Beemer1150 Posted July 1, 2007 Share Posted July 1, 2007 Greetings from a UK biker shortly to arrive in 17 - and already learning a great deal from posts on this forum. Arriving in early August, R1150R arriving as soon as possible after that!One question at this stage. Is there a physical inspection on re-registering a post-'03 bike with a CoC? If so I guess the headlight unit will need changing, if not can I manage with a beam-bender?Just one of the many things I'll need to find out about... !Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunday Driver Posted July 1, 2007 Share Posted July 1, 2007 Welcome to the forum...[:D]If you have a post 03 bike with an EU certificate of conformity from BMW GB, then you can register it directly at your prefecture without any inspection. If you request the EU CoC from BMW France, they'll make you change the lights before they'll issue it.Daylight headlamps are mandatory for bikes in France, so either way, you'll need to do the appropriate adjustments to keep the cages happy....[;-)]When the bike eventually gets here, let us know and we'll post up all the details you need to get it registered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bugsy Posted July 1, 2007 Share Posted July 1, 2007 Hi and welcome Beemer.Keep an eye on here for local ride-outs, we have a special section for BMW's, it's called 'we shouldn't have to wait too long lads' (only joking) , SD's got one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob T Posted July 1, 2007 Share Posted July 1, 2007 [quote user="Bugbear"]Hi and welcome Beemer.Keep an eye on here for local ride-outs, we have a special section for BMW's, it's called 'we shouldn't have to wait too long lads' (only joking) , SD's got one. [/quote]Yes Bugbear is correct, us BM riders oftern say that while waiting for the others to oil and adjust their chains! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bugsy Posted July 1, 2007 Share Posted July 1, 2007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob W. Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 [quote user="Bugbear"] [/quote] Seconded!BTW is there a BMW training course to figure out those indicator switches? I only ask 'cos a lot of the "born agains" I (briefly) see, seem to be trying to communicate in morse..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunday Driver Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 The indicator setup is OK for girlies - they are better at multi-tasking than we are.....[:P] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob T Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 That is funny! Having had some lesser bikes in my time, I would need a course on other indicator switches, and chains, and poor quality, and many other things. I will stick to BMWs thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beemer1150 Posted July 2, 2007 Author Share Posted July 2, 2007 I thought the indicator system was odd at first, until I realised the cunning logic underlying it:1. No-one else does it this way, so BMW has to.2. Every other manufacturer just lets you use one boring switch with one hand - the kind people at BMW allow you to play with three switches and use both hands. At least I think I understood the logic...After six months intensive training you stop sending morse code with the indicators, trouble is you then start sending morse with the horn on other bikes... but I haven't cleaned a filthy chain in a couple of years! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chezstevens Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 Chains ... those were the days. Still SWBO finds lots of other cleaning jobs that get me just as dirty. Previous bikes over 31 years : 1 x YAS1 125 (Yamaha), 1 x Honda Dream 250, 1 x Honda 750 F1, 1 x VFR750, 1 x Ducati 900SS, 1 x BMW R1150RT and now a R1200RT.Bet you can't spot my sad attempt to regain my youth! For comfort and covering a 1000 miles quickly the Beemer is hard to beat - yea other bikes go quicker but then they need filling more often (over 100 mph will still cancel your license whatever bike you are on). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob W. Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 I guess I am still too young to appreciate the holistic benefit of a 20 pound (mostly sprung) wieght hanging on one side of a bike, as opposed to a 20 ounce one.... or maybe its needed to balance out the extra 50 kgs of unsprung wieght, plus panniers, wife, luggage etc.BMW also make other good solutions to this problem - like a 3 series! [:)] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob T Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 If weight were a problem then we should all eat less and ride single cylinder 250s! Why bother with fat heavy tyres and big bellies? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nomad Posted July 2, 2007 Share Posted July 2, 2007 It is a pretty straight forward process to register your bike (well it is in 19 [img]http://www.completefrance.com/cs/images/emotions/whistling.gif[/img] ) as long as you have all your paperwork together. I used a UK issued Cert of Conf for my FJR1300 and sailed through with no inspection or changes to the bike. VEHICLE IMPORTATION what I did...1. Obtain forms from the Prefecture DEMANDE D’IMMATRICULATION DEMANDE D’ATTESTATION D’IDENTIFICATION2. Take original and copies of all forms, UK registration document, original bill of sale, proof of address in France (EDF Bill) and passport to IMPOT to get QUITIS FISCAL ON CERTIFICAT DE DEDOUANEMENT (Tax form). 3. Go to Prefecture to get Carte Grise. Take passport and EDF bill for identification. V5 Document (Keep hold of the right hand page) Certificate of Conformance, Payment depends on engine/power/what-day-it-is/ size. I paid 182 euro's for the FJR.4. Get number plates and insurance changed.The Carte Grise is an important document and is valid for the life of the vehicle. It will need to be shown at garages when obtaining servicing/repairs, parts etc. and must always be present with the vehicle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socket Posted July 3, 2007 Share Posted July 3, 2007 BMW R series----- prolonged periods with the bike on its sidestand ( 5 minutes upwards ) will allow the ingress of oil into the left hand combustion chamber , consumption of 500ml per 1000 miles is quite normal , thats about 5x more than a Scottoiler [:)] Lately I've noticed alot of people are bringing their BMW's to france . Is this something to do with the new " No Smoking " restrictions recently imposed in the UK ?