BMW MOTORRAD R 1150 GS 2002 Rider's Manual (in English)

2
49
Safety check
Lights
 Measure the distance H from
the ground to the centre of
the headlight
 Transfer this height H to the
wall and draw a cross on the
wall at this point
 Draw a second cross
(x = 15 cm/5.9 in) lower
 Switch on the low-beam
headlight
 Turn adjusting screw 1 to
align the headlight in such a
way that the light-dark cutoff
starts in the middle of the bot-
tom cross and rises to the
right to the height of the upper
cross, before dropping again. Adjusting screw 1:
– Turn screw counter-clock-
wise: higher
– Turn screw clockwise:
lower
L Note:
Have the headlight basic setting
checked by a specialist work-
shop, preferably an authorised
BMW motorcycle dealer.
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2
50
Safety check
1
S
H
d Warning:
Before riding off, always set
spring preload to suit total
weight.
For off-road riding, increase
spring preload at front and
rear by a suitable amount.
Adjusting front spring
preload
 Place motorcycle on centre stand
– Make sure the ground is level and firm
 Use hook wrench and exten- sion (wheel-stud wrench) to
adjust preload of spring 1:
Stage 1 – road ( S)
Stage 3 – loose surfaces
(stone chippings etc.)
Stage 5 – off-road ( H)
Suspension spring preload
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2
51
Safety check
H
L
1
d Warning:
Before riding off, always set
spring preload to suit total
weight.
For off-road riding, increase
spring preload at front and
rear by a suitable amount.
For safety reasons, never at-
tempt to alter spring preload
while the motorcycle is being
ridden. Always halt the motor-
cycle before adjusting.
Adjusting rear spring
preload
“LOW” setting (solo):
Turn knob 1 as far as it will go
in “LOW” direction ( L) as indi-
cated by arrow
“HIGH” setting (for off-road
use, or two-up with luggage)
Turn knob 1 as far as it will go
in “HIGH” direction ( H) as
indicated by arrow
Suspension spring preload
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2
52
Safety check
1
Shock-absorber adjustment
d Warning:
Before starting the journey,
adjust the shock absorber to
match total weight.
If spring preload is changed,
the shock absorber has to be
adjusted accordingly.
 Place motorcycle on centre stand
– Make sure the ground is level and firm
 Adjust the rear shock
absorber with a screwdriver Basic setting
(one-up):
 Turn adjusting screw 1 in
direction indicated by arrow H
(clockwise) as far as it will go
 Back off adjusting screw 1 half a turn in direction indi-
cated by arrow S (counter-
clockwise)
Hard setting “H”:
 Turn adjusting screw 1 in
direction indicated by arrow H
(clockwise) as far as it will go
Soft setting “S”:
 Turn adjusting screw 1 in
direction indicated by arrow S
(counter-clockwise) as far as
it will go
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2
53
Safety check
Wheels
Checking wheel rims
d Warning:
Have damaged wheel rims
checked and, if necessary,
replaced by a specialist work-
shop, preferably an author-
ised BMW motorcycle dealer.
Checking spokes
d Warning:
Before riding off, always
make sure that the spokes
are in perfect condition.
Always have damaged
spokes and irregular spoke
tension rectified immediately
by a specialist workshop,
preferably an authorised
BMW motorcycle dealer.  Place the motorcycle on its
centre stand.
– Make sure the ground is level and firm
 Tap spokes with a screw-
driver and listen for the cor-
rect ringing sound
L Note:
If the note varies, spoke tension
is uneven (some spokes too
loose or too tight).
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2
54
Safety check
Wheels
Checking tyre pressures
d Warning:
Incorrect tyre pressures have
a considerable influence on
handling and on tyre life.
