[Busapilot]

Took my bike off the center stand yesterday and yay! I get to replace a front shock! Took it off the center stand to move it in my garage and there’s a trail of oil. F$#%! I have a 2018 K1600b with 26,000 miles. My question is does the B have the same front shock as the GT/GTL? Second question is where is the best place to get a Wilber’s shock because I’m not wasting my money on another junk BMW shock? Third question is any idea what the dealer charges for this fix? The shock swap looks a like it’s a lot more than I want to dig in to. Any help would be appreciated. The worst part is that I’m selling this bike and now I get to throw $2k at it before I sell it….

 

[1004ron]

Search results for query: Leaking front shock

www.k1600forum.com

 

[Busapilot]

Just talked to Tytlers Cycle I’m DePere. $3500 for a new BMW shock. $900 for a rebuild by a company out of Cali(think it was called Suspension Specialist.). They’re calling Wilber’s for pricing and 4 hours of labor…

 

[MotoToph]

Just talked to Tytlers Cycle I’m DePere. $3500 for a new BMW shock. $900 for a rebuild by a company out of Cali(think it was called Suspension Specialist.). They’re calling Wilber’s for pricing and 4 hours of labor…

Wilbers only makes suspension for the K1600 up till 2016. None for B's since they were release in 2017.

TracTive is what you want.

Suspension Products: Ted Porter's BeemerShop

Shop by Bike for Motorcycle Parts, Accessories and Suspension Products

www.beemershop.com

 

[Busapilot]

I was just taking a peek at Tractive. $1000 ish for an upgraded shock is probably better than the $900 for the dealer rebuilt shock

 

[MotoToph]

I was just taking a peek at Tractive. $1000 ish for an upgraded shock is probably better than the $900 for the dealer rebuilt shock

And it is built to you. If you were keeping it, I would say do the front and rear. If you do this, you would want to keep it after riding it!

 

[ArmyMutt]

I just got my Tractive shocks in from Ted Porter. Had the same issue on my 2018. Leak at front shock

 

[Doctore]

There is a really good youtube video I just watched the other day on front shock replacement. It's pretty involved but if you are a decent garage mechanic, have the tools and patience, it looked very doable.

 

[XtBimmer]

WOW....another center stand FUBAR like myself.
A warning needs to be put in the owners manual. No offense to others but not every single BMW Rider has a heated garage and some of us like tinkering with the bike in the dead of winter.
For 2 past winters I've went into my shed in the dead of winter with cold Temps, tinkering...this year I get the brainy idea to take it out of the wheel Chock and put it on the center stand AND Boom, almost 1800cdn later to get a new shock.

 

[Busapilot]

WOW....another center stand FUBAR like myself.
A warning needs to be put in the owners manual. No offense to others but not every single BMW Rider has a heated garage and some of us like tinkering with the bike in the dead of winter.
For 2 past winters I've went into my shed in the dead of winter with cold Temps, tinkering...this year I get the brainy idea to take it out of the wheel Chock and put it on the center stand AND Boom, almost 1800cdn later to get a new shock.

It shouldn’t matter any time you take your bike off the center stand! Piss poor on BMWs part. I live in WI and usually ride any time there isn’t snow on the ground. Temps should never factor in on when someone rides their bike with the exception of battery which is somewhat unavoidable given the small battery.

 

[Busapilot]

There is a really good youtube video I just watched the other day on front shock replacement. It's pretty involved but if you are a decent garage mechanic, have the tools and patience, it looked very doable.

I’ll take a look at it but my thought process was It’s 4 hours of labor or lose a weekend tearing it apart. I feel like I’m mechanically inclined enough to change it but lazy enough to realize it’s going to heavily cut in to my PBR time! Lol!

 

[XtBimmer]

It shouldn’t matter any time you take your bike off the center stand! Piss poor on BMWs part. I live in WI and usually ride any time there isn’t snow on the ground. Temps should never factor in on when someone rides their bike with the exception of battery which is somewhat unavoidable given the small battery.

