The $2000 O ring...

I have recently been reading Classic Bike Guide’s articles about BMW woes.

I have ridden these machines for nearly 50 years. They are basically very reliable bicycles but do have their foibles. On the oil supply situation, to avoid bearing failure it is most important to understand the oil filter cover fitment procedure. This can vary for different years. The problem is that oil can escape between the steel tube that the filter fits into and the filter cover sealing face of the engine crankcase. If this happens, oil escapes back to the sump and you don’t get enough oil pressure – be warned!

Also, for a few years between about 1990 and towards end of production of airheads, BMW saw fit to delete a circlip on the front of the gearbox main shaft. This will result in gearbox failure, usually from about 20-30,000 miles – be warned when purchasing later models. I hope this helps someone. Carl Jenson

Thanks Carl, our American brothers call it the ‘$2000 O ring’, I believe, as that’s how much an engine rebuild costs! My downfall was due to not checking the oil level after an oil and filter change, then running for 400 fast miles. User error. The gearbox circlip is a new one on me, so thank you for that – Matt