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Handlebar switches replace?

exavid

exavid

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Feb 15, 2014
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Medford, Oregon
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I stopped by my BMW dealer today for a part for my LT and he told me about a program that's supposed to replace the handlebar switches on most (if not all) BMW scooters. Apparently some switches aren't holding up well in the wet. Anyone heard about that?
 
Yes. I got an email from the dealer I bought the bike from (out of town) that said, "Oh by the way, there is a new recall..." basically saying the same thing. I will ask about it when I take it to the local BMW dealer for initial service.
 
I was out on my scoot today and discovered the windshield doesn't move. I don't know if it's involved with the switch information I got from my dealer but it sure makes me glad the bike still has it's warranty. I'll get it into the dealer next week for that and the switches. Lucky for me the windshield was all the way up when it quit. :)The current weather would be hard to take if it had been down.:(
 
the style of our switches are terrible for failing, have been the same sinse they changed from the old, l/h amd r/h indicator paddles...............thats what everyone wanted when they changed over from their jap bikes, lol
i carry a spare start switch and torq driver under my seat!!!!!
 
Funny how no one ever complained about the similar switches Harley uses, but every damned time a reviewer tested a BMW they had to make a snarky comment about them. Personally, I LIKED those switches. They worked just fine and after a week of "motor training" my reflexes I never even thought about them again.

I hate the new switches... I still have to take my eye off the road momentarily to find the turn signal or horn buttons.
 
I agree the left and right switched was the best and made sense. The turn switches on the scooter feel cheap and not comfortable on the thumb.

JaimeC said:
Funny how no one ever complained about the similar switches Harley uses, but every damned time a reviewer tested a BMW they had to make a snarky comment about them. Personally, I LIKED those switches. They worked just fine and after a week of "motor training" my reflexes I never even thought about them again.

I hate the new switches... I still have to take my eye off the road momentarily to find the turn signal or horn buttons.
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After years of riding Hondas especially Goldwings I prefer their style of turn signal switches. I like my K1100LT's turn signals much better after replacing the flasher unit with a Kisan Signal Minder. Now I just hit the turnsignal switch a second time to turn it off. I have arthritis in my right thumb which made it very uncomfortable to have to push up on the signal canceller button. Now it works a lot better for me. I'm not really sure that my windshield woes are caused by the switch, I haven't even checked the fuse or anything else. I'm going to use the warranty and do as little work on this scooter as I can get by with until it runs out. Oil changes are about as major a job as I'm willing to do until then. Sure hope no more serious problem crop up on this machine, I like it much better than my previous maxi's, Silverwing and Burgman 650.
 
justscootin said:
What does this really mean. Will they replace everyone's switches or will they replace only the ones that have had issues and when when will they be replaced.
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My own working life's experience with Service Bulletins means that the company identifies (within the organization) a reliability problem with a part. If the customer identifies a problem that they have to the company's attention, the company will replace the part, maybe under warranty. As we all are still in our 3-year warranty period, that means we'd have the replacement done no charge. If BMW is indeed going with the Service Bulletin approach, then there isn't going to be a proactive safety recall letter coming to your mail box. (Which IMO makes sense as this issue doesn't rise to the safety recall implications of the chain tensioner or the R1200RT's suspension issue this past year). Each of us will have to initiate the replacement switch service with the dealers. My local BMW's service department was extremely helpful in making arrangements to replace the switch - zero argument.
 
Exactly WHICH switch are we talking about? I know there have been issues with the combination Ignition/Kill rocker switch ever since BMW started using that design. Is that the one?

So far the only problem I ever had with that switch was on my initial demo ride. I was sitting on the bike staring at the handlebars when one of BMW reps came over and asked me if I was having a problem. I just apologized for being an idiot, but I couldn't figure out how to START the damned thing. It was the first time I've EVER seen a "Start" button colored RED!

It also used universal symbols (read: Not understood by anyone in the universe) instead of having the simple word "START" next to it. Once I was shown that the "Start" and "Kill" button were one and the same I was fine. It actually makes sense, as it does make it impossible to try and start the bike with the "kill switch" activated (and I've done that more times than I'd like to admit too).

PS: In case anyone is wondering, this happened at the 2011 BMW National Rally in Bloomsburg, PA and I was preparing to demo ride the new K1600GTL
 
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My dealer installed the new switches on my GT today, both left and right sides. The windshield works once again so it looks like that was the problem. Took them about thirty minutes to do the job. The new turn signal switch felt a lot better with no play or looseness in it like the old one. Coming up on 3000 miles now on the bike and everything is still perking along. It would have twice or a bit more miles on the odometer if it weren't for me riding the LT as well. Can't have either one getting jealous of the other ya know. In cold or damp weather I do prefer the scooter with its heated seat and grips and the fact I have my Gerbings controller set up so I can hang the controller on the handlebar and plug it in. With heated seats, grips, jacket liner and gloves it's hard to be cold in the winter weather on this scoot. Not to mention it's a lot easier to clean up the scooter when it gets dirty than it is to polish up the K1100LT.
 
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