BMW R1200R R1150R/T F800 K1200R R1100R/T R1250R RnineT Message Board

hallo all,
I've been having some problems with my r1100r recently. It's a 1994 model with 77000 km on it. bought it almost 3 years ago. it was all fine, till i decided to fix it up a bit . A year ago or so i decided maybe it will be nice to clean the engine with the help of the cleaning tablets, fuell additives. do not remember the brand now, not so important. they dissolve all the accumulated dirt etc, and are supposed to add octans to the fuel. all in all , not a good idea to use them, at least in my case. what they did was dissolving all the dirt, that kept the bike together:) ok, maybe not entirely true, but the bike started consuming oil, which it had not before, many of the rubber tubes started leaking, and so on, so one can imagine the general effect. since i was used to not having to check the oil level (bad me!) , it happened that it run out of the oil a bit. the oil lamp didn't go on, but i could feel the engine working with more effort = more friction. took me a few hundred km to realize what waas going on. ssoooooooo stupid ! so, being at the time in a middle of a trip on sunday, i bought some oil as close to the one i should, so 10W40 or so, but not lightlauf (german word, meaning light operation or so, do not know how it's called in english). anyways, had it replaced with proper one at a inspection 2 weeks latert or so. had to add at this point, that since i got the bike, i always had the bmw place do the yearly inspection etc. they did one soon after i first used the addtitives, so i figure they adjusted whatever needed adjustement, like valve clearance and injection etc. anyways, since the oil incident i've noticed increased vibration of the engine, and what seems to be a steady decrease of performance. the bike won't accelerate as smoothly as before, and the vibrations just do not encourage me to rev it up beynd 5000 rpm. what used to be a smooth ride now seems a lot of effort for the bike, especially in the high revs, it just doesn't seem to enjoy it anymore. plus, whenever i let go of the gas i hear a clapping sound for a couple of secs, like the valves or so. so i'm worried i screwed it up for good and the bike would need a general engine overhaul to get back to where it was. i'm so upset with it i'm even considering selling the machine, although i really like it. or liked it when the ride was smoother, now it only reminds me by contrast how nice it used to be. hence my question/cry for help: what do you guys think? can there be a simpler solution to it? what can be the reason? does it sound like anything ffamiliar to you? i havent talked with the bmw people yet, since being short on sach i changed the oils myself and thought of skipping the yearly inspection this year. i know that in the light of what i just wrote it could be a good idea to give it to the bmw guys and have them check it out, and maybe that is what i will do , i just thought there are a lot of experienced people here that could give me a hint on what it might be. i greatly appreciate any info, thanks
cheers
babulin

You isolated these symptoms:
a. the bike started consuming oil
b. increased vibration of the engine
c. steady decrease of performance// the bike won't accelerate as smoothly
d. i let go of the gas i hear a clapping sound

Here is what I would suggest:
1) run a full tank of known good gas through it with no additives.
2) change oil and filter with the best stuff (BMW 20w50) mineral oil not synth.
3) insure plug wires, coils, plugs, and ignition system are operating properly - replace plugs and wires as necessary; battery fully charged and charging? - check alternator
4) do a stone cold valve adjustment (never assume the dealer did anything if it is not on your receipt, itemized) (never assume he did it right)
5) do a warmed up engine throttle body sync (insure cables are seated and operate properly without binding - check the Bowden box)
6) check cam chain tensioner lef tand right
7) check TPS settings and reset if needed (procedure for R1100? I do not know)
balance tires and wheels, inspect, clean, and replace brake shoes, calipers if necessary; check for true rotors
9) visually inspect, check, touch, re-torque every exposed bolt, nut, fastener especially shocks and wheels
Now ride it some more and see if any of the symptoms smooth out.
10) on a clean unmarked surface park the bike HOT and observe weeps, seeps, leaks for 24 hours - Note which seals, gaskets, and seams are problem areas - save notes for later
11) check driveline front to back - transmission gears fully engage?; clutch operates smoothly - no chatter or slippage; splines (yikes!); final drive?
12) take it to the dealer for a computer fault code reading
If none of this helps... seek a local, non-dealer expert for more assistance.

Many of the things I suggested are not direct to your stated problem, but at this stage it appears you have potentially unrelated problems all starting at the same time you feel guilty about the oil thing. So doing all these things (which you CAN do) helps yopu baseline the bike and get a feel for the serious problems if any. At the least, you get a placebo feeling of stuff you know you did right.

thank you very much for your reply, i think i will start with the valve clearance and throttle body sync and go from there. thanks again!

The R1100R RHS high tension lead runs right over at 90 degrees the steel frame
my lead had wear on it after that i spiwrapped ok and thought why couldnt BMW do that
leaving a high tension wire rubbing on the frame as normal ... go figure

just & thought

The shotgun approach may get it eventually but a lot of work is required...

One thing that can cause vibration AFTER an oil change is that you added too much oil.
Check your oil level window after you have the bike upto full temp (your oil coolers should be hot to the touch). Then let the bike sit on the side stand for about 15 minutes then put it on the centre stand and if your window is filled with oil, try draining the oil out so that it is in the middle of the window. Measure the amount you drained out then go ride. The difference between the bottom of the window and the top is 1qt.

thanks guys! i did the valve clearance adjustement and the throttle body sync and it is better now. plus, i think the oil level also contributed to the problem a bit, was a bit too high. it's still not perfect, but i guess i should fine tune the throttle sync again.
thanks again!