R1250GS Starting problem

But nothing was noticeably loose. Very odd. Havent had on trickler lately, but have gotten her out once a week recently.

Doesn't have to be loose, just a thin layer of corrosion would do it. You may not even see it.

Had the same thing happen occasionally on my 2019 RT....And my 2009 GSA (years ago). Installed stronger CCA batteries and never had issues again.

Hi Everyone, just joined after having this very same issue with my 1250GS.
Went for a short ride yesterday and when I got home the bike wouldn’t start? Feels exactly like a flat battery, which is odd as the bike sits on a trickle charger when not in use.
Weird thing is I loosened the positive connector post thing that is screwed to the RHS of the battery, wiggled it and retightened the terminal and the bike fired up (albeit still a bit hesitantly).
Next I decided to just disconnect it as all it is for is accessory take offs etc.
Now the bike fires perfectly every time.
Now this may just be a coincidence but I’m wondering if this fixing isn’t insulated properly from the frame (neg earth) or the bolt is touching something on the other side?
I’m tried testing it with a meter and it seems to be open circuit which suggests it’s not.
I’m going to leave it disconnected and wrap it in tape and see if the fault comes back again

That wire is not connected to anything on that end. You need to pull your battery and tighten the positive cable on the battery itself. Sounds like moving the booster wire is causing the connection to improve on the battery.

19 1250GS with 27,000 miles having the starting issue. Is there a definite fix? It has always started but when cranking the starter stalls and the lights and all go dim like it's taking all the current available or current is cutting out temporarily. Of course I lost the rubber grommet when I was cleaning the battery terminals. Haven't contacted dealer yet.

Well it was the battery. Not even two years old. Replaced under warranty. Geez the battery in my previous bike lasted almost six years. I requested a Yuasa but they had to install a BMW battery.

Most BMW batteries are Yuasa.

The one on the left.

Didn't know that. A recent post mentioned Exide used in the 1250.

^^^ Yep, in a lot of bikes.

Hello All,

Second post.

I have the same story as many here. Relatively short rides (30 miles +/-). Stop the bike to look at the view or get something to drink. Try to restart. Nothing. Ask someone for a jump, and it starts right away. This has happened to me 3 times now. One of the times I was in a remote location, and was lucky to have someone pass by with jumper cables.

My 2019 BMW R1250GSA with 12,000 miles has now been in the shop for 5 weeks. Basically, nothing is happening other than wheeling it in and wheeling it out every day. It's under warranty, so the dealer doesn't want to work on it without authorization from BMW corporate. The corporate BMW doesn't want to have the dealer do any work unless they can determine what is wrong. The customer (me) doesn't want to pay for anything...as I'm still paying for the original purchase...and it's under warranty.

I have been a "good boy" only calling once a week to check in on the status. Each report is the same. No advancement. It makes me want to shout/cry!

So, I've decided to ratchet things up. I have requested that they purchase the bike back from me. For all intents and purposes, the bike is useless, as I wouldn't take it anyplace remote for fear of being stranded. The potential could actually be life threatening. I don't think BMW wants anything to do with that type of liability. If they think buying back an unreliable GS is expensive, they will have to consider a wrongful death lawsuit.

I will keep you posted.

^^ Check what lemon law in your state says about conditions to qualify for a lemon...

With 5 weeks in the shop and no repair status in sight, your case seem like a perfect candidate for lemon law buy-back - good luck

Good morning. Thank you for your suggestion of whether my (our) situation would fall within the Lemon Law. Unfortunately, I purchased the bike in Florida, and brought it to California. In this case (in California), the Lemon Law jurisdiction applies to the state in which the bike was purchased. I'm not sure if that's true for all states.

I would like to take a moment to comment on the seriousness of this design flaw, and to encourage all who are experiencing it to take it seriously. BMW has a problem on their hands - a recall situation - and they need to solve it before someone gets hurt. Here's what I'm thinking...

I've owned a number of motorcycles in my life. The R1250GSA is my second BMW. My first was an R1200RT. I came to that bike after riding a Honda ST-1100. The R1200RT had this slight hesitation from time to time. It would drive me crazy. I guess it was well known, and a common experience of BMW boxer owners. At the time, when I would complain about it, my friends would say that this is normal. They had come to accept it. The problem I had with it was when I was charging hard, deep into a turn, I didn't want my "point of consciousness" to be anywhere but riding the road. When the hesitation would occur, for a split second, I would be distracted. That is not the safest situation...even if for just a second. My main point is that the BMW bike owners not only came to accept it, but they defended it as being part of the design.

