Need some advice, S1000rr for F4

[gts455]

ok i have an early 2010 BMW S1000RR with about 1500 miles. All these motor issues are scaring me (shavings in oil changes, camshafts going bad, crankshafts going bad). It's supposed to be my "reliable" bike. but i don't want to get stuck with a bike with a self destructed motor in 3 years(warranty)....or less. I was originally looking into a 312r, but i really like the older 750's too. I want to be able to get on it and ride it without looking forward to an oil change with oil shavings in it, but i still want the bike the bike to have some character. Always loved MV's, and im thinking right now may be the time to make the trade.
I've test rode a Brutale and really like it. I am aware that in traffic and sitting, these bikes are especially prone to overheating. Besides this, are the motors reliable. Any serious reliability issues with it? I'm not looking for a CBR, and i expect little things to come up, but are they mechanically reliable?
Thinking about making a trade before i put more miles on the BMW. Whats your opinion? good move or not? Thanks.

Paul

[marc.r1]

hi there Paul,

I had an F4R 07 plate here in good old blighty. I always wanted an Mv and i traded in my 04 R1 to buy it. I was well happy as i still think its one of the best looking bikes ever. However i did not get on with the handling of it and i felt my R1 handled better. It always felt like it was resisting me when i was trying to lean it over. Almost as if its front tyre was down on pressure. I had the forks revalved and it improved it but it still felt like it was doing it. Then i had a go on a RSV4 Factory and it was a revelation i just gelled with the bike and eventually with my wifes blessings we traded both our bikes in to get me my Aprilia. I sometimes think maybe i should have precervered with it but after the RSV4 i didnt want to anymore. Its also very top heavy when pushing it around.
However the engineand brakes were absolutely awesome and i mean awesome it was just the turn in that put me off.
Here is a link to a forum that i was a member of and they have a lot of very clever people on it which may answer your questions.
Hope this helps,
http://mvagusta.net/
Marc

[Domino]

Paul there is an interesting thing out there on the internet where there is a lot of misinformation spread and one really has to take a lot of it with a grain (or a handful in many cases) of salt. With regards to your BMW I would advise you like this: has your bike given you any reliability problems? If not, than as long as you are covered by a warranty you have about as much peace of mind as you will ever get. You can swap from one marque to the next and will undoubtedly go to their respective forum and read about all the warts that some owners may experience with their bikes. Internet experts will jump in with their opinion of what causes what and the next thing you know you will be worried about the new bike you just acquired.

As far as the MV goes, I also own an 07 F4R and it does have a few issues. Nothing major, but things that will need to be sorted and depending on how mechanically inclined you are you will have to decide what it is worth "fixing". I think the biggest issue with the MV is the fueling which is best addressed with a Microtec ECU. It is not cheap, but it also addresses the running hot issues etc. Marc, as far as the handling, something must have been really wrong with your set-up because the MV is actually a really nimble machine despite it's weight.

[wrx_02]

These guys above have more experience than I do but I notice you said you wanted a reliable rare bike. Kinda hard to find, I would consider Aprilia as being the best choice but I know some Bimota riders with old bike 90's and they don't have any issues. All this depends on the year etc etc as Bimota uses all different engines. Dome Ducati some Suzuki some Honda.... just gotta pick one you like. You can get a inline jap motor if that is what you want, really the best part of those bikes with one of the best frames and suspension. The things that jap bikes usually lack from the factory.

[marc.r1]

Hi Domino,
Yeah maybe my bike did but it went to a very reputable suspension expert. you never know we might have been able to dial it out with some time but it was a very weird situation as in my head i had built up what i thought it was going to handle like and as standard i have to say it was not a patch on my R1 or my RSV4, i just could not trust it my next thing was to change it tyres and see. But it was also everything for it over here was very expensive. Like you say the fueling was not nice and to fix that was £1200 to get the microtec which does make a huge difference. Then any exhaust you want is expensive to the point i was beginning to core out a set i had bought (which i still have half cut).
I loved looking at that bike each time i went into the garage, i could forgive the weight and the trapping hands on lock. it was a really decision to make.
However i do agree that what ever bike you get there are going to be horror stories. i had problems with my R1 it was one of the ones that had the clutch problem and the tps recall but i had that bike for 5 years nd it was brilliant well reliable.

[Domino]

Hi Domino,
Yeah maybe my bike did but it went to a very reputable suspension expert. you never know we might have been able to dial it out with some time but it was a very weird situation as in my head i had built up what i thought it was going to handle like and as standard i have to say it was not a patch on my R1 or my RSV4, i just could not trust it my next thing was to change it tyres and see. But it was also everything for it over here was very expensive. Like you say the fueling was not nice and to fix that was £1200 to get the microtec which does make a huge difference. Then any exhaust you want is expensive to the point i was beginning to core out a set i had bought (which i still have half cut).
I loved looking at that bike each time i went into the garage, i could forgive the weight and the trapping hands on lock. it was a really decision to make.
However i do agree that what ever bike you get there are going to be horror stories. i had problems with my R1 it was one of the ones that had the clutch problem and the tps recall but i had that bike for 5 years nd it was brilliant well reliable.

One of the things I found on mine that as delivered it was quite tall which under very heavy braking made the bike pitch a bunch of weight to the front end and then it didn't want to turn in. Remedy was to lower the bike front and rear 8mm which reduced the weight transfer and really seemed to remedy the situation.

[gts455]

thanks for the input and info guys. It's a tough decision, something i will have to think more about. Its the first brand new bike i've bought so i guess after spending all the money i'm just so worried it will all be for nothing. BMW does offer a very good warranty. guess i just need to trust it. MV is not out of the question, in fact it will probably be the next bike, (if not another Ape) if i can make a good trade and come out on top, i think i will do it.
I guess with all the new technology going into bikes these days there is bound to be scares and worries.

