Finally they figured out the TPS problem. DUH!

[lather]

I have a Garmin Zumo 390 LM GPS. For $60 I can buy Garmin TPS units that replace the valve cap on any shrader valve stem and displays on the GPS screen. I have not gotten around to looking into the details but will do soon for use on my 3 non Concours 14  bikes. Don't know if that is $60 for two or just one  or if it warns you when pressure is low or you have to press some buttons to check or if give a low battery warning when it's cold

[B.D.F.]

Finished it up for you....

Brian

Hey, if you go to the local BMW dealer here they have an espresso bar in the service lounge.  So you can sip while sitting in an overstuffed chair waiting for the second new final drive to be put in your bike.... at your expense.

[B.D.F.]

I have always thought that would be an ideal situation other than 1) when you update the Garmin, the TPS's may or may not work with future models and 2) When the Garmin fails, and it seems that a LOT of them do, you can replace it for a fixed sum that is sort of reasonble, until they run out of new units. Then the unit is no longer supported. I have a Zumo 550 I love but Garmin no longer has any replacements (they were $150) and therefore when my current one dies, there will be no more. That is my hesitation to 'get into bed' with yet another proprietary system (Garmin) attached to a long- dollar 'master' (the GPS itself).

The stand- alone units are around $70 and both mount and are powered by a cigarette lighter receptacle, which would actually work pretty well on a C-14 I think. And when the whole system is obsolete, it is not a tremendous amount of money invested in the first place.

Brian

I have a Garmin Zumo 390 LM GPS. For $60 I can buy Garmin TPS units that replace the valve cap on any shrader valve stem and displays on the GPS screen. I have not gotten around to looking into the details but will do soon for use on my 3 non Concours 14  bikes. Don't know if that is $60 for two or just one  or if it warns you when pressure is low or you have to press some buttons to check or if give a low battery warning when it's cold

[lather]

I have had good results getting both my Zumo and a Nuvi 550 repaired by this outfit https://satnavrepairservice.com/ About $70 plus shipping both times. By the way I have had about 10 Garmins over the years and none have failed on their own. I shorted the power chip in the Nuvi trying to make my own hardwired power cable and I cracked the glass screen on my Zumo when I forgot it was in my pocket and jammed a set of keys in there.The rest of them just became semi obsolete because they could not load the updated maps available.

[lather]

As for my intermittent front TPS I have spent a lot of time thinking about this failure since it is apparently rare.
Both of my OEM TPS batteries lasted longer than the reported expectancy of 5 years. From October 07 to April 13 for the rear and December 13 for the front. It should be mentioned that in October 11 I hit a chunk of concrete and dented my front wheel and replaced it with a wheel and tire assembly from  ZX14. I did not install the TPS until the next front tire change. So the TPS unit did suffer a jolt hard enough to dent an aluminum wheel and could have sustained some damage. I do not recall any immediate problems when I first installed the tps other than the usual low battery warnings in cold weather.

So in December 2013 the front TPS went to --- full time and I successfully replaced the battery. Maybe.  With the next cold weather the unusual behavior began. Instead of the typical initial warning on starting a ride that went away after a short "warmup" period the front TPS would come on normally  but after several miles would give the low battery warning and stay on for  several miles. This got worse over the next 18 moths to the point the low battery warning would stay on for the rest of the ride. In April 16 I replaced the battery again but the result was ---.  Soon after I sent it to Fred but the result was still mostly --- with only intermittent function.

The TPS will usually come on normally after the bike has been parked for a few minutes but will usually go to --- within 3 miles. It seems that it will stay on longer in cold weather but I have not ridden the 08 much in cold weather since I got the 09. Several times the TPS has come on when I did a dragstrip type launch at a stop light. (which I do whenever the road is clear  )

By the way, Fred refunded my money.

[VirginiaJim]

I'll ping Rick and/or Jim and see if we can get a definitive answer.

I'm thinking what Rick would think, I think.  But as far as I'm concerned continue on...unless we can't.  Hopefully that answers that question or not.   And as I don't see anything to the contrary on this statement I would continue on continuing.

[B.D.F.]

What you suspect makes sense to me. Not that that means anything, just that I agree with your thinking. It sounds like you have some type of power interruption w/in the sensor itself and that very hard shock may well have caused it; you may have a cracked PCB board but even more likely, a component that has a lead that was jarred  loose and was kinda', sorta' making contact.... now and then.

