2009 BMW F 800 Gs Owner Complaints

The contact owns a 2009 BMW F800 GS. The contact stated while riding 70 MPH, the motorcycle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact pulled over to the shoulder of the roadway and restarted the motorcycle. After restarting the motorcycle, the motorcycle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were illuminated. The motorcycle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the Engine Control Unit (ECU). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 36,000. The VIN was not available.

NHTSA ID

11643900

Incident

Feb 20, 2025

Mileage

36,000 mi

THE PLASTIC FUEL TANK ON THIS MOTORCYCLE IS KNOWN TO HAVE A MATERIAL OR MANUFACTURING DEFECT IN THE FORM OF A LATERAL CRACK ALL THE WAY AROUND THE TANK. THE FUEL TANK IS POSITIONED DIRECTLY OVER THE EXHAUST SYSTEM UNDER THE SEAT. I DISCOVERED THIS DEFECT ON MY MACHINE AFTER SMELLING GAS DURING A CASUAL RIDE IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD. A QUICK SEARCH ONLINE FOR "F800GS FUEL TANK CRACK" IMMEDIATELY RETURNED SEVERAL DISCUSSIONS AND OWNERS' DOCUMENTATION OF THE EXACT SAME ISSUE, INCLUDING SOME DISCOVERED BIKES STILL ON THE SHOWROOM FLOOR. I AM CONCERNED THAT THIS ISSUE COULD RESULT IN RIDERS BEING BURNED AND POSSIBLY KILLED. I ALSO HAVE A WALK AROUND VIDEO THAT SHOWS THE PROBLEM VERY WELL, PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF I CAN GET THAT TO YOU. THANK YOU

NHTSA ID

11377487

Incident

Nov 3, 2020

Mileage

31,920 mi

HEADLIGHT REFLECTOR HAS BURNED CAUSING DIMINISHED NIGHTTIME VISIBILITY. OEM STYLE BULBS HAVE BEEN THE ONLY EQUIPMENT USED. *TR

NHTSA ID

10648759

Incident

Feb 1, 2011

I WAS TRAVELING ON THE FREEWAY AT APPROXIMATELY 75 MPH WHEN TRAFFIC STARTED TO SLOW DOWN. AS I ROLLED OFF THE THROTTLE TO SLOW DOWN THE ENGINE COMPLETELY DIED. I HAD TO COAST THROUGH MULTIPLE LANES OF HIGH SPEED FREEWAY TRAFFIC TO GET TO THE SHOULDER. I SAW THAT NO WARNING/ CHECK ENGINE LIGHTS HAD COME ON, THE FUEL GAUGE INDICATED THAT IT HAD APPROXIMATELY 3/4 OF A TANK, THE KILL SWITCH WAS IN THE RUN POSITION, AND THE KICK STAND WAS SECURELY UP. WHILE COASTING TO THE SHOULDER I NOTICED THAT THE TACHOMETER SHOWED ABOUT 1,000 RPM EVEN THOUGH THE CLUTCH WAS IN AND THE ENGINE WAS COMPLETELY DEAD. THE TACHOMETER JUMPED TO ZERO ONCE I INCREASED THE THROTTLE. THE MOTORCYCLE HAD TO BE FULLY CYCLED FROM OFF TO ON USING THE KEY BEFORE IT WOULD START. AFTER RESTARTING IT IN FIRST GEAR, I BEGAN ACCELERATING, WHEN I REACHED APPROXIMATELY 35-45 MPH THE ENGINE DIED AGAIN. I NOTICED THAT THE LONGER I KEPT THE BIKE OFF THE LONGER IT WOULD LET ME RIDE BEFORE DYING. THE INFO DISPLAY INDICATED THAT THE ENGINE WAS RUNNING AT NORMAL OPERATING TEMPERATURE. I HAVE READ MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS IN THE NHTSA DATABASE AS WELL AS ON OWNER WEBSITES, THAT MULTIPLE OTHER RIDERS HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS EXACT SAME SCENARIO. I BOUGHT THE MOTORCYCLE USED WITH APPROXIMATELY 9,600 MILES. I CONTACTED BMW WHO INFORMED ME THAT THE PREVIOUS OWNER HAD ALSO COMPLAINED ABOUT THIS SAME SCENARIO, AT 108 MILES AND 8,995 MILES. BOTH TIMES BMW REPORTED REPAIRING AND/OR REPLACING COMPONENTS AND NOT BEING ABLE TO DUPLICATE THE SITUATION AFTER THE REPAIR. *TR

