Hex/Cam R1200 Mileage?

What is your current mileage on your hex/cam R1200 (R/RS/RT/GS/GSA)?

  • 50,000-100,000

  • 100,000-150,000

  • 150,000-200,000

  • 200,000+


Results are only viewable after voting.

TheRoss

Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#1
What kind of mileage are you logging on your hex/cam R1200 bike before replacing it for long distance riding?

I'm about to roll 150k on my 2012 GSA, and I just LOVE the bike. But... it might be long in the tooth for something like a big rally in 2023, for example :)
 

Marc11

Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#2
What kind of mileage are you logging on your hex/cam R1200 bike before replacing it for long distance riding?

I'm about to roll 150k on my 2012 GSA, and I just LOVE the bike. But... it might be long in the tooth for something like a big rally in 2023, for example :)
There is no answer to this question really. If yours is running well, not using oil and has good compression I'd keep running. Although things like fuel pumps and drive shafts may well be close to needing replacing if not done recently.
 

Vlad

Premier Member
#3
Mine has just turned 100,000 miles and runs like the day I bought it. Still haven’t been able to get a valve adjustment on the motor yet, all still within original spec. Replaced the fuel pump at about 85000 miles and that was basically down to me running the tank consistently low all the time on LD runs. I have since made an aux tank to fix that. As far as drive shafts and diffs and the like, well there are many opinions on that but mine is absolutely normal as I write this. I drop the oil in the diff every time I do the engine oil.
I have a hankering to see just how many miles I can get on this thing before it becomes untenable. I, like you, love this bike, it’s the best boxer I’ve owned.
I would depart on a lap of Australia on it tomorrow without worry, assuming we were able to, we still have one state closed. That’s 9000 miles.
I say look after it and it will look after you.
 

dmcqueeney

Staff member
Premier Member
IBA Member
IBR Finisher
IBR Staff
#5
What kind of mileage are you logging on your hex/cam R1200 bike before replacing it for long distance riding?
I'm about to roll 150k on my 2012 GSA, and I just LOVE the bike. But... it might be long in the tooth for something like a big rally in 2023, for example :)
My 2013 R1200R currently has 290K miles and has had regular dealer servicing since I bought it new. Usual maintenance & wear items. No work on the engine, transmission, or clutch so far; one valve shim replacement at 165K. I had the driveshaft & rear drive replaced after a failure, at 184K, and the lower front ball joint replaced at 238K.
 

Gerry Arel

Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#6
My 2013 R1200R currently has 290K miles and has had regular dealer servicing since I bought it new. Usual maintenance & wear items. No work on the engine, transmission, or clutch so far; one valve shim replacement at 165K. I had the driveshaft & rear drive replaced after a failure, at 184K, and the lower front ball joint replaced at 238K.
That beautiful blue R is what inspires me to keep mine!!
 

TheRoss

Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#7
My 2013 R1200R currently has 290K miles and has had regular dealer servicing since I bought it new. Usual maintenance & wear items. No work on the engine, transmission, or clutch so far; one valve shim replacement at 165K. I had the driveshaft & rear drive replaced after a failure, at 184K, and the lower front ball joint replaced at 238K.
Thanks for the detailed reply Dave! This is kind of what I was hoping to hear. I'm a long way from wanting to replace my bike.
 

JAVGuzzi

Premier Member
#8
I have a friend with a 2016 RT with about 120K miles on it. He recently replaced the driveshaft for the second time. First failure was at around 15K miles, if I remember correctly. He "spun" the driveshaft ( the elastomer coupling failed )the first time. It was replaced under warranty. Recently it was replaced due to a front u-joint failure. Those were the only problems he has had.
 

DrNeo

Premier Member
#9
2007 RT - currently at 116k and still enjoying it

Drive shaft replaced at 90k with a rebuildable EI unit as there was just a little bit of resistance in one plane of motion
Final drive replaced at 93k because of the large crown bearing beginning to fail, replaced with a 2010 unit, as later years have a better design
Transmission was replaced at 112k miles due to it developing an unusual noise (maybe one of the carrier bearings?), since I was already in that far, I put in a new clutch, the old clutch still had some mileage left
 

270

New Member
#10
Shoot Chris, I'd keep piling miles on it. I came to you for advice on camheads, but my general experience is once sorted/trusted, bikes tend to stay that way. I'm still enjoying Winston Oxley's '94 R1100RS...200K+ miles and one IBR...I'd ride it anywhere right now. Not a camhead, but you get my drift.
 

Shawn K

Professional Cat Confuser
Premier Member
#11
What kind of mileage are you logging on your hex/cam R1200 bike before replacing it for long distance riding?

I'm about to roll 150k on my 2012 GSA, and I just LOVE the bike. But... it might be long in the tooth for something like a big rally in 2023, for example :)
I've always been taught that regular, routine maintenance is essential to a machine's longetivity. I don't mean "Run it until something breaks, and then replace the broken thing", I mean "routinely check wear items and repair/replace before failure".

I come from the trucking industry, where we run vehicles nearly every day and expect engines to go 1 million miles before a major rebuild, using nothing more than routine and scheduled maintenance (I think that last part is especially important). I know trucks aren't motorcycles (and as such, aren't really an apples-to-apples comparison), but the basic principle is sound - schedule your maintenance, follow it religiously, take care of growing problems before a catastrophic failure, and you'll be surprised how long things will last.

If you've taken care of your GSA throughout its life and it's working well for you, I don't see why you can't ride it for 250K or more. (That said, I'm really interested to know what your experience has been with maintenance issues with that bike, and if you've had rear drive issues.)
 

TheRoss

Premier Member
IBR Finisher
#12
(That said, I'm really interested to know what your experience has been with maintenance issues with that bike, and if you've had rear drive issues.)
I haven't encountered anything crazy:

21k - Front ESA shock replaced under warranty.
35k - FD Axle shaft seal replaced under warranty.
77k - Rear main seal replaced and clutch (at 50%) replaced because we were there.
94k - FD rebuilt again (under dealers 2 yr warranty on work done at 35k).
94k - Preventatively replaced Drive Shaft with a rebuildable aftermarket one.
94k - New non-ESA shocks.

That's it beyond basic maintenance. I guess that's why I asked the question... this doesn't seem bad for the miles.
I sent an engine oil sample to Blackstone at 94k. Waste of money... the report came back great.
If only tires lasted longer.

Thanks everyone for the replies!
 

Shawn K

Professional Cat Confuser
Premier Member
#13
Glad to see that you're doing a Blackstone analysis. If your metal wear readings are good and you have good compression, why bother worrying? You know your clutch is still decent, so that's a plus.

Sounds like the only thing you really need to concern yourself with is keeping an eye on the final drive. I'd keep riding that horse!