Looks pretty simple and straightforward

Any luck backing out what is left of the bolt yet..?

That totally sucks... Should definitely be a warranty item; the same thing would have happened, if you purchased the accessories and had the dealership install them - I'm sure they would have put in a warranty claim in order to recover their time and money.
 
Scott Semone said:
Any luck backing out what is left of the bolt yet..?

That totally sucks... Should definitely be a warranty item; the same thing would have happened, if you purchased the accessories and had the dealership install them - I'm sure they would have put in a warranty claim in order to recover their time and money.
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I agree and. I made that argument at the dealership. It went nowhere with them.
I had an issue with a poorly installed wiring harness on my wife’s Chieftain. I discovered it while installing heated grips. I took it into the dealership half disassembled and Indian paid to repair it under warranty.
i pulled the fork off of the bike and I’m waiting for the parts to arrive. I have some time today so I may remove the fork cap that The remainder of the bolt is stuck in. I believe it is a blind threaded hole and if I couldn’t remove it using a breaker bar it likely needs to be drilled out.
 
MilwDave said:
View attachment 9718

The accessory fork caps finally arrived. The installation seems to be pretty simple. Just pop the rubber caps and remove the the T55 Torx bolt below.
The first side broke loose using a breaker bar to not only break the bolt loose but to turn it out every step of the way. The aluminum thread were caked with red Loctite thread locker. Now who the hell uses red Loctite on aluminum threads especially on a service part?
I had to chase the threads just to reinstall the bolt.
The other side did not go so well.
View attachment 9719

The bolt turned about two rotations and twisted clean off. The amount of thread locker used on this bike is insane. Far more than on any bike I’ve worked on and beyond and manufacturer’s recommendations. But on an aluminum thread?
Now I have to disassemble the fork to replace the rod that this bolt threads through.
I’m really starting to regret buying this bike. I thought it would be a fun project bike but BMW has taken all the fun out of it for me.
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Yep I had a BMW years ago and forgot about their use of Gray locktite and some other special features.After buying the R18C my recall was total.Next I had to completely take off the front wheel to install the DK designs full fender because there was so much of the BMW locktite that the screws would not move.Plus dealing with the scheduled idiot light and wrench check is freakin annoying as well.
Hope things work out for you.Love the way you have set your 18 up.Really clean!
 
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Just a suggestion ... seems that you are getting nowhere with the dealership ... could you centerpunch the remainder of the bolt ... drill it with a drill just smaller than the 'valleys' of the thread ... then heat it past 500ºF set in a vice from the bottom up and grab the 2 flats (I am describing this bottom up part awkward but I can't think of a different way of saying it) and use an easy-out ?
This would probably be the way I would try, if in your situation ... oh and please remove any o-rings and such before heating ... as I said, just a suggestion.
 
Ulrich said:
Just a suggestion ... seems that you are getting nowhere with the dealership ... could you centerpunch the remainder of the bolt ... drill it with a drill just smaller than the 'valleys' of the thread ... then heat it past 500ºF set in a vice from the bottom up and grab the 2 flats (I am describing this bottom up part awkward but I can't think of a different way of saying it) and use an easy-out ?
This would probably be the way I would try, if in your situation ... oh and please remove any o-rings and such before heating ... as I said, just a suggestion.
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I considered attempting to remove it. I was a tool and die maker back in the day and my brother-in-law has a shop that I can use.
But when attempting to remove the bolt I’m certain the threads inside the fork cap were damaged trying to remove the bolt.
I picked up a replacement part today and will get it put back together this weekend.
I did discover another trace of red thread locker on the fine threads that are inside the fork.
I have no idea why that would be there. I’ve never seen any thread locker used on any fork tube I’ve seen. The fine threads provide all the gripping surface needed to prevent it backing out. But it’s just par for the course.
 
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Remnants of the thread locker inside the fork tube.
After sealing off the inside of the tube I had to pick it out with a dental tool before reassembly.


IMG_4261.jpeg

The gum-like red thread locker that came on the new bolt. It’s no wonder it jammed up inside the cap when I tried backing it out.
I chased the threads and reassembled it using blue thread locker.

