on a GS recently lost all of these while on a trip. That was a prelude to his rear drive failure - and I believe the sensor was probably damaged by the internals of the rear drive moving around. His GS has about 24,000 miles on it.

TWI · Post by **TWI** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 3:26 pm

This could be very bad news. Sorry about that.

I had an '05 R1200ST. I liked the looks, it rode nice, etc. Turned out to be unreliable. All the repair work was done under warranty, but that didn't make the experience of not being able to ride because the bike was being fixed any better.

The behavior (no speedo, ABS indicator on steady, then everything clearing and working correctly after a restart) is the same behavior by R1200ST exhibited with the first warranty repair. Turned out the ABS module was defective. After that was replaced that problem didn't turn up again -- other problems did.

It could be, like the other post stated, a bad sensor or wiring to the sensor. However, it could be the ABS module going haywire.

Post by **vielzebub** » Sun Jul 29, 2007 6:25 pm

Thanks for the input all.
I'll give the bike a look over tomorrow, see if I can fix it based on your leads and then I'll chat with the dealer.

When things are figured out I'll post back with the issues. Right now I'm trying to be optimistic. I mean, its brand new for crying out loud so its probably minor....right?

Optimus Prime · Post by **Optimus Prime** » Tue Jul 31, 2007 9:38 am

The Auto-cancel is based off distance traveled. If the Speedo isn't working, and the ABS is shut down, I would assume a speed sensor (probably rear) is down.

The speed sensor is known to collect metal bits from the final drive. It could be as simple as the sensor needing to be cleaned off.

Post by **deilenberger** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 10:42 pm

Any update on this?

Post by **vielzebub** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 7:35 pm

Not really.
Its been in the shop since Friday.

I brought it in, waited an hour for a diagnosis. The dealer then told me I might as well head home. They said they needed to talk to BMW because the computer fault was indicating a complete tear down of the rear. The dealer wanted to speak with BMW first. I'll pester them tomorrow for an update.

I'll keep you updated as things progress...

LeonardoNYC · Post by **LeonardoNYC** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 7:42 pm

Boy that stinks--sorry to hear about it. I am sure you know that you do deserve prompt attention though most dealers are closed on Mondays. Best of luck with the situation though and hopefully you will be riding by the weekend.

TWI · Post by **TWI** » Mon Aug 06, 2007 8:08 pm

Wow, I'd almost wish a fried ABS control module on you; at least that is easy to replace. Sorry to hear about this. Please keep us posted.

Post by **vielzebub** » Thu Aug 09, 2007 9:19 pm

TWI wrote:Wow, I'd almost wish a fried ABS control module on you; at least that is easy to replace. Sorry to hear about this. Please keep us posted.

Your wish came true...I think.
The dealer says that I need a new ABS control module, but the BMW mothership has not authorized the repair yet.

I asked how long until I can have the bike back.
The dealer said they're going to order the replacement parts today so everything is ready to go when BMW releases them to do the warranty work, but they didn't commit to a time other than early next week.

It seems to me there's a story behind the story and I hope to find out more when I pick up the bike next week.

Until then I'll lament not having Black Betty around for one of the nicest summer weeks of the year. Boston weather has been perfect....

TWI · Post by **TWI** » Thu Aug 09, 2007 9:49 pm

I was lucky. The regional BMW rep was at the dealership the day they worked on the bike. The shop manager had the rep review the data from the bike with him. The rep then authorized the repair.

Good luck.

TWI · Post by **TWI** » Mon Aug 20, 2007 3:42 pm

Any news to share?

Post by **vielzebub** » Wed Aug 22, 2007 7:48 pm

Still at the dealer and honestly, these last few weeks have been the best August riding weather in Boston I've ever seen.

The rumor is that the bike will be done tomorrow and available for pickup. Of course, its supposed to rain tomorrow.

Post by **celticus** » Thu Aug 23, 2007 3:50 am

We would love some rain here in Tn.
Mark

Post by **vielzebub** » Tue Aug 28, 2007 10:02 pm

Well, I'm happy to report the bike is back. I still LOVE it.
Disappointed in the service process though.

The dealership claims the delays came from the BMW mothership and this new computer system they have to use. PUMA is what I think they called it. Essentially, the dealership wasn't able to communicate electronically to BMW and BMW was requiring electronic documentation.

I don't know what to believe, or who to yell at, but the bike is back and it was the ABS module. The module and the battery that was drained by the module were replaced under warranty of course. Those three weeks lost riding are irreplaceable.

Enjoy the summer all as its rapidly slipping away....

TWI · Post by **TWI** » Wed Aug 29, 2007 6:18 am

Sounds like the PUMA (or whatever it is) system is something for us all to be aware of when/if trouble develops. I'm disappointed that the current ABS module can fail the way the last generation one could; I had hoped the new version would avoid those problems.

Glad you have your bike back. Get out there and ride!