Gerontious

Honda assist. covers me in the UK and Europe up to a point. if the breakdown is caused due to a fault covered by the warranty. They will come out. MCE offer breakdown cover.. so they can arrange transport of the bike to a Honda dealership. for anything non-warranty. Puncture. I can fix myself once i get the new wheels fitted.

The reviews were copied from American magazine articles. so the language reflects that. The Americans have always been rather kinder to BMW than the Brits.. it was a very different time and there was little or no love for the brand, reviewers here were loathe to appear too keen as the bikes were at that time for "old men". Obviously that label has largely gone. At the time i only read one positive review of my bike and that was in MCN, by a man named Chris Moss and he called it a "hooligan bike disguised as a BMW" and the "fastest real world A-B bike he knew of", which now seems utterly bizarre. This for a bike I've always considered a bit of a Tractor. Its fast as any of the guys who tour with me will tell you, not as fast as a modern GS. but not bad. and the R1100R isn't much slower. They're all torque monsters. if the seat height is too much for you.. i found this on an archive. On that same site i linked to above, one interesting thing. An earlier version of the bike is given 3 seat heights. (29.9 / 30.7 / 31.5 inches) Now.. that isn't the sort of thing BMW would get rid of as the bike was updated.. so, you never know. Take the seat off and see if there is any adjustment.

well... just off the phone and I have jumped ship. (after 17yrs) laughable really. The best multi-bike they could offer me was £696.97 (and that was giving a value for the BMW of £500!!!) Insuring the Honda on its own FC £549 (They cant even beat their own online quote with the Bike insurer of £387.46) TPO for the Africa twin.. an unbelievable £396 !!!!! (though that might have been a multibike) Compare that against: MCE £143.92 Bennetts £177.43 Devitt £183.48 POST OFFICE £189.08 So.. likely to go with MCE. and see how much TPO is for the BMW and if its stupid as it cant share the NCB, get rid.

Bemoto are number 17 on the list. they are quoting £242.96 plus £850 excess. Titanium level is number 23 £273.37 plus £850 excess Again this is for the Africa Twin on its own. Its unlikely the GS will ever leave the country again for the remainder of my ownership. and i have 2 years Europe wide this that and the other as part of the purchase price. It may turn out that I get the cheapest possibe cover. TPO for the beemer. give it a stupid low value and insure it separately and use my NCB for the Honda.

off topic.. but just something I need to get off my chest. A great many years ago, long before forums were a 'Thing' and the only option for almost 'live" chat on the Internet about my very unusual bike.. the R1100GS. I joined what was then called a "Listserv" a kind of group email thing. It was based in and mainly used by Americans. and at that time the only independent source of info about my bike. I was banned in less than a month. A question was asked about riding history, what bikes have you owned... and I said something like "I have only had one Jap Bike.. a Kawasaki KH250" That got me thrown off as it caused huge offence to a fair few Americans with Japanese ancestors. I was mortified. Much more careful now about attaching labels to people. because.. Ive seen the effect. I remember as a kid seeing my Mum spat on in the street, because someone gave her a label due to her accent. In 1974/5 having an Irish accent and living not far from Birmingham was dangerous. My Mum was mentally scarred by that event.. so were we all.

I think its likely that that shouldnt happen.. and if it does, the battery is definitely faulty. I would guess that the PMS (power management system) that is in all motorcyle lithium batteries will disable it when it reaches a certain level. effectively turning it off. And.. for the OP that appears to me what has happened. the battery has turned off. so "nothing" no display and not even a 'click'.

In the list of quotes for the Africa twin. with number 1 being the cheapest and number 37 the most expensive. Swinton were number 6 £200 + £850 excess Hastings were number 9 £207 + £850 excess reminder. Number 1 is MCE £143.92 + £575 excess. Number 37 is Premium Choice £568 + £700 excess. I wouldnt go with any of them, obviously. I would prefer to stay with CN because as I mentioned they are really good when it matters, when you really need them. They saved me from a whole world of pain several years ago, went that extra mile and saved my bacon in a major way and were entirely professional and efficient at no extra cost to me aside from a single 1 minute phone call from my PAYG phone, they immediately called me back (in Austria) to save my credit. Perfect. but as i say.. this latest renewal is a joke.

