ABS brakes?

Yes yes yes. ABS is great, you can grab your brakes really hard without fear of sliding the tires. That can be a
lifesaver in an emergency when we don't have time to think or modulate the brakes perfectly. On the track coming up to a
corner you know well and squeezing the brakes just right is not the same as when you see a deer in front of your bike!

I only recently got an ABS BWM and I always thought my skills would be enough, but I love this ABS. Of course you need
to realize it's limitations and remember you CAN grab a great big handful of brake in an emergency. You have to change
your thinking. If you don't remember to grab lots of brake, it won't help you. Keeping the wheels rolling is a big plus
in avoiding going down. Especially if you're not perfectly upright. I used to slide the wheels once in awhile with no
big deal, but only if the bike was fully upright could I keep it upright when a wheel slid.

Read all about ABS, then get out and test it, think about it, and enjoy it.

 

Ya sure. You read the darnest thing on the net.

Let's put it this way: ABS brakes work as normal brakes until one wheel locks up. It's well known that a locked up brake
doesn't stop as well as one that's still got traction. That's what ABS does, it keeps your wheels in traction.

Not to mention, it allows riders with less skills than professionals and in less than ideal conditions to brake quickly
and safely. Your mileage may vary.

 

On all Beemers you can also turn it off. Nobody does.

 

Case in point here: I recently picked up a 1988 BMW K100RS with the first year of ABS. The bike had sat for 4 years when
I got it. The bike needed lots of work. But the ABS works, and I didn't have to do anything to it. High maintenance?
Yes, maybe, if you break something, but rarely does anything wear out. Other makes may vary...

 

Mark, get on over the the tech sections of the IBMWR list. Lots of good help to get your ABS working again. First of all
though, you need a good battery. Low voltage will cause the ABS to not click in. They also have some tests for finding
out what fault you have and how to reset your ABS computer so it will work again. Good luck, usually something simple
like the ABS gap is at fault.

 

No, actually, that isn't true. My 2001 R1100S with ABS doesn't have a
way to turn it off, and I believe that only the GS models have that
option.

If I could, I wouldn't. Unless maybe when I was riding in gravel, but
I rarely do, so no, I wouldn't turn off my ABS . . . .

-Don

 

There *is* truth to that claim. See below.

Exactly. Only the very very very best professional racer brakes as well
the very first time as does consumer grade ABS. After practice every
professional racer can brake better than consumer grade ABS.

One could brake better without ABS if one is exceptionally good. But in
situations where its needed very few are that good.

 

I would like to see any human be able to modulate the brakes 10 times a
second. It is just not possible. Bosch ABS modulate up to 15 times a second
and that is standard consumer grade ABS. Add to that the fact that each
wheel in independently controlled and you have a situation that no pro could
possibly beat.

If one were to compare a pro to Ford or GM's first generation ABS, yes I
would say that the pro driver will beat their ABS.

pierce

 

I, and several others of the time, were able to outbrake BMW's
first-generation ABS system.

I daresay it's improved since.

So I'd definitely agree with you here.

 

Thanks for the feedback. I've changed my battery, and have followed
the reset instructions (curiously, that USED to work, now it doesn't).
I also followed the diagnostic process, but no joy. I think I just
need a new / repaired computer. Sigh...

I wish I could find a schematic for the "brains box" - the problem
would likely be fairly easy to diagnose if I had that (I'm betting the
same thing goes wrong with virtually all of 'em, since they all seem
to exhibit the same symptoms after they fail).

Mark "at least the non-ABS mode works well" Hickey

 

Well, I looked at an actual test of ABS on a street bike. They took a
bike that has both ABS and non-ABS available -- a ST1300 -- and a bike
where it's switchable -- a BMW GS -- and did a comparison of ABS vs not
ABS with a race driver, a regular "experienced" motorcyclist, and a
"new" motorcyclist. On clean, dry pavement, a race driver could beat ABS
by about 20 feet of stopping distance on a 75mph->0mph stop, while the
experience motorcyclist managed to equal it (the new rider, on the other
hand, stopped faster with ABS than without). The equation changed when
you made the pavement wet. There even the race driver took as much as 60
ft more to stop than ABS took.

Conclusion: If all you ever ride on is clean, dry pavement, and you are
a race driver, ABS is a waste. If, on the other hand, you ride a touring
bike or use your bike as your sole means of transportation good weather
or bad, ABS is a godsend, because when you ride in the rain it'll keep
your bike from flipping ends and will bring you down to a halt far
faster than non-ABS brakes.

- Elron

 

Really? I can find no mention of that in the manual for my '02 K1200RSA nor
can I find a switch for it.

I did have a switch for it on my GS however. Unfortunately if the ignition
was reset (like if you stall while going down a steep, rocky slope) you had
to re-disable it.

 

Other than the fact there were about 7 bleeders it wasn't an issue at
all on my 2002 GL1800. Nor 1993.5 Infiniti G20. Simply use new brake
fluid to push the old out. It *could* be quite a mess if one drained the
system first the way the GL1800 service manual states.

The GL1800 has 7 brake bleeders whether its ABS or not. Brake pedal
applies to a couple of pistons up front. Brake lever applies to one of
the three pistons in rear in addition to 4 pistons up front.

 

The human doesn't have to modulate the brakes, the human applies linear
pressure while the ABS computer can only pump a momentary disconnect
followed by a hard stomp.

I do believe ABS is better in every situation but where the human gets
to practice before taking the exam. In that situation a good ABS should
be able to equal the human.

 

Wow, a car with a will and some sort of AI. With the
traditional models it used to be the driver who wrapped
the car around immovable objects.

 

(The Older Gentleman) wrote in

Bosch's first generation ABS was better than GM's or Ford's. The second
generation (maybe third?) raised the modulation rate to something like 30
times a second, a rate that is impossible for a human to achieve.

pierce

 

GM's or Ford's must have been crap, then. Mind you, I'm talking about
BMW's first-generation bike ABS system, fitted (IIRC) to a K100RT in the
mid-to-late 1980s.

 

(The Older Gentleman) wrote in

God yes. BMW would rather not be reminded about that ABS system. It was a
pretty good first attempt.

pierce

 

Depends on the year of ABS. The new bikes are a nightmare to bleed no doubt. My old 1988 K100RS has a simple system. You
bleed the two ABS units, then the calipers as normal. No big deal.

 

Think about a sudden need to brake HARD. There is a time lag for even the expert to get a good handful of brake. With
ABS you can just brake HARD NOW. Makes a big difference if you only have a second or two to scrub off speed.

We don't all have the ability to stay calm and think about what we're doing in an emergency. That is why ABS is go
great, you don't have to, you just brake hard now.