[Anilsai]

WE RIDER’S ARE “BORN TO RIDE”, NOT “RIDE TO DIE”.

I have been a rider for the last 20 years (owning BMW bikes since 2013), and my intent here is only for you fellow riders to be aware of this unforeseen life-threatening incident. An explosion of the clutch basket and the experience as you will not be able to read this anywhere else, let it be in online forums or within the BMW Motorrad community.

Summary of the unfortunate life-threatening incident:
One fine day in Jan 2022, while starting my well maintained 12 years old bike; BMW K1300S of which the clutch basket exploded unexpectedly (refer to pics below with debris). To be honest, glad to be alive, if I was at the explosion side of the bike (which is on the right side of the bike), I would be not writing this message.

Post-incident approaching BMW Malaysia (MY) claiming as manufacturing defect:
I was directed by BMW MY to Auto Bavaria, Ara Damansara (dealer) to investigate further on the explosion. To my surprise, they found nothing that could have caused the clutch basket explosion of my bike upon further investigation by disassembling the engine. Even their world-class expert mechanics are not able to figure it out nor take an interest to find the root cause that could trigger the explosion.
Both the dealer and BMW MY ignored and rejected my service records only because I did not service directly through them, but with a certified trusted mechanic. Often dealers themselves will refer to a certified mechanics for certain issues.
A series of iterations continued which resulted in vain and I finally concluded by asking a few important questions to both BMW MY and Auto Bavaria so that I regain my confidence to ride the bike again. Again, to my surprise, they cannot even guarantee if the bike may be safe to ride even with me agreeing to bear all the cost to repair the bike.

I am left with 2 options suggested by Auto Bavaria:
#1. To repair as per the damage which costs about MYR18K
#2. Replace the entire engine which costs about MYR73K

My response to the above with alternate options such as:
A) Once repaired as per their option #1, can they assist in a trade-off to purchase a new bike. However, the suggestion was rejected by the dealer due to the age of the bike and their concerns on an unknown potential issue that occurred with the bike
B) To dispose the bike but that would result in me paying a sufficient amount for storage fees and other expenses which the dealer did not provide sufficient information. Pretty insane for me to pay to dispose of a bike.

If interested to know further, attached is a pdf with screenshots of all-important communications with BMW MY and Auto Bavaria (Dealer).

Few unanswered questions which have left me in limbo and for your kind read:

• Was it fair for BMW & Auto Bavaria (Dealer) to push back the service records from a trusted BMW-certified mechanic?
• If the service records were unavailable in their system (dealer), from day 1, should they reject to investigate further which caused 5 months wait time with no outcomes?
• With the exuberant price, lack of sufficient BMW authorized dealer workshops, and the long wait time, does it make sense to service the bike (post-warranty) directly through the dealer?
• What do you ascertain of the 2 options provided by the dealer? 73K for an engine? will you consider buying a new bike for this cost?
• Will you have enough trust to ride the bike again if we go with option 1? Please recall that they were unable to identify the root cause of the incident.
• Since the age of the bike is a significant factor in this entire ordeal, should we not trust a BMW bike post 10 years as we may face similar unforeseen life-threatening incidents?
• Aging post 10 years, does BMW bikes required to dispose off? Does it worth purchasing such an expensive bike compared to other competitive bike manufacturers in the market?
• Why BMW is not curious to know the root cause of the incident, and take preventive measures to make sure this incident will not occur to other riders using the same model K1300S?
  
  
  
  
  
  

 

[andredl]

Shit happens

 

[Sbike]

How many miles on your Bike?
I’ve never seen this before! your the first!

Logically thinking my best guess is you dropped it into gear accidentally with very high rpm’s and no clutch depressed, that would have shattered the basket!
I would say you was at a standstill since you have all the pieces in a bag, thought you had it in first gear then revved the motor and let clutch out nothing happened, revved it high then accidentally dropped it into first and shattered the basket.
(rider error not bmw error).
(sorry but just telling it as I see it. No sugar coating and you did post for feedback)

I would start by taking off the cover and getting a better look inside.
shouldn’t be to hard to fix once you have new parts.
Looks worse than it really is. Needs full clutch job and side cover.
I would drop the oil pan also to look for debris before sealing it all back up. Good Luck.