Oh I couldn't agree anymore.
I wouldn't be surprised there was a bad batch of these that came out in 18. I really suspect mine was slightly leaking too,
I know the one ride I got in after installing the new one, it was night and day and the bike felt like when I first got the bike.

 

[Busapilot]

I’m almost starting to think this shock has been failing for a while. I am pretty religious about my tire pressure(I rife with my tire pressures on my GPS always) and I noticed I have some very premature cupping on the front tire. Since I’ve bought the bike with 18k miles I’ve always not cared for the handling but was willing to put up with it because of the power. I did find that the handlebar stem but was loose and tightened that. It definitely improved handling but it’s never been up to snuff. I’m thinking the Tractive route will be the way to go and if that fixes my dislikes with the handling I would definitely keep it. The BMW dealer was nice enough to mention that they wouldn’t put the shock on the bike unless they ordered it. I guess we’ll find out what their markup looks like seeing as Tractive has their prices posted.

 

[XtBimmer]

I’m almost starting to think this shock has been failing for a while. I am pretty religious about my tire pressure(I rife with my tire pressures on my GPS always) and I noticed I have some very premature cupping on the front tire. Since I’ve bought the bike with 18k miles I’ve always not cared for the handling but was willing to put up with it because of the power. I did find that the handlebar stem but was loose and tightened that. It definitely improved handling but it’s never been up to snuff. I’m thinking the Tractive route will be the way to go and if that fixes my dislikes with the handling I would definitely keep it. The BMW dealer was nice enough to mention that they wouldn’t put the shock on the bike unless they ordered it. I guess we’ll find out what their markup looks like seeing as Tractive has their prices posted.

Too funny you said that about cupping...2 fronts I replaced had major cupping and in between that, I had a wheel bearing go out at 31k km , which is pretty premature imo.

 

[Geoff_3]

Just talked to Tytlers Cycle I’m DePere. $3500 for a new BMW shock. $900 for a rebuild by a company out of Cali(think it was called Suspension Specialist.). They’re calling Wilber’s for pricing and 4 hours of labor…

If you are going to sell it and the rebuild works out cheaper then I would be going down that path rather than spending money and throwing it away another thing is if you are trading it then maybe see if you can mask the leak to pass it onto a dealership. They would do the same to other buyers so don't feel guilty about that path but you might be wanting to sell it privately.

 

[Busapilot]

If you are going to sell it and the rebuild works out cheaper then I would be going down that path rather than spending money and throwing it away another thing is if you are trading it then maybe see if you can mask the leak to pass it onto a dealership. They would do the same to other buyers so don't feel guilty about that path but you might be wanting to sell it privately.

I can’t be that way. I definitely hear what you’re saying but I can’t in good conscience do that. My thought process is if I’m going to spend $900 on a rebuild I’d rather spend the $1000 and sell it with the upgrade. Just my 2 cents though

 

[Busapilot]

I am still having a problem looking at this. I have owned multiple Jap bikes and never had issues with 20+ year old bikes but a few year old BMW is having problems. This is my fourth BMW and as much as I love them it’s very frustrating. BMW can you explain to me why I pay the extra $$$$ to own your bikes? It’s not like you don’t know better. This has been an issue since 2012. Fix the problem!

 

[Mac2015]

Maybe I'm just lucky(no leak yet), on my '15 GT with 35K and always kept on the center stand in the garage.

 

[atc250r]

It really is pathetic that this is still an issue. Happened to me back in 2014. Clearly BMW doesn’t give a ****. Just like the oil burners. They simply don’t care to correct known issues. Leave it up to the customer to fix.

 

[XtBimmer]

Maybe I'm just lucky(no leak yet), on my '15 GT with 35K and always kept on the center stand in the garage.

It's not being on the center stand in an unheated area. It's basically when it's taken off that stand and it compresses the shock.