Final drive corrosion advice

shatnersbassoon

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Hi All,

I purchase a low mileage 2015 GSA in September this year from a BMW dealer. It only had 1300 miles on the clock and appeared to be in excellent condition.
I spent some time looking for any signs of corrosion before buying it, couldn't see any in the obvious places, and did the deal.

Less than a month later, while washing the bike, I discovered what looks like the start of corrosion on the final drive just below the plastic spinney dust seal.
So I emailed the dealer I purchased it from, sent lots of pictures etc to see how to get this fixed under warranty.

After many many polite emails to try and get an update, I finally got a reply today to say that BMW would only cover half of the cost, and that I would need to pay the other £744! :mad:

Bike is only used for pleasure and is always cleaned with no harsh chemicals as per my OCD!

Does this sound normal? Has anyone else had the final drive replaced FOC for corrosion reasons?

Any advice appreciated.
Matt
 
Firstly your question re is this normal

For a BMW GS to corrode yes it is entirely normal and oft reported moaned about on these pages.

I assume the dealer will be sticking to the line of "it was like that when you bought it" it was cheap to take that into account etc

Personally the bike should not have corroded in 2 years and BMW should fix it for free under warranty or should have fixed it before selling it on.

Good luck and keep us posted
 
My final drive was replaced under warranty without question. In fact, all I did was ask my local dealer (not the supplying dealer) what they thought to a little corrosion around the drain bolt which I'd found when washing it. They said that, as my bike was clearly being well cared for (he noticed my ACF50), they'd put a warranty claim in for me. This was approved very quickly. My bike, a late 2016 Euro 4 model, was about 8 months old but under the Motorrad approved used 2 year warranty as yours presumably is too.
 
Hand it back and ask for your money back. The time you had the bike would have to be taken into account but in no way should a 2 year old motorcycle have corrosion (yes I know it is a BMW, nowadays about the same quality as Chinese 150cc family scooter). If it is good enough to be sold through a dealership then I guess they have been aware of the issue if it was present at the time of sale. They do clean the bikes very nicely and would have noticed it for sure. The warranty on used bikes does not extend to corrosion cover but you can use your consumer rights.

Another option if you do not want the grief is to get the bike over to mikeyboy for a strip and paint job on the final drive. May even be cheaper than £744. Come to think of it. He has a final drive in the shop, just needs to know what colour you want it to be.

But maybe just for the hell of it you can try to get the dealership to fix this. After all, they bought the bike in (PCP or part ex) so it is the risk they will have to cover. Being corrosion it will be subject to the quality of paint. Cars don't drop paint after 2 years.


PS. My final drive was replaced because of corrosion inside the hollow spindle, no questions asked. Maybe it depends on who does your claim. Ex dealer bike not from my local.
 
Good to know that others have had some success getting the whole unit replaced under warranty.

It's quite a small area of bubbling at the moment, but it's only going to get worse of course. Does make me wonder what's happening in the areas of the engine that can't be easily seen.
The bike looks to have been well cared for by the previous owner for the few miles they had it, so it surely must be a manufacturing defect.

I'll get back on to the dealer and see what they have to say.
Unfortunately, my local dealer doesn't seem to have the best reputation. They may not be fighting the case with BMW for me very well.

Cheers, Matt
 
Hi All,

I purchase a low mileage 2015 GSA in September this year from a BMW dealer. It only had 1300 miles on the clock and appeared to be in excellent condition.
I spent some time looking for any signs of corrosion before buying it, couldn't see any in the obvious places, and did the deal.

Less than a month later, while washing the bike, I discovered what looks like the start of corrosion on the final drive just below the plastic spinney dust seal.
So I emailed the dealer I purchased it from, sent lots of pictures etc to see how to get this fixed under warranty.

After many many polite emails to try and get an update, I finally got a reply today to say that BMW would only cover half of the cost, and that I would need to pay the other £744! :mad:

Bike is only used for pleasure and is always cleaned with no harsh chemicals as per my OCD!

