FIRST R18 SLIGHT KNOCK

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HOSSMAN1

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This is my 27th bike since my first bike at 13 years old. My last6 wer Harleys. My first bmW is a 2021 R18 First Edition. I think I love it because it feels like none of the 26 others I've owned. Only had it for 20nmiles but at stop/low speed/around a corner sometimes I hear a slight "knock" and feel a bump in my clutch lever??? Since I never owned a BMW with a Boxer motor I don't know if this is normal or not. I don't want to hear the dealership's answer. It's no big deal if that's just the way the works.I reallyjustwant to know if this is "normal." First post. be kind.
 
I'm no experienced bike mechanic but I do feel a bump in the clutch lever. I'm under the impression it's a characteristic of the boxer and the single disc clutch but there are others on this forum that are light years ahead of me in experience. Hopefully, someone will pipe in.
 
I have over 13,000 on R18C with a sidecar.I ride 99% of the the time with a helmet.I don't notice any noise issues with my full face helmet on.I do hear some different noises when I wear a 1/2 helmet and quite a few more if I am riding the neighbor hood with a baseball cap.
I have been riding since 1962 and had a couple of boxers but HDs since 1980,Indians since they came back(2013) except for a 2003 Vintage I owned.
All of the bikes have their own little personalities.I recommend riding and putting some miles on your bike.In comparing the R18s I will say they are built like a Tank.Paint is excellent and mine has gobs of power.That being said, my Indian is a much different ride.
To you I say,enjoy the warranty and have a fun summer.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
WaydeG said:
I'm no experienced bike mechanic but I do feel a bump in the clutch lever. I'm under the impression it's a characteristic of the boxer and the single disc clutch but there are others on this forum that are light years ahead of me in experience. Hopefully, someone will pipe in.
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Appreciate the feedback!!
 
R18C said:
I have over 13,000 on R18C with a sidecar.I ride 99% of the the time with a helmet.I don't notice any noise issues with my full face helmet on.I do hear some different noises when I wear a 1/2 helmet and quite a few more if I am riding the neighbor hood with a baseball cap.
I have been riding since 1962 and had a couple of boxers but HDs since 1980,Indians since they came back(2013) except for a 2003 Vintage I owned.
All of the bikes have their own little personalities.I recommend riding and putting some miles on your bike.In comparing the R18s I will say they are built like a Tank.Paint is excellent and mine has gobs of power.That being said, my Indian is a much different ride.
To you I say,enjoy the warranty and have a fun summer.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the feedack! Much appreciated!
 
I had my machine in to the BMW shop yesterday for its break-in check. I advised the shop of the engine whine and how when I start in neutral, then shift into 1st gear, there is no indication of "1". It is blank. After I release the clutch and start to roll, the "1" appears. I also had a grinding noise and felt the transmission grabbing slightly with "N" indicated on the dial, but clearly the clutch and tranmission were interacting inappropriately. The mechanic agreed wholeheartedly about the whine. He took the shop demo R 18 for a ride to tune his ear and then took mine out again. After a fluid change in the tranny he thinks it is a bit quieter. I think he is full of nonsense.
However, he explained, as others have above, that this R 18 twin jug push-rod engine is a bit "agricultural" and designed robustly for a long life. He advised me to live with it for a while, put 5000 km on it and if it still whines, bring 'er back in and they will knuckle down and start a dialogue with BMW Canada and Germany, as required. So for now, I motor on, and it will be interesting to see what happens.
 
AV8ER said:
... this R 18 twin jug push-rod engine is a bit "agricultural" and designed robustly for a long life.
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Agricultural! No wonder it pulls like a tractor! :D

In any case best fortune, may yours break in and smooth out, or be a speedy and uneventful repair if it comes to that.
 
HOSSMAN1 said:
... but at stop/low speed/around a corner sometimes I hear a slight "knock" and feel a bump in my clutch lever???
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Does it still happen when under smooth power all through the turn? Wondering if it's possibly some normal feedback from the shaft drive when throttling on and back during a corner?
 
I have not heard the "knock" yet. Low grade fuel will knock on a hard pull.
 
Old BMW "joke", "They all do that".......

Welcome and congratulations on your new ride!! I've had a bunch of BMWs and many other OEMs from Asia, Europe and the good ol' USA so there are a bunch of eras and overall designs to compare this bike to. This engine is an interesting mix of being very modern on one hand and yet offers a very "old school" feeling with the lack of counterbalancing, the intentional fueling and ignition programing to influence how it feels in the different modes even at idle, etc. and the design of the engine internals produce an array of mechanical/agricultural clatter that I love, but on occasion really had reach into the memory banks to compare notes that all was well. Working on 10,000 miles since winter and it only is getting better and better. Keep in mind this engine needs a few thousand miles to break in more like the older engines were so don't be afraid to let her stretch her legs and make sure the rear shock is set close for your weight (there is a great thread on this site as well as in the manual, it's easy and only takes 1-2 minutes) and you will see she handles the twisty roads quite well even at a spirited pace. There are a couple things that you may be noticing with the clutch. There are "safety" measures that intervene much like abs would to prevent a skid and this would be noticeable where the bike senses downshifting selections may cause sufficient engine braking that may lock the rear tire so you may feel a slight "buck or hiccup", it lasts likely for a fraction of a second, but the first time or two for me it was a WTF!! I don't even notice it now and as I adjusted to the bike over the first few hundred miles I know my throttle use and gear selections really came into sync. Bottom line, as said above this thing is a tank and not that you couldn't have an issue, but outside the types of noises, grinding, banging, bad, bad vibes like one would associate with things literally coming apart I would just enjoy the visceral ride it provides and accept it as part of it's personality. It will smooth out, the exhaust sounds better and better and the MPG increases noticeably too so I would kick the tires, check the oil and fill the tank as often as possible while riding the wheels off her.