[Apriliain]

This is my mates bike going through some issues with BMW

http://www.bikersoracle.com/rsv/forum/showthread.php?t=9689

[gts455]

Yeah, i've heard some gearbox issues too, i don't even use the QS for this reason. But to me that is a serious fail. It was designed and sold on the production bike and therefore should be expected to operate without these kinds of issues.
I've not had a good experience with my BMW shop either.....constantly second guessing what i tell them...even to the point about simple recalls. saying none have come up for the s1000rr....then when i give them the recall number they suddenly remember that there was 1 or 2.
I'd say at this point its not so much the bike i don't like. I really think its incredible, but more the dealership/technician support i don't like. BMW is a huge company, i would not expect this kind of customer treatment but time and again i've had issues with them. It just seems too likely i will have issues down the road with it at somepoint, even though i'm not riding it near as hard as your buddy. just using it for canyon twisties, commuting, and a trackday here and there. i see this coming up after the warranty is up in another 2 years and then being stuck with snapped cams or mangled gears.
My other issue is the leter version 2010's and 2011's now have fixes for these things (heavier crank, cams, and such) but no recall for the early bikes.....so now i have to wait and see if it breaks? it was obviously a flawed design, guess they are just hoping most will last till the warranty is up.

[gts455]

These guys above have more experience than I do but I notice you said you wanted a reliable rare bike. Kinda hard to find, I would consider Aprilia as being the best choice but I know some Bimota riders with old bike 90's and they don't have any issues. All this depends on the year etc etc as Bimota uses all different engines. Dome Ducati some Suzuki some Honda.... just gotta pick one you like. You can get a inline jap motor if that is what you want, really the best part of those bikes with one of the best frames and suspension. The things that jap bikes usually lack from the factory.

Yeah, i've been looking into Bimota more and more. I'm even thinking of going with an RSV4 again. Especially now that its had a year to evolve, will have to do a little more research to see if its gotten sorted yet. My mille has been the most reliable/mechanic friendly bike i've owned. Starting to think i should just stick with what i know works.....still want an MV though. decisons decisons.

[marc.r1]

Hi Paul,
I was exactly the same with my R1, when i bought it i had a chance of getting a F4 750 evo3 ( supposedly the one to get if getting the 750) but the dealer never rang me back so i bought the R1 04. Everytime i saw an MV i was like legs crossed and everything. I had my R1 for 5 Years and was driving my missus crazy with my MV talk so she said just get it. So i traded in my R1 for a F4R and wish i hadn't. Like i have said i really wanted the Mv and so wanted to gel with it that i spent money on the forks and still when i looked at her it made me smile. But it was never my R1 and then i was spoiled with a ride on a RSV4 Factory and the rest is history.
I still see Mv's and they are still the best looking bikes in the world even with there little problems and i would have another one if i ever won the lottery as it still bugs me that i could not gel with it but whenever i look at my RSV4 it makes me smile and the sound and handling is awesome. i cannot recomend the RSV4 enough i was even the lone voice at the mv day saying it handled better but everyone has to be different.
With the BMW i would carry on, i have to believe its an awesome bike as everyone says so and everyone has their teething problems but this does not mean everyone is going to have the problem. I was one of the few with the R1 04 clutch problem and then had 5 years trouble free motoring. even the RSV4 has its problems but not everyone does.
Ultimately i think you need to do what will make you happy i did and it did not work out but it has all worked out in the end.

[gts455]

What kills me the most is being away from my bikes, so in my spare time all i do is cruise the internet and read up on MV's, RSV4's, RC8's, 675R's, RSV1000R's....makes me question how much i want to keep the BMW. i probably just need to stick with it, and not worry about issues(like everyone says) or find an incredible trade-in deal.
Either way one day i will own an MV. Back in 2008 i almost bought an F4, and 2009 i test rode a Brutale 910R. i just can't keep away from them. i'll stop whining now, thanks for the help guys.

[Jaguar]

I think selling a BMW and buying an MV with a view to getting improved reliability would be a very strange thing to do.

Certainly, the experience of my mate with 2 x MV F4s and about 80,000km over the past 4 years suggests that you're likely to have a few issues to deal with - including 2 episodes of the (safety critical) rear hub bearing collapse. Conversely, another mate has one of the first S1000RRs into Oz and it has been faultless to date.

There is of course a new MV out now (which said mate has just swapped his 312 for - this makes number 3). But given the production volumes and lack of development $$ they've suffered from, you'd not be too optimistic its reliability performance would be better than the last one.

[gts455]

thanks for the input guys, i've decided to keep the BMW. still have 2 years of warranty left on it.

[nicolino]

As for your handling issues , It was clearly a bad suspension set up. ( Take it from the one who own currently two MV's . As for any issues , Well I don't have any . Both my bikes runs perfect. I own MV for past 11 years. There is no bike that handles better - when properly set up !!! Any questions ??? look at mvagusta.net
Someone mentioned rear hub bearing collapsing problem. It happens due to tightening the chain too much. (again, I did learned the hard way , years ago.)

[jrflanne]

Since you are in Co Springs, you might want to trip up to Denver to see what Erico has.

[gts455]

I've been up to Erico and Fay myers quite a bit. i'll be home in a week so i will most likely take a ride up there to browse around etc. Erico is such a cool little shop, i could spend hours in there.

[jrflanne]

And drop by the Vintage Moto museum across the street. Amazing.

[gts455]

Yeah, im thinking i may take the trip this weekend if its nice.