NHTSA ID

10596974

Incident

Jun 8, 2014

Mileage

9,712 mi

STATOR / FLYWHEEL NO LONGER CHARGING BATTERY. RAN ON BATTERY POWER UNTIL ENGINE QUIT ON FREEWAY AT 65 MPH. COASTED TO SHOULDER AND WAITED FOR TOW. 2ND TIME THIS HAPPENED. FIRST TIME AT 28,000 MILES. *TR

NHTSA ID

10587345

Incident

May 2, 2014

Mileage

39,040 mi

THE GAS TANK IS CRACKED ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE BIKE. THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM THAT IS HAPPENING ON MANY BMW F800'S. *TR

NHTSA ID

10546886

Incident

Oct 5, 2013

Mileage

5,000 mi

WHILE CLEANING THE MOTORCYCLE YESTERDAY, I NOTICED THE FUEL TANK IS BREAKING AT ITS SEAM ON BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT SIDES OF THE TANK. THE CRACK IN THE TANK IS WELL OVER 12 INCHES ON EACH SIDE. I ALSO NOTICED TODAY THAT A NUMBER OF PEOPLE HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS IN THE PAST AND EVEN AFTER HAVING THE FUEL TANK REPLACED, THE CRACKS TO THE PLASTIC DEVELOP ONCE AGAIN. THE CRACKS ARE LINEAR AND ALONG THE SEAM OF THE TANK. MY WARRANTY EXPIRED APPROXIMATELY 2 MONTHS AGO.

NHTSA ID

10544715

Incident

Sep 20, 2013

Mileage

10,250 mi

EXPERIENCED A FAILURE OF THE CHARGING SYSTEM RESULTING IN STALLING THE INABILITY TO RESTART THE MOTORCYCLE. THIS FAILURE HAPPENED IN HEAVY TRAFFIC, LEAVING ME STRANDED IN THE MIDDLE OF A MULTILANE HIGHWAY IN RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC. THE BIKE STARTED AFTER JUMP STARTING, BUT A TEST WITH A MULTIMETER SHOWED NO INCREASE IN SYSTEM VOLTAGE WITH THE ENGINE RUNNING, RESULTING IN NO CHARGE BEING APPLIED TO THE BATTERY, PREVENTING THE EFI AND IGNITION SYSTEMS FROM FUNCTIONING. IN THE WEEK LEADING UP TO THIS INCIDENT I EXPERIENCED INTERMITTENT SURGING, SPUTTERING, AND STALLING, ALTHOUGH IT WAS NOT UNTIL THE INCIDENT ON THE HIGHWAY WHERE I EXPERIENCED A FAILURE TO START THE BIKE. THIS FAILURE LEFT ME STRANDED IN DANGEROUS TRAFFIC, REQUIRING ME TO PUSH THE BIKE ACROSS MULTIPLE LANES OF TRAFFIC AND DOWN THE SIDE OF A HIGHWAY TO GET ASSISTANCE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10525994

Incident

Jul 18, 2013

Mileage

31,250 mi

RIDING HOME AT NIGHT IN TRAFFIC, MY MOTORCYCLE STALLED AND DIED LOCKING UP ALL SYSTEMS INCLUDING LIGHTS. I FOUND MYSELF AT A DEAD STOP IN TRAFFIC WITH NO LIGHTS FOR VISIBILITY. IT WAS QUITE DANGEROUS. *TR

NHTSA ID

10508795

Incident

Feb 8, 2013

Mileage

28,900 mi

THE STATOR OF THE ALTERNATOR FRIED, SO THE BATTERY STARTED DISCHARGING AND WHEN EMPTY THE COMPUTER AND THE ENGINE STALLED. I HAD THE STATOR REWINDED AND THE SAME PROBLEM REPEATED 5000 MILES LATER. I HAD IT REWINDED A SENCOND TIME AND IT HAPPENED AGAIN. I AM INTO MY 3RD REWIND AND JUST EXPECTING THE PROBLEM TO REAPPEAR...

NHTSA ID

10458740

Incident

Jul 10, 2011

Mileage

21,126 mi

REAR WHEEL BEARING IN EARLY STAGES OF FAILURE. NOTICED ROUGH ROTATION DURING TIRE CHANGE. BEING REPAIRED UNDER WARRANTY. *JS