So now I fast forward to this situation of the bike not restarting intermittently. I want to encourage all who are experiencing it not to accept it. Do not consider this to be normal...and something that happens from time to time. The truth is that it has potentially deadly consequences. If you're an adventure rider, you could find yourself stranded in a location that is hostile due to weather (extreme heat or extreme cold). If you are an urban rider, the failure to restart might come at a time that places you in harms way. Imagine that you happen to stall the bike at an intersection where traffic moves at a high rate of speed. Imagine someone coming up from behind and not expecting to encounter a motorcycle stopped in the middle of the roadway. I think everyone here can imagine the rest of the scenario.

The fact is that these GS motorcycles are flagship bikes for BMW. They are by no means inexpensive. In fact, one could purchase 3 KLR 650 bikes for the price of one R1250GSA bike. My point here is that we have each paid for The Ultimate Driving Machine, and not starting from time to time is about as far from the ultimate driving experience as I can imagine.

This is a very serious issue, and we need to send a clear and unified message to BMW that this is 100% unacceptable. For those of us still under warranty, time to turn up the heat and demand a solution. My hope is that our collective fight will pave the way for our fellow riders who don't have the warranty leverage any longer. Instead, they will hopefully benefit from a recall/repair once BMW has acknowledged that they have a problem and must fix it.

Finally, It has been said, "You want to surround yourself with people who run towards gunfire, because when the Sh_t hits the fan, those are the people you want to be with." The Sh_t is hitting the fan. Let's do this!

Thank you for your time and attention.

DG

Is your OEM battery an Exide? My 2019 RT would have occasional weak starts after shutting down a bit. I Installed (on my dime) a stronger CCA battery and never had another problem. Also cleaned/tightened all the connections. Later read that there is/was an issue with the Exide batteries.

Im sure the dealer would have replaced it.....But I didnt want another POS Exide battery. I was willing to take the hit $ to choose my own.

Best of luck

It's under warranty, for cryin' out loud - which is how the above post reads. Take it to another dealership that will actually work on the bike. It could be as simple as a bad battery, which would perfectly fit with the symptom that is briefly described.

Conflating your experience with a previous bike, whether good or bad, isn't going to get this new one fixed - the warranty should, however.

Thank you for the inquiry about the battery, and the suggestion to find another dealer (service department).

In reading all of the posts on this specific discussion, it is evident that the battery is not the only possible culprit, as the situation has occurred and been attributed to a number of possible problems with the bike. I have discussed the options with the Service Manager, and have shared information from this forum. He has laid the inaction at the feet of BMW corporate. He shared that his mechanic has 40+ years of experience. Unfortunately, the next closest BMW dealer from my location is 50 miles away. I'm going to leave it to BMW to solve the problem - whether it is repair or buyback. I'm happy to say that we're on the path to resolution with one of those options.

And...I understand that "conflating" my previous bike experience won't get it fixed. My point was to encourage everyone not to settle. It's not OK ever...even intermittently.

I have a bike that cost tens of thousands of dollars with only 12K miles. I'm not going to chase satisfaction. It is their turn.

I'll keep you posted as to the outcome.

Until soon.

Cheers,

DG

I’ve been having a similar issue with my bike lately. I rode by the dealership this last week while out on a ride to actually have them check the battery. No fault was found (tested at 13.07V)
I came home and took the black connection off the starter ( I assume this is the ground?). I dropped the bike on this side pretty hard in the mountains about a month ago and thought maybe this connection was dirty? I didn’t see any dirt or evidence of a bad connection, but I cleaned it and reconnected anyway. The bike has cranked every time since. I’ll continue to do a little test/measure and comment back once I get a few more weeks on it.

Add me to the list. Left me stranded at highway gas station after a 4 hr ride at slab speed, pulled in, filled tank, and immediately dead minutes later. 3 hour wait for BMW roadside for a boost. Took in after that, nothing found, but replaced battery anyway. Worked fine for several months and now just happened again at home, didn’t catch on first turn over, hit the start button again and it’s completely dead. Waited a few minutes and it started. Battery connections are all tight. Definitely a problem going on here. 2019 GSA.

Mine ALWAYS fired up super strong after a power cycle.
One one occasion, while starting, it sounded super rough, like when you try to start a car that’s already started and ram that starter into the flywheel.

Maybe this is a crazy idea, but has anyone looked at/replaced their starter?

The starter was replaced on my 1250 as the final step in curing my starting problem which started at about 2000 kms.I have ridden about 8000 kms with no further problems.