Does this sound normal? Has anyone else had the final drive replaced FOC for corrosion reasons?

Any advice appreciated.
Matt

It depends how bad it is?

It isn’t uncommon to get a few small white spots showing on the grey paint in this area no matter how carefully you clean and protect the bike.

If it isn't too bad I suggest that you pull off the plastic dust cover - it is just a push fit, persevere and it comes off - then clean the whole area and polish the hole :) - liberally coat the dry surface and surrounding area with ACF50 - replace the cover.
 
In the mean time to help protect the the finish in the unseen places get yourself a can of this stuff. It is designed to be used upside down. Take the skidplate off, clean nicely, dry nicely, apply nicely a thin film on the hidden parts and those bits less frequented by the mitten and soap. It takes a day or so to fully dry and set and is a barstewart to get off (use white spirits or WD40 or GT85 and elbow grease) meaning it does the job. All other bits use the ACF50 as you can remove this with a thorough wash.
 
It looks like this:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1H_vFE9uVybBuvzQ59EWXEcLSJ5Unbyr_cw/view?usp=sharing

Hopefully that link works. The area feels rough, so might have progressed beyond the white spot stage.
Not tried taking the cover off yet, will have a look later.

To be honest that is not at all bad, I don’t think the dealer will replace that free of charge. I had an earlier 1200 that had much larger areas of rear drive corrosion around the rear mudguard mounting holes and larger patches over the rest of the surface - the bike was only about a year old so they did replace the drive free of charge because it was clearly a poor finish from the factory.
 
To be honest that is not at all bad, I don’t think the dealer will replace that free of charge. I had an earlier 1200 that had much larger areas of rear drive corrosion around the rear mudguard mounting holes and larger patches over the rest of the surface - the bike was only about a year old so they did replace the drive free of charge because it was clearly a poor finish from the factory.

If it stayed like that and didn't get any worse, I'd be fine with that. Was just a bit worried what state it might be in after another few years.
My previous GS I bought cheap-ish with high mileage and plenty of corrosion, so I'm probably a bit over-paranoid about the whole corrosion thing!
 
If it stayed like that and didn't get any worse, I'd be fine with that. Was just a bit worried what state it might be in after another few years.
My previous GS I bought cheap-ish with high mileage and plenty of corrosion, so I'm probably a bit over-paranoid about the whole corrosion thing!

See how it goes, as you’ve brought it too their attention at this early stage you have a better argument later if it gets any worse.
 
If it stayed like that and didn't get any worse, I'd be fine with that. Was just a bit worried what state it might be in after another few years.
My previous GS I bought cheap-ish with high mileage and plenty of corrosion, so I'm probably a bit over-paranoid about the whole corrosion thing!

Th corrosion thing is a worry and I wish BMW would improve the paint finish - even if the drive was replaced you would still need to be pretty fastidious with cleaning and protecting with FS365 and or ACF50 - if you get salt on an unprotected bike and don’t wash it off the it will corrode.
 
Th corrosion thing is a worry and I wish BMW would improve the paint finish - even if the drive was replaced you would still need to be pretty fastidious with cleaning and protecting with FS365 and or ACF50 - if you get salt on an unprotected bike and don’t wash it off the it will corrode.

Its not a paint finish problem :blast The well known corrosion problem is apparently caused by poor preparation for painting (according to a BMW dealer) so the corrosion starts under the paint. Its a good job your not an engineer making mistakes like that.:p
 
Hi All,

I purchase a low mileage 2015 GSA in September this year from a BMW dealer. It only had 1300 miles on the clock and appeared to be in excellent condition.
I spent some time looking for any signs of corrosion before buying it, couldn't see any in the obvious places, and did the deal.

Less than a month later, while washing the bike, I discovered what looks like the start of corrosion on the final drive just below the plastic spinney dust seal.
So I emailed the dealer I purchased it from, sent lots of pictures etc to see how to get this fixed under warranty.