More expensive on an ABS bike.. but on yours, no. an hour or two labour (if that) and its best done when the brake fluid is renewed, which should be done every 24 months. So doesn't need to be "immediate" worth considering for the future though. Goodridge produce a kit for the bike that costs £106 and you can choose the colour. you can maybe find cheaper if you hunt, or watch eBay. but these are the cheapest I can find with a quick search: https://tinyurl.com/yykdjf2b 235KG is the dry weight.. so add fuel and oil. these are by any standards heavy bikes. over a quarter ton. but.. they carry most of the weight very low down so dont 'feel' as heavy as they are.. just don't drop it as there is a real knack to lifting it and you can easily injure yourself if you get it wrong. compare that "dry" weight with the wet weight of your other bike. 222KG. the full specs are here.. this site is generally reliable, nice little review/commentary at the bottom. https://tinyurl.com/y3dnvlxm

Braided Lines improve the brakes.. its a heavy bike and the brakes need every help they can get. I noticed a marked difference when I had mine done. The bike has two shock absorbers. one at the rear (as usual) and one at the front. The forks are essentially empty tubes and not part of the actual suspension. New Shocks will totally transform the bike.. but, having said that this bike hasnt done many miles so you should get plenty more out of them. but, its something to consider. I went for Wilbers and had them 'made to measure' built for my weight. People do leave their bikes ticking over.. Ive seen pictures of what happens. The sight glass eventually melts... the engine oil gushes out and the bike dies. If that doesn't happen.. then the oil gets far hotter than it should, becomes too thin to be effective and the engine suffers significant wear. Or.. as mentioned stops, because the wiring to the hall sensor loses its insulation, shorts and needs to be replaced. (not too expensive) you probably wouldn't notice the little bit of oil that burns off after the bike is leaning over, overnight on the side stand. but.. day after day it adds up and then you get the complaints when they notice.. "My Bike is using too much oil!!!" its easily avoided. only use the side stand for short stops. or if you do use it all the time, dont be surprised if the bike needs a little top up every month or two. Its perfectly normal for a boxer of that era. Ask almost any R1100S owner.. no centre stand on them. I almost never leave the GS on its centre stand overnight. So, it never needs a top-up between services. So long as you can see oil in the sight glass.. when the bike is on its main stand. thats it. as I said there is none of this: it must be between these two levels. it can be full.. it can be almost at the bottom, doesn't matter. if you can see it? that just peachy. if you were to over top up. thats not a problem either. excess oil is deposited in the air-filter box. under the filter. it even has a nifty little plugged drain-hole to let it out, easier than using the sump plug and draining/refilling.

The Black Forest is fantastic... more than enough to keep you busy. and on the other side of the Rhine its Mirror The Vosges. Its not black.. and its not all forest. some very exciting roads there too.. aside from the B500. But go.. out of season and never at the weekend. https://tinyurl.com/yxg2gqqr

for what its worth.. the battery in the Africa twin is a little over 4" x 4" x 3" - its tiny. weighs 3lb and is much "stronger".. higher everything than the battery it replaced in the previous years bike. As I mentioned.. standard size (replacement) batteries are mostly empty box. to match the originals.

They do... yes. Never heard of them before. First question.. I have no idea. but 'probably' its definitely worth having.. as to costs. well.. cross that bridge if I'm forced to. Second questions. TPO is third party only and is the minimum insurance level you need here or once over the channel. with a lot of insurers.. you might have fully comp here in the UK, but for european travel most of them will only give you the minimum legal requirement. TPO.

yes.. for European travel. (which is my main reason for staying with them and keeping the GS for so long.) They started as vintage bikes only and that is an aspect from their beginnings that they have kept. most, if not all insurers will only cover bikes that are under 10yrs old. They offer the same level of insurance.. so in my case thats FC. and rescue too. from anywhere in the EU. (Ive used their European rescue and its fantastic) most others only give you TPO. once you're across the channel. and as I say.. refuse to cover older bikes.

CN are great when you need them. when it really matters. But not at any price. and definitely not at this price. Been with them since 2005 and my last claim was in 1996

If they are with me then two guesses. if MCE can give me a quote like that on an £11,000 value bike.. then what of a £1,500. They do multibikes.. and the usual line is a multibike is less than two individuals.. so Im looking at less than a nominal £288 in theory. over £450 less than CN. see what they say.

So.. obviously week away and I return to a lot of post, which I ignored last night. today was "busy" and so.. Ive sat down to go through it all. Amongst it was a renewal for the two bikes. A 19 year old BMW and the New Africa Twin. CN have offered me a quote of £739.99 with a £225 excess Bit steep to say the least.. in fact I laughed out loud. As far as I can tell there aren't any online sites that will give you a quote for more than 1 bike. So.. I went to "The Bike Insurer" and ran through my details and the Africa Twin. Top of the list was MCE and they have given me a quote of £143.92 with a £575 excess. Main difference is where the bike is parked. CN call it a "Locked Compound" for MCE the only choice that was appropriate was "Driveway" And... oddly enough, down the list from TBI was Carole Nash. and there they are offering me a quote as above, for £273.37 with an £1100 excess. I shall be calling them mañana and it should be interesting. BTW... this is nothing new, every renewal I have had from them has been an absolute joke. but.. get them on the phone... and.. All it takes is some comparison quotes and threats. plus its an 0800 number.

