RoadVitals

2009 BMW F 800 Gs US Owner Complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers, shown in full

Data refreshed

Complaints on fileComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
12
Latest May 4, 2010
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
0
Filed in the last 12 monthsReports filed with NHTSA in the trailing 365 days. Recent volume reflects attention and vehicle age as much as anything else.
0
Reports on file since Apr 11, 2009

What this page shows

Our database holds 12 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 2009 BMW F 800 Gs US. Each one is a report filed by an owner or driver and published by NHTSA without most of them being verified. A complaint is not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. Narratives are shown exactly as filed.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Complaints, most recent first

Showing 1–12 of 12

Other / unspecified
Filed May 4, 2010

FAILURE OF CHAIN AND REAR WHEEL BEARING AT 7139 MILES ON A 8 MONTH OLD BMW F800GS. BIKE WAS TAKEN INTO BMW DEALER FOR NEW CHAIN AS OLD CHAIN WAS LOSING 'O' RINGS REAR WHEEL WAS REMOVED AND AT MY REQUEST BEARINGS CHECKED AS I HAD HEARD OF FAILURES ON FROM THE INTERNET. REAR BEARING WAS FOUND TO BE HIGHLY WORN AND 'GRITTY' FEELING. DEALER REPLACED BEARING UNDER WARRANTY. *TR

NHTSA ID
10328856
Incident
Oct 24, 2009
Mileage
7,139 mi
Fuel system
Filed Mar 1, 2010

NOTICED A CRACK ON THE SIDE OF THE GAS TANK. THE GAS TANK IS SPLIT OPEN. THIS SEEMS TO GREATLY INCREASE THE RISK OF EXPLOSION DUE TO GAS FUMES IF ANY HEAT SOURCE/SPARK MADE GETS CLOSE. *TR

NHTSA ID
10315328
Incident
Mar 1, 2009
Mileage
4,620 mi
Fuel system
Filed Mar 1, 2010

FUEL TANK ON NEW (600 MILES) BMW F800GS MOTORCYCLE HAS DEVELOPED A SIX (6") CRACK. SEPARATION IS APPROX 1/16". RETURNED MOTORCYCLE TO DEALER WHERE PURCHASED AND ISSUE HAS NOT BEEN RECTIFIED. *TR

NHTSA ID
10315247
Incident
Feb 14, 2010
Mileage
600 mi
Fuel system
Filed Dec 28, 2009

GAS TANKS HAS CRACKS ON BOTH SIDES. *TR

NHTSA ID
10297259
Incident
Nov 23, 2009
Mileage
6,000 mi
Other / unspecified
Filed Dec 22, 2009

REAR WHEEL BEARING FAILED AT 6000 MILES. THIS COULD HAVE LED TO CATASTROPHIC INJURY HAD I NOT FOUND THE PROBLEM DURING ROUTINE MAINTENANCE. CHECKING THE WHEEL BEARING IS NOT ROUTINE AT 6000 MILES. *TR

NHTSA ID
10296723
Incident
Dec 1, 2009
Mileage
6,000 mi
Other / unspecified
Filed Oct 28, 2009

AFTER READING ABOUT SEVERAL FAILURES OF REAR WHEEL BEARINGS ON F800GS MOTORCYCLES I CHOSE TO INSPECT THE REAR WHEEL BEARINGS ON MY 2009 BMW F800GS MOTORCYCLE. I DISCOVERED THEM TO BE WORN AND ROUGH FEELING WITH EVIDENCE OF SERIOUS BRINNELING. THE MOTORCYCLE HAS 8800 MILES. UPON DISASSEMBLY I FOUND THE FIT BETWEEN THE WHEEL BORE AND THE BEARING ON THE DISC BRAKE SIDE TO BE TIGHTER THAN A P7 FIT FOR A HEAVY ROTATING OUTER RING WHEEL LOAD. THE FIT ON THE DRIVE SPROCKET SIDE WAS CLOSE TO A N7 FIT. I HONED THE DISC BRAKE SIDE OF THE REAR WHEEL HUB TO A N7 FIT AND REASSEMBLED WITH NEW BEARINGS. *TR

NHTSA ID
10290055
Incident
Oct 26, 2009
Mileage
8,800 mi
Other / unspecified
Filed Oct 27, 2009

M / Y 2009 BMW F800GS MOTORCYCLE, BUILD DATE 10/08. REAR WHEEL BEARING FAILURE NOTED DURING ROUTINE MAINTENANCE AT APPROXIMATELY 5,500 MILES. CATASTROPHIC FAILURE COULD RESULT IN REAR TIRE LOCKING UP, CAUSING SEVERE INJURY OR DEATH. BMW DEALER IS REPLACING PARTS UNDER WARRANTY. *TR

NHTSA ID
10290046
Incident
Oct 23, 2009
Mileage
5,500 mi
Suspension
Filed Oct 23, 2009