NHTSA ID

10458309

Incident

May 5, 2012

Mileage

15,000 mi

THROTTLE RESPONSE IS TOO SHARP AND TAKES YOU BY SURPRISE WITHOUT WARNING DURING NORMAL OPERATION. THIS RESPONSE CAN BE RAPID ACCELERATION OR DECELERATION WHEN A DEFORMITY IN THE ROAD IS DRIVEN OVER. THE RAPID RESPONSE IS EVEN MORE EXACERBATED AT LOW SPEEDS WHEN TRYING TO MANEUVER RESIDENTIAL SURFACE ROADS. I HAVE TAKEN THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER WITH NO KNOWN REPAIRS. I HAVE HAD A COMPUTER SOFTWARE UPGRADE TO NO AVAIL. I HAVE SEARCHED MANY ADVENTURE TYPE FORUMS WHERE MANY PEOPLE ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEMS WITH NO KNOWN REPAIR FROM THE FACTORY. I HAVE HAD ONE CLOSE CALL WHERE THE VEHICLE THROTTLE SUDDENLY DECELERATED WHILE COMMITTED IN A TURN WHERE I LOST MY LINE AND WENT INTO THE ONCOMING LANE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10410935

Incident

Aug 1, 2009

Mileage

600 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 BMW F800 GS MOTORCYCLE. WHILE TRAVELING 75 MPH, THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO DOWNSHIFT FROM SIXTH TO FIFTH GEAR AND THE VEHICLE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE THE COMPUTER WAS UPDATED. THE FAILURE RECURRED FOLLOWING REPAIRS. THE DEALER THEN PERFORMED A SECOND COMPUTER SOFTWARE UPDATE TO CORRECT THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 2,200 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 4,200.

NHTSA ID

10351946

Incident

Jun 25, 2010

Mileage

2,200 mi

WHEEL BEARING ON CHAINRING SIDE OF REAR HUB WORE OUT PREMATURELY AT 9,000 MILES. OTHER BEARINGS ON FRONT AND REAR HUBS WERE FUNCTIONING WELL. HAD I NOT CHECKED THIS BEARING, AFTER READING ABOUT MULTIPLE SUCH INCIDENTS, CATASTROPHIC FAILURE COULD HAVE OCCURRED WHILE TRAVELING AT FREEWAY SPEED LEADING TO PERSONAL INJURY AND POTENTIALLY INJURY TO OTHERS. *TR

NHTSA ID

10330369

Incident

Apr 7, 2010

Mileage

9,000 mi

AFTER 9000 MILES THE CLUTCH ON MY 2009 F800GS SUDDENLY STARTED TO SLIP ON THE FREEWAY WHEN DOWNSHIFTING AND ACCELERATING. THERE WAS NO PREVIOUS SYMPTOMS OF ANY PROBLEMS IN THE DRIVE TRAIN/CLUTCH APART THAT THE ADJUSTMENT OF THE CLUTCH WAS TO THE LAST LIMIT (ALL SERVICE DONE BY BMW DEALER). SINCE THEN ANY ACCELERATION MAKES THE RPM JUMP 1000+ RPM BEFORE GRADUALLY COMING DOWN AND ACTUAL ACCELERATION OCCURRING. THIS CAN BE A SAFETY PROBLEM AS A LOSS OF ACCELERATION CAN LEAD TO AN ACCIDENT OR DEATH ON A MOTORCYCLE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10320268

Incident

Mar 15, 2010

Mileage

8,950 mi

I HAD THE REAR WHEEL BEARINGS ON MY 2009 BMW F800GS MOTORCYCLE CHECKED DURING ITS ROUTINE 6,000 MILE SERVICE. THE BEARINGS ON MY BIKE SHOWED EVIDENCE OF ACCELERATED WEAR. THEY WERE REPLACED BY THE BMW SHOP, UNDER WARRANTY. ONE WOULD EXPECT SUCH BEARINGS TO LAST A _MINIMUM_ OF 50,000 MILES, AND SO FAILURE WITH SO LITTLE MILEAGE WAS UTTERLY UNEXPECTED. ON A MOTORCYCLE, REAR WHEEL BEARING FAILURE AT SPEED COULD LEAD TO LOSS OF CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE, RESULTING IN INJURY OR DEATH TO THE OPERATOR. *TR

NHTSA ID

10289703

Incident

Oct 22, 2009

Mileage

6,356 mi

REAR WHEEL BEARING DETERIORATION AT 12,000 MILES ON A BMW F800GS. RIDING UNDER NORMAL CIRCUMSTANCES. CHECK THE BEARING AFTER READING AN INTERNET POST ABOUT SEVERAL OTHER PEOPLE WITH THE SAME MAKE AND MODEL HAVING BEARING FAILURES. THE BEARING FELT PITTED AND GRITTY. I TOOK IT TO THE DEAL AND THEY REPLACED THEM UNDER WARRANTY WITH FACTORY PARTS. UNCHECKED THIS WOULD HAVE MOST LIKELY LEAD TO A CATASTROPHIC FAILURE WITH POSSIBLE INJURY OR DEATH. *TR

NHTSA ID

10289384

Incident

Sep 14, 2009

Mileage

11,000 mi