----- well bad news, because France is going the same way in Jan 08, so where are you lot going next ? [:-))] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bugsy Posted July 4, 2007 Share Posted July 4, 2007 I love cleaning my chain, it's part of bonding with your machine.............................[:D][:D]Over 30,000 kilometres and still on the original chain, wear negligable and only a couple of hundred euros to replace. Compare that to replacing a failed drive-shaft UJ or even the oil seal and gaiter on a Beemer.Remember 'Clunk-Click' every trip.................................................[:P] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob T Posted July 4, 2007 Share Posted July 4, 2007 Socket, if your R series uses that much oil then you should get it looked at! Neither of ours use any, even after being parked on the sidestand for days. None of the past R series have used any either. Most of them come to France because they are good touring bikes that run for hundreds of thousand miles without any problems. Most people knock BMWs because they cannot bring themselves to pay out decent money for a decent bike. When I bought the K1200GT in 2004, I paid £12,500 for it, a mate told me that I could have bought 2 Hondas for that, but then they would only have been half decent, wouldn't they? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sid Posted July 4, 2007 Share Posted July 4, 2007 I don't think I'm going to be convinced by either side in the continuing and boring debate on chains versus shafts. Like Bugbear, I have a chain-driven machine, with Scottoiler, now at over 30,000kms and it's still on the original chain.Maybe some people just can't afford a BMW; it doesn't make them lesser people, and we're all still motards!Happy motorcyclingSid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob W. Posted July 4, 2007 Share Posted July 4, 2007 [quote user="Bob T"]Socket, if your R series uses that much oil then you should get it looked at! Neither of ours use any, even after being parked on the sidestand for days. None of the past R series have used any either. Most of them come to France because they are good touring bikes that run for hundreds of thousand miles without any problems. Most people knock BMWs because they cannot bring themselves to pay out decent money for a decent bike. When I bought the K1200GT in 2004, I paid £12,500 for it, a mate told me that I could have bought 2 Hondas for that, but then they would only have been half decent, wouldn't they?[/quote]You are right about the oil use - that is abnormally high.I dont think its about money, many people like to chop and change every few years and a Honda VFR will hold its value almost as good as a BMW, and do not see the point of paying for an extra 50,000kms they will never do.Its also about character, and not everyone wants a heavy touring bike, many prefer something lighter that accelerates and stops rather than a BMW armchair[:D]If I was in the market for a touring bike I would currently go for a Trumpet Sprint I think - even with the 15% discount BMW offer my companies employees. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob T Posted July 4, 2007 Share Posted July 4, 2007 Have to agree that it is not always about money, we all buy the bike we like and there is always a tongue in cheek banter about who's bike is better than the others. We had heavy touring bikes before we came here, and changed them for much lighter bikes, that accelerate well and stop well. It just happens that they are BMWs, that was the choice we made because we will probably keep them for many years. Because they are not overweight armchairs, the BMW owners club don't even recognise that they are a bike made by BMW!If anyone finds this thread boring then feel free to not read anymore of it.I have owned many different bikes in my 30 years of riding and with few exceptions have enjoyed every one of them, some even had chains. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socket Posted July 4, 2007 Share Posted July 4, 2007 [quote user="Bob T"]Socket, if your R series uses that much oil then you should get it looked at! Neither of ours use any, even after being parked on the sidestand for days. None of the past R series have used any either. Most of them come to France because they are good touring bikes that run for hundreds of thousand miles without any problems. Most people knock BMWs because they cannot bring themselves to pay out decent money for a decent bike. When I bought the K1200GT in 2004, I paid £12,500 for it, a mate told me that I could have bought 2 Hondas for that, but then they would only have been half decent, wouldn't they?[/quote]------- you've missed the point Bob , I don't have a Beemer , I'm one of those with a chain [:D] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunday Driver Posted July 4, 2007 Share Posted July 4, 2007 [img]http://www.shomer-tec.com/images/site_images/ow9_med1.jpg[/img] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob W. Posted July 4, 2007 Share Posted July 4, 2007 [quote user="Sunday Driver"][img]http://www.shomer-tec.com/images/site_images/ow9_med1.jpg[/img] [/quote]What you do in the privacy of your own home is no business of ours....[;-)] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnOther Posted July 4, 2007 Share Posted July 4, 2007 [quote user="Nomad"] The Carte Grise ..............will need to be shown at garages when obtaining servicing/repairs, parts etc. [/quote]I didn't know that, what's the logic just for servicing or spares ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunday Driver Posted July 4, 2007 Share Posted July 4, 2007 Its not obligatory - I suppose it makes it easier for them to identify the correct model/variant for spares, warranty claims etc. As everyone carries their carte grise, it's easier than crawling about under the bonnet for the VIN and engine number..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winegum Posted July 4, 2007 Share Posted July 4, 2007 Just to carry on the boring arguement about chains and shaft drives: As a mere girl-biker who is not terribly mechanical I have to say it's a relief not to have a chain any more. I had a scotoiler on my Blackbird, that sorted out the oiling bit, but as far as adjustment was concerned I hadn't a clue - or the right tools! I love my R1100S and have now come to prefer it to the Bird. The different weight distribution makes it feel lighter and handle easier. And I don't have to clean any more oil splatters!Jude[:D] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now