BMW Service - R1150R battery removal 

Impossible for someone normal change a simple battery 😮. What an absurd BMW complication

Did this today. What a life saver. Great video , and you're a natural teacher. All hail!

I'm doing this tomorrow, my battery didn't outlast this winter. No wonder the Germans lose their wars, when they have to take apart oil radiators, fuel tank, air filter, the snorkel, four pipes and some electricals to access the battery! My other bike, a Guzzi Daytona, only needs to remove the seat (I know, we also lost a few wars).

Been riding Japanese bikes for 50 years, these beamers are a different animal. Thanks so much for your efforts 👌🏻 I'm going in now, wish me luck!

No way I would've attempted doing this work without seeing this video. I just finished and didn't break anything. Thanks for posting this.

Thank you Chris! You are a life saver! Over the winter my battery died, even though I charged it every 4 to 6 weeks. So today I worked alongside your video with two more friends watching for support. Your presentation of "The battery!" gave us a really good laugh. Thank you for your dedication and excellent commentaries. Please keep it up! Christian

Just picked up a 2006 in immaculate condition, just a dead battery. I’ve never taken the tank off a bike but this video made the operation easy. Thankfully my bike already has the SS disconnects. New battery in, buttoned up and ready to roll! Thanks for the vid Chris, much appreciated 🍻

Chris I appreciate your video I never would have known how to get to the battery and was intimidated thinking about replacing my weak battery. I’ve had the bike on a Battery Tender all winter, I went to start it, it fired then click, click, click. Been riding Harleys and Asian bikes over fifty years, in fact I’ve been selling bikes 20 years, this is my first BMW. This project seemed overwhelming and I new I didn’t want to have the bike towed to a BMW dealer. Now that I have the confidence to to the job I just need to get out to the garage and do it. Thanks again Chris!

So great to see your extra visuals of hand position and direction of pull. Excellent work

Hey Chris, want to tell you thanks for making this video. Thanks! I've used it several times to remind myself of the order of procedure. 😊

from North-Italy tanx for the instructions .....great work !!!!!!

This was very helpful, thank you for taking the time to make this video!

The first time I removed the battery on an '04 R1150R that I owned for a few years, I managed to do it without removing the gas tank. To this day, I still don't know how I did it. The experience was so traumatic, I must have repressed that memory LOL. Soon afterwards, I bought a Clymer manual and became pretty adept at removing the battery. Other than that, I loved that bike and always wished I had kept it. Thanks for the great vids Chris!

Fantastic job Chris. I'll be doing this on my r1150r this weekend. I appreciate the work you put into this. All goes I'll visit your patreon.

Another thank you from Copenhagen, Denmark. You are a true professional and a pleasure to watch and learn from. Klaus

Nice instructional video Chris! I've been turning wrenches on BMW bikes a long time also. Reading some of these comments about how difficult "some things are to do" strikes me funny. Owning a BMW and working on it requires you do things precisely , and in order. Great job showing how to do it....even if it is just a simple "battery change"! FN Good to have you back!

Going to look at a 2002 R1150R next week. Thanks for all the great vids. Really enjoy your channel.

I like the ghost flames they are tastefully done👍I have a 04 rockster which is pretty well the same bike you are working on. It's my first BMW and I love it. You are a top notch BMW mechanic and I have definitely learned some techniques from you. Thanks for sharing your expertise 👍

Love your videos, Chris, and so glad I have a ‘73 R50/5 - 2 minutes to replace battery, including coffee break! 😂

Thanks Chris that is very nice and helpful

You made that look EASY! Thank you. Was not quite as easy as it looked, but I managed to get through it. Really appreciate this video!

👍🏻. I took a rental R1150R all round BC Canada one summer holiday, two with soft luggage. Great bike and a great place to ride it. Thank you for the post.

Great to have you back mate!! and yes regarding this video my finger got squished between tank and shockmount

I'm watching your videos Chris, thanks a lot for your help. You're a great guy.

Great video. Super simple. Thank you. Alan

thanks, great tutorial. now my bike will see parts of the netherlands again!

Great to see you back with solid opinions and a great instructional video. Loved it....!

I got lucky. I recently replaced the battery on a 1995 R1100R I purchased last year. I was able to unbolt, and lift the rear of the tank to access the battery.

I know I would have broken something for sure without your help Thank You very much

thank you for sharing. Expert mechanic and it shows! great patience.

I will own a BMW bike sometime in the future. In the meantime, your videos are best enjoyed with a good drink (tea, coffee, beer, wine, whisky, etc.)!

Thanks Chris. I was pretty unsure of my abilities to get the battery out. I watched this video twice and I'm sure I can do this now. I'm going to install a AGM battery not lead acid. My first BMW

Thanks, learnt a few things here.

Thanks for your instructions. What a carry on to change a battery. I'd have been tearing what's left of my hair out!

Thanks!

Dzięki, dobry instruktarz, masz talent

Very good explanation! But what a work for just xchanging a simple battery!!! BMW could have done it MUCH better. Greetings from Germany!

This was so helpful, thanks!!

Excellent video! Note: For all those of you who say "well gee, just use the accessory socket if it dies..." That's fine but BMW does NOT use a universal size for their socket. They use a different (EU?) size, at least on the 04 model I have. My advice is the next time the dealer or someone replaces the battery, add a pigtail anyway JIC.

Thank for reminding me that my Honda is easier to work on......👍 Safe rides 🙏🏍

Great video! It was really helpful thank you so much!

Great instructions, thanks.

Thanks for this video, I have to remove my front shock this weekend & was wondering about the correct way to remove my tank, now I know 👍

Thanks for another great how-to.

Thanks Chris great vid. And I seen your name mentioned in the latest issue of MOA magazine 👍👍👍

Thanks, wouldn't made it without this video!

10 year 👏 not bad for a battery well Done 🤗

Good to see you again.

Perfect. Un motard français qui te remercie beaucoup ✌

Wow, someone remind me to never buy that model...what a pain in the D***. Good to have you back Chris!

Realy, REALLY, helpful video, thank you!

Back in business ;) Nice job Chris

Wow... and I thought it was harder on the RT! At least you can wiggle it out the side on the RS! Kinda glad I don't have that bike anymore.

Good movie, and well explained to a beginner. Thanks from Norway

Thank you very much Chris!

Merci beaucoup pour ta vidéo.Perfect

Great to have you back on the air, We are glad to have been a part of the great migration.How are the Skateboarders.This is a great reason not to buy an R.

One of the better and cheaper batteries I got was a wheel chair battery. I took the old battery to a battery store and asked them to get me a wheel chair battery as large as that one or as close to that size without going over. Turned out to be one of the longer lasting batteries I had, and cheaper too.

Hello Chris, very nice video! I am looking forward to seeing more of your projects. I drive an R 1150 GS built in 08.2003 with 81000Km and would like to do a complete inspection and hope to get many tips from you. Greetings from Mainz (Germany)

I replaced my battery in my K1100 LT with a lithium iron battery about 7 years ago and it's still working fine. I had thought it might be bad because it wasn't taking a charge, but that was because it was still too cold outside. They are funny that way, but it seems to be the best battery for me.

Pourquoi faire simple quand on peut faire compliquer ?

This is my rockster ..but someone has experiment on it ..:-)) Cheers Master..

Thanks, very helpful.

Muchas gracias explicado perfecto.Grascias

you look crazy ,.. you know ??? wonderful video, very well explained !!! thanks ..... You look crazy you know ?? Me too ...!!!

Спасибо, Крис!! Thank You Very Much!

Thanks! I couldn't have done the job without your detailed description. (Just curious why I have two screws left over....)

Thanks !🤔

Thanks Chris - nice to see you back working on the bikes! Now, am I the only one here to think that the design of the battery fitment is absolutely horrendous on this model? You have to remove the stupid plastic 'enhancements' then remove the fuel tank just to access the battery!!! What sort of design is this? It puts me off BMW and looking at Royal Enfield. There is too much of this stupid design on bikes nowadays and it is time designers got sensible and practical. Anyway, rant over and back to changing the brake pads on my 1996 R1100RT which I have owned and maintained myself since 1997. I ride it without the side fairings fitted which lets me keep an eye on what is going on, gives me the chance of a roadside repair should it break down and makes maintenance much easier. It's been a good reliable bike, still on the original clutch at 81,000 miles and plenty meat still showing on the friction plate. Keep up the good work Chris.