Adjust tyre pressures to suit
total weight. Never exceed ei-
ther the motorcycle’s gross
weight or the individual wheel
load limits (b 57). – When tyres are cold:
 Remove valve caps
 Check/correct tyre pressure
Tyre pressures for
road tyres and massive-bar
tyres:
front rear
one-up 2.2 bar 2.5 bar
(31.9 psi) 36 psi)
two-up 2.5 bar 2.7 bar
(36 psi) (39 psi)
two-up
and luggage 2.5 bar 2.9 bar (36 psi) (42 psi)
 Fully tighten valve caps
Screw valve caps on
tightly
d Warning:
At high road speeds, tyre
valves have a tendency to
open as a result of centrifugal
force.
Use only metal valve caps
with rubber seals.
Valve caps that are screwed
on well prevent air from es-
caping suddenly.
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2
55
Safety check
Wheels
Checking tyre tread
Road tyres and massive-bar
tyres
d Warning:
Comply with statutory legal
requirements concerning
minimum tread depth. Worn
tyres can impair handling.
 Measure tread depth at the centre of the tyre tread
BMW's minimum tread depth
recommendation:
front................... 2 mm (0.08 in)
rear.................... 3 mm (0.12 in)
OEOptional extra
d Warning:
The maximum permissible
speed for a motorcycle fitted
with massive-bar tyres
OE is
160 km/h (100 mph): do not
exceed this limit.
A label stating the maximum
permissible speed must be
affixed in the rider’s field of vi-
sion.
e Attention:
If a motorcycle is fitted with
massive-bar tyres
OE, the rear
splash guard must be removed,
(b Maintenance Instructions,
Chapter 2)
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2
56
Safety check
d Warning:
BMW cannot examine or test
every product of outside
origin to ensure that it does
not represent a safety risk if
used on or in connection with
your BMW motorcycle. Even
approval by an official inspec-
tion authority or an official
permit (General Operating
Permit) cannot always pro-
vide this guarantee. Tests
conducted by these
instances cannot make
provision for all operating
conditions experienced by
BMW motorcycles and
consequently, they are not
sufficient in some circum-
stances.
L Note:
BMW accessories and other
products approved by BMW
can be obtained from your
authorised BMW motorcycle
dealer.
Accessories and tyres
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2
57
Safety check
Correct loading
d Warning:
Overloading can impair the
stability of your motorcycle.
 Make sure that the weight is
uniformly distributed between
right and left
 Pack heavy items at the bot- tom of the cases
 Left and right cases
OA
max. 10 kg (22 lbs) per case
 Luggage rack and tank-top
rucksack
OA max. 5 kg (11 lbs)
each
 Check that fastenings are correctly positioned and tight
d Warning:
With cases installed, it is ad-
visable not to exceed
130 km/h (80 mph).
e Attention:
Do not exceed the gross weight
limit of 460 kg (992 lb).
Do not exceed the wheel load
limits of 180 kg (300 lbs) at the
front and 300 kg (728 lbs) at the
rear.
Reset the suspension spring
preload and the shock absorb-
ers to match the gross weight
(
b 50- 52, 54)
The gross weight consists of:
– Motorcycle with full tank
–Rider
– Passenger
– Luggage
OAOptional accessories
Accessories and loads
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3
58
Starting – Riding – Parking
Handling your motorcycle
safely
Each motorcycle has a charac-
ter all its own. It is time now for
you to familiarise yourself with
the way your own motorcycle
behaves:
– Acceleration
– Roadholding
–Cornering
–Braking …
These are all things you need to
become familiar with.
Please remember too that if the
motorcycle has not yet covered
1,000 kilometres (600 miles),
the engine is not yet fully run in.
e Attention:
BMW Integral ABSOE incorpo-
rates a brake booster, so brak-
ing efficiency is significantly
higher than with conventional
brake systems.
d Warning:
The tyres need to cover a cer-
tain distance
before they acquire their full
road grip (b 67).
When riding at high speed,
a l w a y s b e a r i n m i n d t h a t v a r i o u s
boundary conditions such as:
settings of the spring and
shock-absorber system, unbal-
anced loading, loose clothing,
low tyre pressures, worn tyres,
etc.,
can affect the handling of your
motorcycle.
OEOptional extra
Your first journey
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