🍻🍻
 
I sometimes I hear ABS noises, but they are ever so slight. The other noise I notice sounds like a servo when I shift 1st & 2nd gear. I took it to the dealer, and they agreed with what I was hearing and said they also noticed the sound going into third gear. The valves sound much like an airhead. I'm riding a 2020 FE with 13,960 miles. Did a 3200-mile trip in June.
 
I'm new to BMW R18, and coming from Harley, I did notice that Knock. It's name of the beast. As a previous Harley rider, we love to give lite rev on the throttle before changing gear or pulling a clutch. Beemer does not like that. Try to change gear without revving an engine, once I figure out everything is so smooth.
 
R18 Dan said:
I'm new to BMW R18, and coming from Harley, I did notice that Knock. It's name of the beast. As a previous Harley rider, we love to give lite rev on the throttle before changing gear or pulling a clutch. Beemer does not like that. Try to change gear without revving an engine, once I figure out everything is so smooth.
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Hello R18Dan. I shift my R18TC before 2,000 rpm until I get to 4th gear or 5th. I have found a sweet spot to be about 2,400 rpm in 4th, 5th, and 6th. At 2,400 rpm the bike engine disappears. I bought a set of $15 grip puppies for the handle bars. I recommend this for everyone. The grip puppies give the grip a thicker and softer feel to the bike and even absorb some vibration too.
 
R12C-R18TC said:
Hello R18Dan. I shift my R18TC before 2,000 rpm until I get to 4th gear or 5th. I have found a sweet spot to be about 2,400 rpm in 4th, 5th, and 6th. At 2,400 rpm the bike engine disappears. I bought a set of $15 grip puppies for the handle bars. I recommend this for everyone. The grip puppies give the grip a thicker and softer feel to the bike and even absorb some vibration too.
Click to expand...
May I ask what size Grip Puppies you purchased? They offer original or "Big Paw".
 
elementul said:
May I ask what size Grip Puppies you purchased? They offer original or "Big Paw".
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MC401 1.25” OD and 4.25” Long
I installed mine without soap solution which was a mistake. Had to really work them on. Use a soapy/water solution on both handgrip and grip puppies. It will dry like glue.
 
AV8OR said:
I had my machine in to the BMW shop yesterday for its break-in check. I advised the shop of the engine whine and how when I start in neutral, then shift into 1st gear, there is no indication of "1". It is blank. After I release the clutch and start to roll, the "1" appears. I also had a grinding noise and felt the transmission grabbing slightly with "N" indicated on the dial, but clearly the clutch and tranmission were interacting inappropriately. The mechanic agreed wholeheartedly about the whine. He took the shop demo R 18 for a ride to tune his ear and then took mine out again. After a fluid change in the tranny he thinks it is a bit quieter. I think he is full of nonsense.
However, he explained, as others have above, that this R 18 twin jug push-rod engine is a bit "agricultural" and designed robustly for a long life. He advised me to live with it for a while, put 5000 km on it and if it still whines, bring 'er back in and they will knuckle down and start a dialogue with BMW Canada and Germany, as required. So for now, I motor on, and it will be interesting to see what happens.
Click to expand...
I had the same/similar complaint to my dealer about the the clutch noise/whine. Two symptoms:
1st- when i start my r18 b clutch pulled in and disengaged, the engine sounds normal. When i release the clutch lever, still in neutral, i hear different noise from the engine…sounds like more whine, or harsher whine… hard to describe, but louder than when i have the clutch lever pulled in/ disengaged.

2nd- engine is off, when i pull in the clutch lever, i hear a noise, like something is rubbing….

It did not do that before, i currently have 14k miles on my bike. I went to the dealer and pulled all the r18 clutch lever in and i did not hear or feel any noise. Even my mechanic’s r18 that has some miles on it had no noise from his clutch.

My mechanic told me that the clutch push rod might be rubbing and that’s whats making the noise.

Is this something to be left alone or should bmw dealer fix this symptoms? My mechanic told me that they will annotate it, if it gets louder, bring it in again…..

Please advice. Thanks!
 
Hutch said:
J'ai eu la même plainte/similaire auprès de mon concessionnaire concernant le bruit/le gémissement de l'embrayage. Deux symptômes :
1er - lorsque je démarre mon embrayage R18 b serré et débrayé, le moteur sonne normalement. Lorsque je relâche le levier d'embrayage, toujours au point mort, j'entends un bruit différent provenant du moteur… cela ressemble à plus de gémissement, ou à un gémissement plus dur… difficile à décrire, mais plus fort que lorsque le levier d'embrayage est tiré/désengagé.

2ème- le moteur est arrêté, quand j'appuie sur le levier d'embrayage, j'entends un bruit, comme si quelque chose frottait….

Ce n'était pas le cas auparavant, j'ai actuellement 14 000 miles sur mon vélo. Je suis allé chez le concessionnaire et j'ai tiré tout le levier d'embrayage R18 et je n'ai entendu ni ressenti aucun bruit. Même la R18 de mon mécanicien qui a quelques kilomètres au compteur n'avait aucun bruit provenant de son embrayage.

Mon mécanicien m'a dit que la tige de poussée de l'embrayage frottait peut-être et c'est ce qui faisait ce bruit.

Est-ce quelque chose qu'il faut laisser tranquille ou le concessionnaire BMW devrait-il corriger ces symptômes ? Mon mécanicien m'a dit qu'ils l'annoteraient, si ça devient plus fort, ramenez-le à nouveau…..

S'il vous plaît, des conseils. Merci!
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Bonjour,ma TC a 17000 kms ,elle fait cela depuis quasiment depuis le début ....prochaine révision, j'ai demandé à ce que ce soit vérifié. On verra.
 
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