Integral ABS lights on

[roebling]

I recently bought an '04 BMW R1150RT with iABS brake issues. Braking was awful, the front brake was firm but ineffective & the rear brake pedal felt completely unattached. ABS issue, I guessed, since, the Brake Failure light stayed ON constantly. Reading up on it, I replaced all the old, original brake lines, I added speed bleeders, I checked & cleaned discs & pads and I refilled the four reservoirs & bled the brake lines. Now brakes work great, front & back, but both the Brake Failure light and the hazard ∆ (!) light are constantly on. As there's no entry on the ABS troubleshooting sticker for both lights ON, I'm stumped. Any ideas?

[towerworker]

It's a very slight possibility that it may be a battery (low voltage) issue. But more likely a problem within the abs pump. A new ABS pump is $2400 from BMW. You might find a used one on BeemerBoneyard. As of last summer that pump could not be rebuilt (I have an '04 R that had ABS--it now does not) That particular ABS system was very problematic. I got tired of the problems and pulled the system completely. Not a difficult job and now brake service is much easier.

[vwdoctor]

Remove the iABS unit and enjoy your life.

[peels]

Remove the iABS unit and enjoy your life.

this.

if you need some help...find my thread on it. PM me if you have questions. PLUS there's plenty of info. it is a little labor intensive, and there is a leap of faith(in yourself) required the more parts you remove. ESPECIALLY, cutting the wiring to the module itself. "point of no return"

I do not miss it the abs AT ALL.

[peels]

FYI, it usually IS the voltage. turned out mine was THAT, plus debris in the line, and caused my rear brake to drag, eating MPG and brake discs.

follow this, take your time. there's some wires that the color is awful similar, and causes issues.

zero dollars.

http://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread ... ABS-system

[towerworker]

You do not need to cut the wiring to the module. You can remove the portion of the module the harness connects to and the harness connects back to give you your brake light function. Otherwise you need to do a little bit of relay wiring. I made the mistake of not reading fully what VWdoctor said. Easily corrected but a bit more work.

[wncbmw]

Before you remove the ABS, and remove the extra value of ABS at trade-in or resell, check the battery and voltage. It happened to me, actually on the way out of town on a trip. I was actually losing braking power when the lights came on! A stop by the BMW dealer for a diagnosis showed low voltage since it had sat a while. I opted to ride on and after a bit the battery charged back up and the lights went away and the brakes returned. Worse case, a new battery.

Worth checking out first.

I heard there is a guy, I think in Idaho, that will rebuild them for a fraction of the cost of a new one.

Good luck!

[peels]

You do not need to cut the wiring to the module. You can remove the portion of the module the harness connects to and the harness connects back to give you your brake light function. Otherwise you need to do a little bit of relay wiring. I made the mistake of not reading fully what VWdoctor said. Easily corrected but a bit more work.

truth. Nope you do not.... i just re-purposed that relay to run the lights. In hindsight, that would probably be better. but again, I had liquid ego assistance so I went for it. (beer) my problem with it I think was voltage mixed with lack of use during cold weather to begin with. but the squeal was buggin me, plus the rear drag problem. My MAIN concern after much reading and deliberating was.. if it DOES fail, what will happen, and where will I be? far from home? Its a cool system... but.... meh. Bonus was, the bike lost 13 lbs, and maintenance is simpler. and I learned some stuff about my bike....

WNC. good point. I didn't feel the ABS added any value. Since I paid so little for the bike, I don't expect much. but, I don't plan on selling it, ever. I'm still only in the 20k's mileage.

the relay wiring wasn't as bad as I thought, thanks to others who have already done it and shared their insight(and wiring diagrams)

[AZBMWRIDER]

Here's a link to the repair shop for ABS units .

http://modulemaster.com/rebuilds/produc ... bs-repair/

[towerworker]

I emailed those folks before I pulled my abs pump. As of that time (last fall) they could not find a source for repair parts for the iABS system in my bike (04 R). So as far as I could figure my only option was either shell out $2400 for a new pump on a bike worth maybe $3500 or pull the pump. If BMW could make a new pump affordable I'd go that route. But I rode without ABS for very many years. I'll do it again.

[wncbmw]

If it was not the charging or could not be rebuilt, I would also remove the unit and almost have once or twice. But for now, it's still working. And at almost 90K, it might not be around this time next year, so resell is a concern. Not worth much as it is anyway with that mileage!

[towerworker]

The iABS has such a negative reputation one the bike gets a bit of age on it. I'm convince the key to it's operational ability is annual ABS service. It's a bit of a pita but it's necessary if you want it to be relatively reliable. I think the 3 years I was off my bike and not performing the service on the abs system probably hurt it. I think it was on the 4th year before I realized I hadn't done it. Shame on me. Right now the hardest thing I have to do is relearn the proper braking technique. Got so used to totally ignoring the rear brake pedal.

[peels]

The iABS has such a negative reputation one the bike gets a bit of age on it. I'm convinced the key to it's operational ability is annual ABS service. It's a bit of a pita but it's necessary if you want it to be relatively reliable. I think the 3 years I was off my bike and not performing the service on the abs system probably hurt it. I think it was on the 4th year before I realized I hadn't done it. Shame on me. Right now the hardest thing I have to do is relearn the proper braking technique. Got so used to totally ignoring the rear brake pedal.

100% agreed. fairly certain my bike didn't get this. as it sat for long periods, as evidenced by only 13k on the clock in 12 yrs before I bought it.

also convinced that low mileage on these bikes is worse than excessive mileage. they are built to ride, not sit. all the problems I'm finding have nothing to do with wear, just time and neglect.. a sitting bike is a neglected bike.

but, under no circumstances would I pay 2400 dollars to have it fixed though. the bike was only 4. lol that never entered my mind.

[EasyBee]

Since I bought mine, a 2002 R1150R in Vienna Red I've had the iABS extensively flushed and serviced every year. It had done only 9000 miles in 12 years.
I've ridden 10000 in 2 years and love the bike. But like you already wrote : full flush of the DOT4 every year, all reservoirs and lines.