I have been through the entry debacle.
Pic 1 is the manual handling at Nepal.......slide it and lift it courtesy of about 8 small Nepalese.
Pic 2 is the strip needed to change the water impeller. Take off all protection, pipes, covers, expaust pipe, considering that the water pump/impellor is the single most troblesome item on a Dakar having to spend an hour disassembling the bike to access it makes little sense. I have had water pump issues 4 times so far. 2 mechanical (BMW) failures, two mechanics failure.
I can still not get an answer from Thai Air as to my freight cost. Estimate $350 (US) actual $850 (us). I think I was robbed and I believe the freight forwarder Eagle Eyes has a pretty good business of tricking foreign riders. Come to Nepal for cheap freight to BKK ....yeah !
So then it was my turn at the Bangkok BMW dealer. The biggest dealer said "we might fit you in next week" so I went to the other guys.
Two days..........later I got out but at a fair price I reckon ! The main problem was my water leak. My mechanic ( with no English ) was sure it was the seals on the impeller shaft, and he was right. It seem there was a bad job done in the UK.
Then there was the matter of the tyre and tube I had carried 20,000k, the tyre fitted but the BMW dealer in the UK had supplied the wrong tube ! So the old one went back in.
If this depression puts BMW out of business great !
I have said often enough that the main problems with a BMW is BMW themselves. Incompetent is a word that springs to mind !
I went on theweb to get a GPS map. Garmin have a Thai map, but it is out of date apparantly and still costs $400, but the Southeast Asia Map which I need is only supplied from the US on an SD card. So if you want the map when you are in Asia hard luck. You can have it in the US however !
If there was a thing I really wanted from this depression that the US have put the world in, it would be that companies like Garmin (and Motorrad, BMW bike servicing) go out of business and let someone with a focus on customer service get into the market. They deliver a bad product, out of date before its released and there is no way you can actually talk to these people, or even email them !
BMW have turned their dealerships into "sales centres". You are a customer if you are buying something but if you want service you are a just bloody nuisance. Their bike design is "rubbish" as well. put water into the radiator I have to ;
Take off a luggage box at the rear of the bike
Take off a hatch cover, to release the seat,
Remove the seat,
Take off the indicator light ( at the front) 4 screws,
Undo 3 screws to take off the front left body part,
Then access the radiator cap.
Thats supposed to be good design for a touring bike, not a commuting bike, this is for rough road long distance where you may actually want to check the water. Its a bit like taking your clothes off to blow your nose.
They do not supply sufficient tools to repair a punture (or put water in the radiator). Or a centre stand which made oiling the chain difficult or fixing a puncture absurdly difficult (lie the bike down !). Anyone considering a new 800GS would be well advised to look at the cost of getting on the road before buying one to go touring ! Like, bike protection, racks for panniers, tools, I had to change, handle bars, suspension, fit centre stand, change panniers (plastic to metal) and those metal panniers are just plain dangerous to the legs in a slow/stationary fall. Touratach should acyually be sued for that design. The rubbish required that Touratech supply to make the 650 GS suitable for touring is just silly, including the hand protectors that break if the bike falls over.
Well that must be enough.
Its actually pleasant to be in Bangkok agian. I love the food and the calmness of this place.
nzl04