No.. its built in. a module of sorts that is in the box.. takes power from the bikes charging system and does a bit of tinkering to make it suitable. These are built in to Lithiums that are designed to replace the OE lead acid. Or where the OE battery was a choice of standard or lithium. Which is how Honda started with the very high end bikes like the SP and SP2. A lithium battery can cope with a very basic trickle charger - not ideal, but enough in an emergency. (this has been tried) The advice is to plug it in for no more than 30 minutes. Put the battery back in the bike start it and go for a ride. An hours riding is enough to bring it to full charge. anything more complicated than that will kill it. So, you cannot use anything that is even remotely 'clever' like an Optimate.. that does all sorts of things to the battery before it starts normal charging and afterwards. Any kind of charger like that.. the sort that you connect and leave on for weeks or months will kill it. As will any charger that starts with a 'boost'. I have an optimate for the GS. Im not going to be buying a charger for the Africa twin. no need to.

Its only a matter of time before you will not have a choice, thats assuming you are buying a new bike over the next few years. With my Honda... I didn't have a choice it came with a Lithium as standard and so there is no room to put a normal battery on the bike, and thats the way of the future, as the years go by they will take over.. just as the original mobile phones had a car battery to power them (first in a car.. then shortly afterwards in a very heavy carry case), then it went to rechargeable alkaline, then nickel and finally lithium. Nobody thinks twice about the lithium battery in their phone and the idea of moving back to either alkaline (or nickel) or even a car battery is ludicrous. Lithium batteries are far superior in every way to standard lead acid. one guys faulty one is just that. for all I know he could have bought a fake. or (more likely) one with a fault as I suggested. If you bought a Samsung phone that went flat after a few hours what would you do? you would take it back.. and get another. the chances of two bad ones is pretty low. Likewise if your phone battery died.. you would simply get another. Batteries you buy to replace a standard acid battery are mostly empty box.. because lithium is considerably smaller. They also have hardware/software built in to cope with the bikes charging system. bear in mind that an AC battery charger works in a slightly different way and can be used in a lithium.. but only up to a point. Battery 'conditioners' are totally unsuitable. so anything like a Oximiser. or an Optimate.. cannot be used. for total peace of mind you really do need a lithium specific charger. The battery is unaffected by temperatures down to -10 and higher cranking and capacity that its lead acid equivalent. it recharges its power loss in minutes and should last 10 years or more. when the bike is stored.. it loses 1% of its charge per month. so doesnt need to be touched if the bike is stood over winter and not ridden for 6 months. even a year standing wont affect the first start-up. 12% loss is nothing. (this has already been tried) Does your phone battery need 'warming up'? its almost the same technology. In fact its only because of the advances in batteries for phones that we have these things for bikes.. the one has lead directly to the other. There is only one downside to a lithium battery and that is that it cannot be jump started. but then.. there should never be any need to do that.

I would get in contact with the seller and tell them its faulty. A lithium battery should last at least 10 years and never go flat under normal circumstances.. towards the end of its life then it would just have less oomph and engine starts will begin to be a struggle. But it should never go flat like you describe. Especially from nearly new. assuming its fully charged.. and you start a bike from cold. it should be back up to full capacity within 10 minutes so only repeated rides withe multiple stops and engine restarts should have any kind of negative effect.. and multiple is an understatement. I would guess that the built in hardware that governs the battery charging management is faulty.. or perhaps the cells themselves. If this has happened once then it is almost certain to happen again. Contact the seller and tell them its faulty and demand it is either replaced or get a refund. A later edit. This is normal. just like a phone will turn itself off when the battery gets very low. so has your battery. It isn't completely flat, it has reached a point where it has disabled itself. A lithium battery should never go completely flat as this is harmful.

Gear indicator on the Africa Twin makes me laugh out loud. "When did that happen?" Gear indicator on the GS... I very rarely look at. riding that bike for so long its almost like its a part of me. Only thing I look at now is the neutral light to check its off when I park the bike on a hill.

The Zumo is rated IPX7 The rider 550 is also IPX7 this means it can be dropped into a 3 foot deep bucket of water and nothing will happen. and the standard test lasts 30 minutes. its the highest waterproof rating for normal temperatures. higher ratings are for very hot/cold temperatures.. boiling and freezing while submeresed.

