Tuesday, July 20, 2010

BMW Rally 2010 - Day 12

This morning, we were awoken by the sounds of the alarm clock again. We loaded the bikes and rode down to the 7-11 Ranch Restaurant for breakfast. It was 6:15 when we walked inside. Breakfast was good and by 7am we were walking out to the bikes.

Son of a Biscuit!!! Just as I was about to get on the bike I noticed some oil on the ground. Upon further investigation I found my transmission was low on oil and that was the source of the oil leak. It was too early to call any dealerships and the closest one was in Grand Junction so we found a Napa, purchased some 75W-140 synthetic and topped off the transmission. I figured I'd just ride the bike to Grand Junction and have the BMW shop look at the problem.

With a full transmission and a quick gas up, we headed out of town on US 40 to Dinosaur, Wyoming. Then south on Hwy 64. Once in Rangely, we turned south onto Hwy 139. It got hot quick but as we got up into the mountains it cooled off again. After getting through the pass though, the temperature rose again. We headed east on I-70 into Grand Junction.

We followed the GPS to the Honda/BMW dealership only to find they had sold the BMW dealership 2 years ago. With the new dealership info, we headed across town to Grand Junction Harley Davidson/bmw. I talked to the service writer, and then the BMW mechanic and it was determined that if I kept an eye on the oil level I could probably get it home without too many problems. Other wise it was going to be a few days for them to get the seal and do the work. So we bought a shirt and visited with the BMW guys, who were tucked away in a little cubby hole at the opposite end of the dealership. If you are in Grand Junction and want a BMW you have to work to get to the sales floor and to see the bikes.

With the help of the GPS, I got around town and started heading south on Hwy 50 as the route originally planned. By now the temperature was approaching 100 degrees again. And we had a long ways to go. We stopped for gas but the place was a dive so we kept going until we found a nicer place to stop for a break. After drinking some viatamin water I went out and checked the transmission, it was full and the leak had stopped. So it might be a venting issue, since the Grand Junction mechanic told me that if the transmission vent was improperly installed it would cause this sort of leak.

We continued down Hwy 50 to Delta, where the road turned into 550. As we got to Ridgeway, it was clear we were heading into a mountain pass and that it was going to be very wet up ahead. So we stopped to let Reagan put on some rain gear while I covered up my tank bag. Then we continued into the pass and watched the thermometer drop and the rain came down. The pace was slow because of traffic and the rain, but we managed to get through the pass without incident and ride into Durango.

We picked up 162 east toward Pagosa Springs. Along the way, we passed up a Spyder gang. There were 3 of them and they all had silver Spyders like Reagan. I considered just following behind them for a while, but as we approached them coming down a hill, I didn't feel like rolling off the throttle lock so we blew by them as if they was parked on the side of the road.

We arrived 10.5 hours after leaving the hotel this morning.  Total mileage for the day, 375 miles.  The transmission issue cost us time, and it looks like the whole problem may be related to a mistake made at the factory or by my dealership last fall. When I get it home, I'll figure out where the mistake occurred. Eitherway this is a BMW warranty issue. Tomorrow we are heading to Tucumcari, NM. We are exhausted, and sleep should come early tonight.

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