IMG_4262.jpeg
 
Dave, did you lower the offending fork tube and use the old trick of then re-tightening fork tube in lower triple clamp so as to remove fork cap? Also, how hard was it to remove fork cap? Reason for asking is that l may be looking at replacing current springs to progressive springs for front suspension. Thanks, Brett.
 
kate_brett said:
Dave, did you lower the offending fork tube and use the old trick of then re-tightening fork tube in lower triple clamp so as to remove fork cap? Also, how hard was it to remove fork cap? Reason for asking is that l may be looking at replacing current springs to progressive springs for front suspension. Thanks, Brett.
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I did not lower the tubes in the triple trees. The bike has the stance I want. My Wilber’s rear shock (std length) is on the way to me.

In order to remove the fork cap you will need to drop each fork out of the trees. In order to do that you need to remove the bolt that broke off for me before you loosen the clamp in the lower tree. Unlike most bikes I’ve worked on there is no pinch bolts holding the fork tubes into the upper tree, only the bolt and the fork cap.

I did some Google research on the bolt issue I had and I came across two posts saying they had “bent bolts” replaced in the fork caps when they discovered the the caps were loose. I am all but certain that the heavy gum-like thread locker they gooped on the bolts prevented the bolts from being fully seated. So I would proceed with caution if you go that route.

If I had known what I was in for, I would have ordered the Wilber’s front springs along with the rear shock. But now that I’ve had it torn down once I will probably order the springs and swap them out this coming winter.

Because at this point I’m probably the leading expert in this area! 😎
 
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There will be a long and detailed email going to BMW customer service over this shit-show.
A few years ago here in Milwaukee, I met a the two German BMW executives that were tasked with BMW breaking into the American heavy bike market. They sold me on BMW’s commitment to the the American market and the the culture of customer service they were going to bring.
We’ll see if it was all bullshit. Because it certainly is not being felt at the dealership level.
 
Thanks for reply. I’ve removed bolts and plastic cap and headstem nut in past to raise upper triple tree ( replace risers ). One bolt was bent and replaced. Looks like fork legs out then ; hours of work. Still haven’t decided between Wilber’s or Hyperpro. Waiting to see your response on Wilber’s rear shock.
 
I have a wilbers rear shock and wilber fork springs on the way..... I was intending to lower the forks a bit and then retighten the bottom triple clamp to grip them so I could open the top of the forks and replace the springs without removing the wheel etc....
 
Noelpolar said:
I have a wilbers rear shock and wilber fork springs on the way..... I was intending to lower the forks a bit and then retighten the bottom triple clamp to grip them so I could open the top of the forks and replace the springs without removing the wheel etc....
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That won’t be possible. You will have to remove the forks from the trees to get the fork caps removed from the upper fork tubes.

If you have the bike properly supported it is not overly difficult. You will need to drop the the upper fork covers to have enough room to clear the lower tree.
 
MilwDave said:
That won’t be possible. You will have to remove the forks from the trees to get the fork caps removed from the upper fork tubes.

If you have the bike properly supported it is not overly difficult. You will need to drop the the upper fork covers to have enough room to clear the lower tree.
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That might set me back a bit.... as I was going to add some YSS emulators as well.... and that might mean accessing the forks a few times... the YSS emulators really work well in my r nine t scrambler forks...
 
Noelpolar said:
That might set me back a bit.... as I was going to add some YSS emulators as well.... and that might mean accessing the forks a few times... the YSS emulators really work well in my r nine t scrambler forks...
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At this point I am confident I could tear the front forks down and reassemble them fairly easily. I do have the proper equipment and now I have the experience.
I was going tackle the front suspension next year. I did not know that emulators were available for the R18. Do you have a link?
 
MilwDave said:
I did not know that emulators were available for the R18. Do you have a link?
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I spoke to a company over here (Suspensions r Us.... in Australia).... they are the agent for Wilbers, Nitron, YSS etc..... anyway.... I got my emulators for my scrambler from them...... they reckon there is not a listing for the R18.... but they have all incremental sizes... so I was going to measure the inner fork tube diameter etc and get a set from them...

Also.... I picked up my bike today.... and have a way of raising the rear (for rear shock replacement when it arrives.... maybe a couple of weeks still).... but I have to make a frame/lift before I can do the forks.... something I'll do over the next few weeks.
 
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