I HAVE A 2009 BMW F800GS. I READ ABOUT CATASTROPHIC BEARING FAILURES HAPPENING ON OTHER F800GS REAR WHEELS AND CHECKED MY BEARING BY HAND WHEN I HAD THE REAR WHEEL OFF AT 8000 MILES FOR TIRE REPLACEMENT. THE BEARING ON THE ROTOR SIDE OF THE WHEEL WAS VERY NOTCHY AND IT WOULD NOT ROLL IN A CLOCKWISE ROTATION UNLESS MUCH FORCE WAS APPLIED. THE BEARING TYPICALLY RUNS IN A COUNTER CLOCKWISE ROTATION IF LOOKING AT THE REAR WHEEL FROM THE LEFT SIDE. THE BMW DEALER IN LAS VEGAS AGREED THAT THE BEARING WAS BAD AND REPLACED IT UNDER WARRANTY. EXPERTS HAVE EXAMINED OTHER HUBS FROM THIS SAME MODEL AND YEAR AND HAVE DECLARED THAT THE BORE IN THE HUB FOR THE BEARING IS TOO SMALL FOR WHICH CAUSES TOO MUCH CRUSH AND WILL DAMAGE ANY SUBSEQUENT REPLACEMENT BEARINGS THAT ARE PUT INTO THE HUB OVER TIME. BMW MUST BE MADE TO REPLACE OR MACHINE THE HUB SO THAT THE BEARINGS DO NOT FAIL. SOMEONE WILL BE SERIOUSLY INJURED IF THIS BEARING HAS CATASTROPHIC FAILURE AT SPEED. *TR

NHTSA ID
10289438
Incident
Oct 13, 2009
Mileage
8,002 mi
Suspension
Filed Oct 20, 2009

REAR WHEEL BEARINGS FAILING WITH ONLY 7600 MILES. BEARINGS WERE CHECKED DUE TO MULTIPLE INCIDENTS AND CONCERNS ON AN INTERNET FORUM. WHEEL WAS TAKEN TO A WHEEL SPECIALIST WHO CONFIRMED THE WORN BEARINGS AND HAD TO REWORK THE HUB TO ALLOW THE BEARINGS TO FUNCTION PROPERLY SO AS NOT TO WEAR OUT PREMATURELY. BEARINGS WERE ALSO CHECKED BY THE DEALER CONFIRMING THE PROBLEM AND GIVING A WARRANTIED THE REPLACEMENT OF THE BEARINGS. *TR

NHTSA ID
10289066
Incident
Oct 15, 2009
Mileage
7,600 mi
Suspension
Filed Oct 20, 2009

NO SPECIFIC IDENTIFIABLE EVENT(S) LEADING TO THIS FAILURE. IT MAY BE RELATED TO DEFECTIVE PART, MANUFACTURING OR IMPROPER FACTORY INSTALLATION. THE LEFT REAR WHEEL BEARING ON MY 2009 BMW F800GS MOTORCYCLE FAILED AND WAS DISCOVERED AT APPROXIMATELY 8800 MILES. THIS MATCHES APPROXIMATELY THREE DOZEN KNOWN ANECDOTAL REPORTS ON THE INTERNATIONAL ADVENTURE RIDERS INTERNET FORUM OF REAR BEARING FAILURE ON THE SAME MODEL AND MODEL YEAR BIKE. THE CONSEQUENCE OF REAR BEARING FAILURE COULD RESULT IN CRASH, PROPERTY / BIKE DAMAGE AND / OR PERSONAL INJURY. SOME RIDERS HAVE REPORTED ALL OF THE ABOVE. THE LAS VEGAS BMW MOTORCYCLE DEALERSHIP SERVICE MANAGER INDICATED THERE WAS NO OFFICIAL RECALL FROM BMW BUT THAT HE HAD THE SAME FAILURE ON ANOTHER BIKE TWO DAYS BEFORE MINE. IT WAS REPLACED AS A WARRANTY ITEM AT NO-CHARGE. *TR

NHTSA ID
10289042
Incident
Oct 15, 2009
Mileage
8,800 mi
Other / unspecified
Filed Sep 29, 2009

REAR WHEEL BEARING ON THE ROTOR (LEFT) SIDE FAILED. *TR

NHTSA ID
10285687
Incident
Sep 25, 2009
Mileage
4,842 mi
Engine
Filed Apr 11, 2009

OPERATING VEHICLE IN RAIN, AIRBOX FILLS WITH WATER AND STALLS ENGINE. VERY DANGEROUS BECAUSE OTHER VEHICLES ALMOST CRASH INTO ME. CANNOT RE START ENGINE. THIS HAPPENS ON HIGHWAYS WHILE TRAVELING. *TR

NHTSA ID
10264977
Incident
Apr 5, 2009
Mileage
1,123 mi

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .