3rd Gear Problems 1996 R1100GS

[Kawidad]

If you do a hybrid M94/97 do you have to change other things in the driveline? Isn't it a different driveshaft to accommodate the different/changed M97 hybrid? And, would that lead to differences in the FD or subparts?

[papanovember]

No...the shafts are the same size/length and the input shaft gear looks/is the same...the M97 gears were manufactured differently, but they are the same ratio and interchangeable shaft wise, at least that's what it looks like to me and what my research has turned up...But I will not have the final results from my rebuild for another month or so...but I will post. I just need to find an alternative, for measuring the end float on the shafts, without buying the BMW shim plate.

[hoss18]

I have a hybrid 94/97 gearbox in my R1100GS. It was created by necessity...The rear housing of my M97 gearbox broke at the frame mount and I couldnt find a rear housing from a M97, the only secondhand housing I could find came from a M94. The only difference is the end bearing that sits in the rear housing. On the M97 its a closed bearing and a larger external diameter than the M94 open bearing - however both have the same internal (shaft) diameter. Its been in a year now and shifts great.

[papanovember]

Hey Hoss18, Glad to hear it is working for you. Did you reshim or just use your old shims after you replaced the case?

[Poway]

Thank you for info on the BMW technique on shifting. It's made a big difference already. Hopefully I'll get a longer life on my tranny, than the previous owner. 58,000 miles tranny life for an expensive bike, is disgusting!

[Multisurface Rider]

Got lucky and found a M97 transmission, picked up today with 33xxx miles on it, seems to be in good condition. I drained the oil and it looks ok, very little signs of fork wear.

I beleive I am going to install it wthout opening it up and checking it out.

What do you think?

I do plan on fixing my M94, this will be a temp to ride for a while and I will find out how good it is, if it does not skip in 2nd gear, its good. Fingers crossed.

[slartidbartfast]

Unless you plan on selling the M94, I'd suggest just storing it somewhere dry and riding with the M97 - If it's OK to begin with, it will probably outlast the rest of the bike.

[Multisurface Rider]

Originally Posted by slartidbartfast

Unless you plan on selling the M94, I'd suggest just storing it somewhere dry and riding with the M97 - If it's OK to begin with, it will probably outlast the rest of the bike.

I agree.

I will get it going and see how the M97 works, if it does not skip or anything else, I will ride it. I did read somewhere the the input shaft on the M97 is a weak link and was told 2nd gear is not undercut.

[Multisurface Rider]

Got it back together today and took it for a little ride. Everything seems to be in working order, it really shifts good and so far stays in gear. I only road about 20 miles, just enough to check it out. No noises, shifts are clunky and sturdy. I got a good M97.

[switch]

Originally Posted by Multisurface Rider

Got it back together today and took it for a little ride. Everything seems to be in working order, it really shifts good and so far stays in gear. I only road about 20 miles, just enough to check it out. No noises, shifts are clunky and sturdy. I got a good M97.

How would you compare the M97 to the M94? More noise, less noise? That is, ignoring skipping.

[Multisurface Rider]

Originally Posted by switch

How would you compare the M97 to the M94? More noise, less noise? That is, ignoring skipping.

The M94 seems to shift eaiser and smoother, I beleive this is because the gears are not undercut. When shifting the M97 you can feel the the gears go into place and stay there. You have to be more direct when shifting the M97, it feels like you have to feel your way around the gearbox, but when shifting it feels solid. No noise unless you shift to slow then it grinds. It does work better when you have a little pressure on the shifter before pulling the clutch. I can tell the M97 has undercut gears.

I only rode about 20 miles, but it does feel better over all.

[Multisurface Rider]

GS is fixed now, M97 is the trick or get yours undercut. Bruno will do it, nice guy, told me exactly was wrong with my bike and what it would take to fix it.

[Dan Cãta]

That's why I just got an M97 gearbox for my '96 RT Just in case...

Dan.

[UncleMark]

I put in an M97 a couple of weeks ago, and it is great. The only glitch is if I shift weakly, I can hit a false neutral between second and third. I had to swap out a cracked front case on the transmission I got, but I found that pretty easy. I did the best I could to measure the clearances, and ended up using the original shims.

[Multisurface Rider]

I hope that others that are a newbie with these old BMW's will find this tread before they do what I did, go into the tranny 2 times before I figured out what the problem was.

If you have a older BMW, check to see what transmission you have in it. If it is not a M97 start looking for one or be ready to ship the parts to someone to undercut the gears.