 

[WPV]

A course of action would be have a metallurgist examine the remaining basket and the pieces to see if there is an identifiable cause for the failure like a stress riser, impact or last maintenance action. Someone that knows what they are looking for can sometimes identify this without exotic equipment. I think their cop-out using the mechanics you used without knowing what happened is exactly that, a cop-out. Good luck.

 

[Olistoys1]

Why would the engine need replacement It looks like just the cover to the clutch basket was damaged and less something internally damage the case that I don’t see it sounds like a freak thing I like others have said something came loose or snapped in the clutch basket throwing parts against the wall of case and had nowhere to go but out. If the cover in clutch to be replaced and you would be riding again I think I would go that route the odds of that happening again are slim and none but that’s just me thinking out loud I don’t know all the particulars and damage

 

[chriscanning]

Shame you are the other side of the pond and some as i’ve Got all the bits you need engine included, but all the best on your search looks like it’s clutch and case which should not be too much of a hassle.

 

[Fried_Chicken]

I'd like a few more details on what the bike was revving at when it exploded

 

[chriscanning]

See on UK eBay both clutch and case available £680 you will have to do the dollar rate.

 

[Hondakiller]

en mi humilde opinión , creo que estamos ante un defecto de fabricacion de la cesta de la campana , agrabado por las vibraciones , tanto laterales del eje de rotacion central , como de las producidas por el desgaste de los 4 muelles principales y la holgura del rodamiento central
y a todo esto deberiamos sumar las marcas producidas por las lenguetas de los discos de embrague en el acanalado de la cesta de embrague (que con el tiempo son cada vez mas profundas)
podia darse el caso de fatiga del metal y producirse un punto de ruptura que rompiera parte de la pared de la cesta , lo cual provocaria un efecto cascada que desembocaria en la averia que se ve en las fotos
esto deberia servir como toque de atencion a todos y a partir de ahora , cada vez que cambiemos los discos de embrague (40.000 km) deeriamos hacer una inspeccion visual del estado de la cesta de la campana en busca de alguna fisura o rotura que con el tiempo podia producir una averia como la que se muestra en este post

 

[Olistoys1]

en mi humilde opinión , creo que estamos ante un defecto de fabricacion de la cesta de la campana , agrabado por las vibraciones , tanto laterales del eje de rotacion central , como de las producidas por el desgaste de los 4 muelles principales y la holgura del rodamiento central
y a todo esto deberiamos sumar las marcas producidas por las lenguetas de los discos de embrague en el acanalado de la cesta de embrague (que con el tiempo son cada vez mas profundas)
podia darse el caso de fatiga del metal y producirse un punto de ruptura que rompiera parte de la pared de la cesta , lo cual provocaria un efecto cascada que desembocaria en la averia que se ve en las fotos
esto deberia servir como toque de atencion a todos y a partir de ahora , cada vez que cambiemos los discos de embrague (40.000 km) deeriamos hacer una inspeccion visual del estado de la cesta de la campana en busca de alguna fisura o rotura que con el tiempo podia producir una averia como la que se muestra en este post

Say what ? Lol

 

[Beech]

Hondakiller
I don't think people change their clutch disks at 40K miles. I know BMW thinks that normal clutch failure is at 35K miles, but but most go way beyond that. I do think a hard look inside that cover once and a while is good. I'm wondering if there was any pre noise or indications.

BMW is not curious because they don't care. The bike is out of production, your bike is over 10 years old it is a dead production line. For a performance bike it is old news at 10 years. I'd clean it up, install used but good parts being careful to install a new bushing for the main shaft and a new bearing in the inner basket. See the posts on the quality of that bearing in aftermarket vs factory. And move on riding your very cool bike. And no need to take it to red line very often. Be concerned about this bearing:

 

[Hondakiller]

hay 3 cosas que yo modifico en la campana de embrague
1- sustitucion de los muelles viejos y cedidos por otros nuevos de resistencia similar , para evitar vibraciones
yo uso estos:
R206405 | Associated Spring Raymond

2- modificacion de la cesta de embrague , añadiendo un casquillo central de bronce para evitar el juego lateral

3- sustitucion del rodamiento central por el que has puesto en la foto

 

[Fried_Chicken]

The nature of the failure is concerning.

