Tag Archives: service

Roadside assistance for the BMW G310GS

Yesterday we were headed out to Todos Santos for lunch and icecream and just a leisurely drive. After stopping for fuel near the Walmart in La Paz the BMW G310GS wouldn’t start anymore. Dead battery – Not just low voltage, but actually dead.

We know a local guy which provides great service – And also does comes to your aid as it turns out. So with waiting and checking the battery and replacing it we were back on the road 2 hours later.

But it made me wonder, the symptoms match a lot of quirks my F850GS Adventure has… Maybe that one is bad too?

Update: I have recently replaced the battery in my F850GSa and since then none of the software, abs, brake and brake light issues have reared their head. Which made me realize all the electronics on it are kind of a luxurious pest.

Replacing the headlight on the BMW G310GS

Today we replaced the headlight on my mom’s BMW G310GS. The OEM mount broke a few months ago. BMW in all its wisdom makes everything from plastic and a new headlight assembly costs a ton of money and has to be done at a service station because they won’t sell me the part… With BMW services being a 5 days ride away – Not an option.

We ordered a compatible aftermarket LED assembly online for just under $150US. And today I went on the task to replace it myself. This is a laborious process that involves taking pretty much the whole front-end of the bike. All the plastics from the saddle on forward needed to be removed.

All to get to the 3 mounting screws and the small plug for the pilot light.

Taking off the many plastics took a while, it’s a puzzle of plastics screw-holes and maaaaaaany screws. 39 screws not including the headlight mount to be exact. I also replaced the hard-rubber mounting rings I put in last year to fix the wiggling and vibrating of the whole headlight unit. Not super nessesary, but while I’m in there… Why not. For this I used some simple rubber gas seals from the local hardware shop. You know, the ones you use to seal a valve where it connects to a hose.

And behold! The new headlight is a funky and modern looking LED assembly!

Looks like it’s working alright. Soon we’ll test it in the dark.

Finally fixing the BMW F850GS Adventure

After making up my mind for a few days and being depressed about BMW service being the worst I decided to finally have my motorcycle fixed.
I found a local repair shop with a guy in it who was happy to finger my BMW F850GS Adventure to apply a new gasket seal for my motorcycle.

Hopefully this fixes the leak BMW couldn’t fix. They replaced this seal 3 months ago…