Hello all! Bought a blue R1250RS two months ago and am liking it pretty well. Have had other R bikes (last was a 2015 R1200R) and I have to say the quick shifter on the new bike is very clunky compared with the old one. Anyone else having a problem shifting down clutchless from 4th to 3rd? Mine locks sometimes and won't shift down and I have to use the clutch to get into 3rd. It's an intermittent problem, though, and the dealer says he hasn't seen it during test rides of the bike. Just wondering whether anyone else has experienced this...

THANKS and happy to be in the forum!

--Charlie

Charlie - Welcome to the forum and to RS ownership!

The R1250RS I test rode had no issues with the quickshifter, which I found to be very similar to my 2016 R1200RS, and there was no sticking up or down.

One thing that I did find earlier on is that until you get that hand-foot coordination down-pat, there will be a few times when the bike just will not shift up to down without using the clutch, and this may be your problem.

It is very important that when shifting up, the throttle has to be at the very least constant or increasing - the faster the increase the smoother the shift. Likewise, when shifting down, the throttle has to be closed, i.e. you have to be rotating forward. Unlike with shifting up, keeping it constant may not work and the shift lever will seem to be stuck no matter how you press it.

It all makes sense when you think of what a "quick" shifter is designed to do. It is not designed to be used softly / gently, but is designed for aggressive riding and deliberate positive gear changing. Don't treat it like a pseudo-automatic transmission, and it will work well all the time.

Mine has close to 48k on it and is as smooth as anything. I still get the rare skip from 3-N when gearing down with the quick shifter (never with the clutch), but I am not too bothered as I feel that it has something to do with the speed of the downshift and the speed of travel of the bike.

Hope this helps. If that is not what is happening then please do mention it to the BMW tech as they can "re-adapt" the quick shifter electronically, which might help. But I do think it is the coordination thing.

Welcome to the site Charlie.
Your quick shifter should be working the same as your 2015 R1200R.
I would keep after your dealer to look for a fix.
Maybe try another dealer when you can travel more.

(04-12-2020, 08:39 AM)Lee Wrote: Welcome to the site Charlie.
Your quick shifter should be working the same as your 2015 R1200R.
I would keep after your dealer to look for a fix.
Maybe try another dealer when you can travel more.

Thanks Lee and Grumpy! I'll see how it works out. The bike only has 2k miles on it now, so maybe it will smooth out as I go along.

(04-11-2020, 06:00 PM)Charlie1053 Wrote: I have to say the quick shifter on the new bike is very clunky compared with the old one. Anyone else having a problem shifting down clutchless from 4th to 3rd? Mine locks sometimes and won't shift down and I have to use the clutch to get into 3rd. It's an intermittent problem, though, and the dealer says he hasn't seen it during test rides of the bike. Just wondering whether anyone else has experienced this...--Charlie

Agree with Lee except I would say, it should work better than the 2015 R.

That said, general experience seems to imply a break-in period over which the shifter works better and better. Whether mechanical or rider, we can't say.

In the end - agree - don't let the dealer off the hook of your warranty.

(04-12-2020, 06:51 AM)Grumpy Goat Wrote: Charlie - Welcome to the forum and to RS ownership!

The R1250RS I test rode had no issues with the quickshifter, which I found to be very similar to my 2016 R1200RS, and there was no sticking up or down.

One thing that I did find earlier on is that until you get that hand-foot coordination down-pat, there will be a few times when the bike just will not shift up to down without using the clutch, and this may be your problem.

It is very important that when shifting up, the throttle has to be at the very least constant or increasing - the faster the increase the smoother the shift. Likewise, when shifting down, the throttle has to be closed, i.e. you have to be rotating forward. Unlike with shifting up, keeping it constant may not work and the shift lever will seem to be stuck no matter how you press it.

It all makes sense when you think of what a "quick" shifter is designed to do. It is not designed to be used softly / gently, but is designed for aggressive riding and deliberate positive gear changing. Don't treat it like a pseudo-automatic transmission, and it will work well all the time.

Mine has close to 48k on it and is as smooth as anything. I still get the rare skip from 3-N when gearing down with the quick shifter (never with the clutch), but I am not too bothered as I feel that it has something to do with the speed of the downshift and the speed of travel of the bike.

Hope this helps. If that is not what is happening then please do mention it to the BMW tech as they can "re-adapt" the quick shifter electronically, which might help. But I do think it is the coordination thing.

Thanks, Grumpy. I'l see if I can get the 'coordination thing' going right, and if not I'll see if the dealer can re-adapt the shifter.

(04-12-2020, 05:59 PM)Charlie1053 Wrote: Thanks, Grumpy. I'l see if I can get the 'coordination thing' going right, and if not I'll see if the dealer can re-adapt the shifter.

Good plan. I had a similar experience which is why I suggested that it could be a coordination thing. Even after some time having the bike and thinking I was “expert” at quick shifting using GASP, I experienced this lack of shifting issue. It is only after I made sure that I was consciously doing it the right way that it stopped. The fact that it happened only rarely meant that the dealer could not reproduce it and of course nothing shows on the computer. Once the muscle memory is recalibrated it should not happen again. At least that experience.


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