Perfetto. Grazie Chris!

my 2007 Harley Fatboy had the plastic connector on the fuel line going to the fuel injector.I don't know if there was a recall or not but I changed to the metal one which was crimped to the new hose. Good Lord... what are these manufactures thinking lol....newer Harleys have this hidden way down low battery set up fiasco.....crazy

well explained. great help.Thanks alot.👍👍👍

Oh yeah…. It’s gonna be fun changing the battery on my 2004 R1100S 😜😜😜

Agreed! Great video! Dropped the bike while trying to put it up on the center stand (2-man job BTW) and caused some fuel line damage with gas spraying all over the place after starting the bike! Feel much more confident now that I can safely remove the tank without causing any further damage to my Yellow Jacket! Thanks Chris!

Dziękuję.super dokładnie Pan pokazał i objaśnił.

Thanks for your great video. I just bought an 2002 BMW R1150R. It did not come with a Rider's manual and the PDF one I got off of the internet is really compressed so the pics are squished. My question to you is......How do you adjust the clock on the R1150R? Thanks in advance.......Russell D.

Merci pour le tuto...you're hi level...Pat from France🇫🇷

grazie!

Hi Chris, I notice this bike has a lot of auxiliary lights on, is this all wired directly to the battery? Can the stock electrical system accommodate this?

Hi Chris, Thanks for the video... Is there anything special we need to do when starting the bike after having had the fuel tank off for a couple of days? When we started it after having replaced the battery it missed a lot, then eventually died. We checked and we have spark and fuel. Head scratcher. Any help is greatly appreciated! Thanks - John

Very helpful!

i found about plastic disconnects the hard way.

8:25 "Why is he taking the F-ing air box apart, the battery is right there". Funny I thought the same right as you said that. BTW, I hate these air boxes, the tabs, for me at least, are a PITA to align correctly. I have thought more than once, cones would look good.

Grazieeeee🏍

That battery lasted 10 years !! Fantastic set of instructions there on accessing the battery Chris. Question: How come the batteries on my bikes don't last that long? The most I've ever got was 5 years !

This is a design failure, it's nuts.

That seat and the flame job on that bike is horrific. Oh my God that is horrible.

Great vid!

I found something that is easier on a RT!

Another great vid! Interesting mount for the aux lights that are near the headlight. Who made it and is it still available? Thanks

Hi Chris, my R1150R has an issue with the electric wiring, more specifically the wiring for the blinker, horn and emergency lights for the left hand. Initially it stopped working depending on how far I'd turn to the right. Now it stopped working alltogether - the battery is fine, right blinker works just fine and the bike is up and running. Only those three functions on the left handle stopped working. Is there something less invasive I can check, e.g. if some microconnector has gotten loose or is it a more extensive job, done by a workshop. I don't have time, tools nor expertise to dismantle the bike as in the video. Many thanks for your reply in advance.

Dear Chris, I turn to a specialist. My K100 has a lock cylinder in the battery area. What does it disable?

That much work to release a strap? Sounds like a design flaw to remedy during reassembly.

Gosh darn it. I can't disconnect the hoses before the big bolt... It's a tube inside a hose.. wtf!

Remove half of motorcycle just for the Battery change, only genius Bavarian engineers could have this idea! Love this bike, ride it and enjoy every second or the road, but locate Battery under FuelTank for whaaaat? Every time it’s pain!!! All my Japanese bikes before- just open the seat and battery is available.

Question: although unrelated to this video, same bike. Mine is a 2000 and wanting to replace the in tank fuel filter. I’m concerned about snapping or stripping the bolt studs on the tank. Suggestions? Soak in penetration fluid before and use anti seize on the before placing them ... anything else you’d suggest? Thanks!!

so 2 hours?

my 1150R needs valve adjustment - I have no Idea how to do it...I wish Chris was my neighbor...

i replaced the battery and just after on my first ride ABS failure light appear, ABS module checked not showing any error, could be wrong battery? just bought from eBay Exide 12V 18ah. any idea pls help.

I use the "YUASA YT19BL-BS" in my R1100R. The YUASA is the exact same size and shape of the original BMW OEM battery. It is a sealed cell. The battery arrives with the acid in a separate bottle. You add the acid then seal it so you know your battery is fresh. I then charge it with a 2 stage smart charger. I never get ABS faults with YUASA. I got mine from Amazon. I once tried the Westco battery, but it was physically smaller and required a spacer. I used to get ABS faults with the Westco. If your bike has over 100,000 miles, I say go ahead and replace the starter. An after market one will work just fine. I ride 12 month a year. I typically replace the battery every 5 years. I never heard of a battery lasting 10 years. I wonder if its possible to pop start an R1100R. I never tried it.