To be honest, glad to be alive, if I was at the explosion side of the bike (which is on the right side of the bike), I would be not writing this message.

What were you doing when this happened? You clearly weren't riding the bike

 

[Fried_Chicken]

I've read through your PDF. I think you are misunderstanding what BMW is saying.

What BMW is saying: they cannot know what the cause of the failure is, because they haven't seen the bike in 12 years.

 

[Insiders]

I'd like a few more details on what the bike was revving at when it exploded

Or perhaps not having the correct torque spec for something and cause the basket to explode….

 

[Insiders]

The nature of the failure is concerning.



What were you doing when this happened? You clearly weren't riding the bike

I had something like this happened. I popped the clutch to do a wheelie and 2 friction disks broke up into multiple pieces. This effectively jammed the inner / outer basket together and no clutch disengagement possible.

If this happened during the upper torque curve, I guess the basket could potentially explode…

 

[Bradmiester]

Dear Anilsai,

Clutch Basket failures happen all the time, all over the world and across all marquis. You're not the first person, and I'm sure you wont be the last.......

You're predicament has been already assessed by our fellow forum members: Your bike was not maintained by a local Authorized BMW dealership in Malaysia.

Ergo: BMW cannot track (in its internal system) where the work was performed , when and what parts were replaced and most importantly: Who performed maintenance on the machine.

Regardless of where you are owning or operating any Motorcycle, if you expect BMW to give you the time of day, (which surprisingly they did) without purchasing the Bike from an Authorized BMW Dealer in Malaysia or not having it maintained at an authorized BMW dealer in Malaysia, you're "out of luck" for any recourse that suggests liability on behalf of the Manufacturer.

It is very upsetting to have this situation, and I'm sure everyone sympathizes with your disposition.

Auto Bavaria, (if memory serves me correct) is down in Kuala Lumpur City, Malaysia. So you were already in a Juxtaposition of sorts, the day you decided to buy this machine.
Finding Competent BMW motorcycle Mechanics anywhere in South East Asia is problematic.

Best of Luck to you in whatever decision you should make. Thanks for the post and pictures!

 

[Bradmiester]

en mi humilde opinión , creo que estamos ante un defecto de fabricacion de la cesta de la campana , agrabado por las vibraciones , tanto laterales del eje de rotacion central , como de las producidas por el desgaste de los 4 muelles principales y la holgura del rodamiento central
y a todo esto deberiamos sumar las marcas producidas por las lenguetas de los discos de embrague en el acanalado de la cesta de embrague (que con el tiempo son cada vez mas profundas)
podia darse el caso de fatiga del metal y producirse un punto de ruptura que rompiera parte de la pared de la cesta , lo cual provocaria un efecto cascada que desembocaria en la averia que se ve en las fotos
esto deberia servir como toque de atencion a todos y a partir de ahora , cada vez que cambiemos los discos de embrague (40.000 km) deeriamos hacer una inspeccion visual del estado de la cesta de la campana en busca de alguna fisura o rotura que con el tiempo podia producir una averia como la que se muestra en este post

Si, Mi amigo: un defecto de fabrication de la cesta! Mucho Las Vibraciones!

 

[Fried_Chicken]

That's not to say the nature of this failure isn't worrying. I don't want my clutch basket to explode like that sending metal pieces into my right leg.

Again I wonder where OP was when this exploded, b/c he obviously wasn't sitting on the bike. This is unusual, because I don't think something like this would happen at idle.

 

[Sbike]

I’m confused, you was on the left side of bike when this happened at standstill ? Not riding?
many have asked for details but none given?
why did you change language from English to Spanish from the first post?
My guess is still that a stunt went wrong, high rpm clutch drop apparently at standstill or close, maybe for a burnout or failed wheelie and statured the basket!
No way to have all broken pieces if riding at speed. without details it leads to abuse not failed.