Those side case latches are funny - I had the same problem with mine when I first got my bike. I read here on the forum that if it doesn't go together with that "german precision" then don't force it, try it again. I found that once I had the two top 'horns' in their place, I could push the bottom of the case in towards the rear wheel with my knee, and the latch engaged easily.
Play with it, might be worth a try.

 

I tried it all-for a long time-then the mechanic did all the same stuff too-three guys were messing with it. The shop was getting ready to close, so I had to leave it overnite. Will be interesting to see what the issue was.

 

I dont think This is the OP problem but They are tricky to line up. The trick that helped me was to line up the bottom mount first and then the top two. Goes on every time now and no more wiggling trying to get the handle to go down.

 

I thought I was going to get a new left pannier as it would not unlock. The tech couldn't get it to unlock with the power locks or the key. He would take it off and it would lock and unlock normally. But put it back on the bike and it was stuck in the locked position. Finally, after much head scratching and comparison with the right side, he discovered a thin, plastic cover over the locking pin was missing. It is not even as thick as a credit card and just snaps over the locking pin. It was replaced and all has been happy ever after. Apparently, when I took my panniers off for a good washing I must have knocked that plastic cover off. It isn't very big and is easily missed but sure can mess up the locking system. Not sure if that's your problem, but worth checking out.

**EDIT** I reread your post and I was thinking you couldn't lock/unlock the case. But instead you can't get your pannier to mount. I had that problem once also, while on the road. A call to the service manager had me going again soon. The cases are very particular as to how they mount. The service manager had me carefully set the bag on again paying close attention to the three mounting points. I removed and reinstalled the pannier and it went right on. But DO NOT force the handle down or you will be in a world of hurt. I imagine if both you, and your service guys have tried it may have issues. Sorry about the inappropriate response in my original post.

 

I had the same problem after I reinstalled colored panels ( had them off to be wrapped ) I took the lock mechanism apart and found a thin plastic slider/rod piece had gone past the recessed place where it's intended to be, apparently it's just held in place by the cover and I had removed one too many screws making it loose.

 

Thanks for all of the replies! This forum is full of great guys!
I did get a call early thismorning from the service mgr-they had resolved the issue-didn't get details as he left a VM-I'll know exact details tomorrow when I pick it up.

 

Recently, I had the same problem with my left pannier. I had the bag off the bike, then it wouldn't lock back onto the bike. With a lot of jiggling and gentle downward pressure on the handle, it would eventually lock down to the bike. That was a month or so ago, and this wknd I removed the bag again and had similar (if not more of a fight, to get it to re-attach to the bike). I decided to take the bag apart to have a look at the latching mechanism. About 20 screws later and I saw the problem- the spring loaded tabs that rest on the "nubs" of the bike are worn down, thus not getting out of the way of the sliding lock in the bag. I took a metal file to the square edges of the plastic parts that were catching, and it works like new again. The reason for those spring-loaded pins is to prevent the handle from closing/locking when the bags are not on the bike. Careful you don't file too much or else then you'll be able to inadvertently lock the handle without the bags being on the bike. Not a bike deal though, as they unlock again easily as long as you have the key with you to turn to "release". Overall, not a tough task and better than a trip to the dealer. Especially if you are no longer covered by warranty. If anyone wants more info on this, PM me and I'd be happy to walk you thru it.

 

I've just been sorting out the same problem.

I took the side case off to give it a proper wash and when i came to replace it there was no way would it lock back into place.
It seemed something mechanical inside the locking system was preventing the handle from locking back down into place.
A search on this forum threw up a few ideas. After stripping it down i found the same problem as above.
All to do now is to reassemble it.... after a cup of coffee.

Thanks to this forum another problem solved :smile:

 

I have a pre order 2012 GT. Over time the locking latch and mounting latch became very difficult to use. I know this might be over simplification but all I did was spray a lot of WD40 over everything that moves and now everything works better than new. It's worth a try.

 

Pitts solved this problem for most; push against the lower, left side of the case with your leg and it easily locks in place. Solved my problem...

 

That worked for mine a month ago, but recently no amount of trickery was working. Disassembling was my only option. Weird too that the tabs are worn out. I've had the cases on/off the bike not more than only 30 or so times.

 

I've had this problem on and off with a few of my panniers.

Simple solution which worked every time was to close the handle with the pannier away from the bike, open it again with the key and then mount the pannier back onto the bike. No idea of the full technical reason but 'resetting' the mechanism always worked, probably 4 panniers affected on my three K16s plus one on an RT.

 

Just took off my side cases but cannot get the left one to lock back on.
Had a look at the mechanism of the two "hanging lugs" and there is a spring type wedge shaped plunger (see photo).
It seems that these wedge plungers need to be depressed (which happens when you hang the box onto the lugs of the bike) before you can snap down the handle.

The snapping down of the handle pushes a bolt which locates through holes in the lugs on the bike.

I was able to insert a wedge into both hanging lugs on the box (whilst box removed) but have noticed that the front locking bolt on the front lug is not working and stays in its open position, which in turn stops the front of the locking handle snapping down.

My question is how do I get to the mechanism?......which screws do I undo and what parts of the plastic box needs to be removed.

