15-04-2011, 09:09 PM
I owned an R80RT for 16 years until 2008, and they're not good starters from cold, even though mine was garaged. I found that the best way was to open the choke wide, open the throttle a little but don't 'blip' it, press the starter, and when the engine fires, hold the choke at the halfway position till the engine keeps ticking over as you ease the choke back off. I fitted a police style voltage regulator as I found that on short runs at lower speeds, especially with the lights on, the regulator struggled to keep the battery fully charged. I also used one of those automatic trickle chargers, which I kept plugged into the accessory point so the battery was always fully charged.
I don't know if you are familiar with Moto Bins at Spalding - BMW bike specialists for spares, repairs and advice. They're very knowledgable and helpful. For example, I had to fit new front fork seals, and the Climer BMW service manual (far more comprehensive than the Haynes one) stated the the front forks should be completely stripped down - a major job. Motobins mechanics said nonsense - put the bike stand on a bock of wood to raise the front wheel about nine inches by tipping the back of the bike down 'see-saw fashion' with the front wheel off the ground. Remove the front wheel, brake pad callipers, and lower forks, which will now have sufficient clearance from the ground to be completely withdrawn and their seals renewed and the lower forks refitted without disturbing the forks at the top end. It made a complicated job very straightforward. Motobins have an excellent forum which anyone can join, where you can post requests for advice, or search the archives - for example on 'R80RT poor starting from cold'.
Another thing to bear in mind which has a bearing on starting and smooth performance of the bike is that the carbs on R80RTs go out of balance after a few thousand miles. Really, you need vacuum gauges to balance them. I had mercury gauges but they're outlawed now, and the current ones have little rods which float up and down in the clear plastic tubes of the gauge. It's a simple and quick job to balance the carbs with gauges - there's a nozzle on each carb to which to fit the vacuum tubes.
A note of caution: R80RTs are noted for shedding the red paint on the inside of the petrol tank, which then lies in the carb bowls until you gun the throttle to overtake a lorry on the motorway, at which point, the debris is sucked into the carb jets, causing the bike to decelerate alarmingly. It's an obscure fault not easily traced, but it only take a jiffy to take the bowls off to check (though not of course when you're slowing from 70 to 30 in the outside lane of the M1!!). If the bowls are clean and all's well, then fine, but if there's any sign of red debris, don't just clean the bowls - drain the tank, take the tank off the bike (two minute job), remove the fuel taps complete with their tubular wire mesh filters, swill the tank out with paraffin (safer than petrol) to remove all the debris, refit the tank, and fit a proper fuel filter in each fuel line.
I fitted a taller screen to my bike as I found that the rake and height of the standard screen was such that I got buffeted at speed. The taller screen made a world of difference.
Hope that helps a bit.
Safe riding Andy - stay on the black stuff!
David
I don't know if you are familiar with Moto Bins at Spalding - BMW bike specialists for spares, repairs and advice. They're very knowledgable and helpful. For example, I had to fit new front fork seals, and the Climer BMW service manual (far more comprehensive than the Haynes one) stated the the front forks should be completely stripped down - a major job. Motobins mechanics said nonsense - put the bike stand on a bock of wood to raise the front wheel about nine inches by tipping the back of the bike down 'see-saw fashion' with the front wheel off the ground. Remove the front wheel, brake pad callipers, and lower forks, which will now have sufficient clearance from the ground to be completely withdrawn and their seals renewed and the lower forks refitted without disturbing the forks at the top end. It made a complicated job very straightforward. Motobins have an excellent forum which anyone can join, where you can post requests for advice, or search the archives - for example on 'R80RT poor starting from cold'.
Another thing to bear in mind which has a bearing on starting and smooth performance of the bike is that the carbs on R80RTs go out of balance after a few thousand miles. Really, you need vacuum gauges to balance them. I had mercury gauges but they're outlawed now, and the current ones have little rods which float up and down in the clear plastic tubes of the gauge. It's a simple and quick job to balance the carbs with gauges - there's a nozzle on each carb to which to fit the vacuum tubes.
A note of caution: R80RTs are noted for shedding the red paint on the inside of the petrol tank, which then lies in the carb bowls until you gun the throttle to overtake a lorry on the motorway, at which point, the debris is sucked into the carb jets, causing the bike to decelerate alarmingly. It's an obscure fault not easily traced, but it only take a jiffy to take the bowls off to check (though not of course when you're slowing from 70 to 30 in the outside lane of the M1!!). If the bowls are clean and all's well, then fine, but if there's any sign of red debris, don't just clean the bowls - drain the tank, take the tank off the bike (two minute job), remove the fuel taps complete with their tubular wire mesh filters, swill the tank out with paraffin (safer than petrol) to remove all the debris, refit the tank, and fit a proper fuel filter in each fuel line.
I fitted a taller screen to my bike as I found that the rake and height of the standard screen was such that I got buffeted at speed. The taller screen made a world of difference.
Hope that helps a bit.
Safe riding Andy - stay on the black stuff!
David
