K11 Owners Group

[MCRyder]

OK, might be a dumb question. When the clutch is replaced in a K11, meaning the back end of the engine must be removed, will this drain the trans fluid? And then when the clutch is replaced and the engine reassembled then the trans fluid must be topped back off?

The reason I ask is I had my clutch replaced by an independent BMW shop. When I drained the trans today to put in synthetic, the trans was pretty much empty except from some residual fluid.

I had maintentane work done on the bike at the same shop the year before before the clutch was replaced. They show adding Hypoid Gear Oil on the invoice, so I know it had gear oil by the time they did the clutch. And there's no leaks.

Shows I should always check things for myself
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Mark Rooney
Tyler, TX
'93 K11RS
http://community.webshots.com/user/zgryder

[Flying Duck]

You din't HAVE to drain the tranny to replace the clutch. I usually do though because otherwise if you don't keep it level then gear oil will drip out the back.

I'd say that shop probably drained it and forgot to refill it. Give 'em hell!
_________________
93 LT (x2)
94 RS
86-97 K75F(K75/100/1100 Frankenbrick)
86 K75C w/paralever, hi perf cams,TURBO!
91 & 92 K75Ss
91 K1
86 custom K100
14 WR250R
IBA #17739 (SS1K, BBG, 50CC)
Buy parts HERE

[6899]

What a bunch of idiots!! Didya ride the bike without tranny fluid? GEEZ! Reminds me of how my old man got ripped off so many times because he couldn't work on cars.

Do the work yourself; its a real pain but you learn something and if you have any pride at all, you'll do it better 'cause its your life on the line.

Martin
_________________
1996 K1100LT, 73K (bought at 61K on 2006)
1977 R100/7, bought new, rode 97K in 29 yrs before parting out
1970 R50/5, bought used, rode 40K & sold

BMWMOA #6899 since 1976
Indy BMW Club since 1975

[MCRyder]

That's the thing, I do most of the simple maintenance stuff myself. Fluid changes, plugs, filters, etc. I was even able to diganose (but not yet fix) an ABS fault using the info I got from the K11OG. But I let this shop do do a maintenance job every once in awhile to set a baseline that an "expert" BMW mechanic has performed the work. And I've never had a problem with the work they've done before this.

A clutch replacement is outta my league so they handled that one. And that's when they forgot to put fluid in the trans . Luckily I haven't rode it much since the clutch was replaced (3,000 miles) and I'm an easy rider. Checked the magnetic tip of the drain bolt and found very little metal build-up. The fluid was due for it's 12K interval change-out.

Needless to say, the shop won't be getting any more of my business, though I bet they won't really care .

[duckbubbles]

I think I would put the gear oil in the transmission and see how it goes. Maybe run it a hundred miles and change it out again. That is when you'll see if there is some real damage to it. At that time, the drain plug magnet might be full of gear chips and the oil may be glittery. Then you'll know for sure what's up.

I suppose you paid for gear oil that wasn't put in there. The transmission oil is self contained and doesn't need to be drained when you take the tranny off. Like Duck said, I do it to prevent it spilling out of the breather when lying around waiting to be reinstalled.

Hope for the best, but don't be too surprised if it turns out bad.

Frank

P.S.- I have a K100 transmission that has only 317,000+ miles on it for sale. I can tell you that it was starting to jump out of second gear, a sign that the shift forks and shift drum are getting worn. Auction starts soon!
_________________
85 K100/1100RS, 321,000 miles, 25 years
96 Ducati 900SS/SP, sold it
05 R1200ST, 35,000 miles, 5 years
400,000 BMW miles

[Flying Duck]

If you find that your tranny is messed up, I'd go back to that shop and make them pay for a replacement and do the labor for free. Their screw-up, their problem. Make them buy you a new one from BMW for $2300. That'd probably help them remember to refill it next time.

(I have a 60k black K11 tranny if you need one.)
_________________
93 LT (x2)
94 RS
86-97 K75F(K75/100/1100 Frankenbrick)
86 K75C w/paralever, hi perf cams,TURBO!
91 & 92 K75Ss
91 K1
86 custom K100
14 WR250R
IBA #17739 (SS1K, BBG, 50CC)
Buy parts HERE

[Don Sproule]

If I rode three HUNDRED miles on a dry transmission, I'd be amazed it it wasn't screwed. Get your ducks in a row. Go back and report the error to the dealer ASAP.

Don Sproule

[MCRyder]

Thanks for all the input guys.

[MCRyder]

OK, time to call on the respected collective wisdom of the K11OG forum .

I've put about 80+ miles on the new synthetic gear oil (Mobil 1 75W-90) I put in. This total includes about 60 miles at interstate speed.

Results. I drained the oil into a clear pastic bag. The fluid is clear without any "glittery" that Frank (Duckbubbles) mentioned. And the drain plug magnet hasn't any chips (wish you guys were here to see it) if that means somewhat large jagged pieces . It shows a very small trace of tiny fragments covering less than a fourth of the magnetic tip. Wish I could post a pic, but the detail doesn't show up.
_________________
Mark Rooney
Tyler, TX
'93 K11RS
http://community.webshots.com/user/zgryder

[Don Sproule]

Hey Mark,

Sounds like you ducked disaster this time. If your tranny was dry, I would have expected a real mess. Any chance that you had the bike on the sidestand when you drained the fluid? That would perhaps explain the lack of oil if you have no obvious leak.

Don Sproule

[MCRyder]

Hey Don, thanks for your feedback to my questions.

No, the bike was on the centerstand. I expected just a thin stream when I took off the drain plug to refill with synthetic but didn't even get that, just drops of oil.

I don't know. Maybe there was enough fluid to keep the gears lubed with and I'm underestimating the amount. But it seemed like too little to me.

I really appreciate having this forum to bounce questions off of. It's a big help to have other K11 owners sharing their knowledge and experiences.
_________________
Mark Rooney
Tyler, TX
'93 K11RS
http://community.webshots.com/user/zgryder

[Don Sproule]

While we're on, or at least near the topic, I've found that on K1100s, if you drain the transmission while the bike is on the centerstand, the oil has an awful tendancy to trickle down the stand and onto the floor (d'oh). I have shimmed up my side stand with a block of wood to avoid the problem. Has anyone come up with a better technique?

Don Sproule

[BobZ(IL)]

Glad to see your gearbox is ok. I'm finding that bikes for sale claiming to be dealer serviced and maintained require careful scrutiny.

Mine came with no drain plug in one fork, hence, no oil. Very noisy over bumps. Actually the fill plug would not come out. I can't believe a BMW dealer would return bike to customer in that condition.
_________________
'93 K1100LT
'78 R100S
'05 R1200GS
BMWMOA, CRBMWOA, ABC, K11OG #997

Live well, do good work, enjoy the ride.

[Saltcreek]

[Phil Marvin]

[RAL88]

I make a little trough out of aluminum foil that directs the oil into my pan.
_________________
Rich

"If it ain't broke, take it apart and make it work better"
*************
'96' K1100LT-SE
'97' R850GS-R