Thanks for any advice.

 

I have the same problem and disassembled the locking mechanism. I can't see that the interlock catches are worn, but am waiting for a reply to my PM to atc250r to confirm where he filed the plastic. I can see where it would hang up, but there is no evidence of wear or of it catching there.
Getting to the mechanism is not too bad - 26 screws to be precise. First take off the painted piece. Note there is one T25 screw on the back towards the front of the case. Then take off the front black cover held by a mixture of self tapping and machine screws. Next remove the top black cover - 3 screws.
Now the important part. Remove the 5 screws around the inside top of the case, including the three below the handle. Then remove the lower 4 screws evenly. These hold the spring loaded cylinders so will be under tension. If you don't do it in this sequence, the mechanism will fly apart across the garage floor and one locking pin will go and hide behind a wheel of your wife's car. DAMHIK! .
I still have it in pieces and will post pictures in a day or two before putting it back together.

 

Thank you for that information.

I will await your photos before I de-construct the box.

 

Pictures as promised. I haven't done any filing yet, but two pictures show the end of the slide and the interlocking plunger.
For re-assembly make sure to waterproof all the screws that go through the inner case, including the ones under the handle. BMW has some washers that you can buy for about $2.50 ea. :eek. I just use some black silicone sealer. And, of course, lube everything that moves.












The closed position. The slide has gone under the tab from the interlocking plunger. I haven't got the locking pin in, but would show that it is extended. This mechanism only goes in one way, so you can't go far wrong.




The open position. Note the slide is blocked by the interlocking pin.

 

Thank you very much for your advice and photos.

I am going to take my left pannier apart over this weekend, your photos will help me greatly.

 

Great photos and advice from blouw.

Could not have done this without your help.


I decided to take a chamfer off the leading edges, where the slider and the plunger edges meet. (see your 6th photo) They are the square edges that butt up to each other.
I just removed the bottom corner of the plunger edge and the top corner of the slider edge (about 1/8th inch of each at about 45 degree angle) using a craft knife.

The pannier now goes on a treat and the handle still works as designed, IE. Cant lock the handle when pannier is off the bike but locks into position when pannier is mounted.

I used some black "Loom Bands" (small silicon rubber bands, had to raid my granddaughters toy box) wrapped around the head of the Torx bolts 4 or 5 times, to make the seal on all the bolts inside the pannier.

Thanks again for your help.

Kind regards

 

Stuck Side Case Resolved

Replaced left side case and handle would not lock. Went to this forum for ideas after spending 30 minutes with no success on locking case back to bike. Tried everything suggested, push in with knee, WD-40, etc with no success. Giving up, I rode bike to BMW and the lead tech found a way to lock case back after about 15 minutes. Tech discovered that the two release pins were not engaging far enough to lock/unlock latch. Answer? He told me to use one hand on top of case and push down and in in towards the seat, while at the same time using the other hand to grab bottom of case and lift out and away from the bike. With that done, case would lock. Note: this procedure needs to be done every time the case is taken off again. Tech said that, for some reason, the case seemed to sit a little loose on the locking (support) lugs and suggested that I shim the lower support lug with tape (or whatever) to force the bottom of the case to push out just a bit (to give release pins just a tad more reach to unlock latch). I will give that a try after I get back from Fall Street Vibrations. Kudos to Doug at BMW Motorcycles of Ventura!

 

Replaced left side case and handle would not lock. Went to this forum for ideas after spending 30 minutes with no success on locking case back to bike. Tried everything suggested, push in with knee, WD-40, etc with no success. Giving up, I rode bike to BMW and the lead tech found a way to lock case back after about 15 minutes. Tech discovered that the two release pins were not engaging far enough to lock/unlock latch. Answer? He told me to use one hand on top of case and push down and in in towards the seat, while at the same time using the other hand to grab bottom of case and lift out and away from the bike. With that done, case would lock. Note: this procedure needs to be done every time the case is taken off again. Tech said that, for some reason, the case seemed to sit a little loose on the locking (support) lugs and suggested that I shim the lower support lug with tape (or whatever) to force the bottom of the case to push out just a bit (to give release pins just a tad more reach to unlock latch). I will give that a try after I get back from Fall Street Vibrations. Kudos to Doug at BMW Motorcycles of Ventura!

 

Funny I just had the exact same problem and discovered the same solution.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

I'm going to do the other case as well, may prevent the same problem in the near future.

I might as well whilst i'm in the mood.

(Edited update) Second case all done and dusted

 

Can someone share the photos of what to do after dismantling the lock mechanism?

 

@Johnsoncheng80 , you've probably gone through a lot of trouble (dismantling lock) for no reason. This is a common problem with some side cases. To correct, once you hang the side case place your knee against outer cover, centerline, about 1/3 back from the leading edge. Press at this point with your knee while rotating latch mechanism down. There should be NO effort closing latch.

Duane

 

I’ve spend two hours on my bike trying to lock the side boxes in. Trial and error isn’t working. I spend one hour reading and still can’t help. Either I don’t know where to press or it’s time to turn on my car wiper.

 

Old post with great value. WD40 on everything that moved fixed it for me. Thanks all.