Indeed, my Zumo 660 is tough. One year outside the Nurburgring... (Awful name drop) I was in too much of a rush and didn't lock it properly to its mount. It flew off at 60mph and was almost immediately ridden over by a TRX850. 500lb of bike plus rider and the Zumo survived all that with little more than a little paint scrape. That was 8yrs ago and it still works perfectly today and is on its second battery.

Purely from memory, the cables, theottle and clutch are replaced at 24000 or thereabouts. Might be 30 or 36. I can check when I get home. The hall sensor is to do with timing the spark plug "spark" it recognises the position of the cylinder and signals the spark to happen at the right point. If the engine gets excessively hot, to the point that the down pipes are glowing, then the cables plastic coating can start to melt and short. And then the spark won't happen. This is only going to happen if the engine is ticking over and you forget... Leave it for a few hours, or longer. This can also make the oil so hot that the sight glass in the engines lower side can melt.... I have heard of that happening. But the bike had been left ticking over for hours. All afternoon. The sight glass is made from plastic. I've only once or twice turned the engine off in standing traffic. Both cases a crash up ahead and nobody was moving. People were stood at the side of the car, twiddling their thumbs. I do believe a centre stand was standard.. But maybe wrong as its a Japanese bike. Heated grips were normal on a lot of bikes from that era.. So, wait and see. Panniers should use the ignition key, they come from a time before aluminium crates and are quite good. Once nice bit of design is the moirrors are a tad wider, so if the mirrors will fit through a gap, so will the luggage. The pannier on the exhaust side is a little smaller. Be careful when you close them.. Turn the key so the red tab disappears and only then fold down the handle to fully lock the case. If the red tab is damaged the case will not lock and it's a pain to fix. The bike is air/oil cooled. As well as cooling and lulbricating the engine, the oil carries heat away from the exhaust valves. To a little radiator. It's the case that most bikes like this can overheat if left for too long. Like an hour. It doesn't have a fan that on water cooled bikes would take over. They sometimes burn oil. Again this is normal for a boxer of this era and is mostly caused when the bike is parked on it's sidestand over night. The cylinder on the stand side will be leaning downwards and what happens is a little oil leaks past the piston rings and is burnt when you start her up. Perfectly normal. If you use the centre stand this oil loss is much reduced. There's nothing hard or fancy about checking the oil. Park the bike on its centre stand on level ground overnight. And look at the glass in the morning. If you can see oil, then your good to go. There none of this... It must be between this and that mark. See oil in the glass... That's all you need to know. Just try not to overfill. Top up in small amounts and give it time to settle. My bike doesn't need topping up from one service to the next.. It always on its centre stand overnight. That's the cure. You can likely add a friction throttle stabiliser.. Cruise control wotsit to the throttle grip. Maybe a kaoko. Other upgrades to think about for the future are braided brake lines.. And eventually replacing the two shock absorbers, but there is no rush to do either.

I'm sure you'll like it despite it being from a different era. A bike that was designed before 1993. 4 generations removed from your other bike. A lot more character than more modern machines, much simpler. The engine is effectively eternal. The electrics are sound. The gear box can be click click click. Or click. clunk. Bang, and is nothing to worry about, there is a knack you will learn for smooth changes. It's all cable, so these will eventually snap. There is a replacement schedule for all of them. It has the old style BMW indicator switches.. Which at first are extremely odd. But you soon get used to them. 3 buttons all thumb operated. Exhaust is quiet. And completely stainless. It's pointless replacing it. (And can open a can of worms). Centre stand as standard. Odd horn button. Slow revving. At 4000rpm the bike will be doing 80 and that's only halfway to the redline. Wheels are anodised.. Spokes are stainless. Pilot road tyres really suit it. One top tip. Never let it stand for more than a few minutes ticking over and definitely never leave it ticking over a few minutes and "forget"... This is very bad for the oil and can cook the hall sensor behind the front plate of the engine. There is no need to ever let it warm up. Just start the engine and go. It's injection, with a lever marked choke. This is just a fast idle which your bike may need at start up.. Or you can (should) just ride it away. It should tick over.. Once warmed up at a steady 1100rpm. Strange noises are normal. The way it jerks to one side with the first bang from the engine is perfectly normal too. Despite buying the Africa Twin and really liking it. I'm still really in two minds about selling my 1100. It fits me perfectly. And because of that, who would buy it? Grotesquely tall bikers with odd tastes in bikes are few and far between.

Yes... I'm of that rare breed who doesn't own a Smart Phone. And my sat nav has proved itself multiple times over the years. Almost 10yrs old now and still going strong. Had it wired direct to the battery on the GS and either turned it off or took it out of its cradle when the bike was parked up overnight. New bike it's switched to the ignition. If anything were to go wrong with it, then I would immediately replace it. No question.