Brian

As for my intermittent front TPS I have spent a lot of time thinking about this failure since it is apparently rare.
Both of my OEM TPS batteries lasted longer than the reported expectancy of 5 years. From October 07 to April 13 for the rear and December 13 for the front. It should be mentioned that in October 11 I hit a chunk of concrete and dented my front wheel and replaced it with a wheel and tire assembly from  ZX14. I did not install the TPS until the next front tire change. So the TPS unit did suffer a jolt hard enough to dent an aluminum wheel and could have sustained some damage. I do not recall any immediate problems when I first installed the tps other than the usual low battery warnings in cold weather.

So in December 2013 the front TPS went to --- full time and I successfully replaced the battery. Maybe.  With the next cold weather the unusual behavior began. Instead of the typical initial warning on starting a ride that went away after a short "warmup" period the front TPS would come on normally  but after several miles would give the low battery warning and stay on for  several miles. This got worse over the next 18 moths to the point the low battery warning would stay on for the rest of the ride. In April 16 I replaced the battery again but the result was ---.  Soon after I sent it to Fred but the result was still mostly --- with only intermittent function.

The TPS will usually come on normally after the bike has been parked for a few minutes but will usually go to --- within 3 miles. It seems that it will stay on longer in cold weather but I have not ridden the 08 much in cold weather since I got the 09. Several times the TPS has come on when I did a dragstrip type launch at a stop light. (which I do whenever the road is clear  )

By the way, Fred refunded my money.

[maxtog]

As for my intermittent front TPS I have spent a lot of time thinking about this failure since it is apparently rare.
Both of my OEM TPS batteries lasted longer than the reported expectancy of 5 years.

Mine were only 3 years old when they started saying "Low battery" in the cold and I had them replaced under warranty.  Perhaps they would have semi-worked for another year or even longer with the intermittent message, but I considered that a failure.

[jwh20]

Mine were only 3 years old when they started saying "Low battery" in the cold and I had them replaced under warranty.  Perhaps they would have semi-worked for another year or even longer with the intermittent message, but I considered that a failure.

Same here.  The ones in my 2012 started flashing low late in the season in 2015.  By early last year they were gone.  But chances are they were made in 2010 and installed in the bike in 2011 when it was made.  So that's almost 6 years.  Hoping to get another 6 years out of the new batteries I put in.

[maxtog]

Same here.  The ones in my 2012 started flashing low late in the season in 2015.  By early last year they were gone.  But chances are they were made in 2010 and installed in the bike in 2011 when it was made.  So that's almost 6 years.  Hoping to get another 6 years out of the new batteries I put in.

I will keep using my G37 as a measuring stick (and my only non-Concours experience with TPS).  Perhaps my 2009 G37 sensors were made in 2008.  So that is now 9 years with no problems...

Of course now that I keep saying that....

[elektradw]

Wow it's been a few weeks since I last check my post. There have been numerous responses to my TPS problem. Thank you all for your interest. You will NOT believe the ending of this story. After an additional 2 weeks waiting for another response from Kawi regarding the non functioning second TPS replacement, I decided to have a sit down with the general manager. I finally ran out of patience with both Kawi and the dealership's handling of this problem. A non functioning TPS should not take 6 MONTHS to figure out.

I guess she lit a candle under the service mgr. butt because the very next day he called to apologize profusely and said they have the fix and to bring the bike back that morning. It took about 15 minutes and I was on my way with both TPS functioning perfectly. What was the problem you ask? THEY WERE USING THE WRONG PRODUCT CODE TO REGISTER THE NEW TPS. Yes hard to believe but exactly the reason I do as much work on my bike that I can and do NOT trust dealership mechanics, especially to do deep engine work. However this was covered under warranty so I let the dealership handle it.

In addition, I requested that the dealership remount a new tire after the first TPS replacement. I also requested 45lbs tire pressure, a new dust seal, and spacer and wheel cleaning. I always replace the dust seals, clean the spacers and wheel and use a very accurate static wheel balancer when replacing a tire. Normally I only bring in the wheel, not the bike, for a tire change. So not only was the dust seal not replaced but the tire pressure was at 35lbs, the spacer caked with grime, the balance off by 1/2 oz and the brake calipers left needing cleaning. FUBAR. A cautionary tail for those of you forced to use a local dealership for repairs and maintenance.

JWH20 got it right on 2) in his response on pg 3, unfortunately I missed it in time to do any good. Just to clarify: My first front tire TPS was replaced under warranty and worked fine for about a year then began to act erratically: on then off or delayed functioning. I brought it to a different dealership to fix under warranty. Replacement did not work at al. Second replacement did not work until the correct code was used 6 months later. In addition, the dealership never said they fixed the problem. They took it for a test ride each time and admitted they haven't found the cure. They were at least honest about their deficiencies. Thanks all again for responding