After many many polite emails to try and get an update, I finally got a reply today to say that BMW would only cover half of the cost, and that I would need to pay the other £744! :mad:

Bike is only used for pleasure and is always cleaned with no harsh chemicals as per my OCD!

Does this sound normal? Has anyone else had the final drive replaced FOC for corrosion reasons?

Any advice appreciated.
Matt


Hi

I bought a 14 plate 1200GS in April 2016 with the BMW Premium Warranty. In August '16 I noticed the paint bubbling on the cylinders & casing. Took it into the dealer & ultimately they replaced the whole engine.

A couple of months ago I noticed the start of the same problem on the casing again and also on the drive shaft. Returned to the dealer & they inspected it and referred it to BMW. BMW's response was that they would replace the engine casing & drive shaft but I would have to pay labour charges (a minimum of £600 for the engine & £155 for the drive shaft).

I explained my displeasure to the dealer as the engine was approx 12 months old & I wasn't happy to pay at least £600 to have it fixed. As a concession I agreed to pay the £155 labour charge for the drive shaft. BMW's response (not the dealer) was to agree to pay the labour charge for the engine casing. When the work was done I also got the dealer to treat it with ACF50.

Personally I love riding my 1200 GS, am very disappointed with BMW as it is supposed to be a premium product but will probably buy another when the time comes. One of the reasons for buying another is the fact that the service I get from my dealer is exceptional.

I would suggest to keep hassling the dealer and ask them to refer it to BMW if they haven't done that yet.

Good luck
 
Hi

I bought a 14 plate 1200GS in April 2016 with the BMW Premium Warranty. In August '16 I noticed the paint bubbling on the cylinders & casing. Took it into the dealer & ultimately they replaced the whole engine.

A couple of months ago I noticed the start of the same problem on the casing again and also on the drive shaft. Returned to the dealer & they inspected it and referred it to BMW. BMW's response was that they would replace the engine casing & drive shaft but I would have to pay labour charges (a minimum of £600 for the engine & £155 for the drive shaft).

I explained my displeasure to the dealer as the engine was approx 12 months old & I wasn't happy to pay at least £600 to have it fixed. As a concession I agreed to pay the £155 labour charge for the drive shaft. BMW's response (not the dealer) was to agree to pay the labour charge for the engine casing. When the work was done I also got the dealer to treat it with ACF50.

Personally I love riding my 1200 GS, am very disappointed with BMW as it is supposed to be a premium product but will probably buy another when the time comes. One of the reasons for buying another is the fact that the service I get from my dealer is exceptional.

I would suggest to keep hassling the dealer and ask them to refer it to BMW if they haven't done that yet.

Good luck


I sent a polite email earlier saying that I wasn't happy with their offer.
The service manager said he's forwarded my email to UK Motorrad customer services manager, so we'll see what happens next!

I feel the same as you, love the bike but wish the build quality was a bit better in places.
This is my 3rd GS over the years, but this is the first time I've spent a decent chunk of cash to buy a newer low mileage one with no corrosion. Well that was the idea anyway!
 
Its strange how we throw more money into what we believe are 'premium' brands in the belief that they will last longer and perform better.

I had an issue with a 'premium' brand German American style fridge freezer which cost around £1200 a few years ago. The plastic components piece by piece started to break. A calculation to replace all the parts came in at £600. A letter of complaint was dispatched to the manufacturer including those words 'premium brand'. There response was something along the lines of "Customers sometimes have too higher expectations of their products.........."

Funny that when marketing and perception is drawing their customers into spending their money into the so called 'premium brand.'
 
If my rear swingarm corrodes again. (replaced under warranty) I will send it to someone on this forum for them to re paint it in what ever it needs.

The engine is a harder prospect.

I love the way my bike rides and handles, however as stated before it will be a different manufacturer at a reduced cost next time. I have had my bike 4.2 years and only ridden 17.5k.
 


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